One of the problems that SaaS companies have that perhaps other technology companies do not have, and even fewer businesses in another sector, is that what they sell is an intangible product . This product is also probably not unique in the world. In other words, the safest thing is that another company has developed a similar technological solution to a problem that your potential client presents, so it can make your marketing even more difficult.

However, each development has a distinctive feature, something that can make it different and ideal for the customer who acquires it. And that is why you buy it. But how do you get to conceptualize what makes it special? How to transmit this in a message through the different online channels? What steps or phases should you take into account to carry out a digital marketing strategy that has the ROI you expect?

If you have a software that has strong points that you can highlight, if you work so that your development does not become obsolete and so that your service is better every day, now is the best time to start a marketing project that can help you market this or these intangible products that you offer, improving the visibility and positioning of your brand on the Internet. To do this, we are going to start talking about the first step you must follow in your strategy:

 

1. Work on a branding that allows you to differentiate yourself.

As the years go by and your brand consolidates in your sector, there will be several times that you will have had to reformulate your values ​​and mission, as well as several times that you will have to have redefined your services and products. This implies that it will have been necessary to refresh your brand over time. Why is this necessary?

On the one hand, technology brands have an indisputable feature, their developments must be updated over time based on new opportunities in the market. But on the other hand, and closely linked to the above, because as time passes and the sector changes, so do the needs and the purchasing cycle of consumers.

If you think about it, when only a few years ago the outbound or traditional marketing and sales tactics were enough, now they are not. Consumers compare, seek answers to their questions on the Internet. To a greater or lesser extent, these changes will continue to happen, and it is necessary to evolve so as not to remain an obsolete solution that is poorly aligned with the needs of potential buyers.

In other words, both at the service/product level, as well as at the brand and image level, it will be necessary to update over time, taking into account market trends and consumer purchasing cycles. That’s why even now you should rethink getting back to work and refreshing your brand if you haven’t done so recently.

The first online marketing action in your strategy that you should consider is rebranding . But the truth is that this rebranding does not have to imply a radical change in terms of image or ideology, but rather a self-criticism as to how up-to-date the brand is and how it could improve to better align with customer needs and see itself modernized in terms of to image and approach online.

• Reconceptualize what you offer , make it even more understandable for the consumers you are targeting. Be clear about the differences and strengths of your software. And not only be clear on a commercial level, but also be able to capture it in a document that serves as an internal guide to align the entire team, but also serves to generate useful content, which leads us to the next point.
• Begin to assess how you can communicate this that you have defined through the different online channels . A style guide that consolidates the values ​​of your brand is especially important when generating different communications and content with and for your clients, both commercial and marketing.
• And yes, assess whether your current visual identity is in line with the corporate image you want to convey , whether it can be improved, or whether the previous changes were the only ones you needed to make. In this case, and depending on the years of experience, you should also think about what your brand’s reputation is today, if it is necessary to refresh it or do a complete facelift that is aligned with the preferences of your clients, what Which brings us to the next step:

2. Define well what type of client you have and need.

We have spoken on many occasions about the importance of developing customer profiles for a business , regardless of the sector. This is so because without these profiles it is more complicated to think about how to structure a website, choose the appropriate communication channels or the relevant content to create. And in general terms, it is more complex to implement any type of successful online marketing action.

The customer profiles allow us to have a clear focus for who we are creating the content that will feed each of the marketing strategies that allow you to better market your software. These profiles help us not to get sidetracked and focus each of the campaigns based on the brand’s objectives.

And as important as defining these types of buyer profiles that you have today and that you potentially know you could reach, is understanding what their buying cycle is. And it is that knowing how the evolution of a consumer is from when he is a stranger to the business, until he becomes a buyer and user of your software is essential to attract, convert and retain.

And SaaS marketing this purchase cycle is especially important because, generally, it is the consumers who purchase the product and service who are responsible for justifying an expense that can be considerable and a utility for the prosperity of their own business. This means that the purchase cycles tend to lengthen and that there are many pain points or doubts that arise along the way and that can be solved with the following step:

3. Humanize and nourish the purchase cycle with content.

When it comes to helping your customers advance in their purchase cycle, you should think not only about those marketing and sales strategies that are going to be useful for your company.

