5 Ways for B2B SaaS Firms to Navigate the 2022 Field Retraction

Let’s start by taking stock of the present.

Recession, doom, and gloom are in the air. Stock markets worldwide are still reeling from the unannounced brunt of COVID. Investor interest is volatile at best. And speculators are in a fix to give suitable stakeholding recommendations.

Against this backdrop, 2020 saw a majority adopt the digital-first ethos. The internet revolution took center stage: the people’s interactive arena in every life sphere. Commerce, entertainment, and even conjugal scenarios played out in the virtual. The repair shop software niche, our (developmental) corner of the woods, saw unprecedented adoption (where more device usage corresponded with higher breakage frequencies – per the correlation expected).

Mapping the Present – Calibrating a Solution

2022, however, makes for a different, more beguiling, terrain. As was the case during the turn of the century, a second dot-com bubble seems to have burst. 

This disillusionment comes on the back of many concerns. The chief of these is customers’ hasty software-as-a-service (SaaS) subscription choices. And particularly business-to-business (B2B) SaaS subscription choices.

Buyers are fast realizing that their service purchases don’t, in fact, meet their needs. This disconnect has spurned what many field surveyors are calling a ‘disgruntled exodus’.

The companies affected by this trend are attempting to safeguard their turf. Starting with a realignment of marketing stratagem, they’re on full damage control. Their basic impetus at this juncture is this: 

To connect with the right, qualified customer audience for selling their wares.’

They can’t afford any wastage now because fund reserves are limited. And VCs – per the general observation; by way of a logical protection of their interests (who knew, right 🤷‍♂️) – aren’t in the mood to lend.

So, the solution here for the businesses caught in the middle is clear. Heck – it’s largely been already made; forced by circumstances. 

The solution here is better – more precise – B2B SaaS and customer alignment. A natural engagement linkage:

• Inspired/informed by up-to-date (real-time) data
• Based squarely on customer need fulfillment (minus the fluff)
• Rooted in Messaging Constancy; Made Dynamic by Creativity

I call this latter prescription the ‘Covey Copy’ approach – attributed to the late American Educator Stephen R. Covey of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People fame. 

Taken together, all of these recourses promise something grand 👑:

The opportunity to reengage with your current audience – and perhaps attract a new one – through the best B2B marketing strategy whippable.

Let’s dig into each.

And I’ll try not to bare my POS software sales credentials too obscenely 😉.

1. Inspired by Data

Data is the de facto, new-age, pulse gauge of the masses. In numbers and letters, it presents an almost perfect transcript of the ground situation. It safeguards a business against strategic and operational decisions taken at a whim. By allowing so, it provides scientific/empirical precision on how to proceed. 

Although anyone can pour over data streams, drawing actionable insights is another matter. This latter proficiency – called ‘data narratology’ – is a function of experience. The aim of all such data analyses is to pick the motivating mindset of the potential customer.

When staged (filtered for collection time), data can be indicative of marketing campaign efficacy. It can reveal, for instance, the market scenario:

• Before
• During
• After

its rollout.

This information is great for correcting course on a timely basis.

2. Tethered to Customer Need Fulfillment

In our digital age, customers require snap responses to their queries. The fast pace of modernity leaves them with little patience for any ‘beating about the bush’. In business, facilitated, whether, by marketing that is digital or traditional, direct messaging is considered sacrosanct.

In practice, this means little to no room for fluff or digressive takes. Only the ‘meat of the concept’, as it were.

As a result, marketing copy of all stripes needs to be:

• Easy to understand (engaging)
• Instant on response delivery (responsive)
• Accessible
• Clearly (predictably) terminating

If the collateral satisfies all these requirements – whatever its expressive, outward form – it stands a high chance of conversion success. 

3. Messaging Theme Uniformity

Messaging uniformity – one exemplar of which is outreach consistency – promotes brand authority. It forms strong consumer-brand linkages in the minds of targeted demographics. 

One powerful way to ensure this is to stick to what I call the Covy Copy orientation. Here, the brand commits to a predictable routine of content deliverables. This schedule is commonly fleshed out in the form of a content calendar. These organizers detail the frequency and formatting/thematic quality of the produce. In terms of production content thematic, this approach calls for sticking close to company principles (the brand vision) in all the published output – but in varying formats (which can be novel) tailored to capture customers at identified touchpoints on their idealized sales journey; measured for their efficacy and resource expenditure through analytics.

Another form of ‘uniform produce integrity’ is mediated through brand style guide-content concurrence. This type of alignment enables repair brands (taking our narrow example) to keep their tone consistent. Doing so helps in establishing brand quality linkages in the consumer psyche. These signals, over the long run, are indicative of brand stability.

The 21st-century global economic cycle, irrespective of location specificity, is rife with uncertainty. Seemingly stable trends accelerate linearly one day only to be completely disrupted the next. Under the ambivalence that such conditions bring, being conservative makes a lot of sense.

The marketing success story, now and for the foreseeable future, begins and ends with the right customer outreach approach.

So – my word to the wise repair affiliate (and something of a no-brainer):

Get with the program! 😆

Data is your friend.

Everyone’s using it – so why should you trail in the race?