How To Sell Your SaaS Product To A SaaS LTD Community
Growing a SaaS business is far from easy, especially if you’re launching a SaaS startup or a new SaaS product.
Making your product known and getting early adopters can be one of the hardest challenges for a fledgling SaaS company.
Not to mention the fierce competition in the SaaS market today. More and more startups are springing out like mushrooms after rain.
Everyone is looking to grab their share of the SaaS market. It can really be hard not to drown in this sea of competitors.
But what if there was a shortcut to getting a large user base?
What if there was a way to make it easier for SaaS startups and SaaS companies to find their early adopters?
One of the ways you can do that is by finding and selling to a SaaS lifetime deal (LTD) online community. In this blog post, we are going to talk all about it and how you can use a SaaS LTD community to boost your SaaS company’s growth.
What Is A SaaS Lifetime Deal?
Before we can talk about SaaS LTD communities, let’s first define what an LTD is.
A SaaS lifetime deal is an offer where a SaaS company agrees to sell a perpetual license of its product at a discounted price.
In other words, the SaaS business is selling its product to the customer for a one-time fee and the user will have access to that product for the rest of their life.
The SaaS company usually sets a limit on how many licenses it will sell to the customer.
This type of deal is popular among new SaaS businesses because it’s a great way to bootstrap SaaS startups. LTDs can be a good way to secure a hefty starting revenue that you can reinvest for further growth.
Wait. So does that mean you’re giving up your recurring revenue for a one-time revenue?
Well, yes and no.
Sure, you’re forfeiting potential recurring revenues for a huge lump sum. But it doesn’t necessarily mean giving up all of your potential recurring revenues in the future.
That initial revenue is just a means to an end, which is further growth.
The keyword here is “reinvest”. You can use that lump sum to fund your marketing, sales, and all departments involved in getting subscription-based customers.
What’s more, you can still convert your LTD customers into subscribers down the road.
What Is A SaaS LTD Community?
A SaaS LTD community, to state the obvious, is an online community of SaaS companies and users who are looking to buy or sell a SaaS LTD.
It’s a place where you can find potential customers for your SaaS product, as well as potential investors for your SaaS company.
Benefits Of Joining A SaaS LTD Community
There are many benefits of joining a SaaS LTD community, especially if you’re a fledgling SaaS business.
We’re going to list some of the most important benefits below:
- Access to a well-established audience
- Access to early adopters
- Ongoing customer engagement and relationships
- Peer-to-peer customer support
- Brand loyalty
Let’s talk about them one by one.
Access To A Well-Established Audience
One of the biggest benefits of joining a SaaS LTD community is access to an already established audience.
You would have a pre-existing audience that is actively looking for the best deals when it comes to SaaS products.
This is especially beneficial if you’re a new SaaS business because you don’t have to spend time and resources building your own audience from scratch.
Access To Early Adopters
Another great benefit of joining a SaaS LTD community is access to early adopters.
Early product adoption is crucial for any SaaS company because it can be the difference between success and failure.
In a SaaS LTD community, you have access to early adopters who are already interested in SaaS products. For most of them, there isn’t much need for demand generation.
Sure, you might still need some lead nurturing efforts here and there. But these users are eager to try out the newest SaaS solutions in the market.
What’s more, they are already actively looking for great deals for new SaaS solutions. This makes it easier for you to get them to try out your product.
Ongoing Customer Engagement and Relationships
A SaaS LTD community is also a great place to build ongoing community engagement and relationships.
In a SaaS LTD community, you can have continuous communications with the members. Unless, of course, they leave the group.
You can keep in touch with them through the community’s channels, such as forums, social media, and even email newsletters.
This way, you can continue nurturing those relationships even after they’ve become customers.
Peer-To-Peer Customer Support
One of the best things about a SaaS LTD community is that it’s a great place for peer-to-peer customer support.
Although, this benefit is not exclusive to LTD communities.
Peer-to-peer customer success interactions are common in all kinds of SaaS communities.
In a SaaS LTD community, your customers have access to other SaaS users who have probably encountered the same problems that they are currently experiencing.
This way, they can get help from their peers instead of going to you for their customer success and support needs. This can be a great way to streamline your customer service efforts by reducing the number of support tickets that you have to deal with.
Brand Loyalty
Last but not least, joining a SaaS LTD community can help you build brand loyalty after you have secured your first customers.
Since your customers are part of the SaaS LTD community, you can use the platform to build trust with them.
If you are successful in doing so, they will be more likely to stick with you for a long time. It will improve your customer retention and even advocacy.
Common SaaS LTD Community Platforms
Now that we’ve talked about the benefits of joining a SaaS LTD community, let’s take a look at some of the most common platforms for doing so.
- Facebook Groups
- Discord Servers
- SaaS LTD Listing Sites
Facebook Groups
One of the most popular SaaS LTD community platforms is Facebook Groups.
There are many SaaS LTD communities on Facebook, and most of them have a large number of members.
In fact, we have our very own Facebook Group called Ken Moo’s SaaS Lifetime Deals (LTDs) Group. In this online community, we have almost 9000 members who are actively looking for the best SaaS LTDs out there.
The advantage of using Facebook Groups is that you can join multiple groups with different audiences. This way, you can target the right audience for your SaaS product.
What’s more, Facebook is one of the most common and accessible platforms out there. That means more people can see and join the group.
So if you’re just starting out reaching to a SaaS LTD community, relevant Facebook Groups are a great place to kick it off.
However, one downside to using Facebook Groups is that the conversations can be messy and unorganized. This can make it difficult to track the conversations that you have on posts and comment boxes.
