In this modern world that we are living in, you cannot deny the fact that technology is all around us. You probably use technology for a few hours each day – texting or messaging on your phone, using your laptop to send important emails, or even just watching Netflix on your TV.
These days, almost everyone is on the internet. A lot of companies and businesses heavily rely on online marketing, which is why SaaS or Software as a Service software is so popular. Companies that offer software as their main products and/or services fall under this category. Some of the biggest companies that offer SaaS are Google Apps Dropbox, Salesforce, Hubspot, Slack, ZenDesk, SaaS BPM, and more.
Because of the unique model that SaaS offers, more and more companies are coming up with their own SaaS services and products. There is no physical or tangible product to deliver – all the customers have to do is sign up, pay a fee, and they can use the product right away!
If you are one of the companies that offer SaaS, then this article will help you when it comes to marketing your SaaS products and/or services.
What Exactly Does SaaS Marketing Mean?
Just like with any type of business, SaaS products need to be marketed to the right target market. SaaS company owners also have to think of different ways to gain new customers while maintaining their old ones. In short, you have to be creative if you want to sell your products.
Without further ado, let’s get on to the SaaS Marketing ideas that you can try.
1. Try Inbound Marketing
Always listen to your customers and what they are saying. Taking care of your customers and resolving their issues should be your main concern, as they will most likely find another SaaS company to work with if you do not try to resolve their issue/s.
Always remember that no matter how unique your model, services, or products are, you have a competitor out there who’s willing to serve your customers better. It’s important to take good care of your customers, especially the loyal and repeat ones, as they will help your company and business grow exponentially.
First, make sure to define your target market and buyers’ personas. Try to illustrate each key trait that they possess and analyze each one. Knowing what type of personas you have will help you pinpoint the challenges they have, what their behavior online is, and the way they like to communicate.
Once you know what their needs are, it is now time to create unique content for your customers that will help them address their challenges and solve their problems that’s related to your products and services.
Having a solid and proper customer service is essential to your business, especially if you want to keep your customers and have them come back in the future.
2. Decide Between Offering a Freemium Model or Free Trial
Offering a free trial or freemium model is very common in the SaaS industry. You do not have a physical or tangible product to sell, which is why it is very important for your potential customers to try the service out before they decide on buying the premium version of it.
Think of it this way: when you are out shopping for clothes or shoes, you most likely try them on first, right? This is, of course, to make sure that the clothes or shoes will fit you well and that you will be comfortable when wearing them.
The same goes for SaaS products. You’d want to let your target market test it out first before they can actually decide if paying a premium price for your services is worth it.
How do you decide on which one to offer though? Well, it all depends on the service that you are offering and how you would want to sell it. For example, free trials work best for B2Bs, but for B2Cs, both will actually work okay.
However, a lot of SaaS companies actually go for free trials instead of freemium. Most trials last for about 30 days, and if you are working with a B2B, then they will most likely need time to integrate your products into their system. This means that they would have to evaluate your services head-on, and if they decide that it’s a good fit for their business, then they would most likely pay for the premium version ASAP.
3. Implement Content Marketing
Content marketing is a very powerful tool. Not only is it useful for SaaS marketing – it is basically used with every single type of business.
Contrary to what many are thinking, content marketing is actually a great way to let people know about your new product or service. Through this, you can introduce its uses, benefits, and how your customers will be able to use it in the future. You will also be able to build trust and establish rapport with your audience.
Through content marketing, you will also be able to engage with your customers and open up two-way communication. You will most likely get the feedback, which will then help you tweak the things that you think would be of best interest to your audience. You just have to make sure that your content is helpful and informational.
Photo credit: Career Employer
4. Make Use of Google Ads
Google is definitely one of the biggest search engines today. It also has a great ad manager in place, and as long as you use the right keywords and follow the trends, your website and/or pages will rank high on their pages.
This is why hiring an SEO manager and content writer is essential to your SaaS business. The SEO manager will look for applicable and relevant keywords, and the content writer will be the one to put these keywords to good use in their articles. Once these are posted online, the SEO manager will then monitor the articles and web pages to make sure that they are ranking high on Google.
A lot of people who search on Google rarely take a look beyond the first two pages. Only if they are quite persistent in their search, then they might take a look further. This is the main reason why it is very important to aim for the first page, especially for your main website.
5. Take Advantage of Facebook Ads
Just like Google, Facebook has an ad manager in place. However, Facebook’s ad manager is definitely more user-friendly, plus, you can tweak your ads based on your liking. It is highly customizable, which means that you can target your customers easily when launching a new ad or campaign.
You will be able to customize essential things such as your target market’s interests, purchasing behavior, location, job titles, and age. This is where collecting your target market’s data comes in, especially if you are looking for new prospects. You can also re-target your loyal customers so they can come back when you have new products and/or services to offer.
6. Consider Email Marketing
Email lists are for those loyal customers who keep on coming back to purchase your service/s. You can create an email newsletter to send out to them – whether it’s about a new service, an additional plugin, or even tips to make the most out of their subscription.
You can also try to gather email addresses from potential customers by asking them to join your email list whenever they visit your website or social media pages.
Email newsletters are usually effective and can help you get that return on investment that you have been longing to see.
Also, having an email list and sending out newsletters regularly will make your customers feel important and included. This will encourage them to reach out to you if they ever have problems or questions with your services or model.
Create an inviting and effective email signup form that your potential customers would enjoy completing. Make it brief and precise – just ask for their email address, and that’s it. Incorporate it into your website, social media pages, and wherever you deem necessary and applicable.
If you want to grow your email list further, then consider giving something away for free. It doesn’t have to be big – you can try offering discounts to memberships, free upgrades, or referral promos to encourage them to invite their friends to try your services.
Conclusion
Do everything that you can in your power to maximize the use of online tools when working with SaaS marketing. You might not be able to reach and engage with your customers physically, but you always have the choice to communicate with them online.
Trust us, you will most likely get noticed if you put a lot of effort into communicating with your customers. Put your best efforts into taking good care of returning customers that are loyal to you so that they will remain loyal patrons for years to come.
Make sure to hire the right people to help you implement effective strategies, communicate clearly, and soon you might just be at the forefront of the SaaS business! Nothing is impossible, so go ahead and chase your SaaS dreams!
Team DevriX
This article is crafted by DevriX's seasoned marketing team, boasting over four decades of collective expertise in crafting sophisticated marketing funnels, devising comprehensive content frameworks and pillars, implementing engaging email campaigns, and creating impactful social media content designed for scalability.
Our marketing experts specialize in the complete spectrum of inbound marketing strategies. As an accredited HubSpot Agency Partner and a Semrush Partner, we engage in meticulous research, blending our extensive experience with the unique insights of our highly skilled team.
We set benchmarks in content creation by incorporating cutting-edge marketing trends, leveraging in-depth industry research, and utilizing state-of-the-art AI tools for data segmentation and captivating content hooks. Our proficiency extends across a diverse range of sectors, including working with SMEs, Fortune 1000 companies, global B2B brands, major publishing entities, WooCommerce platforms, business directories, and affiliate networks.
