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Interview: Emily King on SaaS marketing strategies

by Emily King | 25.05.2021

Software as a Service (SaaS) has taken over the business world, with the market doubling in size as companies across different verticals discover the benefits of cloud-based tools that offer convenient access to advanced capabilities. Emily King, Commercial Director at digital performance marketing agency, Tug, discusses how SaaS companies can overcome marketing complexity.

The expectation for such a thriving space is easy marketing, but the reality is that campaigns in this area are highly complicated.

In this interview, Emily discusses how SaaS companies can improve their digital marketing strategies to become more competitive, as well as the work Tug is doing to boost SaaS performance.

In today’s climate, can SaaS providers rely on the lure of their products alone?

The short answer is no. While the global SaaS space is thriving – and has even doubled in scale over the last decade – this growth has intensified competition. Businesses can now take their pick of tools and services, which means SaaS players must work harder to win attention.

Rather than focusing solely on impressive product features, companies must utilise smart marketing strategies that centre on how their offering actually solves business problems and fuels success — especially amid pandemic challenges. An essential part of achieving this is effective tailoring.

Firstly, SaaS firms must understand and cater for their real audience, not outdated profiles. Where procurement was once dominated by older men in corner offices, an increasing number of today’s decision-makers are tech-savvy younger demographics who have different needs and nurture flows, particularly millennials.

Secondly, campaigns need to fit their environment. For instance, social media newsfeeds require messages that align with rapid scrolling and use creative ways of seizing interest quickly: including video or elements that spark emotion, such as images of people. As a prime example of how successful this can be, see Bluebeam; a construction software provider that recently tapped into solution-focused and emotional marketing to fuel a 312.5% uplift in conversation rates.