How Do You Enable Target Accounts Functionality in HubSpot?
HubSpot is a lot like the iPhone–they both have a ton of features that people tend to underutilize. One of those hidden gems in HubSpot is the Target Accounts feature. At RevPartners, we’ve decided to crack open our playbook on Target Accounts to help you out!
But first, to add target accounts...
*(From a fresh instance)*
Who Should Use HubSpot Target Accounts?
Enterprise Sales Teams
Use Case: Targeting Large Accounts and Running an ABM strategy
Enterprise sales teams often manage high-stakes deals with large organizations. The HubSpot Target Accounts module is especially beneficial for these teams by enabling:
- Account-Based Marketing (ABM): Targeted marketing efforts to engage specific high-value accounts.
- Centralized Command Center: Account overview/ comprehensive view of all activities related to key accounts.
- Efficiency: Streamlined processes for managing complex sales cycles.
Key Features for Enterprise Sales Teams
- Granular Account Insights: Detailed information about a specific company or key account.
- Collaboration Tools: Easy sharing and collaboration among team members.
- Advanced Reporting: In-depth reports on account engagement and progression.
Checklist for Enterprise Sales Teams:
Expansion Teams
Use Case: Expanding into Subsidiaries of Existing Clients
Expansion teams aim to grow the company's footprint within existing client organizations. For example, if you have sold to Google Germany, the goal might be to sell to Google France and Italy. The HubSpot Target Accounts module supports this by providing:
- Unified View: Centralized information on all subsidiaries and their activities.
- Strategic Planning: Tools for planning and executing expansion strategies.
- Tracking and Engagement: Monitoring interactions with various subsidiaries.
Key Features for Expansion Teams:
- Subsidiary Management: Track and manage subsidiaries under a parent company.
- Cross-Selling Opportunities: Identify and act on cross-selling opportunities.
- Customizable Filters: Sort subsidiaries based on criteria such as location and industry.
Checklist for Expansion Teams:
Small and Medium-sized Businesses (SMBs)
Use Case: Focusing Resources on High-Value Accounts to Maximize Growth
SMBs need to allocate their limited resources efficiently to achieve maximum growth. The HubSpot Target Accounts module helps SMBs by:
- Prioritization: Identifying and prioritizing high-value accounts.
- Resource Allocation: Ensuring that resources are focused on the most promising opportunities.
- Growth Tracking: Monitoring the growth and engagement of key accounts.
Key Features for SMBs:
- High-Value Account Identification: Tools to identify high-value accounts.
- Efficient Resource Use: Optimize resource allocation for maximum impact.
- Growth Metrics: Track metrics related to account growth and engagement.
Checklist for SMBs:
Mid-market Companies
Use Case: Managing a Growing Number of Target Accounts with Efficient Tracking and Engagement
Mid-market companies often experience rapid growth, necessitating efficient tracking and engagement with an increasing number of key accounts. The HubSpot Target Accounts module supports this by providing:
- Scalability: Tools that scale with the growth of the company.
- Efficient Tracking: Systems for tracking interactions and engagements with multiple accounts.
- Comprehensive Insights: Detailed insights into account performance and engagement.
Key Features for Mid-market Companies:
- Scalable Solutions: Systems that grow with your company.
- Detailed Tracking: Comprehensive tracking of all account activities.
- Performance Insights: In-depth analysis of account performance.
Checklist for Mid-market Companies:
Key Features of HubSpot Target Accounts
Data Sorting and Filtering
Efficient data sorting and filtering capabilities are essential for managing target accounts effectively in your HubSpot crm. These features allow users to sort data by various criteria, providing both a broad overview and detailed insights into key accounts.
Sorting Options
- Individual Data: Sort by specific user or account manager to track individual performance.
- Team Data: Sort by team performance (e.g. marketing and sales teams) and engagement to assess overall team efficiency.
- ICP Tiers: Sort by Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) to prioritize efforts on high-value accounts.
Preset Filters
HubSpot's Target Accounts module includes preset filters that streamline the management and analysis of key accounts, enabling quick access to the most relevant data.
Ownership
“All Owners”: Filter by all account owners via dropdown menu to see the distribution and workload.
Profile
“Ideal Customer Profile Tiers”: Classify accounts based on how well they fit your ideal customer profile.
Industry
“Industry”: Segment accounts by industry to tailor strategies and communications.
Stage
“Lifecycle Stage”: Filter accounts based on their stage in the sales cycle.
Activity Filters
Activity filters provide insights into the engagement level of target accounts by highlighting gaps in interactions, helping to identify accounts that require immediate attention.
Tasks
“No open tasks”: Accounts with no pending tasks.
Calls
“No logged calls”: Accounts with no recent call activities.
Meetings
“No meetings”: Accounts without scheduled or completed meetings.
Deals
“No open deals”: Accounts with no active deals.
Decision Makers
“No decision maker”: Accounts lacking identified decision makers.
Blockers
“Blockers”: Accounts with contacts identified as blockers in the buying process.
Checklist: Activity Filters
Recommendations and Prospects
HubSpot's Target Accounts module also offers features that help identify new opportunities and potential high-value accounts.
Recommendations
Suggested companies that might be a good fit as target accounts based on existing data and engagement patterns.
Prospects
Companies whose employees have visited your website but have not yet engaged, indicating interest and potential for conversion.
