Take a moment to imagine this scenario: A prominent South African CEO starts each day the same way, by dropping her children off at school and then stopping to grab a coffee on her way to the office. She chooses to have her coffee the same way every morning: No sugar, almond milk.
Now, imagine that one morning, as she is about to exit the school gate a discreet envoy awaits with her exact brew and a subtle note about saving her time by getting it right. This isn’t a gimmick. It’s inserting a brand meaningfully into this CEO’s world. This is about more than visibility, or a meeting. It’s about building trust.
It’s an example of real account-based marketing (ABM). It’s the opposite of blasting emails to a segment. It is not a quarterly event. It is hyper-personalised, designed for one person, igniting emotional connection. Yet, if we are honest, in South Africa most “ABM” efforts are little more than glorified direct marketing and the predictable result is that they fail. ABM is a powerful tool, but if it is done incorrectly it is doomed to fail.
ABM is not a quick-hit tactic nor a direct marketing campaign. It is a high-commitment, sales-led, hyper-personalised, long-term investment focused on a few critical accounts in the mid-funnel. Read that sentence again.
Unless South African businesses treat ABM as a recurring strategic line item, and not a campaign, they will continue to ‘do ABM’ in name only, with mixed or poor results.
Why, you may wonder, do businesses persist with doing ABM incorrectly? It’s because of a few myths that persist.
Myth 1: ABM is just highly targeted direct marketing
Many businesses, or marketing teams, confuse ABM with sending targeted emails or hosting events for a cluster or lead segment. The truth is that ABM is, for lack of a better description, strategically miniscule. Think back to the CEO and her coffee. It wasn’t replicable. It was tailored to her own routine, her own school commute and her own preferences.
If your campaign can be copy-pasted across accounts, it is direct marketing. ABM dives into the decision-making unit (DMU) using “business anthropology” to create cheat sheets for meaningful conversations. It is 100% precision over volume: 80% of revenue from 20% of leads. It is the opposite of chasing all, or poor quality, leads.
Myth 2: ABM belongs to marketing
Far too often, ABM is parked in marketing silos, then expected to hand off opportunities. This is just wrong. ABM must be owned by sales. It’s the sales team who hold the real relationships, influence maps and DMU insights. And so, ABM done properly is owned by sales and facilitated by marketing for content, orchestration and experiences.
If ABM is isolated in marketing, you have a disconnected tactic. Aligned teams have far higher win rates and significantly higher retention. Say this out loud: Sales drives the strategy and marketing enables the magic.
Myth 3: We can try ABM for a quarter and see results
ABM is not a campaign, it is a long-term strategy. It demands patience. Consider this: B2B sales cycles can span anywhere from 18 months to five years. You cannot cram three years worth of sales into one, or a year into a quarter. The truth is that it works the other way around: over time, cumulative effects deliver outsized returns.
In South Africa, annual budgeting, which usually occurs around the end of the fiscal year, coupled with short-term pressures force teams to chase quick wins. This is not how ABM works. The solution is to budget ABM as its own line item which endures internal politics and role changes. If you underfund ABM it fragments across agencies – tactical gifting here, some targeted emails there – which yields poor return on investment.
Myth 4: ABM is for top-of-the-funnel lead generation
There are other strategies for the top of the funnel. ABM’s real power shines mid-funnel: conversion, retention, renewals. This is especially true for large contracts or public sector engagements. ABM is not just rational messaging, it is about creating emotional reassurance. In the B2B environment, stakes are high with reputations, jobs and livelihoods on the line.
If we return to the CEO’s coffee: It did not sell, it reduced risk, positioning the brand as a partner who understands her, not a supplier.
A future with ABM
South Africa’s business reality and environment exacerbate these four ABM myths, which is why it is so important to quell them quickly. Short-termism from annual cuts makes multi-year commitments feel risky for businesses. The result is under-resourcing – it is not a cheap exercise – which kills any chance of ABM working. Businesses then blame ABM when fragmented efforts flop.
Of course, one cannot have a discussion about ABM without talking about the role of artificial intelligence (AI). AI does not, and cannot, replace ABM – it augments it. AI can be leveraged to speed up pattern recognition from LinkedIn or events and help build lightweight personas. However, deep strategy needs human judgment.
So, how should a business approach ABM? Start small. Pilot one account and focus on the mid-funnel. However, if you are not prepared to hand ownership to sales, commit to multi-year horizons, budget ABM as its own line item and prioritise reassurance for the mid-funnel, then stop calling it ABM. Those who commit, win. The CEO won’t forget that coffee. Will your targets remember you?
Kathryn McKay is chief creative officer at Black & White, part of The Up&Up Group.