In other words, having identified a buyer persona and their pain points during the purchase process, you should think about what content may be useful to help you move forward. This will imply the implementation of different marketing and sales strategies to which you will have to commit depending on the economic and human resources that are at your disposal :

3.1. Content marketing: web, blog and social networks.

The website , your main channel, must have the right content and structure . The pages where you provide information about your software and services should include practical and educational information, potentially in different formats (text, image and video), that help understand what the solution consists of. However, in these pages the solution is found and the purchase process begins with a preliminary investigation that allows users to assess how to solve the problem or need they face, for which it is usually necessary to create educational articles to through:

The blog , which can help your potential clients in their initial search , recognition and consideration phase . Think about what are the reasons why they might buy your software. For example, if they search for “how to improve the profitability of their business”, perhaps your software helps indirectly by improving the organization and efficiency of their work, in this case you should make content that makes them see all the ways they can improve, including that that leads them to potentially acquire your solution.

Social networks are the channels par excellence for disseminating and diversifying content. For many tech businesses, networks like Instagram are one of the biggest sources of traffic and conversion. However, for SaaS, other social platforms such as LinkedIn may be more useful , in which to start conversations, share content and investigate the needs of potential clients.

3.2. Positioning marketing: organic and paid acquisition.

Closely linked to content marketing we find those positioning strategies such as SEO and SEM . While SEO, that is, search engine optimization, focuses on improving the visibility of a website to get organic or natural traffic that clicks on the links in search results, SEM or online advertising campaigns is that strategy in which you pay to appear in the first positions after a specific search.

Both are strategies that are relevant in positioning marketing to attract users to the web and based on these, the structure of the pages and the hierarchy that is given to the content are determined. That is why they are linked to a content marketing strategy, with which you must work not only with the purpose of attracting more traffic, but also attracting the right traffic to be able to retain and convert:

3.3. Conversion marketing: communication and database.

The chats , chatbots or forms on different pages and landing pagesare nowadays in the most important conversion tools. The former allow you to start conversations with unknown users and request contact information in order to answer questions and provide more information in a personalized or automated way. The latter generally respond to conversion paths in which something is offered in return: monthly information, a downloadable guide on a relevant topic, a demo, or participation in an informative event (seminar, webinar). These are the first step to obtain data that must then be stored in systems such as the CRM that will allow us to carry out different marketing actions.

The CRM is fundamental when there is a database of contacts with which you have to work, since important information is centralized. In other words, this CRM is the one that allows you to have valuable information to carry out different marketing actions, but it is also the one in which you can include relevant data regarding the products that customers consume and their relationship with the brand. There is a great myriad of properties that a CRM can include regarding the activity of contacts and their interactions and many of them can lead you to make important decisions in your strategy and to elaborate precise segmentations that guarantee the best conversion of your promotional campaigns.

Email marketing campaigns are key to promoting products and services and to feed those contacts who need to advance in their purchase process with content. However, each of these campaigns must be well executed and for this it is essential to carry out the appropriate segmentation and be clear about the objectives of each of the emails that are sent. It is neither effective to send all emails to all contacts, nor to expect them to perform more than one action with emails. That is why, when sending some emails, automations can help:

Automation marketing is one of the strategies that can obtain the most profitability from the actions carried out in marketing and sales. Automations or workflows go beyond the sending of a weekly or monthly newsletter, since they are triggered after certain actions or based on certain specific events, and allow relevant information to be sent at precise moments, that is, when the contacts really show a interest or need. That is why automation can elevate any action you take by improving conversion and customer acquisition, who will have to continue to delight through loyalty strategies to keep them.

3.4. Loyalty marketing: customer retention.

The LTV (life-time-value) of customers in the technology sector is one of the most important indicators to take into account when determining the success of marketing and sales. Generally, getting clients can have a considerable cost in terms of investment in time and resources and that is why you must continue to work strategically to keep these clients for a long time.

Those values ​​that we have mentioned at the beginning and that useful information that helps potential customers to advance in the purchase cycle, must be part of customer care and service so that they are not abandoned once they have made their own purchase. investment in your product.

The content made for your blog, the one you share in your emails and the channels you use to communicate are essential when establishing a base that helps you develop a loyalty strategy. In short, all this generated content is what allows you to humanize marketing and sales processes and positions you as a brand that is there to provide the best technological solution to its customers.