What 12 Account-Based Marketing Examples Spark Big Deals?
Key Highlights
Account-based marketing (ABM) is a strategy where marketing and sales teams collaborate to target high-value accounts.
Deep personalization: custom content, targeted ads, and tailored outreach are the core of effective ABM.
ABM shortens sales cycles by delivering account-specific value early, reducing friction in decision-making.
A strong ABM framework relies on firmographic, technographic, and intent data to identify best-fit accounts.
Segmentation and stakeholder mapping let teams craft messages that resonate with each decision-maker's role.
Multi-touch campaigns (ads, email, events, direct mail) create consistent, high-impact account experiences.
Real-world examples (Microsoft, Salesforce, Calendly, Personify, Intridea, Invoca, LiveRamp/DocuSign, Salsify, Hubspot, Zendesk) show ABM's creativity and measurable results.
SmartCue provides scalable, account-specific interactive demos that you can embed directly into emails and landing pages to boost personalization and accelerate conversions.
Landing big deals can feel like a slow, unpredictable process, especially when your marketing team is stretched thin. Traditional marketing casts too wide a net, leaving little room for the personalized engagement that enterprise-level accounts need. This results in missed opportunities, long sales cycles, and gaps in the pipeline, leaving your team frustrated and unable to convert interest into actual sales.
The solution? Account-Based Marketing (ABM). ABM targets high-value accounts with tailored messaging and strategic outreach, ensuring your marketing efforts speak directly to the needs of the decision-makers. By focusing on personalization, ABM turns awareness into meaningful conversations and real intent.
This guide will showcase 12 ABM campaign examples that have successfully sparked big deals, demonstrating how personalized strategies can drive engagement, shorten sales cycles, and convert high-value prospects into customers.
What is Account-Based Marketing (ABM)?
Account-Based Marketing (ABM) is a highly focused strategy that treats each target company as a unique market. By aligning sales and marketing teams, ABM ensures that efforts are concentrated on high-value accounts with personalized campaigns aimed at building long-term, meaningful relationships. The goal is to turn each account into a strategic partner, fostering deeper connections that drive business results.
Unlike broader marketing strategies, ABM starts by identifying the ideal customer profile, allowing marketing efforts to be tailored specifically for key decision-makers within those organizations. This personalized approach ensures that resources are focused on the most promising prospects, leading to stronger engagement and a higher return on investment.
This emphasis on quality over quantity results in a higher return on investment. Real-world Account Based Marketing campaign examples demonstrate how this strategy leads to stronger engagement, higher ROI, and a more efficient path to conversion.
How Does Account-Based Marketing Work?
ABM works by aligning sales and marketing from day one. Both teams identify high-value target accounts, research their priorities, and map out their buying committee. This groundwork shapes the campaign.
Once the insights are gathered, teams create specific marketing activities based on that account's challenges and goals. This can include:
Custom Content: Teams create tailored assets like mini case studies, industry-focused reports, or personalized landing pages that speak directly to an account's specific pain points. The goal is to show deep understanding and immediate relevance.
Targeted Ads: Using IP and role-based targeting, ads follow the account across platforms like LinkedIn and display networks. This keeps your brand visible without wasting budget on audiences outside the target company.
Personalized Outreach: Sales sends highly customized emails that reference the account's challenges, ongoing initiatives, or tech stack. Each message is crafted to match the decision-maker's role, priorities, and buying intent.
Exclusive Events or Demos: Instead of generic sessions, teams host invite-only product demos or workshops centered on the account's real use cases. This gives stakeholders a hands-on, relevant experience that builds trust and accelerates decisions.
The result is a streamlined journey with fewer barriers and a far more compelling experience for the buyer.
What Does a Successful Account-Based Marketing Framework Include?
A solid ABM foundation starts with truly understanding who your best-fit accounts are. This clarity shapes every message, touchpoint, and strategy that follows. Here's what you should know:
Firmographic, Technographic, and Intent Data Analysis: These data types help identify the list of accounts most likely to convert. They ensure your outreach is grounded in real buyer behavior.
Researching Business Objectives and Pain Points: Deep discovery reveals what each account cares about and is struggling with. This insight drives highly relevant positioning.
Designing a Custom Customer Journey: Each account receives a journey shaped around their timing and goals. This personalized flow increases engagement at every stage.
Using Personalized Landing Pages, Webinars, and Ads: These assets deliver account-specific education and value. They keep decision-makers engaged with relevant content that feels hand-crafted.
