Customer Story Accela Propels Sales to Success by Implementing Demandbase One The Head Scratcher Accela is the trusted provider of cloud solutions at the heart of state and local government operations. With Accela, governments across the globe accelerate their digital transformation, deliver vital services, and build stronger communities. Because Accela sells into the public sector, where calls for RFPs are the norm, the team needed to find a way to get into accounts as early as possible in the research and buying cycle. This proactive approach helps position them as an essential part of the buying decision and builds trust early in the conversation. Accela hired Senior Manager of Field Marketing Steffanie Zazulak to build an ABM program. With a background of implementing results-based ABM programs before, she knew investing in an intent solution was a no-brainer to help sales get ahead of the RFPs. IndustrySoftware DevelopmentCompany Size418LocationSan Ramon, CASolutionDemandbase One, Orchestration & Advertising
15% Sourced 15% of its pipeline in 12 months 38%Increased new target account visibility by 38% 74%Increased target account reach to 74% "Demandbase is pivotal to informing our sales team where to prospect next and source new pipeline." Steffanie Zazulak Sr. Manager, Accela Field Marketing Why Demandbase? Before deciding to partner with Demandbase, Steffanie kicked off a rigorous months-long search. She pushed each vendor to prove that their platform could support Accela’s specific needs and that the intelligence they were providing was relevant to them. Her ultimate goal was to ensure that the solution would be the best fit to propel sales toward success. The sales team was also eager to gain insights into their accounts, Business Development Executive (BDE) Tyler Stanchina recalls. They needed to know each account’s level of interest and engagement, something they couldn’t see before partnering with Demandbase. Steffanie eventually decided on Demandbase because of the strength and accuracy of the data. She evaluated each vendor by giving them a sample set of their accounts and asking them to return to Accela with what they could find. Steffanie then compared that data to the historical knowledge of those accounts in their CRM and evaluated if the insights matched what they knew to be true. She also noted if the insights gained included intelligence that the sales team could take action on to build their pipeline. Steffanie noted that this information was quick and easy to get from Demandbase as she was evaluating options, while other vendors kept delaying, and some ultimately couldn’t provide it. Another major factor in Accela’s decision to go with Demandbase was the support they received during the sales cycle — support they continue to receive now that they are customers. How’d They Do? Increasing pipeline Accela saw their pipeline grow as they worked towards strengthening the relationship between sales and marketing. Accela marketing trained the sales team on using Demandbase to take advantage of the insights provided to make insteps into new accounts. Doing this increased the sales team’s chances of creating more significant engagement with accounts and growing potential pipelines. Accela’s new ABM strategy resulted in generating 15 percent of their pipeline from one of their webinars in less than 12 months. Insights gleaned from Demandbase also led to an increase in registration and attendance, and increased their target account reach to 74 percent. Using integrations to meet sales where they work One of Steffanie’s key goals was to make the Accela sales team efforts more efficient. To achieve that, she integrated Demandbase into Salesforce, so the company’s business development representatives had easy access to the information they needed in a place they already worked in daily. Today, the team at Accela uses Demandbase directly or via the Salesforce integration, depending on what works best for their process. Besides Salesforce, Accela has also integrated into Marketo and Outreach. Warding off the competition As any ABM leader knows, keeping track of the competition is essential to ensure the sales team has a complete picture of where their buyer is in the sales process. Accela now uses Demandbase to track competitive keywords their accounts are currently searching on, so the sales team is informed on potential competitors on each opportunity. Improved relationship between sales and marketing This past year, Accela’s sales team recognized Steffanie with two awards for the relationship she has built between their two teams. That improved relationship plays a huge role in the success of Accela’s ABM program, and Steffanie credits Demandbase with “playing a really big part in that.” "Demandbase has a lot of great information. It’s a great tool, and I use it daily." Tyler Stanchina Business Development Executive Without Demandbase? When asked about what her day-to-day would look like without Demandbase, Steffanie takes a second to think about it before stating, “Demandbase is pivotal to informing our sales team where to prospect next.” She further says, “if we didn’t have Demandbase, we wouldn’t be first to the conversations and new pipeline.” When asked how the sales team feels about Demandbase, Steffanie does not hesitate to acknowledge that “Sales loves Demandbase.” BDE Tyler confirms, “Demandbase has a lot of great information. It’s a great tool, and I use it daily.” About Accela Accela is the trusted provider of cloud solutions at the heart of government operations. The company works with governments across the globe to accelerate their digital transformation, deliver vital services, and build stronger communities. More than 300 million residents worldwide benefit from Accela’s government software solutions. The company offers agile, purpose-built solutions and the power of a platform that provides users with a consumer-like experience, shares data across departments, and ensures world-class security. Curious how Demandbase One™ would work for you? Request a demo today. Book a Meeting View more Customer stories You’ve just seen the tip of the iceberg. There’s plenty more to explore. Back to Customer Stories
