The ultimate guide to our SaaS Market Research

People usually associate SaaS market research with start-ups and entrepreneurs that have an aspiration to start a new business. Furthermore, there is a stereotype that this type of research is something that should be conducted at the beginning of a business. There is no doubt that market research is a highly important activity at the very start of a new venture. However, it also needs to continue as the idea develops.

Unquestionably, market research is a never-ending process. Not only needs to be updated but it also needs to be advanced constantly. Still, market research is an expensive practice, consuming time and energy too. In the short run, it may cost you. But, in the long run, you will be glad that you decided to take this step. In other words, if you prolong conducting market research, it will cost you by losing extra time and money in the future too.

Our marketers at BizzBee solutions developed a research strategy to help B2B companies lever the best results for them. Therefore, we believe that some level of research is always necessary to support your marketing decisions. As a result, it is up to you to pick the variety that suits your needs. Due to our 3 years of experience in the B2B sector, we have created the ultimate methodology for B2B SaaS market research for providing answers. Also, we have equipped our clients to make strategic decisions.

This methodology covers 3 aspects:

1. Industry (where your business is heading in the long run.)
2. Market (how to identify and approach your target market.)
3. Competition (who your competitors are.)

In addition, we will elaborate on how we conduct each of these aspects.

Industry overview

The first aspect of market research is all about expanding your industry knowledge and keeping up with the industry trends. This overview will provide competitive advantages and assistance in the growth of your SaaS business.

As a result, you will learn:

• How big is your SaaS segment? Is it growing or shrinking?
• Key projections in your SaaS segment.
• Latest emerging groundbreaking trends in your SaaS segment.
• Relevant associations, groups, webinars, fairs, summits, trade shows for you.

2. Target market

This part of the analysis will show you whether you are currently targeting the right type of companies. Furthermore, you will deepen your understanding of the marketplace where you should be competing. It will give you valuable insights into the industry trends and occurrences that may impact you and your customers.

For example, this segment will help your company:

• Identify industries that can benefit from your service.
• Learn where your potential clients come from.
• How big is your potential market? (An estimation.)

Moreover, our service will allow you to develop a strong understanding of your top 3 ideal clients hence:

• Identify decision-makers.
• Define how to approach them.
• Get familiar with their industry.
• Discover their short and long-term pain points.
• Find out about their business objectives.
• Check if your service is capable of solving any of these obstacles.

3. Competition Analysis

Last but not least, this segment offers insights into who your competitors are. You will be in a position to use their weaknesses to your advantage and improve your business’ overall performance. As a result, this knowledge can be very useful when preparing for launching a new product.

Competitor analysis offers you insight info into your top 10 competitors divided into 5 categories:

Category 1: General information: (founding dates of the competitors’ companies, their investors, mergers, and acquisitions, size, employees, website URL, etc.)

Category 2: Technical information: (features, previous and/or upcoming SaaS updates, mobile apps.)

Category 3: Financial information: (pricing model and tiers, revenues or annual reports.)

Category 4: Market information: (market share they own, industries and countries in which they are serving.)

Category 5: Marketing information: (social media activity and posting frequency, top paid and organic search terms, website ranking & traffic.)

Furthermore, the BizzBee Solutions market research service offers you the opportunity to revise your position on the market by comparing your company with competitors’ companies and discovering if you share the same features or practices with some of them. Also, it will differentiate what makes you unique from the competition. Our dedicated team will uncover the alternatives to your SaaS available on the market which offer a similar solution like yours or solve the same problem.

Our SaaS market research service is operated for over 4 weeks. Once it is over, all these findings will be presented to you in the form of a final report.

For instance, take a look at the map below showing the flow of activities done each week.

ActivitiesWeek 1Week 2Week 3Week 4Preparation Phase Industry Overview Target Market Milestone 1 (Industry + Target Market) Competition Analysis Milestone 2 (Competition) Final Report Final Delivery

Conclusion

To summarize, market research can never be really finished or completed because the world is constantly evolving and changing. Besides, society is constantly updating our way of thinking and discovering new experiences. Technology is also a crucial factor why the world has changed so fast. The way we do things changed, old habits disappeared, new values and behaviors emerged. This means that we see new customer segments come and go. As a result, SaaS market research needs to be conducted on a regular basis. In that way, it can ensure that your company is always on top of the current marketing trends in your industry.

Last, but not least, if you can’t afford a separate marketing research department to gather and analyze all the market information that could possibly help you, feel free to contact us.

This article was originally published on BizzBee Blog.