Episode 695 | Ideal Customers, Moving from B2C to B2B, and More Listener Questions (with Asia Orangio)
Jan 9, 2024
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Asia Orangio, a transition expert from B2C to B2B markets, joins to delve into ideal customer targeting and market shifts. She discusses how to pivot effectively, especially with budget apps in a competitive landscape. The conversation also touches on reevaluating freemium models, highlighting their marketing benefits versus actual profitability. Lastly, Asia explores the importance of understanding customer needs when marketing products in unfamiliar categories, offering insights for bootstrapped startups.
Identifying and validating ideal target customers is essential for startups to effectively adapt their product offerings to meet market demands.
Transitioning from B2C to B2B requires refining product features to attract enterprise clients and understanding their specific needs for successful monetization.
Promoting a new product in an unrecognized market involves crafting targeted marketing messages that address specific user problems rather than relying solely on brand visibility.
Deep dives
Understanding Customer Targeting
Finding the right target customers is crucial for startups. A listener raises a question about whether to pivot focus to potential users from a competitor who is shutting down. The response highlights the importance of market validation through interviews to better understand the needs and willingness of these new users to pay for the service provided. Engaging directly with the prospective customers can yield insights that help gauge their interest and compatibility with the product.
Surveying the State of Independent SaaS
The episode discusses the upcoming State of Independent SaaS survey aimed at gathering data from bootstrapped companies. Previous editions of the survey have provided valuable industry benchmarks and insights that would not be available elsewhere. Encouragement is given to listeners to participate, emphasizing that their anonymous contributions can enhance the report's quality. A drawing is also introduced as an incentive for survey completion, offering a chance to win a valuable conference ticket.
Navigating the Shift from B2C to B2B
A listener shares their experience of transitioning from a B2C to a B2B model, facing challenges in monetization despite having a freemium strategy. The discussion emphasizes the need to refine product offerings to better meet the demands of enterprise clients while exploring effective strategies for customer acquisition. Concerns about the implications of targeting large organizations are addressed, including the length of sales cycles and necessary enhancements in the product's capabilities. Recommendations include conducting market research to discover what enterprise customers seek in terms of features and solutions.
Marketing for Charitable Collaborations
One listener's charity-focused product seeks to connect children in hospitals with their families through gaming. The episode addresses the complexities of leveraging this charitable relationship for marketing purposes while ensuring sustainability. It proposes that generating revenue through partnerships with nonprofits requires strategic positioning and clear value propositions. Recommendations include requesting testimonials and case studies from the charity to gain credibility in their outreach to potential paying customers while emphasizing their commitment to helping the cause.
Challenges with Uncharted Product Categories
A listener poses a question about how to promote a new product that lacks market recognition or clear competition. The conversation focuses on the significance of understanding the problem the product solves and leveraging this understanding to craft compelling marketing messages. Various strategies are suggested, including targeting specific problems faced by potential users rather than relying solely on search engine visibility. The discussion also highlights the importance of having a robust traffic strategy to support the freemium model, as many similar products have only succeeded with significant backing and visibility.
In episode 695, Rob Walling and Asia Orangio answer listener questions. They take questions about ideal target customers, moving from B2C to B2B, and how to advertise for a product in a new space. They wrap up discussing the challenges of making freemium work while bootstrapping.
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Topics we cover:
4:06 – Adjusting your target customers to chase an opportunity
11:58 – Is translating marketing or educational content worth it?
16:46 – Moving from B2C to B2B
25:53 – Defining a cross-channel marketing approach
33:22 – Advertising for a product in new product category
41:40 – The issues with making freemium work while bootstrapping.
If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!