How to Organize Target Accounts in HubSpot
Organizing target accounts in HubSpot requires a strategic approach to ensure efficient management and maximized sales potential. It’s important to set up a robust folder structure for company records, utilizing workflow tools, and tracking the status of your target accounts.
Folder Structure
ICP Tiers
Organizing target accounts by ICP tiers allows you to prioritize efforts based on attributes such as location, annual revenue, and company size. This tiered approach ensures your team focuses on the most promising opportunities.
Buying Roles
Identifying and categorizing buying roles within target accounts helps tailor your engagement strategies. Roles can be identified either manually by sales reps or automatically based on job titles and other criteria.
Qualified and Disqualified/Completed Lists
These lists help manage the lifecycle of your target accounts, ensuring that your team focuses on the most viable prospects and moves on from those that are no longer relevant.
Checklist: Criteria for Qualified and Disqualified/Completed Lists
Workflow Tools
Primary Workflows
Qualified Workflow: Automatically adds companies to the target accounts list when they meet certain criteria, ensuring that no high-potential account is overlooked.
Disqualified/Completed Workflow: Automatically removes companies from the target accounts list when they no longer meet the necessary criteria, maintaining a focused and relevant list.
Supporting Workflows
ICP Tiers 1, 2, and 3: These workflows help segment companies based on their ICP tier, allowing for tailored engagement strategies for each segment.
Buying Roles
Budget Holder, Decision Maker, Champion: Workflows can be created to tag and track contacts based on their buying roles, enabling precise targeting and communication strategies.
Monitoring the status of your target accounts is crucial for understanding their progression through the sales pipeline.
Tagging Deals for Pipeline Tracking
Tagging deals associated with target accounts helps differentiate them from general deals, allowing for better tracking and reporting. This ensures that high-priority accounts receive the attention they need.
How to Measure and Manage Performance of Target Accounts in HubSpot
Effectively measuring and managing the performance of your target accounts in HubSpot involves several key practices: tracking time spent, monitoring activity, and leveraging HubSpot’s proactive suggestions to optimize your sales strategy.
Time Tracking
Tracking the time spent on target accounts is essential for understanding engagement levels and efficiency. HubSpot allows you to track time spent in the control panel by various criteria such as tiers, industry, and country.
Benefits of Time Tracking
- Resource Allocation: Understand where most of the team’s time is being spent and if it aligns with your strategic goals.
- Performance Analysis: Identify which segments (tiers, industries, countries) are consuming more time and require optimization.
- Efficiency Improvement: Highlight areas where time management can be improved for better efficiency.
Activity Monitoring
Monitoring activity is crucial to identify accounts that are not being actively engaged and may require immediate attention. HubSpot provides various filters to track different types of activities.
Checklist: Addressing Stale Accounts
Find Target Accounts
HubSpot’s Target Accounts module provides proactive suggestions to help identify new opportunities. These suggestions are based on accumulated data from your existing accounts and interactions.
Recommendations and Prospects
- Recommendations: Suggested companies that might be a good fit as target accounts based on existing data and engagement patterns.
- Prospects: Companies whose employees have visited your website but have not yet engaged, indicating interest and potential for conversion.
Benefits of Proactive Suggestions
- Efficiency: Quickly identify potential high-value accounts without manual effort.
- Strategic Targeting: Focus efforts on companies showing interest, increasing the likelihood of conversion.
- Data-Driven Decisions: Use accumulated data to make informed suggestions, improving targeting accuracy.
Advanced Strategies for Using Target Accounts in HubSpot
Maximizing the potential of HubSpot's Target Accounts module involves implementing advanced strategies that streamline account management, automate processes, and continuously refine targeting tactics. Here’s how to leverage these strategies effectively:
Creating Lists and Workflows
Categorizing Accounts by Fit
Creating well-defined lists helps in segmenting target accounts based on their fit with your ICP. This segmentation allows for more personalized and effective engagement strategies.
Tagging and Organizing Contacts
Organize contacts within these lists by tagging them based on buyer personas. This helps in tailoring your communication strategies to address the specific needs and pain points of different buyer roles.
Checklist: Tagging Contacts by Buyer Personas
Automating Account Management
Workflows for Efficiency
Automating workflows in HubSpot ensures that appropriate accounts are continuously managed and updated without manual intervention. This not only saves time but also enhances the accuracy and consistency of your account management practices.
Push Accounts into Target Accounts
Criteria-Based Automation: Automatically add accounts to target lists based on specific criteria such as revenue, industry, and engagement level.
Advanced Reporting
Effectiveness Reporting: Set up workflows to generate reports on the effectiveness of your engagement strategies.
Conversion Rate Tracking: Automate tracking of conversion rates from initial contact to closed deals.
Validating and Refining Strategies
Continuous Improvement
To ensure long-term success, it’s crucial to continuously validate and refine your strategies based on performance data and evolving market conditions.
Refining Buyer Roles and ICP Definitions
Review Buyer Roles: Regularly validate and update buyer roles to reflect changes in the market and buyer behavior.
Update ICP Definitions: Refine your Ideal Customer Profile definitions to align with the latest insights and data.
Monitoring Success Rates
Regularly monitor the success rates of your target accounts to identify areas for improvement. Use this data to refine your processes and ensure that your strategies remain effective.
Checklist: Monitoring and Refining
Sound good, but not sure where to start? 👇
