Account-Based Marketing vs. Demand Generation

What is Demand Generation? 

Demand generation (or demand gen, if you're on a first-name basis) is the holistic, data-driven approach to creating and nurturing interest in your products or services.

It’s the digital equivalent of casting a wide net in the hopes of capturing leads who might not yet know they need what you’re offering. 

In practice, demand generation can look like a well-executed content marketing strategy: blog posts, white papers, webinars, social media campaigns, and SEO. All with the goal of attracting a broad audience, getting them interested, and gradually guiding them toward a purchasing decision. 

Demand gen thrives on volume—more leads, more engagement, and ultimately, more opportunities to convert these prospects into paying customers.

What is Account-Based Marketing? 

Account-based marketing (ABM) is a more focused approach where sales and marketing teams concentrate resources on a carefully selected set of target accounts rather than an entire market. 

In essence, it’s about quality over quantity.

Crafting personalized content, webinars, and meetings tailored to the needs and challenges of just a handful of companies is ABM. This process involves researching key accounts, identifying decision-makers, and creating bespoke campaigns that address their pain points directly. 

Demand Generation vs. ABM - what’s the difference?

The difference between Demand Generation and ABM comes down to scope, content strategy, alignment, and metrics. 

Demand generation is all about building a wide funnel, casting a broad net to attract as many leads as possible, and nurturing them until they're ready to make a decision. In contrast, ABM is more concise; it involves identifying specific high-value accounts and focusing all your efforts on converting them. 

In the context of content, demand generation aims for a broad audience, solving common problems and building thought leadership. ABM, however, requires highly personalized content tailored to the specific challenges of each target account, which can be more resource-intensive but often more effective for closing large deals. 

While both strategies benefit from sales and marketing collaboration, ABM demands it, requiring both teams to work hand-in-hand to create a cohesive, customized experience for each account. 

Finally, in terms of metrics, demand generation focuses on general engagement indicators like website traffic, lead volume, and click-through rates, whereas ABM zeroes in on account-specific engagement, interactions, pipeline velocity, and account revenue.