How To Differentiate Your AdTech Company: Strategies for B2B SaaS Sales
In today's competitive AdTech landscape, differentiation is key to success. Here are some essential strategies to set your company apart:
1) Agnostic – From my conversations in the field, I consistently hear the benefits of working with less partners so you can focus on building more strategic partnerships who can dive deeper into your business and are easier to manage. There are clear advantages for technology to encompass as many aspects of the digital media plan as possible so you can do more with less and are more productive and efficient with your time and money. This also allows for a holistic view across media channels and quicker optimizations between them to drive the best overall effect. Highlight how your company can streamline operations by consolidating tech stacks.
2) Uniqueness – Going hand and hand with working with fewer partners is working with partners that have something unique to bring to the table. Advertising technology is a commoditized industry and there are only a handful of digital partners that have something truly differentiated to offer. Highlight the key feature that sets your offering apart from your next closest competitors. Often that is what prospects will remember most.
3) Flexibility – Some companies are both well positioned and have the desire to buy all digital media in-house, some want to buy certain aspects of it in-house and some do not have the resources or a desire to buy any forms of digital media in-house. It’s important for a digital partner to be able to help accommodate any capacity clients need. Highlight ways where you can customize your solution based on prospect’s specific needs and help bring elements of the media buying process in-house.
4) Technology – It’s also important for clients to know they’re using the best in class technology or it’s being used on their behalf. Good technology should be easy to use making those using its day-to-day lives easier while also having all the necessary features to drive strong campaign performance. There are industry surveys and rankings like G2 Crowd which give people who are in these platforms on a daily basis the ability to share feedback on which ones are most user friendly and have the best features. Highlight unbiased third party reviews for more credibility!
4) Support – No matter the nature of the relationship, this is a service industry and it's important to receive great customer service to support your efforts. A digital partner and the technology they use is only as good as the people who work on it. Training and dedicated team members who are available to provide expertise is vitally important to campaign success and should be included when entering into a partnership. Organizational stability is also an important factor in the quality of service one provides as the amount of turnover in this industry has never been higher. Highlight the additional support that you provide while providing examples of how it’s helped clients in a similar situation as your prospect.
5) Experience – Working with stable companies who have been battle tested provides peace of mind. From my experience, clients rarely want to be the first to try something out or be the “guinea pig”. Instead, it’s preferential to know that digital partners have been around, have had success with similar companies and have already worked out all of the kinks. Reference both yours and your company’s experience with similar clients and success stories throughout your conversations.
6) Unbiased – When a digital partner is building out and executing a campaign strategy or providing the software to execute it, it’s important to know they’re not biased towards any individual media owner. Ensuring they don't have a hidden agenda means the best decisions are being made on your behalf strictly based on campaign objectives. Share whether you own any media or if you’re completely agnostic and thus, unbiased to differentiate yourself from biased tech companies.
7) Transparency – Last, but not least, it has become increasingly important to have full insight into your digital buys: what you’re buying and why, where your ads are showing and how much you’re paying for them is crucial to building trust. This is also the way you ensure the necessary safeguards are being put in place so your ads are being shown to humans in brand safe environments and you’re getting the highest amount of value possible from your media investment. Share what level of transparency your prospects will get by partnering with you to differentiate yourself from competitors who offer less transparency.
Prepare your AdTech sales strategy with these actionable insights, featured in my upcoming book, "The B2B Sales Playbook: A Proven 10-Step Guide to Closing SaaS Deals."