This sales framework ensures every touchpoint feels intentional - a major reason why successful account-based marketing campaigns USA examples consistently outperform generic outreach.
What 12 Proven Account-Based Marketing Examples Boost Engagement Fast?
Studying real-world success stories is one of the great ways to understand what effective ABM looks like in action. Below are twelve real-world B2B account based marketing examples that demonstrate creativity, personalization, and strategic alignment.
1. Microsoft: Inspiring the Next Generation Through Culture-Driven ABM
Microsoft launched an ABM campaign targeting tech-curious teenagers by partnering with NBA star Donovan Mitchell. This shift away from traditional enterprise targeting allowed them to build emotional connections with a younger demographic.
What Microsoft Did Well
In-Person Experiences: Hands-on tech events allowed young audiences to discover Microsoft tools in an interactive, memorable way, something a generic ad campaign could never replicate.
Authentic Social Storytelling: Donovan Mitchell's influence made the campaign feel relatable, helping Microsoft bridge the gap between tech and youth culture.
Strategic Influencer Alignment: Choosing an athlete with strong youth engagement ensured the message reached the right audience at the right time.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Culture-led ABM remains powerful because younger audiences trust authentic voices more than brand messaging. In 2025 and beyond, companies targeting emerging potential buyers can use micro-influencers, experiential content, and creator-led engagement to build long-term brand affinity.
2. Salesforce: Hyper-Personalized Enterprise Engagement
Salesforce noticed that decision-makers inside large accounts were unaware of the breadth of Salesforce products their companies already used. They built personalized ABM plans to deepen adoption and expand account value.
What Salesforce Did Well
Account-Specific Strategy Plans: Each top account received a custom plan mapping its business goals to Salesforce solutions.
Direct, Consistent Communication:Sales teams nurtured relationships through regular check-ins, ensuring adoption aligned with client objectives.
Deep CRM Integration: Salesforce used internal data to identify usage gaps and opportunities, making outreach more relevant and timely.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Enterprise buyers expect personalization based on real insights. With advanced analytics and AI-powered intent data, modern ABM teams can replicate Salesforce's approach by identifying gaps, cross-sell opportunities, and expansion potential within existing customers.
3. Calendly: Reviving Stalled Pipelines
RollWorks helped Calendly reactivate prospects stuck in long decision cycles. Their multichannel ABM campaign focused on reigniting interest through creativity and precision.
What RollWorks Did Well
"Over-the-Line" Direct Mail Kit: A physical package containing checklists and testimonials helped prospects reconnect emotionally with their initial interest.
Lower-Funnel Education Ads: The ads reminded accounts why Calendly solved their pain points and nudged them toward conversion.
Tailored Email-to-Landing-Page Journey: Personalized landing pages created continuity that increased Calendly's appointment rates from 2.6% to 12.2%.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Prospects stall because priorities shift. Personalized re-engagement sequences, including curated direct mail, retargeting, and customized landing pages, remain some of the strongest ABM tools for recovering dormant sales pipeline in 2025.
4. Personify: Persona-Driven Precision Advertising
Personify improved its account engagement rate by replacing generic ads with messaging tailored to each account's unique persona.
What Personify Did Well
Persona Segmentation: They grouped top accounts into persona clusters, enabling sharper messaging tailored to each group’s concerns.
CRM-Driven Insights: Account data informed their ad creative, strengthening relevance and boosting click-through performance.
Hyper-Relevant Ads: Messaging addressed frustrations and aspirations directly, increasing engaged website sessions by an impressive 39x.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Modern ABM succeeds when every touchpoint feels intentional. With AI-enhanced segmentation and predictive analytics, today's marketers can personalize ad creatives at scale, just as Personify did, but with even greater accuracy.
5. Intridea: A Bold, One-to-One Billboard Play
To win Ogilvy's attention, Intridea rented a billboard across from their New York office with a cheeky message: "Ogle this, Ogilvy." This bold stunt earned them the meeting they wanted.
What Intridea Did Well
Extreme Hyper-Targeting: Their campaign focused entirely on one dream account with laser precision.
Memorable Humor: The playful, unexpected message cut through noise and positioned Intridea as creative risk-takers.
Custom Landing Page: The billboard traffic was funneled directly to a tailored site, ensuring clear next steps for Ogilvy.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
High-value accounts appreciate creativity. In a crowded digital world, bold offline tactics, billboards, unique packages, or physical experiences still cut through the noise and grab executive attention instantly.
