Knowledge
May 8, 2026
All articles
Rikard Jonsson
Rikard Jonsson is Founder & CEO of Hey Sid and a five-time entrepreneur with a background in B2B SaaS, sales, and brand building. He believes B2B marketing is overcomplicated and writes about going back to basics: visibility, positioning, and consistent presence among the accounts that matter.
People-Based Marketing vs ABM: What's the Difference?
TL;DR
Account-based marketing (ABM) targets companies. People-based marketing (PBM) targets the specific individuals within those companies who influence buying decisions. ABM says "we are targeting Acme Corp." PBM says "we are targeting Jane Smith, VP of Marketing at Acme Corp, plus three other stakeholders on her buying committee."
The distinction matters because B2B buying committees have grown to 8-12 stakeholders, 94% of them rank preferred vendors before first contact, and IP-based account targeting (the foundation of traditional ABM) reaches only 42% accuracy while missing all remote and hybrid workers. People-based marketing is not a replacement for ABM. It is the evolution of ABM, moving from company-level targeting to individual-level precision.
Defining the Two Approaches
Account-Based Marketing (ABM)
ABM identifies a list of target companies and coordinates marketing and sales efforts across those accounts. The unit of measurement is the account (company), not the individual. ABM platforms (6sense, Demandbase, Rollworks) typically target accounts using IP address matching, firmographic data, and intent signals.
How ABM targets: Upload a list of companies. Match those companies to IP address ranges. Serve ads to anyone browsing from that company's network. Track account-level engagement.
What ABM gets right: Focus on high-value accounts. Coordinated sales-marketing effort. Account-level measurement (pipeline by account, not just leads). Intent data to prioritize in-market accounts.
Where ABM falls short: IP-based targeting reaches everyone on the company network, from the CEO to the cafeteria staff. IP deanonymization accuracy is approximately 42%. Remote and hybrid workers (now the majority of knowledge workers) are invisible to IP targeting. ABM measures account engagement but cannot tell you which specific person engaged.
People-Based Marketing (PBM)
PBM targets specific named individuals within target accounts. Instead of showing ads to "Acme Corp" (via IP), PBM shows ads to "Jane Smith, VP of Marketing" (via identity graph matching) across her devices, whether she is at the office, at home, or on mobile.
How PBM targets: Upload a list of specific contacts (names, emails, titles). Match those contacts to advertising identity graphs. Serve ads to those individuals across LinkedIn, Meta, Google, and programmatic display. Track engagement at the person level.
What PBM gets right: Zero wasted impressions (every ad reaches a named decision-maker). Works for remote and hybrid workforces. Can target specific roles within the buying committee. Measures individual engagement, not just account activity.
Where PBM requires attention: Needs a contact list (from CRM or enrichment). Match rates vary by platform (40-95%). Requires identity graph technology. Higher CPMs than IP-based targeting (but zero waste makes effective CPM lower).
Side-by-Side Comparison
Dimension | ABM (Account-Based) | PBM (People-Based) |
|---|---|---|
Targeting unit | Company (account) | Individual (named person) |
Targeting method | IP address matching, firmographics | Identity graph matching, email/contact matching |
Who sees ads | Anyone at the company on the network | Only named decision-makers on your list |
Remote worker coverage | Poor (IP targeting misses them) | Full (targeting follows the person, not the office) |
Wasted impressions | High (interns, receptionists, irrelevant staff see ads) | Zero (only target contacts see ads) |
Measurement | Account-level (did the account engage?) | Person-level (did Jane Smith engage?) |
Buying committee coverage | Reaches the company, hopes committee members see ads | Targets each committee member individually |
Accuracy | ~42% IP deanonymization (Demandbase/6sense data) | 40-95% match rate depending on platform |
Platforms | 6sense, Demandbase, Rollworks, The Trade Desk | Hey Sid, Influ2, ContactLevel, LinkedIn Matched Audiences |
Best for | Brand awareness across entire companies | Precision targeting of decision-makers in buying committees |
Why B2B Is Shifting Toward People-Based Marketing
Several trends are accelerating the shift from account-level to person-level targeting:
1. Buying Committees Have Grown
The average B2B buying committee now involves 8-12 stakeholders across 10 unique decision-maker functions (6sense 2025, Demandbase 2025). Showing ads to "the company" and hoping the right 8-12 people see them is increasingly inefficient. PBM ensures each committee member receives targeted impressions.
