How to Build an Effective Target Account List for Enterprise Sales

When it comes to generating leads, casting a wide net and hoping for the best is no longer a viable strategy. The most successful enterprise sales teams are laser-focused on accounts that truly matter. Below you can find concrete steps for creating a target account list that drives results.

What Is a Target Account List and Why Does It Matter?

A target account list is simply a prioritized inventory of companies your sales team should focus on. It’s the foundation of account-based marketing (ABM) and targeted selling strategies.

The numbers speak for themselves: over 80% of B2B companies plan to increase their ABM budgets, and 87% report higher ROI from account-based approaches compared to traditional marketing. Yet more than a third of teams struggle with creating effective target lists.

Building Your List: A Three-Step Approach

Step 1: Start With Your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)

Your ICP defines the type of company that gets the most value from your solution. To create yours:

• Analyze your best current customers (those with largest contracts, most upsells, or highest usage)
• Look for common patterns in:
  • Industry or vertical
  • Company size (revenue and employees)
  • Geographic location
  • Technology stack
  • Business maturity
  • Customer base

A simple ICP might read: “North American SaaS companies with 100-500 employees, $10-50M in revenue, and a focus on SMB customers.”

Step 2: Gather and Filter Account Data

With your ICP defined, it’s time to build your master list:

• Use firmographic data (company characteristics) and technographic data (technology usage) to identify potential matches
• Focus on in-market buyers showing purchase intent
• Prioritize companies that have already engaged with your content or website
• Load everything into your CRM for easier filtering

Step 3: Create a Tiered Priority System

Not all accounts deserve equal attention. Use a three-tier approach:

Tier 1 (20%): Perfect ICP matches that represent your highest-value opportunities. These deserve personalized, high-touch outreach.

Tier 2 (30%): Strong matches with one or two deviations from your ideal profile. These warrant targeted campaigns with moderate personalization.

Tier 3 (50%): Partial matches that still have potential but shouldn’t consume significant resources. These are best approached with scalable, less personalized tactics.

Practical Sizing Guidelines

Your list size should align with your sales model:

• Named Account Model: 10 Tier 1 accounts per rep (60 total for a team of 6)
• Field Sales Model: 30 Tier 1 accounts per rep (300 total for a team of 10)
• Two-Stage Model: 100 Tier 1 accounts per rep (800 total for a team of 8)

Making It Work: Implementation Tips

• Align sales and marketing teams on definitions, goals, and account ownership
• Review quarterly but refresh no more than 20% of your list each quarter
• Measure success through increased engagement, higher contract values, and (eventually) shorter sales cycles
• Adjust based on results, not assumptions

The Bottom Line

A well-crafted target account list isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s the difference between scattered efforts and strategic growth. By focusing your team’s energy on the right accounts, you’ll see higher conversion rates, larger deals, and more efficient use of your sales resources.