Out-the-box Customer Acquisition for Your Out-of-the-box SaaS Products

That’s why we’ve pulled together some of the most out-of-the-box customer acquisition strategies to get your creative juices flowing. Because your next customer might be where you least expect it.

Develop relationships with universities and students

This is more of a long game and works in two ways. First working with universities can give birth to interesting research, publications, products, and campaigns.

You also establish your credibility faster, expand your brand and business network, and get more attention all around.

When you work with students (offering them free webinars, inviting them to your events, mentoring), you establish brand loyalty and have access to a potential workforce.

Co-create content with lateral industry influencers

Sometimes shortcuts are great! Industry influencers can help you make valuable content that shows off your expertise and the benefits of your SaaS product.

It’s important to choose them wisely – they should be reliable, have a good reputation, and have an audience that needs your solutions.

And, importantly, broaden your network of influencers. You want influencers in industries that can benefit from your solution.

Macro-influencers will have a larger audience over a wider geographical area, but micro-influencers will have a small, locally-based audience. Which would work best for you?

Targeting niche online communities

It really can pay to go super-niche. Find and comb niche online forums, social media groups, and other communities where your target audience is engaged and active.

You’ll have to invest some time and give the community value. Engage with them by sharing helpful content. Answer their questions. Occasionally showcase your SaaS product’s value- doing it all the time will turn them off.

Hosting virtual hackathons or innovation challenges

Bring in all the tech-heads for some fun – developers, data scientists, people in incubators – bring ‘em all to create innovative solutions using your SaaS product in a virtual challenge.

Always select a good prize that will generate buzz. Yeah, free subscriptions can be great, but people love big bucks. The competition can show the versatility of your software, so be open-minded about how people might want to use your solutions.

Use augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) experiences

This is a great way to be memorable. Create immersive demonstrations of your SaaS product so that potential customers get a better understanding of how your software makes their life easier.

What would their world look like with your solutions in it? How would they feel better?

Create a networking community for your customers

One of the most tantalizing (but rare) strategies we’ve come across is creating chances for their own customers to meet one another and develop relationships outside of them.

They did everything from live events to promoting the customers’ business and even personal introductions. If potential customers know that you’re so dedicated to their success that you’ll form outside relationships for them, they’ll be more likely to sign on.

Don’t ignore Z

They’re around 1/4 of the workforce and they’re inexplicably ignored for the most part. But soon they’re going to be making a lot more of the crucial decisions, so why not give them the attention others won’t?

Here are a few points to drive home how they can be reached:

• 62% of Gen Z said social proof makes them confident to buy something.
• Gen Z holds $44 billion of buying power in the U.S.
• 46% of Gen Z say they are stressed all or most of the time.
• 37% of Gen Z rejected a job because it clashed with their ethics.

(stats https://www.answeriq.com/gen-z-statistics/)

Even just general stats like that shed light on the financial potential and what types of problems they’ll need solving.

Collaborating with charities and non-profit organizations

Consider partnering with social causes that align with your company’s mission and values.

Whether you collaborate on content to raise awareness, co-sponsoring live events, or giving them your software solutions for free, there’s a huge range of things you can do.

It’s all about getting creative and figuring out how you can best meet their needs. Working with charities and NPOs shows you’re committed to your beliefs and want to make a positive impact. It’s a great way to build trust and make the world a better place at the same time.