The expensive mistake SaaS companies make when selling to non-technical buyers

"We have this technical differentiator, but we just don't have the right words to explain it to our buyers."

In these cases, the internal team may think they have a translation problem, but they actually have a sequencing problem.

When we talk about technical differentiators (i.e., mechanisms), what we're really talking about is how the product helps the buyer get what they want. Often, what the non-technical buyer actually needs is not a simpler explanation of the technical differentiator. What they need to see is the product, what it does for them and why that matters. Then you can explain that the mechanism is how you deliver those outcomes. Lead with the ‘what the product does’ and ‘why it matters to the buyer’. Then offer ‘the how’ as supporting information. 

The ‘how’, the ‘why’ and the ‘what’ all matter, but the non-technical buyer’s prioritization is rarely (if ever) the same as the internal team’s prioritization. For teams that’ve dedicated significant resources to building their technical differentiator, this can be a challenging messaging shift to accept. But pattern matching in your sales motion can help you arrive at a data-driven reco.

For example, we had one client who was really focused on selling their technical differentiator to a non-technical buyer. But through research and speaking with Sales, we learned the champion didn't need to know every detail. They just needed to see the product interface because the difference between their current system and this one was so obviously improved. Then they needed to confirm that their existing tooling would integrate properly with the product on offer. In this case, the technical differentiator becomes almost an afterthought: the buyer can get the outcomes they want and integrate with their existing tooling only because it exists. 

So, why does this specific challenge show up in marketing even if the sales motion is already humming along? 

Marketing can’t react in real time the way Sales can. An AE can read the room and adjust their message on the fly. They can drop the detailed mechanism explanation (if needed). They can quickly shift into a demo to show the solution to the need the prospect just voiced. For Marketing, it is nearly impossible to make these types of real-time adjustments at scale (even if you have personalization tools in your tech stack). So we have no choice but to get the messaging sequence right before we go live.

‘Til next week,

Carolyn