Another great SaaS LTD community platform is Reddit.
Reddit has a large number of SaaS LTD-related subreddits, and most of them have a decent number of community members.
The advantage of using Reddit is that you can join specific subreddits that are relevant to your SaaS product. This way, you can target the right audience for your brand.
What’s more, Reddit is one of the most popular websites on the internet. So it’s a great place to start if you’re looking for a SaaS LTD community.
However, one downside of using Reddit is the lack of repeated interaction. Redditors may come and go on posts and comments. This can make it difficult to build relationships and loyalty among your customers.
But then again, once you gain enough customers and advocates, you can always start your own subreddit dedicated to your brand.
Discord Servers
Discord is a chat app that is growing in popularity among SaaS communities, especially when the COVID-19 pandemic started.
Discord servers are like Slack channels, but they’re focused on gaming communities.
However, with its recent widespread adoption with organizations and businesses, a lot of servers on this platform today are not necessarily related to gaming.
The advantage of using Discord servers is that they have a very engaged user base. Posts are usually light and have fun content, such as memes and vines.
Discord servers are also known for their tight-knit online communities, and that’s why they’re growing in popularity among SaaS companies.
What’s more, Discord servers are accessible on many devices such as phones, tablets, and laptops. So it’s a great platform for people who want to keep in touch with their SaaS LTD community members.
However, one downside of using Discord servers is that they can be difficult to manage. With so many chats going on at the same time, it can be hard to keep track of what your customers are saying.
SaaS LTD Listing Sites
Another SaaS LTD community platform is SaaS LTD listing sites.
These are websites where SaaS companies can list their LTDs and other digital products.
The advantage of using SaaS LTD listing sites is that they are already well-known places to get the best software LTDs.
What’s more, these sites are usually very well-maintained and have high-quality listings. As a result, they have already built trust with their online communities.
If the website vouches for your SaaS product by listing it, its community is actually confident about buying your LTD.
A few of the most popular SaaS LTD listing sites include AppSumo and ProductHunt.
Let’s talk about them one by one.
AppSumo
This is a well-known SaaS LTD listing site. It has a very engaged user base called Sumo-lings. If you can get your product listed on AppSumo, you’re in for some good exposure.
What’s more, AppSumo’s marketers can actively promote your products to their Sumo-lings. They can include it in their email newsletters and even create a YouTube video for it.
However, one downside to using AppSumo is that the barrier to entry is high. You need to have a really good product or offer in order to be accepted into their marketplace.
Moreover, it takes a huge cut from the revenue it makes from selling your LTD. With a hefty commission of 70%, it can be intimidating for a SaaS startup or small SaaS business.
Still, it’s up to you if the instant exposure and marketing efforts are worth the 70% commission. After all, 30% of a lump sum revenue is better than no revenue at all, right?
Product Hunt
This website is a SaaS LTD listing site that’s growing in popularity. It’s a great place to sell your SaaS product if you’re looking for early adopters.
What’s more, Product Hunt has comprehensive efforts to build and serve its community. It has an allotted website space for community discussions, customer stories, and event announcements.
But one of the best things about Product Hunt is its Maker Grants program. With this program, Product Hunt selects the best and most innovative digital products and sponsors their development.
The Maker Grants program offers up to $5,000 to three digital product creators every month. It also prioritizes members who are bootstrapping their businesses or are developing their products without the help of venture capitalist funding.
How To Promote Your Brand To A SaaS LTD Community
Now that you know a few platforms to sell your SaaS product in a SaaS LTD community, let’s talk about how to promote your brand in them.
The most important thing to remember when promoting your brand is to be genuine.
SaaS LTD communities are very sensitive to marketing gimmicks and fake promises. So always make sure that the claims you make about your product are true.
Another thing to keep in mind is that SaaS LTD communities are built on trust. As such, it’s important to slowly build trust with potential customers before gunning for a sale.
Here are a few ways you can promote your brand in a SaaS LTD community:
Be Active In The Community
One of the best ways to promote your brand is to be active in the community. Attend events, start discussions, and answer customer questions.
This way, people will get to know you and your product. But more than that, you always being there to respond to them will build trust.
And as you earn their trust, they will more likely buy from you.
Post A Lot Of Content
Another great way to promote your brand on a SaaS LTD community is by including your content marketing campaigns in the mix.
This is particularly helpful on Facebook Groups or Discord servers where you can freely share content on the platform.
You can share various types of content, such as blog posts, case studies, infographics, and even videos.
I think it goes without saying that your content should be reliable, relevant, and interesting. Remember that the goal of content marketing is to attract potential customers and build your topical authority.
What’s more, users are more likely to share credible and engaging content. Who knows? If you do it right, your SaaS brand could even get viral.
Partner With Other Companies
Another great way to promote your brand is by partnering with other SaaS companies. This can be done in the form of a joint webinar, podcast, or even a conference.
When partnering with another company, make sure that its values align with yours. This will help create a positive association in the minds of your potential customers.
Additionally, make sure that you have a good relationship with your partner company. After all, promoting your SaaS product is only effective if both companies work together to achieve a common goal.
Final Thoughts About SaaS LTD Communities
Selling your SaaS product in a SaaS LTD community can be a great way to get early adopters and grow your business.
But it’s important to remember that these online communities are built on trust. So always make sure that you’re honest and genuine with your potential customers.
And don’t forget to engage with the community by participating in events, starting discussions, and answering customer questions. This will help build trust and increase the chances of making a sale.
For more strategies and guides on growing your SaaS business, visit our SaaS marketing blog.
