Marketing a SaaS business model and establishing a customer acquisition strategy for Software as a Service is a critical reality for virtual business owners.
SaaS or Software as a Service offers their clients flexible service subscriptions to service software and virtual or
While the benefits of Software as a Service seem strong enough to sell themselves, SaaS business owners, need a sound acquisition strategy to build and grow their business through the various stages of its lifecycle.
As a service provider when selling virtual services, SaaS business owners aim to solve four (4) barriers of successful customer acquisition:
1. Build brand awareness
2. Convince to purchase
3. Price products appropriately
4. Simplify integration and on-boarding
When making a purchase decision, customers research various solutions, evaluate their options, make the purchase and on-board through integrating the purchased software apps. As a SaaS provider the ideal customer acquisition strategy should be to build your product awareness, facilitate the customer evaluation phase, offer cost effective subscription options/ terms and ensure that the application is simple enough to integrate with their existing business.
The marketplace no longer responds to outdated marketing strategies, today, business owners need to initiate a revised approach to customer acquisition and growth strategies. Customers no longer engage with the “what” but rather the “why”. Customers purchase purpose and the more compelling the purpose, the more engaged the customer will be. Brand perception is everything which is why in the world of highly evolved consumers; brands must have a clear and acute understanding of self in order to sell their authenticity and their purpose.
5 Quick Tactics to a Sound SaaS Customer Acquisition Strategy
1. Do as you say and say as you do
Define who you are, what your business stands for and how your product solves customer angst. Be resolute, stay true to your definitions and be sure to always deliver what you have committed to.
2. Lobby brand ambassadors
Engage with industry leaders, influencers and brand ambassadors. The more credible your reputation, the more compelled potential customers will be to make a purchase. An authentic influencer strategy, where brand ambassadors are truly convinced of the value of your product, will go a mile when marketing to potential customers.
3. Create and market compelling content through thought leadership
Share your topic expertise by generating compelling content to build awareness and keep your customers engaged. Write blogs, share social content and distribute thought leadership pieces that can be marketed, repurposed and shared as far as the social funnel will reach.
4. Accessibility
Make your services available and easy to access through every channel that you can imagine (where it makes sense of course). Use your website’s landing page as a main source of conversion, offer customers other options to engage, gain more information and convert through telephone, email, newsletters, SMS marketing, Social Media, Reviews, Forums and the all-powerful, Word of Mouth.
5. After Sale Support Strategy
A separate and critical step to securing long term clients and extending the lifetime value of a customer is with a strong aftersales support and on-boarding programme. Once the client has made their purchase, make sure they are satisfied, gain value from the product and are convinced to renew their subscription, given an excellent “in-subscription” experience they have following the final purchase.
