DIGITAL STRATEGY BLOG

We have been a HubSpot Partner Agency for about six years now, and it's been one heck of a whirlwind. When we started with HubSpot, we really didn't think that inbound was as intensive of an undertaking as it would prove to be. See, we were already performing and executing on all kinds of inbound marketing tactics - website design, search engine optimization, blogging, social media, email marketing, landing pages and diving deep into analytics. So, this inbound thing was just a nice way of wrapping it all up together, right? Eh...not exactly.

What is SaaS? 

SaaS stands for software-as-a-service, which is synonymous with cloud based software. As our knowledge of software advances, so does innovation and the services that come with it. That is why now more than ever SaaS companies are on the rise. In order to keep up with the rising competition in this industry it is important to know the best practices for marketing your SaaS organization so that you can increase sales and ultimately grow your brand.

These are trying times and most, if not all, industries are being impacted in some way. The world is frightened, cautious, and clinging to their toilet paper like it's gold.

In all seriousness, there are a lot of things that businesses have to consider when it comes to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) and somewhere near the top should be your marketing and sales efforts.

In sports, playbooks are used to guide every member of the team and tell them what their specific role for that exact moment is. Where they need to be lined up, what their action is, what to look for from an opponent, etc.

Playbooks for your sales team should really serve the same purpose. They help you to give your team the winning strategy to know what questions they need to ask, how to respond to objections, what documents to send, what team members to loop in, etc.

Picking the right CRM for your company is crucial. There are so many factors to consider. How much will this cost me? What are the contract terms? Can I customize layout and reporting? Will this integrate with other software that I use? What kind of customer support do they offer? 

Automation is the way of the future in almost every industry. In sales and marketing, email automation is vital as it allows you to reach the masses, and become more efficient in your outreach. However, reaching the masses does you no good if your emails don't get responses or clicks. So as you create or amend your HubSpot sequences, here are a few tips to keep in mind.

When I first heard the term "Smarketing", I automatically thought it meant smart marketing. I zoned out and thought about what smart marketing looked like. It was reaching the right people (your target customer), through the right communications or mediums (social media, email, phone calls, video, etc). Then after I let my mind wander for a minute, I realized what I was thinking about the entire time was actually just good ol' marketing.

If you’re like me, then you've already missed out on spring cleaning. At this point the only logical decision is to let the clutter linger until next spring. However, you likely don’t have the same luxury at work as you do at home, and there's still some spring cleaning to be had. That's exactly why you need to block out some time in your calendar and clean out your CRM.

The way in which we conduct business is changing on an almost daily basis. Business isn't closed by dropping off some bagels and business cards anymore. Keeping track of your clients in a spreadsheet is so archaic, the last time I did that, I fell off my dinosaur. But seriously, every single prospect, every lead, and every customer has a variety of needs.

Now if you work for a large-enterprise organization, you're most likely using a CRM and understand the value it brings to your business.

If you don't see the value, then there's a good chance you're using the wrong CRM.

If you work at a start-up, small, or mid size business, there's a possibility you aren't using a CRM, and that in itself may be the biggest hindrance for your company's growth.