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74 Comments

Are you wondering why you struggle selling your B2B service or product? I will tell you.

Hi there

There have been so many amazing ideas on IH and I have been able to learn from so many people posting super exciting stuff. Now, I want to give back. Have you been struggling to sell your B2B service or product? Post the link to your product or service in the comments below and I will give you up to 3 reasons, why it isn't/won't work. Obviously, I it will be honest and constructive criticism based on high level research. If there are open questions for my understanding: I will post them.

I have been working in B2B sales of products and services and shaping stories and developing sales strategies for years in various sectors. If your service or product is in my blind spot, I will let you know.

I am excited to see what you will share.

EDIT: It will take me max. 24 hours to get back to you. So please, be patient with me :)

on August 29, 2022
  1. 3

    Pre-product so we haven't started selling, but would love your input on this anyway :)

    1. 3

      Hi @nafetswirth, I like what you seem to want to offer, but the story is so provocative that I nearly closed the browser tab immediately. Perfect process :D That does not exist and is not a pain point.

      1. Which specific pain points does it solve? Add that and take the "Why tho" further up, because it is more important than the features you offer.
      2. Who are your targets? I assume people already using Notion, because you slightly mention it, but I don't see the specific user profile.
      3. Don't mix different target groups on your website. You mention selling product/company in point 3, but nowhere else. It needs to be a clean and separate storyline for every single type of target you talk to. If you mix, people are confused. And confused customers don't buy.
        Great work and really curious how it will look like when done. I like your approach.
      1. 1

        Thanks for your input, Philip.

        I agree it needs work, it was just a first draft.

        You mention selling product/company in point 3, but nowhere else. It needs to be a clean and separate storyline for every single type of target you talk to.

        For this, I think it both applies for the same persona, but on different stages of the journey.

        There are 2 main value props, one while you build and run the company and one when you want to sell it.

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          If you would like to talk more or go more into detail, please reach out. You can find my contact info in my profile. If not, I appreciate every upvote :)

        2. 2

          And that is what I would also differentiate between. People always mention customer centricity, but customers also only have limited time to make a decision. Then mention it twice in two different points, because it is two different benefits for the customer.

        3. 1

          Hi @nafetswirth, checked out your page and love the new story. You have me hooked. How did your sales efforts go since then or are you still not promoting it?

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            Taking a step back to revisit the market.

            Think the "sell your business for more" has a better pull and want to tackle that first.

            Then work back to running and optimizing

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              @nafetswirth is that a different business or another story for the same thing? I like the story, but you need to answer how your service will help them achieve this goal. Something like: Reduce uncertainty for your potential buyers increasing the price they are ready to pay. Or reduce the daily workload required to run your business to make it more attractive to potential buyers, etc.. You probably have that in mind already :)

    1. 1

      Btw your paragraph text is too light for me to read

    2. 1

      Hi @yahyahashim, here I actually have some experience selling similar services.

      1. As this is the topic of infrastructure, companies, freelancers and builders focus on being sure the provider will exist for many years, because switching mostly is a pain in the a**. How do you make sure that your service will be up to date and working in 5 to 10 years?
      2. How is this service better than established providers like Vercel, Netlify, Stormkit, Amazon S3, etc.?
      3. Is there a specific target group this is really interesting for or which specific pains do you solve? I only read about features, if I can read the gray on white text at all.
        Hope this helps :)
      1. 1

        Your suggestions were very important in my progress, thanks for your reply

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          Really happy to heat that it helps. All the best with it.

  2. 2

    Great initiative! Love it!

    1. 1

      Thank you :) Anything you would like to share? ;)

  3. 2

    Oh,thank you.

    Https://jamstacker.studio

    Unlimited web design & development for startups

    All I get are bots sign up,... Then I have decent traffic for a new site, around 50/80 daily, because is linked from my other 6 sites..but nothing...

    I wonder if I should redesign it,..rewrite the copy...

    1. 1

      Hi @Michael_Andreuzza
      Thank you for sharing. Please keep in mind that the points are meant to be used as guidance.

      1. People in businesses have to scroll down half of the website to understand what you mean by "unlimited", because it is a huge claim.
      2. The pricing model ($/month) does not match your claim of unlimited. You need to bring that story in line.
      3. Your call to action (portfolio and price) on the landing are not clearly visible (portfolio) or does not match what happens next (price).
        For you, I have a fourth one for free :)
      4. Buying decisions are made from people and they need to trust the person behind a service. To find out who you are, they need to do research, because there is only a tiny link about you at the bottom and I would expect a better designed page from a designer than just text on the entire page.
        The service per se is sold and bought daily in the thousands, so the service itself is not the issue.
      1. 1

        Thank you so much for the honesty,I had more designed page before this one and, but it felt too distracting..

        If guess I will iterate,thank you again,really appreciate it 💪

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          If you need any additional support, please reach out. You can find my contact info in my profile.

        2. 1

          Thanks for your message and happy it helps :) Keep up the great work.

  4. 2

    Nice initiative! My product is https://creatickz.com/, I already have a couple clients with small marketing but would love to hear how could I improve to get more clients, thanks!

    1. 1

      Hi @FrankNeville
      My points are really from a view of a potential customer. These three things are things that confuse me and I don't actually get the service. This way you lost me. If you can answer them on your page, I think, you have something great on hand.

