What’s up everyone! Welcome to 🌮 Taco Tuesday, a weekly newsletter by ForgeX.

In here we share the latest and greatest around our Account-Based GTM research, provide our perspective on trending topics, and highlight what’s new at ForgeX.

Send us any questions or topics we should break down here ⬇️

❌ An Account-Based GTM Strategy; Not Just a “Marketing Campaign”

ABM ≠ just paid ads.

ABM ≠ a siloed marketing campaign or group of tactics.

ABM ≠ using 3rd party intent data to build lists of “in-market” accounts.

The “M” in Account-Based Marketing can be wildly misleading and is outdated verbiage.

This is due to the fact that it’s not JUST a marketing strategy, you are actually building a complete Account-Based GTM strategy that unifies and involves all revenue teams.

Which takes a village in order to drive a successful implementation and execution, hence why it’s imperative to properly establish your cross-functional ecosystem on day 1.

🛞 Leveraging Our Collaboration Flywheel

There are typically 6 core GTM teams that will make up your cross-functional ecosystem:

Keep in mind that a <$20 Million ARR organization’s Collaboration Flywheel will be a lot different than a >$1 Billion ARR organization’s.

The core difference is the size and depth of each cross-functional team. Larger organizations are far more complex with bigger internal team sizes and external partners (like agencies).

Ensuring that you’re mapping and including all essential cross-functional team partners at the beginning of your program is a make-or-break.

🤝 How to Create Strong Partnerships Across Cross-functional Teams

In order to create strong cross functional partnerships, there are 5 areas that we recommend you focus on:

1.) Mutually Agreed SLAs:

Establish and define clear Service Level Agreements (SLAs) across all GTM teams to set expectations for delivery and follow-up on action items and deliverables. An Account-Based Team Charter can serve as a foundational document, articulating these SLAs where everyone agrees and signs off before the program kicks off.

Example:

• SLA; The Creative Team will build a new tailored ABM landing page within 5-days of the request.

2.) Roles are Clearly Established:

Without clearly defined roles, cross-functional teams won’t know how to collaborate or what their responsibilities are. It’s imperative that each team understands their role and how it contributes to the overall vision and revenue-driving impact of their work. Using a R.A.C.I matrix can be a great tool to help establish roles and responsibilities.

3.) Internal Communication Strategy:

Developing a robust internal communication strategy and feedback loop is essential. Continuous alignment, feedback, and recognition of team contributions are critical for maintaining morale and ensuring everyone is informed about the successes and impact of their efforts.

We share how to do this effectively here.

4.) Expectations are Properly Set:

It’s imperative to set realistic expectations for your program. While quick wins are essential, overpromising massive revenue increases in a short time period can harm morale and reduce enthusiasm for collaboration.

5.) Establishing a Common Account-Based Vision:

Without a shared vision, it’s challenging for cross-functional teams to buy-in and see the direction of GTM efforts. Start with a Crawl, Walk, Run approach to set the stage for the main north star while outlining smaller, achievable steps to reach that goal.

💡 Pro Tip: Don’t try and boil the ocean… Leveraging a crawl, walk, run approach will help set realistic expectations and pave a practical path for your account-based GTM strategy. Attempting to immediately reach the run stage can lead to setbacks and frustration.

🎯 Give an ABM Benchmark Audit, Get Access to Our Full Benchmark Database

We are benchmarking the data and insights needed to answer the questions every B2B marketer, CXO, VC and board member is asking:

1. How are the leading account-based programs doing it?

2. How do we launch an account-based GTM strategy that actually drives revenue?

3. How does our program stack up against the industry leaders and what should we do to improve?

What’s New at ForgeX?

🌮 Research & Insights

• Research Report: The 2024 Strategy Guide and Landscape of B2B Agencies with ABM Capabilities

• Agency Directory: Access here

• Guide: Evaluating ABM Platforms: What You Need To Know

• Guide: Starting ABM From The Trenches

🌮 Events

On-Demand:

• 🎥 Building and Leading a Powerhouse ABM Team for Success

• 🎥 Leveraging Influencers & Creators to Drive Revenue in your ABM Program

• 🎥 Can we do ABM with HubSpot?

P.S….. cannot confirm nor deny we’ll be announcing our first in-person events soon 👀 

Have an awesome rest of the week y’all!

LFG,

Davis