2. Benefits of Marketing Plan Template for SaaS Businesses<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n- Saves time – The number-one benefit of having a B2B marketing<\/a> plan template is that you don\u2019t have to start from scratch, each time you create a marketing strategy.\u00a0<\/li>
- Systematic approach – By utilizing a pre-built framework, you can ensure you don\u2019t miss out on any important aspects of your marketing in the planning stage.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>
- Review and renew – Your SaaS marketing plan template doesn\u2019t have to be a static document, which means you can adapt it to improve efficiency and prepare for roadblocks according to past experience.<\/li><\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3. 10 Ways to Create an Effective SaaS Marketing Plan Template <\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n3.1 Create a Viable Marketing Plan <\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
No marketing campaign is provided with unlimited budget, time and resources. How you structure a SaaS marketing team will depend upon how much money you have to spend, how long you have to achieve the stated objectives and what other resources in terms of staff and software are at your disposal.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.2 Breakdown Big Goals into Actionable Chunks<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Overarching business goals can be made more manageable if broken into smaller pieces. There are many different approaches you can take to achieve this, but one method when creating your template is to consider goals according to the different customers you are addressing. These could be customer retention, lead generation, conversion rates or higher search rankings. These can be subdivided by position in the sales funnel<\/a>, starting with awareness, moving through interest and evaluation, and ending with action. In addition to these, you can add two further types: those aimed at existing customers and those aimed at churned customers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nFor example, in terms of awareness, your goal might be to reach at least 1m leads, while for churned customers, your goal might be to have a specific win-back rate percentage.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.3 Formulate Strategies to Reach the Sub-Goals<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Once you\u2019ve created your sub-goals by customer category, you then need to outline strategies for achieving those objectives. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
If one of your goals is to generate more impressions, you might consider using pay-per-click advertising<\/a>. Alternatively, if you are hoping to decrease churn, you might look at improving educational resources on your website around how to use your product or generating greater awareness about software updates via email marketing.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n3.4 Analyze and Evaluate Your Results<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
As with every SaaS growth plan template, your marketing template should include regular data analysis, so you can see more clearly what goals are being achieved, what strategies are working and where improvement is needed. You can compare these with competitor analysis reports based on parameters such as organic rankings, ad campaigns, or social media<\/a> activity to understand audience or user behavior.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nBuilding evaluation into your plan ensures you don\u2019t forget to assess and adapt your campaign as you progress. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.5 Build an SEO Strategy<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Consider what kind of evergreen content will help you organically grow awareness and attract potential customers to your website. The first step is to define the keywords that will draw the right audience using a tool such as Google\u2019s Keyword Planner<\/a>. With this information in hand, you can then build product landing pages and write long-form articles to cater to search intent<\/a>. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nDon\u2019t forget to include plans for a website audit of technical issues<\/a> as well as a backlinking strategy<\/a> in your template – both of these will also help improve the SEO of your pages.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n3.6 Use Taglines to Highlight the Main Benefits<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
What words best encapsulate how your SaaS product can help solve a particular business case? Coming up with a few key phrases is extremely useful for creating recall in the minds of your prospects, and the snappier the better.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Don\u2019t forget that features and benefits<\/a> are not the same. The former is simply a description of functionality, while the latter explicitly explains why that functionality helps the customer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n3.7 Give In-Depth Information About Each Feature<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Once you\u2019ve nailed the taglines, you can then expand upon your SaaS solution\u2019s use cases<\/a>, defining why your target businesses absolutely must have it in their lives.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nIt\u2019s a good idea here to use keyword analysis<\/a> to assess what terms and phrases people search for in different instances. This helps generate organic traffic and direct people towards your website.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n3.8 Add CTAs<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Calls to action are absolutely crucial in any marketing plan. They ease potential customers down the sales funnel and create a pathway of action. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
CTAs can appear in a variety of instances, from website landing pages to LinkedIn Sponsored InMail<\/a>, so take the time to think about the wording you desire for each according to the stage of the sales cycle the customer is at. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n3.9 Offer Free Trials and Demos<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
If you have a solid product, why not showcase the fact through a free trial or demo? Free trials have been shown to have a greater effect on conversions<\/a> in B2B than B2C, as they allow businesses to feel more secure in the fact that they are getting a SaaS solution that has usability as well as functionality.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nYour SaaS marketing plan template should prompt you to consider the different times and places you can offer a free demo, depending on the different touch points you have with your customers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.10 Drip Email Campaign to Nurture Prospects<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Drip email campaigns<\/a> are a great way to control the customer journey and maximize potential conversions. Most sales don\u2019t take place the first time a prospect hears about your product. They require nurturing, often through a series of communications, in order to develop their appreciation of your product\u2019s use cases.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nYour drip email campaign might start with a welcoming email outlining the basis features of your SaaS product, followed by more details of the features and benefits, then perhaps blog posts or other value-added content that showcase you as a reputable industry player, before a final prompt to sign up for the full version. Experiment with what works for your solution with A\/B testing<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n4. Business\/Brands That Succeeded with SaaS Marketing<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n![\"Business\/Brands](\"https:\/\/www.growthganik.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Business-Brands-That-Succeeded-with-SaaS-Marketing.png\")