6. Invoca: A High-Value Incentive for High-Value Prospects
At Dreamforce, Invoca offered Apple Watches to decision-makers from target accounts who booked a meeting. This incentive-based ABM tactic pulled in massive website traffic and high-intent conversations.
What Invoca Did Well
Desirable Incentive: The Apple Watch aligned with a tech audience and created irresistible urgency.
Clear Meeting CTA: The simplicity of "Book a call, get a watch" minimized friction and boosted conversions.
Target List Limitation: Only prequalified accounts were eligible, ensuring no wasted incentives.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Premium incentives still convert, especially in event-based ABM. Today, brands use exclusive demos, VIP gifts, premium swag, or custom incentives to break through conference clutter and secure high-value meetings s lead generation and pipeline targets. It's a prime example of ABM success achieved through a well-planned, high-touch incentive.
7. DocuSign: Multi-Touch Personalization for Enterprise Accounts
DocuSign targeted 15 Fortune 500 companies using coordinated messaging, thought-leadership events, personalized ads, and direct mail.
What DocuSign Did Well
Sales and Marketing Alignment: Both teams collaborated to pursue key accounts with shared messaging and goals.
Regional Executive Events: These sessions demonstrated expertise and allowed face-to-face trust-building with enterprise stakeholders.
Consistent Cross-Channel Messaging: Personalized ads, emails, and mailers reinforced the same story across every touchpoint.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Multi-touch consistency is essential for enterprise ABM. Modern platforms make it easier than ever to synchronize nurturing across email, events, ads, and sales, giving brands the same cohesion DocuSign achieved.
8. Salsify: Coordinated Campaigns to Increase Event Attendance
Salsify used ABM to increase attendance at a New York event, combining retargeting, personalized emails, and fast execution.
What Salsify Did Well
Strategic Account Targeting: They identified accounts most likely to attend and benefit from the event.
Marketing-Led Awareness and Sales-Led Follow-Up: Both departments worked in sync for timely, relevant outreach.
Rapid Deployment: The entire ABM campaign was launched within two hours ,yet exceeded attendance by 37%.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Event-based ABM is more relevant than ever. With hybrid, virtual, and in-person events growing, coordinated multichannel outreach ensures the right decision-makers show up and show interest.
9. HubSpot: Using Educational Content to Build Trust
HubSpot used educational content in its ABM strategy to engage decision-makers at high-value accounts. By offering resources like ebooks, webinars, and guides, they built relationships and demonstrated how their solutions addressed specific pain points.
What HubSpot Did Well
Content-Driven Strategy: HubSpot crafted highly targeted educational content tailored to the unique challenges of each account.
Lead Nurturing: Engaged decision-makers with thoughtful follow-ups, offering additional content based on their interests and needs.
Data-Driven Insights: Provided insights backed by data, showing the measurable impact of HubSpot's tools on similar businesses.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Educational ABM remains highly effective because it positions your brand as a trusted advisor. By offering insightful content, you can build rapport, demonstrate value, and move prospects through the decision-making process with less resistance.
10. Zendesk: Engaging with Video Messaging
Zendesk used video messaging in their ABM strategy to personalize outreach to key decision-makers. They sent customized video emails, addressing specific pain points of the target accounts, which helped them stand out in an otherwise crowded inbox.
What Zendesk Did Well
Video Personalization: Videos were tailored to each target account, providing a unique and direct connection with decision-makers.
Clear Value Proposition: The videos demonstrated how Zendesk's platform could specifically help the account solve its challenges.
Easy-to-Action CTA: Each video included a clear call to action, making it easy for prospects to take the next step.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Video ABM is becoming a game-changer as it helps humanize outreach and creates a stronger emotional connection. Personalized videos continue to stand out and drive higher engagement, especially in industries where decisions are made by a handful of key people.
11. Gong: Data-Driven ABM with Sales Enablement
Gong utilized its conversation analytics platform to deliver tailored insights to key decision-makers. Their ABM strategy focused on leveraging data to show prospects how they could optimize sales performance with Gong's solutions.
What Gong Did Well
Data-Driven Insights: Gong leveraged its own platform to analyze conversations and present real, actionable insights to their target accounts.
Sales Enablement Integration: They used the platform's analytics to highlight specific sales conversations and gaps in performance, helping prospects visualize the value.
Tailored Messaging: Each target account received a personalized demonstration showing how Gong could directly solve their specific sales challenges.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Data-driven ABM is incredibly powerful as it builds credibility and trust. In 2025, more companies are integrating AI-powered insights and sales analytics to create hyper-relevant campaigns that address the unique needs of each account.
