The Power of Maturity Models in B2B SaaS Growth

Many of us at LaunchWave were part of the original marketing team at A Cloud Guru. We helped grow ACG from $5M ARR to $95M ARR in less than 3 years, which of course led to the successful exit of being acquired by the enterprise, Pluralsight. At our exit, we were valued at $2.2 billion. And in that 3 year time, there was a hyper-growth of learnings and up-skilling. Oh the things we knew by the end of the journey that we painfully wish we knew at the beginning…

One major project in the final year that catapulted our revenue growth was  the in-depth ICP formation that led to our creation of the Cloud Maturity Model. It wasn’t just about the impact of this project on our understanding of the ICP, the true impact of this project was on the team. It provided us with such a new and different perspective that wasn’t being done in traditional marketing at the time that it drastically changed the way we executed on all B2B marketing projects.

What the heck is a maturity model?

Let’s start at the beginning. You have a defined ICP, your best fit accounts. Awesome. You’ve outlined their common challenges, needs, and goals as they pertain to your product/solution. Excellent work.

But what if I told you, within your ICP, not everyone will come searching for your product/solution for the same core reasons? Not everyone will use your product/solution in the same basic ways? Insert head explosion.

Every account within your ICP is on a maturity journey, with many different stages. In the first stage, they’re just starting out. Their challenges, needs, and goals are going to be much different at stage 1 than they will be at stage 5. That’s because, just like the rest of us, they need different solutions at different stages of growth.

Mapping out the “maturity” stages of this journey and identifying key aspects such as key players, current challenges, common projects, growth needs to evolve to the next stage, & objectives is called a Maturity Model.

The difference between a maturity model and a buyers journey

The difference between a maturity model and a buyer's journey

While both concepts are crucial in B2B marketing, they serve different purposes. A buyer's journey maps out the stages a prospect goes through before making a purchase decision, typically awareness, consideration, and decision. It's linear and focuses on the sales process.

A maturity model, on the other hand, is about the evolution of your customer's capabilities and needs over time, regardless of where they are in the buying process. It's cyclical and focuses on the customer's overall growth and changing requirements. While a buyer's journey helps you understand how to convert a prospect, a maturity model helps you understand how to provide value at every stage of their organizational development.

How to craft a maturity model

1. Start with extensive research: Conduct interviews with customers, analyze industry trends, and gather insights from your sales and customer success teams.

2. Identify key stages: Typically, maturity models have 3-5 stages. For example: Novice, Developing, Established, Advanced, and Expert.

3. Define characteristics for each stage: Outline the typical challenges, goals, and capabilities of organizations at each level.

4. Map out transition points: Determine what triggers movement from one stage to the next.

5. Validate with stakeholders: Get feedback from customers, industry experts, and internal teams to refine your model.

6. Create visual representations: Design easy-to-understand graphics that illustrate the progression through stages.

   
   

How to wield your maturity model power for the greater good

1. Personalize marketing messages: Tailor your content and campaigns to address the specific needs and challenges of each maturity stage.

2. Guide product development: Use insights from the model to inform feature prioritization and product roadmaps.

3. Enhance sales conversations: Equip your sales team with targeted talking points and solutions based on a prospect's maturity level.

4. Improve customer success: Develop stage-specific onboarding processes and success metrics to ensure customers get value at every level.

5. Create thought leadership: Publish content that helps your audience understand and navigate their own maturity journey.

6. Facilitate account expansion: Identify upsell and cross-sell opportunities as customers progress through maturity stages.

7. Benchmark your market: Use your model to assess the overall maturity of your target market and identify untapped segments.

By leveraging a well-crafted maturity model, you're not just selling a product – you're positioning your company as a strategic partner in your customers' growth journey. This approach fosters longer-lasting relationships, increases customer lifetime value, and ultimately drives sustainable growth for your SaaS business.