<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n4.1 Xero<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Accounting SaaS Xero<\/a> managed to grow into a huge player in the space of a decade by creating a comprehensive marketing plan that included email marketing, paid search, content marketing and social media engagement.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n4.2 Breezy<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Beezy<\/a> employed SaaS marketing agency Kalungi\u2019s \u2018playbook\u2019 marketing plan template to formulate its strategy. The digital workplace platform saw a 63% increase in organic traffic<\/a> and a qualified sales pipeline worth $2m as a result.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n4.3 Moosend<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
As mentioned above, it\u2019s important not to forget to include analysis and evaluation as part of a marketing plan. Email marketing software Moosend<\/a> found that performing a full SEO and content audit<\/a> automatically led to the creation of new strategies that better targeted their audience, resulting in increased organic traffic and mentions on review sites.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n5. Sample Marketing Plan Template<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n![\"Sample](\"https:\/\/www.growthganik.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Sample-Marketing-Plan-Template.png\")
<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\nMarketing plans can range from being simple one-page strategies to complex documents, depending on the breadth of your operation. Here\u2019s a simple, one-page marketing plan example that covers the basic points.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.1 Business Summary<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nThis is essentially the mission statement, with brief details on who you are and a general overview of what you hope to achieve.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.2 Target Objectives<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nSpecify exactly what measurable activities you are aiming at and the timeframe. Don\u2019t forget to focus on the creation of actionable chunks, as described above.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.3 Customer Segmentation<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nDetail the types of companies you hope to reach and the buyer personas within those companies. Having these clearly defined will make marketing to them much easier. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.4 Budget and Resources<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nList out the proposed budget, including money for paid ads, content creation and any software that will be needed. You can include details of the personnel needed\/involved here, or this can be set out under a separate section for added clarity.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.5 Marketing Strategies<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nHow exactly are you going to achieve your target objectives? This is where you will detail your use of imagery, taglines, CTAs, free demos, etc. You can also include an explanation here of how you will quantify and analyze success.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.6 Marketing Channels<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3. 10 Ways to Create an Effective SaaS Marketing Plan Template <\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n3.1 Create a Viable Marketing Plan <\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
No marketing campaign is provided with unlimited budget, time and resources. How you structure a SaaS marketing team will depend upon how much money you have to spend, how long you have to achieve the stated objectives and what other resources in terms of staff and software are at your disposal.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.2 Breakdown Big Goals into Actionable Chunks<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
Overarching business goals can be made more manageable if broken into smaller pieces. There are many different approaches you can take to achieve this, but one method when creating your template is to consider goals according to the different customers you are addressing. These could be customer retention, lead generation, conversion rates or higher search rankings. These can be subdivided by position in the sales funnel<\/a>, starting with awareness, moving through interest and evaluation, and ending with action. In addition to these, you can add two further types: those aimed at existing customers and those aimed at churned customers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n For example, in terms of awareness, your goal might be to reach at least 1m leads, while for churned customers, your goal might be to have a specific win-back rate percentage.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Once you\u2019ve created your sub-goals by customer category, you then need to outline strategies for achieving those objectives. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n If one of your goals is to generate more impressions, you might consider using pay-per-click advertising<\/a>. Alternatively, if you are hoping to decrease churn, you might look at improving educational resources on your website around how to use your product or generating greater awareness about software updates via email marketing.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n As with every SaaS growth plan template, your marketing template should include regular data analysis, so you can see more clearly what goals are being achieved, what strategies are working and where improvement is needed. You can compare these with competitor analysis reports based on parameters such as organic rankings, ad campaigns, or social media<\/a> activity to understand audience or user behavior.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Building evaluation into your plan ensures you don\u2019t forget to assess and adapt your campaign as you progress. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Consider what kind of evergreen content will help you organically grow awareness and attract potential customers to your website. The first step is to define the keywords that will draw the right audience using a tool such as Google\u2019s Keyword Planner<\/a>. With this information in hand, you can then build product landing pages and write long-form articles to cater to search intent<\/a>. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Don\u2019t forget to include plans for a website audit of technical issues<\/a> as well as a backlinking strategy<\/a> in your template – both of these will also help improve the SEO of your pages.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n What words best encapsulate how your SaaS product can help solve a particular business case? Coming up with a few key phrases is extremely useful for creating recall in the minds of your prospects, and the snappier the better.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Don\u2019t forget that features and benefits<\/a> are not the same. The former is simply a description of functionality, while the latter explicitly explains why that functionality helps the customer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Once you\u2019ve nailed the taglines, you can then expand upon your SaaS solution\u2019s use cases<\/a>, defining why your target businesses absolutely must have it in their lives.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n It\u2019s a good idea here to use keyword analysis<\/a> to assess what terms and phrases people search for in different instances. This helps generate organic traffic and direct people towards your website.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Calls to action are absolutely crucial in any marketing plan. They ease potential customers down the sales funnel and create a pathway of action. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n CTAs can appear in a variety of instances, from website landing pages to LinkedIn Sponsored InMail<\/a>, so take the time to think about the wording you desire for each according to the stage of the sales cycle the customer is at. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n If you have a solid product, why not showcase the fact through a free trial or demo? Free trials have been shown to have a greater effect on conversions<\/a> in B2B than B2C, as they allow businesses to feel more secure in the fact that they are getting a SaaS solution that has usability as well as functionality.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Your SaaS marketing plan template should prompt you to consider the different times and places you can offer a free demo, depending on the different touch points you have with your customers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Drip email campaigns<\/a> are a great way to control the customer journey and maximize potential conversions. Most sales don\u2019t take place the first time a prospect hears about your product. They require nurturing, often through a series of communications, in order to develop their appreciation of your product\u2019s use cases.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Your drip email campaign might start with a welcoming email outlining the basis features of your SaaS product, followed by more details of the features and benefits, then perhaps blog posts or other value-added content that showcase you as a reputable industry player, before a final prompt to sign up for the full version. Experiment with what works for your solution with A\/B testing<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Accounting SaaS Xero<\/a> managed to grow into a huge player in the space of a decade by creating a comprehensive marketing plan that included email marketing, paid search, content marketing and social media engagement.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Beezy<\/a> employed SaaS marketing agency Kalungi\u2019s \u2018playbook\u2019 marketing plan template to formulate its strategy. The digital workplace platform saw a 63% increase in organic traffic<\/a> and a qualified sales pipeline worth $2m as a result.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n As mentioned above, it\u2019s important not to forget to include analysis and evaluation as part of a marketing plan. Email marketing software Moosend<\/a> found that performing a full SEO and content audit<\/a> automatically led to the creation of new strategies that better targeted their audience, resulting in increased organic traffic and mentions on review sites.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Marketing plans can range from being simple one-page strategies to complex documents, depending on the breadth of your operation. Here\u2019s a simple, one-page marketing plan example that covers the basic points.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n This is essentially the mission statement, with brief details on who you are and a general overview of what you hope to achieve.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Specify exactly what measurable activities you are aiming at and the timeframe. Don\u2019t forget to focus on the creation of actionable chunks, as described above.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n Detail the types of companies you hope to reach and the buyer personas within those companies. Having these clearly defined will make marketing to them much easier. <\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n List out the proposed budget, including money for paid ads, content creation and any software that will be needed. You can include details of the personnel needed\/involved here, or this can be set out under a separate section for added clarity.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n How exactly are you going to achieve your target objectives? This is where you will detail your use of imagery, taglines, CTAs, free demos, etc. You can also include an explanation here of how you will quantify and analyze success.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n3.3 Formulate Strategies to Reach the Sub-Goals<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.4 Analyze and Evaluate Your Results<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.5 Build an SEO Strategy<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.6 Use Taglines to Highlight the Main Benefits<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.7 Give In-Depth Information About Each Feature<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.8 Add CTAs<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.9 Offer Free Trials and Demos<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
3.10 Drip Email Campaign to Nurture Prospects<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
4. Business\/Brands That Succeeded with SaaS Marketing<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n
<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n4.1 Xero<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
4.2 Breezy<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
4.3 Moosend<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5. Sample Marketing Plan Template<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n
<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n5.1 Business Summary<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.2 Target Objectives<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.3 Customer Segmentation<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.4 Budget and Resources<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.5 Marketing Strategies<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
5.6 Marketing Channels<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n