12. Adobe: Targeting High-Value Accounts with Personalized Content
Adobe used ABM to target top-tier accounts with content specifically tailored to each account's industry and needs. By offering personalized resources, such as case studies and whitepapers, they effectively nurtured relationships with key decision-makers.
What Adobe Did Well
Segmentation Based on Industry Needs: Adobe segmented accounts by industry and crafted content tailored to address specific challenges faced by each sector.
Showcasing Client Success: Adobe leveraged case studies from similar businesses, demonstrating how their solutions had successfully addressed industry-specific issues.
Multi-Channel Content Distribution: Adobe used multiple marketing channels, such as email, social media, and the website, to distribute the personalized content to target accounts.
Why This Strategy Still Works Today
Personalized content remains a cornerstone of ABM, ensuring that each touchpoint speaks directly to the challenges of the target account while building trust and credibility over time.
What Are Some ABM Tactics Used by Top B2B Companies?
Top B2B organizations leverage a variety of ABM tactics that combine personalization and creativity to target high-value accounts. These strategies are not only effective but can also be adapted to fit your specific business needs. Below are key Account-Based Marketing strategy examples, with actionable insights on how to implement them:
1. Print ABM
Print ABM includes personalized direct mail, custom merchandise, and educational materials, all designed to make an account feel valued. To make it impactful, tailor the content to the specific needs and interests of the account. For instance, custom-branded items that align with their business objectives, like tech gadgets or unique stationery, leave a memorable impression and build stronger connections.
2. Social ABM
Social ABM is all about engaging with key accounts on platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter/X. Create content that speaks directly to the challenges or interests of each account, ensuring it's not just generic outreach. Personalize your interactions by starting conversations with decision-makers, and use targeted social ads to engage them in a way that feels direct and personalized, rather than mass-marketing.
3. Tried-and-True ABM
Classic ABM strategies like account-specific landing pages, one-to-one emails, and virtual events remain highly effective. Customize each landing page to address the unique pain points of a target account, and use personalized emails that offer tailored solutions. Virtual events give you an opportunity to engage decision-makers in real-time, discussing their needs while showcasing your expertise.
4. Off-the-Wall ABM
For something truly memorable, use bold, creative tactics like gamified experiences or custom gifts. These unique touches create curiosity and help your outreach stand out. For example, a puzzle or interactive campaign could spark engagement, while sending a custom-branded gift that speaks to the client's culture or goals will reinforce your message and leave a lasting impression.
What Is the Step-by-Step Process for a Results-Driven ABM Campaign?
To execute a strong ABM plan, you need clarity on the levers that influence engagement and conversion. These essential components ensure your efforts stay focused, aligned, and impactful. Looking at any well-structured account based marketing plan example can give you a clear sense of how these elements come together in real scenarios.
Step 1: Identify and Segment High-Value Accounts
Start by defining your ideal customer profile, considering factors such as industry, revenue, and buying signals. Once you have a clear picture, identify the accounts with the highest revenue potential and strongest intent. Segment these accounts based on their unique needs, industry, or buying stage, enabling you to create highly tailored outreach that speaks directly to their challenges and goals.
Step 2: Build Your ABM Playbook and Define Metrics
Create an ABM playbook that outlines the personalized content, key messages, and outreach channels you'll use for each account. Clearly define the roles of each team member to ensure collaboration between sales and marketing. Set key performance indicators (KPIs) such as engagement scores, meetings booked, and deal progression. With SmartCue, you can align your outreach and use data-driven insights to refine your ABM strategy for better results.
Step 3: Launch, Monitor, and Optimize Continuously
Once your campaign launches, track performance across various channels like email, landing pages, webinars, and ads. Use platforms such as HubSpot for email tracking, Google Analytics or Unbounce for landing pages, and LinkedIn Ads for ad performance. Continuously monitor these metrics and optimize based on real-time feedback, adjust messaging, retargeting, and assets to keep the campaign on track. Tools like SmartCue can help streamline content personalization, ensuring your messaging stays relevant to each account.
Why Should You Implement Account-Based Marketing?
Before deciding whether the ABM program is the right move for your business, it helps to understand the real-world advantages it brings to your marketing and sales efforts, such as:
It stops random outreach and replaces it with intentional conversations, ensuring every interaction is with someone who actually has buying power and real interest.
ABM helps you stand out in saturated markets, giving your team the ability to personalize deeply instead of competing in the same noisy channels as everyone else.
