Who is easy and hard to match
| Situation | Matchable? |
|---|---|
| Office network of a large company | Usually |
| Company VPN | Often |
| Home broadband | Rarely |
| Mobile network | Rarely |
| Small company with a shared office | Sometimes |
One vendor guide puts IP accuracy at 70–90% for companies over 500 people and 20–40% for companies under 50.
What it means for targeting and for identification
The same limit applies in both directions: IP-based ABM ads miss home-working employees, and IP-based company identification misses home-working visitors. That's why we report identification from your real traffic every week instead of promising a fixed rate.
How to plan around it
- Weight towards desktop and weekdays. Office-network research is easier to match.
- Use several signals: IP matches, form fills, CRM activity and LinkedIn engagement.
- Count unmatched visits too. They're still demand, even without a name.
- Use questions as a second targeting layer. A specific buyer question reaches the right people wherever they browse.
How to measure your own coverage
- Take one month of website visits.
- Count how many were matched to a company.
- Split by device and day of the week.
- Compare matched companies with your target list.
The result is your real match rate. It's the number to plan with, not a vendor's average.
Questions
Do VPNs help or hurt?
Company VPNs usually help, because traffic leaves through company networks. Consumer VPNs hide the company.
Does IPv6 change matching?
It changes the address ranges providers need to map. Ask your identification provider how they cover it.
Should we stop using IP targeting?
No. Use it where it works, large companies and office networks, and add question-led targeting for the rest.
How hybrid work changes the pattern
Hybrid work creates a weekly rhythm in matchable traffic: more on office days, less on home days. Campaigns and reports that ignore this can mistake a quiet Monday for a failing channel. Compare like with like: week on week, and weekdays separately.
What to tell stakeholders
Explain that IP-based methods see part of the market, not all of it. Report matched and unmatched demand side by side, so nobody concludes that unmatched visits don't exist.
Start here: ChatGPT ads for ABM. More articles in ABM and AI ads.
