Yes, it’s an incredibly catchy/cheesy (depending on how you
feel about it) song in vogue right now – and no, this article is not about
dating. It’s about the question of
lead targeting for SaaS companies.

The phrase was funny and relevant because the B2B world often consists of tiny volumes (compared to B2C). The BBC Radio Four show ‘More or Less‘ recently estimated that only seven such individuals fit these requirements in the UK. 

Have you ever been asked to find a similarly small segment as a marketer? (Six foot five, blue eyes, trust fund, works in finance.) OK, not a segment with only Seven out of Sixty Million. But volume is a perennial B2B Marketing problem, I assure you.

– The more you segment, the smaller your target ad or campaign group becomes.

Over the years, many of my marketing campaigns have been
driven by the need to find the right job title at the right company at the
right time—what used to be called BANT qualified (Meddic has now overtaken it,
as has Jon Miller of Demandbase’s ideas of ‘buyer groups’—at least for large
enterprise ABM deals).

I have plenty of experience working with both early startups
(20-100 employees), and mid-sized companies (100-2000 employees). Both types of
companies have different challenges. 

Today, however, I will focus on early
startups since the problems I describe are particularly pertinent to them.

In these types of companies, I sometimes work with Investors
and founders who, by their own admission, ‘do not know much about B2B
marketing’.

In addition, I often work with CFOs and finance
professionals, who at small startups, can be particularly demanding about
driving ROI in a relatively short time.

If you look at the latest LinkedIn/Ipsos Mori data, which includes interviews with over 2000 CMOs globally, you can see that this is one of their top
concerns. 

This CMO challenge is magnified
many times in a startup, where you have to ‘hit the ground running’ and ‘prove
your ROI,’ often under pressure and in very short periods. It’s not for the
faint of heart.

In the current climate, startups have struggled with a
particularly critical problem in smaller companies: lackluster growth. 

The
William Burroughs adage, ‘when you stop growing, you start dying,’ is more important for a company with 20 employees than one with 20,000. 

Founders know this,
investors know this, and good startup marketers should know this, too.

From my own experience, and according to industry research, there
are a few critical reasons startups stop growing:

Product Market Fit

If your startup has stopped growing, it may be due to poor
product market fit. Your product must satisfy strong market demand and address
a specific problem for your target audience. 

This is crucial, as 42% of
startups fail due to a lack of market need. 

A good indicator of fit is if over
40% of customers would be “very disappointed” if your product
disappeared. 

Too much competition, a niche product, or losing customers after
trials are other signs your company does not have Product Market Fit.

Lack of Funds

Failing to plan for funding can lead to failure. Postponing
funding rounds too long is a common mistake.

29% of startups fail because they run out of money. 

Early and thorough planning is essential to
avoid stressful, last-minute funding scrambles. A clear long-term strategy and
plan are crucial for later-stage funding where investors seek stability.

Talent Acquisition

Poor hiring decisions can hinder growth. Whether you’re
trying to do everything yourself or not hiring the right people, it all falls
back on you. For a small business to grow, owners must use their time wisely. 

While great sales and marketing teams drive growth, having organized
administrators and assistants is equally important. 

No HR department? – that could be a problem

No Head of IT? – again, if your employees aren’t supported, that could negatively impact the entire business.

These roles keep the
business running smoothly, allowing you to focus on strategic growth plans
rather than time-consuming tasks that others can handle. 

Ineffective Marketing

A strong marketing plan is essential for startup growth,
identifying potential customers, and establishing effective channels.

In the
competitive US market, where I built my career, businesses spend $190 billion
annually on advertising, and marketing generates the most leads by far (90%).

EMEA and APAC regions are different. Nevertheless, good marketing in those regions can be even more critical. 

Startups must build a strong marketing presence to avoid
being left behind. 

Identifying and addressing marketing weaknesses immediately
can lead to significant growth and success.

One area that founders and investors are often preoccupied
with is ‘finding the secret marketing sauce’ that will create large amounts of sales
revenue. This drive could show up in any number of ways:

Each of these ideas is fantastic, but one of them alone will not solve all your marketing needs.

All these desires spring from human nature: the desire to achieve great results fast. While that is a laudable aim, you will still need a structured marketing plan.

Genius startup founder and billionaire investor, Bela
Hatvany waxes lyrical about how, over the years, when powerful investors pushed
him hard for a deadline for results, he’d tell them that he’d achieve them in
‘the fullness of time’!

Investors no doubt found his comments infuriating! I certainly wouldn’t use that exact phrase myself to a client. But he has achieved great success in business by being patient. 

Pushy marketing rarely works, especially on larger deals.

B2B buyers are getting increasingly savvy and don’t
appreciate being pushed into buying. You need to nurture a relationship with
them over time. 

Building such a relationship requires brilliant insights and nurturing a great network, community, and brand, and time.

You also need to discover when a prospect is ‘in market’ – the slippery and elusive buying intent! 

Gartner recently produced a graphic demonstrating a typical B2B buying process. This process requires a sophisticated, light touch. 

In short, your startup creates exciting, creative, and innovative content that engages with your audience across all the main channels and draws them into your company. This will include:

You need to take some risks here – you cannot just produce a lot of vanilla or AI-created content (AI replicates formulas; it’s not innovative or creative, which requires breaking out of those patterns to form entirely new ones).

Such stellar results can rarely be achieved overnight. They can be best accomplished if you remember to:

1. Create high-quality content 
2. Work with creative and inspiring content
   strategists
3. Build a psychologically safe environment that
   supports innovation and testing
4. Value, support, and trust your marketing team