Account tiering turns a long list of potential buyers into a focused plan of attack. You assign every account to a tier based on how closely it matches your ideal customer profile and how likely it is to buy and grow. The goal is to concentrate time and budget where it moves the needle.

• Define the tiers and criteria. Most teams use three tiers. Tier 1 is a short list of high-potential, high-fit accounts. Tier 2 fits well but needs validation. Tier 3 fits broadly and is best handled at scale. Document the criteria so marketing, sales, and RevOps apply the same rules.
• Assemble the data. Pull firmographic data (size, region, industry), technographic data (tools, infrastructure), and buying signals such as intent topics, site visits, email engagement, and outbound replies. Fill gaps before you score.
• Score and assign. Convert criteria into a transparent scoring model. Weight ICP fit higher than short-term intent so you avoid chasing noise. Use thresholds to assign tiers and publish the list so teams can plan outreach.
• Resource by tier. Give Tier 1 one-to-one programs with bespoke messaging and senior coverage. Give Tier 2 one-to-few plays around shared needs and use light personalization. Put Tier 3 into programmatic nurture and qualification to surface risers.
• Review and rebalance. Recalculate weekly or monthly. When signals strengthen, promote an account. When they stall, pause or downgrade. Treat the model as a living system, not a one-time exercise.

Tiering quality depends on disciplined inputs and clear guardrails. A simple model with good data beats a complex model that no one trusts.

• Signals to include
  • Firmographic: employee count, growth rate, geographic coverage, buying centers.
  • Technographic: core platforms, recent tool changes, partner ecosystems.
  • Intent: topic surge, recency, and source reliability. De-duplicate across vendors.
  • Engagement: site paths, content depth, meeting history, marketing responses.
  • Relationship: champions, executive alignment, open opportunities, customer references.
• Scoring approach
  • Build a points model with explicit weights. Example: 50% ICP fit, 25% intent, 15% engagement, 10% relationship.
  • Set tier thresholds and caps. If Tier 1 exceeds your team's capacity, quality will suffer.
  • Use negative signals. Exclude disqualifiers like product mismatch or compliance blockers.
• Governance
  • Define owners. Marketing owns data hygiene and scoring logic. Sales owns account selection within the rules. RevOps owns audits and capacity models.
  • Cadence. Run an automated refresh, then a biweekly review to approve promotions and demotions.
  • Visibility. Publish tier, score, last review date, and next action in your CRM so everyone sees the same source of truth.

Once accounts are tiered, the playbook becomes clear. Match the level of personalization and investment to the upside.

• Tier 1: One-to-one
  • Account-specific value narrative, mapped to their initiatives and stakeholders.
  • Custom content and landing pages, executive programs, tailored demos, and coordinated outreach from marketing, sales, and success.
  • KPIs: meetings with buying committee, multi-threaded engagement, stage progression, pipeline created, win rate, and expansion potential.
• Tier 2: One-to-few
  • Cluster by shared attributes like segment, problem, or tech stack.
  • Modular content with light personalization, targeted ads, small field events, and orchestrated email sequences.
  • KPIs: intent lift within clusters, meeting volume, cost per opportunity, velocity to qualified pipeline.
• Tier 3: Programmatic
  • Scaled nurture, retargeting, community and content subscriptions, and automated qualification.
  • Trigger-based promotion to higher tiers when engagement and intent pass thresholds.
  • KPIs: audience growth, qualified inbound, cost to engage, and conversion to Tier 2.