A few weeks ago, Pauliina Kuokka, responsible for developing Valve's commercial business, had the chance to participate in an ABM bootcamp hosted by E3 international agency network, which Valve is part of. In the bootcamp we heard directly from European leaders — including companies like SAP — about how they approach account-based marketing across different markets.
It was eye-opening. But more than anything, it sparked an interesting conversation: are most marketers who say they’re doing ABM just running a more targeted demand generation?
The line between the two has become increasingly blurred. And in a world where nearly every B2B brand wants to “do ABM,” it’s surprisingly common to mistake a demand gen campaign — just aimed at a named account list — for genuine, strategic account-based marketing.
Let’s unpack the difference — and why it matters.
What ABM really means
Account-based marketing isn’t a new buzzword. At its core, ABM is a strategic approach that focuses your marketing and sales resources on a clearly defined set of high-value accounts — and tailors personalised campaigns to each.
The key word here is personalised.
True ABM requires coordination with sales, insight into buying committees, and tailored messaging that speaks directly to a company’s unique context, pain points, and goals. It’s more relationship-building than demand gen. More strategy than spray-and-pray.
The demand gen trap: where most ABM goes off track
On the other hand, demand gen is about scale. It’s designed to attract interest across a broader market using content, digital campaigns, SEO, paid media — you name it.
And here’s where the confusion sets in when marketers start targeting a defined account list, maybe segmenting ads or personalising email greetings, they think they’ve stepped into the world of ABM.
But they haven’t.
If the campaign isn't strategically aligned with sales and doesn’t go beyond surface-level personalisation (e.g. Job title, company name, maybe a custom landing page), it’s still demand gen — just with better targeting.
ABM isn’t one-size-fits-all
To be fair, there are different layers of ABM:
- One-to-many: using tech and data to segment and personalise experiences at scale
- One-to-few: taking a common approach to small groups of accounts that share similar needs & challenges, with a moderate approach to personalisation
- One-to-one: high personalisation and customisation for high-value individual accounts with a focus on relationships and engagement
The trouble is many companies claim they’re doing ABM when they’re really operating at the one-to-many level — or just running demand gen with a shiny new label.
Why the distinction matters
Mislabelling demand gen as ABM can cause problems:
- You might miss out on true ABM value, like deeper relationships and higher ROI from strategic accounts.
- Your sales team may feel disconnected, if marketing isn’t truly aligned to their key targets.
- You could overspend on campaigns that don’t deliver ABM-level results, because the strategy wasn’t there to begin with.
How to tell which one you’re doing
Ask yourself:
- Are we creating content or messaging specific to a company’s actual business challenges?
- Is our sales team actively involved in planning and execution?
- Are we measuring engagement across buying committees, not just leads?
If the answer is mostly no — then you’re probably running demand gen. And that’s okay. Both have a place in B2B. What matters is being honest about the approach so you can measure success accordingly and evolve your strategy where needed.
When ABM makes sense
ABM works best when you're dealing with:
- High-value or complex deals that require buy-in from multiple stakeholders.
- A limited total addressable market (TAM), where each account really matters.
- Long sales cycles, where building trust and relationships is essential.
- Tight sales and marketing alignment, with shared goals and clear ownership.
- Breaking into new markets: If you're expanding into a new region or vertical and struggling to gain traction, ABM can help you open doors. A personalised, account-first approach builds credibility faster than generic outreach — especially when you're unknown or up against local incumbents.
If you're selling a product with a shorter sales cycle, lower average deal size, or a broad market, demand gen might deliver better results for less effort. It’s not about one being better than the other — it’s about choosing the right tool for the job.
Example:
Let’s say you sell cybersecurity software: If your product is built for all SMEs in Europe, your TAM is very large — go with demand gen. But if your product is only for European banks with more than 500 employees, your TAM is small and niche — ABM is likely the smarter play.
Final thoughts
ABM or demand gen — it’s not about doing what’s trendy. It’s about doing what works for your business. Want help figuring out what that is?
Book a session to discuss how to best reach your audience!
