00:00:00 Introduction and Personal Journey

The speaker begins by introducing themselves and sharing their professional background, transitioning from a software engineer to a consultant and eventually into sales and marketing. Initially skeptical about sales due to common misconceptions, they were mentored by a colleague who reframed sales as an empathetic process focused on understanding customer needs and offering genuine advice. This realization led to unexpected success in sales, culminating in closing a major seven-figure deal. Inspired by this experience, they launched their own startup (which failed) but gained valuable marketing insights. They emphasize their passion for B2B marketing, particularly in complex niche markets with high-value contracts, where traditional marketing strategies often fall short.

00:04:30 Engineering Mindset Applied to Marketing

The discussion shifts to how the speaker’s engineering background influences their marketing approach. They highlight the advantage of understanding technical products and audiences, which are often difficult to market to. The engineering mindset drives a systematic, process-oriented approach to marketing, emphasizing repeatability, structure, and optimization—much like coding or process engineering. Their marketing content reflects this, often presented as step-by-step guides or flowcharts, blending the analytical with the creative.

00:07:00 Common Myths and Mistakes in ABM (Account-Based Marketing)

The speaker addresses prevalent misconceptions about ABM, such as treating it like traditional lead generation—focusing on broad, high-level account lists without validating actual needs or readiness to buy. These “wish lists” often include large companies without considering the likelihood of closing deals or the complexity of the sales cycle. They also debunk myths around ABM requiring massive tech stacks or budgets. The emphasis is on quality and intent over volume, urging companies to focus on accounts that show genuine engagement rather than mere size or prestige.

00:11:00 Integrating ABM with Existing Demand Generation

The speaker advises companies with existing demand generation programs on how to dovetail ABM into their processes. They stress the importance of using intent data—such as website visits and engagement metrics—to identify accounts that are actively researching or considering their solutions. ABM should target these “high intent” accounts that fit the Ideal Customer Profile (ICP), rather than cold lists. This integration leverages existing marketing insights and improves targeting precision, making ABM more practical and effective.

00:15:30 Readiness and Team Considerations for ABM

They discuss the prerequisites for starting ABM, including deal size thresholds (typically $30K+ annual contract value), sales cycle complexity, and team structure. A minimum viable team usually consists of at least one dedicated marketer and one sales representative (SDR or AE), who focus predominantly on ABM activities over a quarter or two to allow for learning and process maturation. Technology needs are modest but require good data hygiene and tools for account identification and engagement tracking, rather than large, complex stacks.

00:20:30 ABM Use Cases – Acquisition vs. Expansion vs. Retention

The speaker outlines strategic focus areas for ABM programs, recommending that many companies start with expansion (upselling, cross-selling) and retention rather than purely new customer acquisition. Expanding existing accounts is often more predictable and quicker to yield ROI. They explain how ABM can be applied to contract renewals and churn prevention, emphasizing the critical need for active customer relationships and insights to avoid silent churn. Challenges include overcoming organizational resistance to customer interviews and engagement.

00:26:00 Tactics for Customer Engagement and Relationship Building

Practical tactics to deepen customer relationships are explored, including personalized, thoughtful gestures (e.g., customized gifts aligned with customer interests), peer-to-peer executive engagement, social media interactions, and co-creating content like podcasts or industry reports featuring customers. These approaches humanize the relationship, build trust, and create social proof that benefits both retention and new customer acquisition efforts. The importance of leveraging common connections for introductions is also highlighted.

00:35:30 Ownership and Frequency of ABM Outreach

The conversation focuses on who should own the ABM outreach process—typically marketing initially, with close collaboration or eventual handoff to sales or customer success teams. The frequency of engagement must balance maintaining relationships without overwhelming customers. The speaker stresses a pragmatic approach, acknowledging resource constraints and advocating for smart, meaningful interactions rather than overly frequent, generic communications. Community-building initiatives like think tanks or customer events are effective ways to foster ongoing engagement, especially in niche industries where customers may feel isolated.

00:40:30 Challenges in Marketing’s Respect and Impact within Organizations

The speaker discusses the often limited respect marketers receive within organizations compared to sales, attributing this to marketing’s inability to demonstrate clear, measurable revenue impact. Marketing teams frequently generate leads that don’t convert, leading to skepticism. They stress the importance of pilots and proof-of-concept projects that yield tangible results and build organizational buy-in. Marketing success is measured by contribution to revenue and pipeline acceleration, not just awareness or lead volume.

00:49:30 Closing Thoughts and Resources

In conclusion, the speaker encourages marketers to lead by example, collaborate closely with sales, and focus on creating meaningful engagement rather than superficial metrics. They promote their ongoing content, community, and educational resources (such as newsletters and Slack groups) designed to help marketers improve ABM practices. The conversation wraps up with mutual appreciation and encouragement to continue learning and applying best practices in B2B marketing.

Profile Vladimir Blagojević Co-founder at Fullfunnel.io LinkedIn

Vladimir Blagojević is the co-founder at fullfunnel.io. He works with technology and SaaS companies to build aligned programs that connect marketing, sales-ops and revenue outcomes. Known for his pragmatic, execution-first approach, Vladimir helps teams move beyond tactics into predictable account-based growth. He regularly shares insights on measurement, long-term planning and creating scalable pipelines in modern B2B environments.

Show Notes -

Vladimir shares how he went from engineering to marketing, and why complex B2B sales require a different approach than broad lead generation.
We talk about focusing on the right accounts, building real customer relationships, and why expansion and retention often create more impact than chasing net-new.

What you’ll learn:
-Why “wish list” account lists lead to low conversions
-How to use existing demand signals to choose who to engage
-When ABM makes sense based on deal size + sales complexity
-Why expansion and retention are often the fastest route to revenue

Links & Resources -