As the market for software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions continues to grow and mature, so too do the partner programs that support these solutions. Partner programs are essential to any SaaS company’s growth strategy because they help drive new customers to your services and expand your reach as a business. If you’re ready to take your saas partner program marketing from good to great, read on for some essential tips and strategies.
1. Define Your Target Audiences.
Although your partner programs are for your sales and marketing teams, it is crucial to have a clear understanding of your target audiences. This will help you identify what kinds of partners would be most helpful to you, which will help you define the messaging and content materials they will use throughout the program. Make sure that the messaging is consistent across all marketing channels and in-product tools.
2. Develop Clear Key Performance Indicators (KPI)
Use KPI s to measure what’s happening on your partner programs and track how your partner training metrics are progressing over time so that you can keep abreast of change within the program as it progresses through its lifecycle phases (i.e. “Starter Program”, “Early-Bids”, etc.).
3. Build a Strong Partner Marketing Team.
To execute a successful partner program, you will need to put together a partner marketing team that can both reach and keep in touch with your partner partners. Your team should be made up of sales representatives that have an intimate knowledge of the SaaS solutions included in their territory as well as a representative from each major channel for support for these solutions: sales, support, and marketing duties. Ideally, you will want an executive sponsor who is tasked with being the liaison between all of these channels.
4. Leverage Social Media To Reach Your Audience
One of the biggest ways to ensure your marketing team is reaching as many partners and organizations as possible is social media. Partner organizations who use your SaaS solutions are likely active on social media, so take advantage of this fact by communicating with them about your partner program on Facebook, Twitter and other platforms. Partner marketing teams can even use these platforms to communicate directly with partner companies, getting feedback and opinions which they can use to adjust their program.
5. Hold Monthly Marketing Meetings With Your Internal Stakeholders.
You will need to have a regular in-person meeting with your sales and marketing teams and your support team. These meetings should also include a Q&A session to ensure that you and your partners are aligned about what constitutes success for the partner program. These internal stakeholders are often responsible for coordinating any other partnerships that a SaaS company may have, so having a liaison between your partner marketing team and these executive stakeholders is crucial for success.
These tools will assist you in defining your target audiences and creating a strong partner marketing team. They will also help you develop and track key performance indicator s that ensure that your program is growing in the right direction. Finally, your monthly marketing meetings will ensure that everyone on your team is aligned and working toward a common goal.