As part of the ritual of examining local commerce and SMB Saas strategies, Localogy goes right to the source: SMBs themselves. How do they feel about marketing and operational software? What features do they want? And how has their hunger changed in a pandemic? This is all a moving target.
Localogy’s Modern Commerce Monitor (MCM) Wave 6.1 answers these and other questions across the SMB SaaS product set, which we preview in this Benchmark Bytes series. After examining SMBs’ time saving impact from adopting online services last week, we switch gears to examine other benefits.
Specifically, the biggest benefit SMBs report from adopting SaaS tools is saving money (70 percent of responses). That’s followed by expanded capabilities (51 percent), opening up new customer segments (41 percent), more time spent with customers 35 percent, and better customer satisfaction (30 percent).
These results were gathered in Fall 2021 so they reflect sentiments at the time.
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Data Dive
Going deeper, a few other insights jump out from these figures.
–As with all things, money talks when it comes to SMB SaaS. So it’s no surprise that the most prevalent ROI point among SMBs who adopt online services is that it saved them money.
– This is due to SMB SaaS streamlined subscription pricing when compared with legacy technologies, as well as its indirect effects on operational efficiencies (e.g. automation).
– Not only was cost-savings the most prevalent answer, but it’s also showing the most growth, up from 62 percent in Wave 6 and 43 percent in Wave 5.1.
– Expanded capabilities also resonated with SMBs, showing the second-greatest response at 51 percent.
– If we add “It has opened up our business to new segments of customers” (41 percent), it’s clear that SMB Saas’ ability to expand business functionality is a key selling point.
– SMB Saas vendors should zero in on these points in product development, positioning, and SMB sales.
– The next segment of results can be clustered into customer-facing impact, including freeing up time for customer interaction (35 percent) and customer satisfaction boost (30 percent).
– These benefits, though they weren’t the most prevalent among responses, have outsized value for SMBs. Saving time and boosting customer relationships is a strong value proposition for any software.
– Lastly, it’s worth noting that 27 percent of SMBs have reported that revenue has increased as a result of SMB SaaS adoption.
– Though it’s not as prevalent as the responses examined above, revenue growth is a concrete and empirical form of ROI.
– SMB Saas vendors should take note and double down on software marketing and positioning accordingly.
Time to Shine
Stepping back, SMB online marketing – website-based or otherwise – continues to grow rapidly. SMB SaaS startups and online services providers are correspondingly thriving as it continues to grow as a leading subsector of the broader SaaS universe. There’s a long-tail opportunity at play.
Meanwhile, new SMB SaaS users could represent permanent adopters – a concept that’s accelerated in the Covid era as SMBs are forced to boost their digital transformation. This sends them into the arms of SaaS providers to accomplish a range of marketing and operational functions.
We’ll return in the next installment to go deeper into Localogy original survey research. That will include SMB goals and success factors. Let us know what additional insights jump out at you from the above data, and stay tuned for more breakdowns in our Benchmark Bytes series.