2. Remote and Hybrid Work Broke IP Targeting
When most knowledge workers worked from offices, IP targeting was a reasonable proxy for reaching companies. With hybrid and remote work now standard, a large percentage of decision-makers browse from home networks, co-working spaces, and mobile devices. IP targeting cannot reach them. Person-level targeting follows the individual regardless of location.
3. Buyers Want Relevant, Not Random
94% of buying groups rank preferred vendors before first contact. They form preferences during the anonymous research phase (67-70% of the journey). Random ad impressions on unrelated employees do not influence this process. Targeted impressions on the actual decision-makers do.
4. Measurement Demands Have Increased
B2B marketing leaders are under pressure to prove ROI. Account-level measurement ("Acme Corp saw our ads") is less compelling than person-level measurement ("Jane Smith, VP of Marketing at Acme Corp, saw our ads 12 times, clicked twice, and entered the pipeline 3 weeks later"). PBM enables the attribution granularity that modern RevOps teams demand.
5. Technology Has Matured
In 2020, person-level B2B advertising was a niche concept pioneered by Influ2. In 2026, multiple platforms offer person-level targeting: Hey Sid, Influ2, ContactLevel, and LinkedIn Matched Audiences. The technology is no longer experimental. It is operational at scale.
How PBM and ABM Work Together
People-based marketing is not a competitor to ABM. It is the targeting layer that makes ABM more effective.
The integrated approach:
ABM Layer | What It Does | PBM Enhancement |
|---|---|---|
Account selection | Identifies which companies to target (ICP, intent data) | No change: ABM's account selection remains the foundation |
Account intelligence | Reveals which accounts are in-market (intent signals, engagement) | PBM adds person-level intent: which individual at the account is researching |
Advertising | Runs account-based ads (IP targeting) | PBM replaces IP targeting with person-level targeting for higher precision |
Outreach | SDR outreach to contacts at target accounts | PBM warms specific contacts with ads before outreach arrives |
Measurement | Tracks account engagement and pipeline influenced | PBM adds individual-level engagement tracking and attribution |
The practical workflow:
Use ABM principles to select target accounts (ICP scoring, intent data from 6sense or Demandbase)
Map 3-5 decision-makers per account (the buying committee)
Run person-level ads to those specific individuals across their devices (Hey Sid's Always On)
Publish thought leadership that the same individuals see in their feed (Authority Builder)
Send LinkedIn outreach to individuals showing ad engagement (Precision Connect)
Measure at both the account level (which accounts are warming?) and person level (which individuals engaged?)
Hey Sid's Influence Loop operates this integrated model: ABM account selection + PBM execution. You get the strategic rigor of ABM with the targeting precision of PBM.
People-Based Marketing Platforms Compared
Platform | Targeting Level | Channels | Starting Price | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Hey Sid | Person (named individuals) | LinkedIn, Meta, Google, display + outreach + content | ~$1,900/mo | Mid-sized B2B, managed execution |
Influ2 | Person (contact list) | Display, LinkedIn, Meta, Google, Bing, Amazon | ~$60K/yr | Enterprise self-serve PBM |
ContactLevel | Person (contact list) | Display network | Custom | Person-based display ads |
LinkedIn Matched Audiences | Person (email/company list) | LinkedIn only | LinkedIn ad minimums | LinkedIn-native PBM |
Demandbase | Account (IP) + person (Buying Group Insights) | Native B2B DSP | ~$18K+/yr | Enterprise ABM with emerging PBM |
6sense | Account (IP + AI) | B2B DSP + CTV | ~$35K+/yr | Predictive intelligence + ABM |
The landscape: Hey Sid and Influ2 are the two platforms built primarily for person-level targeting. Demandbase and 6sense are adding person-level features (Buying Group Insights, contact-level intent) to their account-based platforms. The convergence is clear: ABM platforms are moving toward PBM capabilities because the market demands individual-level precision.