It turns your marketing from reactive to strategic, allowing you to proactively pursue the accounts that align with long-term revenue goals instead of waiting for qualified leads to come in.
ABM strengthens internal efficiency, reducing misaligned tasks and enabling sales and marketing to operate as a unified team with a shared roadmap.
It increases win rates by focusing on the accounts most likely to convert, helping your team close deals faster and build more meaningful customer relationships.
How Can SmartCue Help You Close More High-Value ABM Deals?
We built SmartCue to solve one of ABM's biggest pain points , showing each account exactly how your product fits their world. With our interactive, account-specific demos, we help teams turn generic outreach into tailored product experiences that feel relevant from the first click.
As your prospects explore these demos, we capture deep intent signals that reveal what matters most to them , the features they revisit, the workflows they engage with, and the pain points they prioritize. This allows your sales team to personalize follow-ups with precision instead of guessing what to say next.
And as SmartCue requires zero engineering effort, you can scale personalization across dozens of valuable accounts effortlessly. Whether you embed demos in emails, landing pages, or outreach sequences, we help your ABM campaigns stay cohesive, compelling, and conversion-ready. If you're ready to make personalization your competitive advantage, book a SmartCue demo today.
Conclusion
Account-based marketing is more than a strategy; it's a smarter, more human approach to landing high-value deals. When your messaging feels tailored, your outreach becomes meaningful. When your teams align, your results multiply. And when your campaigns speak directly to decision-makers, your brand becomes unforgettable.
The examples of account based marketing shared above show that creativity, personalization, and strategic focus can completely transform how companies attract and convert enterprise clients. These real-world wins prove that when you pair deep audience insight with targeted execution, ABM becomes a powerful revenue engine.
With the right tactics and tools, your business can create its own ABM success story. Ready to turn strategic accounts into closed deals? Start building your ABM plan today.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes account based marketing effective for targeting high-value accounts?
Account-based marketing is effective because it directs all efforts toward pre-qualified, high-value accounts. By personalizing content and outreach for specific decision-makers, ABM improves engagement, strengthens relationships, and delivers higher conversion rates compared to broad, generic marketing strategies.
How can small businesses leverage ABM strategies successfully?
Small businesses can use ABM by targeting a small list of ideal accounts, creating personalized outreach, and leveraging cost-effective tools such as tailored emails and LinkedIn engagement. Focusing on fewer, better-fit accounts helps them drive meaningful results without large budgets.
What are common challenges in launching an ABM campaign?
Common ABM challenges include poor alignment between sales and marketing, insufficient account data, and difficulty creating personalized content at scale. Limited resources or unclear goals can also slow execution and reduce campaign efficiency.
What are the basics of account-based marketing?
The basics of ABM include defining an ideal customer profile, selecting high-value accounts, researching their needs, and creating personalized, multi-channel campaigns. Sales and marketing collaborate closely to deliver targeted experiences that increase relevance, engagement, and revenue potential.
What is account based marketing example?
A strong account-based marketing example is when a company creates personalized demos, targeted ads, or exclusive content for a single high-value account. These tailored experiences help capture attention, address unique challenges, and move the account through the buying journey faster.
What are the types of account-based marketing?
ABM includes one-to-one campaigns for single strategic accounts, one-to-few programs for small clusters with similar needs, and one-to-many strategies that use technology to personalize outreach at scale across a large list of qualified accounts.
What tactics do top B2B companies use in their account based marketing strategies?
Top B2B brands use personalized email campaigns, targeted display ads, custom landing pages, tailored demos, and coordinated sales outreach. They blend digital and offline tactics to engage decision-makers with messages that address their specific goals and pain points.
Can you highlight some innovative ideas for account based marketing campaigns?
Innovative ABM ideas include customized direct mail kits, comic book-style pitches, billboards aimed at a single account, interactive product demos, and VIP micro-events. These creative touches capture attention and make your brand unforgettable to high-value accounts.
How to choose target accounts for ABM?
Choose ABM target accounts by defining your ideal customer profile, analyzing firmographics, technographics, and intent data, and collaborating with sales to prioritize accounts with strong revenue potential, strategic importance, or high purchase intent signals.
Are there any recent case studies that show account-based marketing results?
Yes. Recent ABM case studies show significant gains, such as higher meeting bookings, increased event attendance, revived stalled pipelines, and improved deal sizes. Companies using personalized, multichannel ABM consistently report stronger engagement and faster conversions.
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