Measurement & ROI:
How Do I Measure Relationship Depth Within Accounts?
Go beyond clicks. Score relationship depth by combining breadth (roles & locations), seniority (economic buyer access), and quality (recency, reciprocity, strategic touchpoints). Use it to prioritize ABX, de-risk deals, and forecast with confidence.
Measure relationship depth with an Account Relationship Depth Score (RDS) from 0–100 that blends: Buying-group breadth (unique engaged roles), seniority mix (Director+ & economic buyer touches), and quality (two-way interactions, strategic meetings, recency with time-decay). Track RDS by account tier and funnel stage; trigger next best actions when thresholds are met.
Relationship Measurement Principles
Your 30-Day Relationship Depth Playbook
Stand up a practical score that aligns Sales, Marketing, and CS—and correlates to win rate.
Week 1 → Week 4
- Define the buying group — List target roles (economic, technical, user, champion) and seniority levels by segment.
- Map signals & weights — Email reply (3), meeting held (8), multi-attendee workshop (12), EBR/QBR (15), executive 1:1 (20). Calibrate by motion (new logo vs expansion).
- Implement time-decay — Reduce points based on days since last verified interaction (e.g., 50% after 45 days).
- Calculate RDS — RDS = 40% Breadth + 25% Seniority Mix + 20% Two-Way Quality + 10% Multithread Index + 5% Partner/Advocate.
- Publish thresholds — Connected ≥30, Multithreaded ≥50, Strategic ≥70, Executive-sponsored ≥85.
- Wire actions — Trigger next best actions (exec intro, reference call, POV workshop) when RDS crosses stage-specific gates.
Relationship Tiering Rubric (Compare & Act)
| Tier | Definition | Required Signals | Numeric Thresholds | Next Best Action | Primary Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0. Unreached | No verified two-way interaction in last 90 days. | N/A | RDS < 10; 0 engaged roles | Warm intro via partner/customer; run 1:1 relevance outreach. | SDR/ABX |
| 1. Connected | At least one active contact with two-way signal. | Reply or meeting held in last 45 days. | RDS 10–29; ≥1 role; <20% Director+ | Add technical/user role; schedule discovery with multi-attendees. | SDR → AE |
| 2. Multithreaded | Multiple roles across functions are engaged. | ≥3 roles engaged; at least one Director+ touch. | RDS 30–49; roles ≥3; Director+ ≥1 | Run value workshop or pilot; introduce SE/CS early. | AE + SE |
| 3. Strategic | Executive sponsor identified and engaged. | EBR/QBR or exec 1:1; champion confirmed. | RDS 50–74; roles ≥4; Director+ ≥2 | Co-author success plan; align on business case & POV. | AE + Exec Sponsor |
| 4. Partner-Like | Trusted advisor status with cross-functional alignment. | Executive sponsor + referenceable champion; multi-team workshop cadence. | RDS ≥75; roles ≥5; VP/C-Suite ≥1 | Lock success plan milestones; expand to adjacent BUs/geos. | AE + CS Leadership |
Client Snapshot: From Connected to Strategic
A cybersecurity provider implemented RDS with time-decay and tiered actions. In two quarters, multithreaded accounts grew from 31%→57%, win rate improved 6.5 pts, and slip rate dropped 18% as deals with executive sponsors moved faster with fewer surprises.
Map your RDS thresholds to The Loop™ stages so Marketing, Sales, and CS share one definition of “relationship health” that predicts pipeline and retention.
Relationship Depth FAQs
Short, executive-ready answers designed for AEO and rich results.
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We’ll define your signals, wire time-decay, set thresholds, and launch a score that drives next best actions across ABX, Sales, and CS.
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