Listen to your SaaS customers
/Companies get more from software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions than just lower cost.
So says a recent study conducted by IBM. It reveals that companies find that the greatest benefits from SaaS solutions are more collaboration, a better customer experience, and faster time-to-market.
For anyone that’s been marketing SaaS solutions for any amount of time, those finding aren’t terribly surprising.
What is remarkable is that IBM actually asked customers about their SaaS experience. Companies
don’t do that often. For some reason or another, many just don’t get around to asking their customers why they bought their solution.
Too bad. You can hear a lot just by listening.
I know that sounds remarkably simple (and like something Yogi Berra would come out with.) But it’s true.
Why do people buy your solution?
I work with many companies to help them figure out why people buy their solution. At the risk of giving away a trade secret, here’s how I pry that information out of customers:
I ask. And then I listen carefully.
Here are the kind of things you can learn:
It takes some practice, and there are advantages to having an outsider ask the questions. People know I’m not trying to sell them something. And they say things that they might not share directly with the solution provider.
Don’t waste money pushing out the wrong message
Without this kind of information, it’s difficult – no, make that impossible – to develop a compelling value proposition and messages. How can a SaaS provider tell a prospective customer that they have a solution that the customer needs… if they don’t really know what the customer needs?
And without a compelling value proposition, SaaS companies can waste a lot of money on marketing campaigns that don’t work. Given the way the SaaS business model works, that’s money most can’t afford to waste.
So says a recent study conducted by IBM. It reveals that companies find that the greatest benefits from SaaS solutions are more collaboration, a better customer experience, and faster time-to-market.
For anyone that’s been marketing SaaS solutions for any amount of time, those finding aren’t terribly surprising.
What is remarkable is that IBM actually asked customers about their SaaS experience. Companies
Too bad. You can hear a lot just by listening.
I know that sounds remarkably simple (and like something Yogi Berra would come out with.) But it’s true.
Why do people buy your solution?
I work with many companies to help them figure out why people buy their solution. At the risk of giving away a trade secret, here’s how I pry that information out of customers:
I ask. And then I listen carefully.
Here are the kind of things you can learn:
- What problem were these people trying to solve?
- How big or costly was the problem?
- Where did they look for solutions?
- What alternatives did they consider?
- What’s been their experience with the solution?
- Were the original problems resolved?
It takes some practice, and there are advantages to having an outsider ask the questions. People know I’m not trying to sell them something. And they say things that they might not share directly with the solution provider.
Don’t waste money pushing out the wrong messageWithout this kind of information, it’s difficult – no, make that impossible – to develop a compelling value proposition and messages. How can a SaaS provider tell a prospective customer that they have a solution that the customer needs… if they don’t really know what the customer needs?
And without a compelling value proposition, SaaS companies can waste a lot of money on marketing campaigns that don’t work. Given the way the SaaS business model works, that’s money most can’t afford to waste.
