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Reflecting on the evolution of SaaS, the early 2000s were marked by a significant challenge. Companies invested so much in customer acquisition, but then their products, sales, and onboarding processes grew more intricate and their customers found themselves overwhelmed by it all. Customers grew frustrated because they were given too much to learn while companies saw usage and adoption rates plummeting as a result. In the end, customer churn became inevitable.
Fast forward to the 2020s and a similar challenge is still happening. Companies are investing way too much money in trying to get leads into a discovery call. They also spend a lot of time doing it. But, then they almost completely forget about actually discovering and enabling customer champions for success. This is even more common in the startup world where businesses are faced with the pressure to sell and bring on new accounts, but once the deal is signed, customers are left struggling in the dark.
This is a recipe for failure and, yes…churn! Instead of becoming real problem solvers for customers/buyers (solving their real problems, enabling them, and speaking their language), salespeople are applying mediocre sales processes to ‘’qualify’’ leads and get them moving down the sales funnel. This is why prospects no longer trust or value the process anymore. Nobody wants, or cares, about being ‘’qualified’’ or ‘’disqualified’’ and this is why SDRs have such a hard time getting a prospect’s attention.
Today’s sales tech has failed to enable sales managers to drive the sales process with real, tangible value. The bottom line is that there is still no engaging and collaborative solution between salespeople and buyers. This is why now is the time to engage and invest in buyer enablement–empowering buyers and building strong, fruitful relationships with them on the way. In this blog, we’ll shed some more light on buyer enablement along with ways you can implement buyer enablement strategies for your revenue team.
Buyer enablement is a strategic approach aimed at equipping potential customers with the information, resources, and support they need to make informed decisions throughout their buying journey. Unlike sales enablement, which primarily focuses on empowering sales teams, buyer enablement puts the buyer at the center, ensuring that they have the tools and knowledge to navigate the complex landscape of SaaS offerings successfully.
Buyer enablement extends beyond the sales team. It includes all touchpoints in the buyer's journey, from initial awareness to post-purchase support. Buyer enablement acknowledges that modern buyers are much more self-reliant than before, conducting extensive research independently. So, buyer enablement aims to empower them at every stage, not just when they interact with sales.
Some key components of buyer enablement include:
> Personalized content creation
> Interactive self-service resources
> AI-driven recommendations
> Comprehensive data analytics
> Much more
By tailoring content and assistance to each buyer's unique needs, SaaS companies can provide value at every interaction, guide customers through the decision-making process, and ultimately drive growth through customer satisfaction and loyalty.
There are four crucial areas where buyer enablement has impacted SaaS growth the most–streamlining buyer journeys, enhancing customer experience, boosting conversion rates, and (probably most important of them all), increasing customer retention. Let’s discuss each of these more closely.
Buyer enablement plays a pivotal role in streamlining the buyer's journey by providing buyers with the right information and resources at every stage. It ensures that potential customers can easily navigate the complexities of SaaS offerings, from initial research to final decision made. This streamlining reduces friction in the buying process and it also shortens sales cycles, enabling SaaS companies to capitalize on opportunities more efficiently and close deals much faster.
Buyer enablement is a catalyst for enhancing customer experience. By tailoring content, interactions, and support to meet the specific needs and preferences of each buyer, SaaS companies can create a more personalized and engaging journey. This paves the way for greater customer satisfaction and loyalty because customers feel valued and understood. When customers feel this way about your product and service, they’ll share positive word-of-mouth referrals and be your brand ambassadors!
One of the most significant impacts of buyer enablement on SaaS growth is its ability to boost conversion rates. When buyers have access to the right information and support when they need it, they are more likely to move through the sales funnel and convert into paying customers. This translates into higher revenue and a healthier bottom line for SaaS businesses.
Buyer enablement extends its positive impact beyond just the initial sale. When SaaS companies provide ongoing support, educational resources, and personalized experiences, they can increase customer retention rates significantly. Retained customers are not only more profitable over the long term, but they also serve as valuable references and advocates and they contribute to further growth through referrals and testimonials.
Building out the right buyer enablement strategies is much simpler than it sounds. It all starts by identifying your buyer personas, creating personalized, relatable content your buyers can connect with, using technology for automation, and making sure you train and empower your sales team to understand and adopt buyer enablement.
Identifying buyer personas is a crucial first step in implementing buyer enablement. Understanding your target audience's demographics, pain points, motivations, and preferences will help you create tailored content and experiences that resonate with your potential customers. These personas are a compass for crafting effective strategies that address specific buyer needs, making your efforts more relevant and impactful.
Personalized content lies at the heart of successful buyer enablement. Tailoring your messages, emails, articles, and product recommendations to match each buyer's unique journey and interests can significantly increase engagement and conversion rates. Leveraging data and insights about your audience, you can provide content that speaks directly to their challenges, offering solutions and guidance that demonstrate your commitment to their success.
Your sales team plays a pivotal role in executing buyer enablement strategies effectively. Providing them with comprehensive training on understanding buyer personas, using buyer enablement tools, and delivering personalized experiences is essential. Empower your sales team to act as trusted advisors who guide buyers through their journey, offering value and expertise rather than just pushing a product. This approach fosters trust and credibility, which are key in the buyer's decision-making process.
While internal team collaboration isn't a new challenge (think of Asana, Jira, and Notion), collaborating with buyers and potential customers is still a big, unsolved dilemma. You wouldn't invite a buyer from another company to your CRM or project management board, would you? So, improvisation becomes the norm, with tools like Notion or Drive being the go-to, even though they aren’t solutions designed for collaborating and engaging with buyers. For a post-discovery call, a CRM isn't enough. CRMs are transactional and aren’t customer-facing. Companies are now leveraging tools to navigate the phase that falls between CRM and CMS, where real multitasking with prospects happens.
Tools like Notch allow sales teams to transform buyer journeys - with a truly interactive, unified platform for sales teams and buyers. You can use collaborative workspaces, foster buyer ownership by easily building mutual action plans, and even personalize sales rooms to make your buyer feel right at home with branded content. Integrations with platforms like Hubspot and buyer analytics are thrown in too.
We're on the brink of a transformative era in buyer enablement and this approach not only addresses current challenges but also uncovers new opportunities to deliver relevant solutions and amplify customer value. Embracing this strategy could be the game-changer SaaS companies and startups have been searching for.
That’s why we’re building Notch - an interactive, unified platform for sales teams and buyers to put collaborative value in the entire customer journey, from first call to onboarding and post-sales. Create a 100% free Notch account to get a taste of what digital buyer enablement looks like.
