• by Ray Schultz , Columnist, Yesterday

Long before artificial intelligence (AI) exploded on the scene, account-based marketing (ABM) was seen as salvation for B2B marketers. And it still is, judging by a new study from Outcomes Rocket.    

Of the companies polled, 71.2% now implement ABM strategies.

And of those, 78.6% are incorporating AI into ABM for personalization, predictive analytics and targeting. Moreover, 40.3% plan to invest in ABM capabilities in the next 12 months. 

And Outcomes Rocket states that the average ROI from ABM programs is 137%, as improbable as that sounds. 

But some companies are not there yet. Only15.3% are utilizing a dedicated ABM platform like Demandbase, 6sense, DemandScience, or RollWorks.

The main barriers are:

• Cost — 48%
• Limited internal resources — 34.2%
• Complexity/implementation effort — 31.6%
• Satisfied with current tools — 27.7%
• Lack of awareness about available ABM platforms — 22.8%
• Unclear ROI — 14.8%
• Other — 1.3%

Apart from all that, B2B marketers face tough challenges. For example, only 17.3% have fully mapped their customer journeys. And 50.2% struggle to find the right buying groups. 

But AI may be helping. The respondents say AI has enhanced their ABM efforts in these ways: 

• Improved account targeting and segmentation — 48.5%
• Increased efficiency in lead engagement — 36.4%
• Generated campaign copy and messaging using AI tools — 36.2%
• Refined buyer personas and identified key pain points — 32.1%
• Enhanced persona segmentation — 31.%
• Better prediction of deal outcomes — 29%
• Higher win rates through data-driven insights — 28%

Finally, 86.2% expect AI to boost their ABM ROI over the next year. 

What are their expectations for ABM going forward? They hope for:

• Higher ROI compared to current levels — 54.3%
• Greater integration with AI and automation — 51%
• Increased deal sizes and win rates — 34.8%
• Expansion to new markets or accounts — 33.7%
• Adoption of ABM 2.0 practices — 28.4%
• Better engagement with ideal customers — 25.3%
• Addressing current challenges like budget or measurement — 21.7%
• Others — 0.2%

Outcomes Rocket surveyed 771 marketers.