🎯 "We aren't ready for ABM."

You hear this a lot in Series A startups.

"We can't afford 6sense."

"We don't have enough content."

"Our sales team isn't trained."

So you stick to "Inbound" (casting a wide net) and hope a Whale swims in.

This is a mistake. ABM (Account-Based Marketing) isn't a "tool." It's a "mindset." It means flipping the funnel: Instead of fishing with a net, you fish with a spear.

You don't need a $50k tech stack to start. You just need HubSpot.

HubSpot supports setting up account-based marketing using Target Accounts, Buying Roles, and built-in reporting for ABM. [page:0]

Muhammad Asghar Hussain

Here is the Crawl, Walk, Run framework to building an ABM engine that scales with you.


👶 Phase 1: The "Crawl" (No New Tools)

Goal: Alignment. Define the Target.

Tech Stack: HubSpot Marketing/Sales Hub Pro.

The Play:

  • Define the ICP: Sit Sales and Marketing in a room. Pick 50 Accounts. Not 500. Just 50 that you really want to win.
  • Label Them: Use the native "Target account" property in HubSpot. Mark them True.

HubSpot lets you mark companies as target accounts by setting the Target account property to True, including in bulk or via workflows. [page:1]

The "Buying Role" Mapping: For those 50 accounts, manually map the contacts.

  • Who is the Decision Maker?
  • Who is the Blocker?
  • (If they aren't in the CRM, use LinkedIn Sales Nav to find them and add them).

The "News" Alert: Sales reps follow these 50 companies on LinkedIn. That's it. No ads yet. Just listening.

Success Metric: Sales and Marketing agree on the list.


🚶 Phase 2: The "Walk" (Orchestration)

Goal: Coordinated Outreach.

Tech Stack: HubSpot + LinkedIn Ads.

The Play:

  • Air Cover: Sync your "Target Account" list to LinkedIn Match Audiences (Article 108). Show them "Case Study" ads.
  • The "Surge" Workflow: Build a workflow.
  • Trigger: Anyone from a Target Account visits the website.
  • Action: Slack Alert to Rep.
  • The "Personalized" Outbound: Sales sends a 1:1 Video (Vidyard) to the Decision Maker.
  • Script: "I saw [Company] is growing. We helped [Competitor] with that same challenge."

Success Metric: "Target Account Engagement Rate" (Are they visiting the site?).


🏃 Phase 3: The "Run" (Scale & Automation)

Goal: Programmatic ABM.

Tech Stack: HubSpot Enterprise + 6sense/Terminus.

The Play:

  • Intent Data: Use 6sense to find accounts researching you before they visit your site.
  • Smart Content: When a Target Account visits your homepage, change the Headline.
  • Generic: "Best CRM Software."
  • Target (Healthcare): "HIPAA-Compliant CRM for Hospitals."
  • Tiered Logic: Automate the tiers.
  • Tier 1 (Whales): White-glove, expensive gifts.
  • Tier 2: Custom Webinars.
  • Tier 3: Automated Nurture.

Success Metric: Pipeline Velocity and Deal Size (Are we winning bigger deals faster?).


Muhammad Asghar Hussain

Don't Overcomplicate It.

The biggest failure in ABM is trying to "Run" before you can "Crawl."

If you buy 6sense but your sales team doesn't know how to follow up with a target account, you wasted money.

Start small.

Pick 10 accounts.

Treat them like royalty.

See what happens.

That is ABM.

Not sure how to set up the "Target Account Dashboard"?

This is part of our Free HubSpot Health Check.

We will audit your "Readiness." We'll help you build the target list, configure the properties, and launch your "Crawl" strategy without spending a dollar on new software.

We will audit your "Readiness."

Start Spear Fishing. Get Free Hubspot Audit