B2B marketers in healthcare have been familiar with the traditional marketing channel. This involves a broad net that is cast in hopes of attracting prospects. The pool of candidates narrows as the funnel progresses until some opportunities make a purchase. Although there are many different terms for these stages, most marketers use Awareness, Interest Desire, Desire, and Purchase. Healthcare Software-as-a-service (SaaS) marketing is a similar process, but there are some key elements that make it unique, providing both challenges and benefits for marketers.
Developing a Solid Healthcare SaaS Product Marketing Strategy
The traditional funnel concept for healthcare SaaS marketing is still applicable, but it now includes stages such as onboarding and retention. Expansion occurs when clients are satisfied with your services enough that they refer a qualified prospect. This results in a shorter sales cycle for new opportunities.
Do you still need to figure out the difference between a traditional and a SaaS marketing funnel for healthcare? Don’t worry–read on! Let us help you to understand the differences and similarities by explaining the seven stages of healthcare SaaS Marketing.
Healthcare SaaS Marketing Challenges
SaaS marketing for healthcare can be difficult, especially since you need a product to sell or market. Software is always changing. There are new features and product updates every day. Your marketing message must adapt to these changes. It can be difficult to target a specific audience, since your product software may only be applicable to certain healthcare organizations.
The sales cycle for healthcare SaaS marketing can be slower than other types of business. HubSpot states that the average SaaS sales cycle lasts up to three months. However, for healthcare SaaS this time period can be extended. Due to the high price of SaaS subscriptions, businesses spend a lot of time researching the best option before they buy.
The Seven Stages of a Healthcare SaaS Marketing Funnel
HubSpot identifies 4 distinct stages that lead customers must go through before they make a purchase or become a SaaS customer. These steps can be used for healthcare SaaS customers as well.
- Awareness. A traditional marketing funnel could include paid advertising and email marketing to build awareness about a product or service. These prospects may find your business via a blog post or a free offer. They may need to be made aware or looking for your product at this stage. Or, perhaps they need to learn that there is a problem your product solves. If prospects are attracted to what they see, they will move on to Engagement.
- Customer engagement. Customers aware of your products or services start getting to know you better. Ask them to subscribe to your blog, get a free whitepaper, or follow you on Facebook. They will continue to find content that resonates with their interests, making your content marketing extremely important.
- Exploration. Experimentation is a way to expand on Engagement. This allows prospects to see that your product can solve a problem and start researching their options. They may visit your pricing page, chat with you, request a quote or ask questions. They are interested in your product and will want to know the answers to their questions. You may ask them to try your product.
- Conversion.Conversion is when a prospect who has been following your sales funnel for some time buys your software subscription. ChaChing! This purchase is the final stage in a traditional marketing funnel and could result in a satisfied customer.
The first four steps are merely to set up the sale. Healthcare SaaS marketing strategies require three additional steps in order to create a successful sales cycle.
- Onboarding. Healthcare SaaS customers will require substantial time to onboard to learn how the software works and how it interacts with their operations.
- Retention. Of all the steps, retention may be the most important. If your clients are unhappy, they won’t renew their subscriptions and will likely share their dissatisfaction with the rest of the world. Customers have many options to share their experiences with you via social media and other review platforms. You want to make sure that they are positive, in part because positive experiences feed into Expansion, the final stage of healthcare SaaS marketing funnel.
- Expansion. Expansion.
Get Healthcare SaaS Marketing Expertise
There is so much to consider. We are experts. Spot On has been able to navigate the complex world of SaaS healthcare with clients before and is familiar with how overwhelming it can be. A healthcare SaaS marketing agency is a good option for those with limited marketing resources or who don’t know how to implement these strategies.
Spot On’s first step in working with clients is to develop a marketing strategy that will help you achieve your sales goals. Schedule a call to learn more about how we can help develop your healthcare SaaS marketing channel.