"Show me the money."
This was the battle cry for Tom Cruise's somewhat smarmy character in Jerry Maguire, a romantic comedy about an agent who chases money but ends up finding love.
It's also an apt battle cry for companies who build their revenues on SaaS. Of course, by "money" they mean profitable growth, which is the goal of any SaaS organization. And to find profitable growth, you've got to maximize user adoption.
Here's how:
Selling a product is so passe. Today's customers want salespeople who sell solutions. Make sure your software marketing materials focus on how your products can make customers' lives easier. Train your sales team to focus on solutions to problems rather than all the awesome features your product delivers.
If you make selling solutions part of your standard operating procedure, you'll be better at driving adoption.
The battle for customers is fierce and ongoing. And when you finally win it, the work has just begun. After a prospect has converted to customer, make them feel special. That starts with a well-written welcome email.
Make it personal. Make it direct. Make it simple. Make sure it includes a compelling call-to-action with a direct link to your app. This is the first step toward making sure your customers actually adopt your product and make the most of it.
A welcome email not only makes your customers feel special (which every customer wants), but it also reinforces the feeling that they have made a wise decision to do business with you.
Knowledge is power, and your company is going to be a lot stronger if you know with precision how well your products are helping customers reach their goals.
Make sure you measure usage metrics and then use that data to help customers better understand opportunities they might have missed.
This is, of course, much more effective if you know a lot about your customers. So get out there and monitor your customers' performance. This will make you more valuable because you'll be viewed as a strategic business partner rather than just another vendor.
With so much competition in the SaaS world, it can be difficult to differentiate yourself. One way to stand out from the crowd is to share your success stories – on your website, in emails, and during face-to-face conversations.
Integrate case studies and success stories into your software marketing collateral materials. Then share this information with your prospects and other current customers. If they see how other organizations have successfully used your products, they will be more likely to try to do the same.
Selling one single subscription is a good start toward profitable growth, but it's only the first step. You've got to be a visionary. You've got to be looking down the road at how you can continue to help customers grow their businesses.
And it might not have anything to do with promoting your products or its features.
If you focus your software marketing on your customers' long term success and are willing to act as a sounding board, consultant, and trusted adviser (without always selling your products), customers will be more likely to do three things:
At the end of Jerry McGuire, Tom Cruise's character finds money and love. If you put customers first, you might find both the money and profitable growth.
