• B2B companies continue to strive for the best methods to.communicate with their customer base
  • One often-underutilized channel for software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies is the login page
  • When building a strategy for their login page, SaaS companies should consider six key factors

“What’s the best way to market to our existing customers”? We regularly hear this question from our clients, as B2B companies continue to strive for the best methods to communicate with their customer base. Their question may stem from an understanding that the standard customer communication channels (e.g. general customer newsletters, non-targeted email blasts) are just not as effective as we’d like them to be. 

directionOne often-underutilized channel for software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies is the login page. Perhaps no Web page is more popular on the site, as it’s the main entry point to the product.

However, we’re finding that many SaaS companies lack a comprehensive strategy for managing this space. Even among organizations with a strategy in place for managing the login page, we’re finding few companies actively measure the results from this strategy (e.g. conversion rates, optimal ad rotations, cross-sell effectiveness).

When building a strategy for your login page, consider the following:

  1. Engagement. If your customer is accessing the login page, he or she obviously already has a certain level of engagement. Consider how the login page’s messaging can supercharge this initial engagement by perhaps presenting previously unknown product features that deliver even more value to the customer. A simple “tips and tricks” section summarizing the most useful features, supplemented by customer use stories, can be a great way to get customers to use more of what they’ve purchased (and get more value from your offerings along the way).
  2. Cross-sell. Presenting your newest offerings via the login page is one of the most common login page strategies for B2B companies, and for good reason – it’s a natural opportunity to present potential cross-sell offerings. But a more effective approach is to present cross-sell opportunities relevant to each customer’s needs based on insights you have gathered about the specific account.
  3. Participation. Use the login page to encourage customers to participate in the broader customer community. Invite them to join your online customer community, user groups or other similar customer groups. Also leverage this space to invite customers to regional or annual customer events.
  4. Communication. Using the login page to share key corporate messaging with a broad appeal is also an effective strategy. Many customers miss or ignore traditional company delivery channels, and the login page often has a greater chance of capturing their attention than other sections of the site. It’s also a natural location to highlight important product updates.
  5. Advocacy. Customer advocates exist in places unknown to many B2B marketers. Utilizing the login page to recruit advocates can be a surprisingly effective way to source new advocate candidates.
  6. Testing (always). Most modern markets have become adept at thoroughly embedding testing protocols into most marketing efforts. Don’t ignore applying the same discipline to login page messaging. Measure results, try new content, and fine-tune on an ongoing basis to determine the best strategies for content management, message rotation and conversions.

It’s becoming increasingly challenging for B2B marketers to effectively communicate with existing customers. The reasons range from customers being inundated with your (and your competitors’) messaging to a history of poorly directed messages that customers find irrelevant. Dedicate the resources and time to necessary to properly manage the login page. The beauty of login page messaging is that it reaches customers in context. Done correctly, it can deliver timely, relevant content to a customer who is listening.