Update Your SaaS Marketing Strategy in 2020

With over 10,000 private SaaS companies around, selling software as a service is challenging. To stand out among the thousands and generate reliable leads, companies need to capitalize on the latest marketing trends. 

Any SaaS marketing strategy used today must be a full-stop, comprehensive plan. Underdeveloped content marketing shows, making it harder to produce compelling ads that directly engage clients.

Learn how to market SaaS in today's challenging climate, so the future is full of growth potential.

Plan Content Marketing Strategy in Advance

For a strong SaaS marketing strategy, companies must emphasize the benefits of software as a service. These benefits offer prime material for any content marketing campaigns developed. These benefits include:

• Accessibility across devices 

• Easy to update or patch as-needed

• Farther spread in market reach

• Low initial investment

• Routine data backups to the cloud

• A platform for centralized data analytics

Before advertising these benefits, a plan must be developed. Planning content in advance requires clear communication and evaluating the necessities for content production. Explore different content management systems (CMS) to streamline content creation. 

Different CMS platforms likely suit one company's workflow processes over another. Choosing the right system for content allows for campaign tracking, which can also tie into other marketing campaigns. This provides a vital structure for content creators, too.

Supporting marketers or content creators means implementing transparent systems for the many processes in content production. Whether for editing, production, and final copy, a CMS provides clear pipelines for these processes.

Create a Content Calendar

Whether companies choose to implement content management or not, making content means working with timelines. It's essential to ensure content stays on schedule and does not overlap with existing or drafted content.

Content calendars are an essential part of content marketing. They allow companies to vary content provided and track, which is most effective with viewers. 

The provided content can offer a trial or demo of the product for clients. It can teach consumers how to use the software as a service. It can provide educational information to market SaaS to unique industries through blog posts.

Target Messages for Target Markets

Planning content ahead of time helps improve an SaaS marketing strategy. It also makes it easier to target messages for target markets. When advertising SaaS to clients, businesses must know audience pain points. Some of the best ways to market software as a service involve buyer personas and market research.

Market Research

There are different levels to develop an understanding of client needs. Exploratory or specific primary research requires direct interaction with clients. Either kind of primary research is more focused on problem-solving than tracking consumer trends.

This makes primary research ideal for generating B2B interactions. Secondary research concerns itself with competitors. Using public records, commercial or internal sources, companies can research the competition.

Secondary research only serves SaaS marketing needs if a business experiences direct competition. Otherwise, primary research can generate the necessary data. Gathering this data can happen in several ways, including:

• Interviews or surveys

• Focus groups

• Product/service use

• Buyer persona

• Market segmentation

• Brand awareness

• Campaign data

Researching with any one of these methods can direct companies to audience pain points. Businesses must communicate how their SaaS supports customers, no matter the industry.

Optimize Content for Search Engines

Search engine optimization (SEO) helps clients see SaaS brands based on whatever they search. Organic leads from search engine hits and site visits strengthen any SaaS marketing strategy. Focus on SEO for clients who already need software as a service by making a brand more visible.

Some companies think of SEO as a black magic tactic for generating leads. This assumption is wrong. Instead, think of SEO as virtual icing on a digital cake. The content or "cake" needs to support any optimized features (i.e., the icing or SEO).

Most often, companies that misunderstand or had a negative experience with SEO completely neglect. Putting in a little bit of effort goes a long way to increase visibility on search engine results pages.

Keyword Research

Keyword research helps to focus on SEO and improve the SaaS marketing strategy. This tactic involves a few simple steps that increase the overall digital impact. When clients search for SaaS online, they use keywords that connect with a site.

Researching these keywords can help you answer important questions about why customers even need software as a service. This can inform some of the content produced, depending on the amount invested in researching keywords.

Consider building a research template to determine which keywords are worth paying for in your content marketing budget. Related search queries can inform which keywords serve best as primary or secondary targets. These keyword types also help sort out what competitors may use to draw site traffic.

On-Page and Off-Page SEO

You don't have to be an SEO expert to understand the different kinds of SEO. On-page and off-page SEO are the most common types used. These appear in several places on websites.

On-page SEO appears in the title, header, and body of on-page content. It's also found in the call to action buttons, image alt text, and contact forms. Off-page SEO emphasizes backlinking, both internally and externally.

Both of these SEO types can easily be inserted on any landing pages for an SaaS company. Make sure to use thoroughly researched keywords for more visibility. The right keywords in the right places will boost search rank in no time.

Technical SEO

Technical SEO uses keywords placed on the backend of a website. It requires a bit of coding knowledge and is more time-consuming. The elements involved in this type of SEO include:

• Site speed

• Mobile optimization

• Page indexing

• Crawlability

• Sitemaps

• Data structure

• Cybersecurity

Adjusting these elements takes time and skill. If a business doesn't have the necessary skills to implement technical SEO, consider outsourcing to a professional instead.

 

Other Marketing Strategies for Software as a Service

Although a focus on SEO is essential for any SaaS marketing strategy, so are other types of marketing. Both referral and email marketing make use of client feedback and digital word-of-mouth. These strategies can work in tandem with any SEO and content marketing implemented.

Referral Marketing

Referral marketing uses in-person or digital word-of-mouth to sell software as a service. Incentivizing referrals is a cost-effective way to implement referral marketing. Instead of paying marketers to sell SaaS, have customers do it.

Some businesses incentivize referrals with priority access to new products. This invites loyal customers to share their experience with the marketed SaaS. Leveraging SaaS review sites can provide the referrals a brand needs.

After customers complete a trial period, ask them to share their experience. If they chose to purchase the full SaaS product, have them share why. Incentivize this review with a discount on current or future services.

Relying on customer referrals shows a brand's loyalty and credibility. If a SaaS company does not have a community, turning to referral marketing can build one. A strong community of customers strengthens a brand and grows leads.

Email Marketing

Email marketing works well with every kind of marketing strategy. As a stand-alone tactic, it slowly builds leads. When integrated with content marketing or SEO, it streamlines entire campaigns. 

Crafting email campaigns allows for marketing automation. Automated processes generate reliable, accessible data analytics. These can inform which customers need follow up and which need more information before purchasing software as a service.

Use emails for customers who complete a trial or demo use of SaaS to encourage activation. If customers visit a site and sign up to learn more, use email to educate them. Give industry-specific content about how SaaS serves their specific needs.

Emails can also redirect customers to visit a site and contact the business. Or, use emails to encourage warm leads to sign up for a demo of the product. Offer incentives if customers sign up for a trial and then purchase the product.

Using emails can also integrate with referral marketing. Once customers purchase a full SaaS subscription, follow up. Use this customer experience for invaluable feedback and marketable reviews.

Why Your SaaS Marketing Strategy Needs Marketing Experts

Even with a dedicated SaaS marketing strategy, businesses still need professional support. Hands-on, action-oriented lead generation depends on how successful your inbound marketing is. Finding the help you need to execute an action plan isn't impossible.

At Referable, we want to tell your data story. As B2B SaaS marketing experts, we have the skills you need to adapt to old strategies. Whether you need simple advice or an in-depth consultation, we can help. Let's chat today so we can share our single focus on landing your business qualified leads.