B2B marketing is changing right in front of us. And Account-Based Marketing? It’s following hotly on its heels. ABM is no longer just about sales conversions, personalized targeting or streamlined funnel tactics. To truly tap into growth opportunities, ABM needs to become relationship marketing for the modern age. Rooted in empathy, collaboration and resonance.
Let’s take a look at what this means in practice.
Shifting the ABM focus
We’re all familiar with the traditional ABM model. It zeroes in on accounts that are in-market and ready to buy. But buying behaviors are evolving. So why should we continue to follow a model that no longer fits today’s landscape?
It’s reported that 78% of shortlists are set before research begins, and 71% of buyers choose their first option. The numbers speak for themselves: trust and preference are built long before a purchase is imminent.
If marketers want to seriously capitalize on this, they need to shift focus from the last mile to the entire buyer journey, creating relevant, human relationship at every stage. Not just when a buyer is ready to convert.
Not just another project: building an ABM culture
This brings us neatly to our next point. ABM shouldn’t be just another campaign or tool in the marketer’s arsenal. It should be a foundational culture across your entire organization. It might sound excessive, but the proof is in the pudding: B2B organizations with tightly aligned sales and marketing teams achieve 24% faster revenue growth over three years than those operating in silos. Yet only 20% of B2B marketers feel their ABM program is fully embedded in their business operations. The disconnect is impossible to ignore—and building an ABM culture bridges that gap. This means:
- Aligning goals
- Collaborating deeply across departments and functions
- Viewing every touchpoint as an opportunity to nurture trust and move the buyer forward
The secret sauce of ABM success: Human empathy
We can talk about precision targeting and scaled personalization, but it isn’t enough. The real differentiator is putting the humanity back into ABM. Especially in the age of AI, where everything looks and sounds the same—cold, repetitive and emotionally void.
Empathy is the one word that matters most to sales success, as Gartner’s Brent Adamson highlights. When marketers and sales teams engage directly with account contacts—listening, understanding, adapting—they drive far greater impact.
- 56% of B2B marketers have reported an increase in sales as a direct result of ABM strategies.
- Deals close 67% faster when accounts are engaged with resonant, personalized ABM content
These results don’t come from automation alone. They’re founded on meaningful conversations, practical creativity and a commitment to truly understanding your buyers.
The takeaways
- Build relationships across the full journey, not just the last mile.
- Embed ABM as a company-wide culture, not a one-off project.
- Prioritize human empathy, creativity, and resonance as the engine behind every interaction.
Brands today need to become more than just vendors if they want to build lasting customer relationships. They need to become trusted partners, advisors and voices that matter. Done right, this is exactly what ABM can help brands tap into. But to do so means putting relationships at the center of your strategy—not just as an afterthought in the footnotes.
