How do we reach influential people inside target accounts?

Bring sales knowledge into the campaign brief by establishing a partnership between the sales and marketing teams. The Frameworks argues that sales account insights should inform marketing's creative work, rather than remain separate from campaign planning. Start with the account plans, meetings and relationships already established, including where progress has stalled and where influential people remain out of reach. Use that shared understanding to shape a highly targeted campaign for the account, rather than repeating approaches that have not advanced the relationship. A 2025 benchmark survey by Demand Gen Report found that 43% of surveyed ABM practitioners identify sales and marketing alignment as a leading programme challenge. Treat collaboration as the starting point for the brief, not simply a handover once creative work begins.

Map influence beyond existing contacts to identify the buying committee and influential people that current sales relationships do not reach. The Frameworks recommends stakeholder mapping at the start of an account-based campaign, followed by the development of account insights and key themes. Treat familiar contacts as part of the audience, not the whole audience: established relationships can coexist with limited access to the people who influence a decision. For each intended audience, identify the specific business and role-based challenges that meaningful messages need to address. Forrester reported in 2026 that, among business buyers globally, an average business buying decision is influenced by 13 internal stakeholders and 9 external participants. A 2025 study by Edelman found that 71% of hidden buyers, business-purchase influencers in the United States across industries and company sizes, say they have relatively little interaction with sales.

Coordinate targeted engagement across the account by using the stakeholder map to guide account-relevant messages and content. The Frameworks describes a sequence from stakeholder mapping to account insights and key themes, then to messaging and content that address the audience's business and role-based challenges. Use that sequence to keep creative work connected to the people involved in the decision, rather than treating ABM as a target list with better creative. Build a targeted programme for one account or a small group of accounts, with engagement sustained throughout the campaign timeline. Measure account progress during the campaign, keeping attention on strengthening relationships and moving specific accounts forward rather than simply reaching a broad audience.