Which Approach Is Right for Your Team?
Your Situation | Best Approach |
|---|---|
Enterprise team with $50K+ ABM platform budget | ABM + PBM integration (6sense or Demandbase for intelligence, Hey Sid or Influ2 for person-level execution) |
Mid-market team with 1-3 marketers | PBM-first (Hey Sid's Influence Loop covers targeting, outreach, and content as managed service) |
Large target account list (500+ accounts) | ABM for prioritization (intent data identifies which accounts to focus on) + PBM for execution (person-level ads to decision-makers at prioritized accounts) |
Small target account list (50-200 accounts) | PBM-first (target specific individuals at each account directly) |
Selling to remote/hybrid workforce | PBM required (IP-based ABM cannot reach remote workers) |
Buying committee of 5+ stakeholders | PBM required (need to target each stakeholder individually, not just the company) |
For mid-sized B2B companies, Hey Sid provides the practical path to people-based marketing without enterprise ABM platform complexity. Always On targets named individuals, Authority Builder builds trust with the same audience, and Precision Connect starts conversations. One managed service instead of assembling an ABM platform, a PBM ad tool, an outreach tool, and a content agency.
Explore people-based marketing: heysid.com/demo
See how it works: heysid.com/how-it-works
FAQ
Is people-based marketing the same as account-based marketing?
No. ABM targets companies (accounts). PBM targets specific individuals within those companies. ABM uses IP address matching to reach anyone at a company. PBM uses identity graph matching to reach named decision-makers. PBM is the evolution of ABM, adding individual-level precision to account-level strategy.
Do I need to choose between ABM and PBM?
No. The strongest approach integrates both: use ABM for account selection and intelligence (which companies to target, which are in-market), and PBM for execution (which individuals to reach, with what ads, on which platforms). Hey Sid combines both: ABM account selection with PBM person-level execution.
Is people-based marketing more expensive than ABM?
Person-level ads have higher CPMs than IP-based ads. But because every impression reaches a known decision-maker (zero waste), the effective cost per relevant impression is often lower. Traditional ABM wastes 60-80% of impressions on non-decision-makers. PBM eliminates that waste entirely. Hey Sid starts at ~$1,900/month, which is accessible compared to enterprise ABM platforms ($18K-$300K+/year).
What data do I need for people-based marketing?
A contact list with names, titles, and email addresses for your target decision-makers (3-5 per account). This list comes from your CRM, data enrichment tools (Apollo, Clay, Cognism), or Hey Sid's included contact enrichment. The list is matched to ad platform identity graphs to enable person-level targeting.
Sources
6sense, "2025 B2B Buyer Experience Report" (8-12 stakeholders, 94% rank vendors, 10 decision-maker functions)
Demandbase, "2025 Buying Group Research" (72% high-complexity, Buying Group Insights)
Gartner, "B2B Buying Research" (67-70% journey before vendor contact)
Influ2, "Person-Based Advertising: The New Standard" (category pioneer)
Dreamdata, "2026 B2B Benchmarks" (272-day journey, 81% marketing-owned)
Hey Sid, "How It Works" (heysid.com/how-it-works)
Hey Sid, "Always On" (heysid.com/always-on)
Related: ABM Strategy Playbook | B2B Advertising Guide | Account-Based Marketing Tools | Best Influ2 Alternatives | Hey Sid Resources
