How SurveyMonkey Transforms Their ABX Strategy Through Feedback

Developing a successful ABX strategy requires two basic components: 1. Knowing who to engage; and 2. Executing. The question is, what does the marketing organization need to target and engage markets of one?

In this post, SurveyMonkey Sr. Director of Demand Generation Jack Foster shares her secret to strengthening ABX efforts: customer feedback.

Here we share four key takeaways from Jack’s recent session Track Your ABX Strategy Through Feedback at Sendoso’s Out of the Box virtual event, which focused on how organizations can leverage customer feedback to create personalized content, strengthen the ideal customer profile (ICP), and improve sales and marketing alignment.

4 Ways to Improve ABX Through Customer Feedback

1. Demonstrate Value through Customer Proof Points

One of the most effective ways to cut through a noisy and cluttered landscape is by demonstrating value to the buyer.

“Someone is much more likely to respond to an email if your organization can show that people in similar positions are achieving results with your solution,” explains Jack. “Your interactions should demonstrate how competitors are gaining an edge with your solution, as opposed to simply presenting your organization’s capabilities.”

The proverbial million-dollar question is: How does the marketing organization secure customer proof points at scale to fuel an ABM program? One effective way is to set up a feedback workflow to gather customer testimonials, statistics, and ROI metrics at scale.

For example, during a Net Promoter Survey (NPS), organizations can identify “promoters”—happy and engaged customers who may recommend your organization to others.

Companies can capture that sentiment with a follow-on survey to promoters, asking each to share a testimonial or campaign results.

“If you do this often enough, you can build an amazing library of customer proof points, which is the key to building a relevant ABM program,” notes Jack.

2. Enrich Data to Drive Personalization and Relevance

Clean data is the foundation of every marketing organization. While all teams understand the importance of having accurate contact information, titles, and functions, the real secret to creating a customized and personal experience for targeted accounts is through feedback.

During the lead generation process, many organizations keep contact forms brief in order to help increase conversion. However, the information gathered through that intake point may not provide adequate content or context for sales reps conducting outreach. As such, Jack recommends sending a follow-on survey after the initial conversion to help flesh out the customer profile.

“This is an easy way to collect more information without asking for it upfront,” she explains. “It becomes a really powerful tool when your sales or service team has more information to customize the experience based on each client’s challenges and goals.”

In addition to customizing the experience, collecting this data and feeding it back into a CRM tool also helps inform the future ABM strategy. Doing so helps identify common issues and goals across the entire customer base, as well as by industry, market or function.

3. Create a Deeper ICP through Meaningful Feedback

In creating their ICP, many organizations start by reviewing closed won/closed lost data so they can identify which industries, personas, or territories are most likely to engage. While helpful, the insights here are limited to quantitative results, instead of qualitative findings—or what was won or lost versus why that outcome occurred.

Jack recommends collecting that data at the end of the sales cycle through a win/loss survey program to take ICP to the next level. That way, you can understand why they are winning and how to adapt efforts in the future.

“When you collect this data over time in a structured way, you can understand ICP on a deeper level,” explains Jack. “This feedback can be incorporated into targeting and marketing efforts, ultimately demonstrating why people are coming to you, which helps establish and articulate your value proposition.”

4. Ideate and Innovate with Internal Stakeholders

Collaboration within the organization is essential to creating an ABM strategy that is tailored to the unique challenges facing the business.

Jack shared how feedback from the SurveyMonkey sales team prompted the marketing organization to create a series of personal, high-touch events with prospective clients. Feedback played a defining role in this strategy. Prior to the events, the sales team requested additional information through a brief, targeted survey, which was then used to customize the agenda based on the potential customer’s needs and concerns. Working in this way, the marketing team created a program that helped the sales team accelerate the pipeline.

“The feedback helped bring people over the line,” notes Jack. “It’s an example of how working with internal stakeholders can help identify an opportunity and execute in an effective way.”

As you build your ABX strategy, make sure to include customer feedback. You’ll be amazed at the results.

To watch Jack’s full session on-demand, register here. Schedule a demo below to learn how Sendoso can help you improve your ABX strategy through customer feedback.