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        Hey @wtphilip! Sorry I hadn't seen the other comment, I understand the points you mention and you are right, especially in the third point, I think I should focus on solving only the problems of a specific group instead of trying to encompass solutions for everyone. I am currently working on the copy of the website to focus on marketing to one group only. Thanks!

        1. 1

          Hi @FrankNeville, wow, cool! I am super happy to hear that it helped. It is difficult to get all points across in a clearly structured way in the limited time there is. If you say, one group only: Not sure, if you already thought of this, but think of the size of the marketing team, the industry they work in, what type of products they might be selling and what type of complementary tools or similar services they could be using. This makes targeting a lot easier.

    2. 1

      Hi @FrankNeville
      Thank you for sharing this.

      1. Why are there "*" in the benefits that are not explained? I had to scroll and did not find them again. It is hard to build trust with a confused customer.
      2. Why is "No contracts" a benefit? Contracts provide customers with security.
      3. Why do you think customers worry about design at all? Is it really a pain point and if yes, which one in which business process? What goal does the marketeer try to achieve, which you enable this person to reach?
        I think you are solving different problems than what you are marketing on your page. I would go to a client and perform an interview with them to find out what their process was in deciding to work with you. I assume you did not get them through the website.
    3. 1

      ... have you tried adding video testimonials? Would love to offer my service free of cost to you until you see improvement in conversion rate. Let me know.

      1. 1

        Thank you very much for the offer! However, I have very few customers at the moment and they are unresponsive, so I don't think I can get many testimonials at the moment. I'll try later, thank you!

  5. 2

    Okay - https://testimonial.guru. I've recently finished working on the product; the landing page is still being worked on. I'd like to hear what you have to say.

    1. 1

      Hi @TestimonialGuru, thank you for sharing your product. I really appreciate your courage. All my points are just to give some guidance.

      1. I don't know what company you are targeting. What industry, size, online offering, processes do they need to have so that this is useful to them?
      2. I don't see the pain that is linked to a clearly defined task or process. Is managing 3 to 6 testimonials such a struggle?
      3. The alternatives are vast, free and have more benefits. If I use Youtube, I can embed it into websites and easily share the testimonials on social media and through other channels. What differentiates this from Youtube?

      As visitor of the page, I have a lot of unanswered questions. You want to avoid that, because you generally don't get the chance to explain your product again. If you have good answers to the above questions, you could have something great.

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        You've raised very important points. Would love to discuss them with you -

        1. SaaS markets seem to be the right audience for my service. Typically growing businesses with with a few hundred customers can benefit immensely through my service.

        2. Getting written testimonials is relatively easy. I'm looking to upgrade those with videos. Videos are hard to get; but my tool makes it easy for every stakeholder to record and publish testimonials.

        Plus, it's essential to keep the testimonials fresh. My service fixes that problem. I know this works because there are competitors in the market who have gained lot of traction with similar tool.

        1. For a growing business, putting testimonials on YT doesn't look very professional. My tool handles everything, along with video hosting and publishing. In addition, managers need to keep adding new YouTube code for each new testimonial received. My tool automates this process.

        You are right, I'm working on the landing page and will try to address the points you raised. Pushing an update soon. THank you for your feedback.

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          Hi @TestimonialGuru, I was wondering, did you actually change anything based on my feedback? You answered my points, but people getting onto your website still don't know these valuable points.

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            Hey @wtphilip - I've not (yet). I got focused on finding my ICP and cold emails that I didn't pay attention to anything else. I'm going to get this fixed by weekend.

            Really appreciate your follow-up.

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              @TestimonialGuru, I like that you think of your ICP. Also think about the duration of your sales cycle. It is shorter for SaaS with a small marketing team (max. 5 people). I am assuming that the key pain point is building trust through websites, if they already use many different online channels for sales and marketing.

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                It's true. The main challenge I'm facing is that for SaaS businesses, instant trust isn't a priority. Most SaaS businesses offer a 14 day trial which is enough for potential clients to evaluate the business and make the purchase decision.

                I find it generally difficult to convince people that building instant trust is a real problem they need to solve. Figuring out how to get around this.

        2. 1

          Hi @TestimonialGuru
          These are great points you bring up. Put them into your pitch. All of them. Regarding your response on point 2: Try to be more specific. Why are videos better than written text? Why are videos hard to get?
          It is great to see that you already thought about these points. Now, you only have to get these points onto the landing page :)
          You are welcome and please share when there is an update.

  6. 1

    If you come across this post and would like to get three reasons yourself, please send me the request through this form: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSch_gTUJ63UfKP7RNbfsVbSXauiYMcNR_qxytcw_qOfvU7EDw/viewform?usp=sf_link

    1. 1

      Hi @Jason_C
      Looks interesting and like you already have some customers. Are they already paying? I could tell you why it's not working, but why not ask your customers? They are paying and will tell you bluntly what they want to have improved.

      1. I don't see the KPI or OKR you improve. If you can quantify it, so the decision maker can pitch it in their organisation, it makes it easier for you to sell it.
      2. Who are the decision makers regarding the introduction of such tools and who are your competitors. It might help corporate buyers to see what you do better than other services. You can create a table with features in the first column, competitor services in the first line and then add ticks and crosses for buyers to get a better understanding.
      1. 1

        Thanks so much for the feedback!

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          Hi @Jason_C, am really curious what you will do with the feedback. If you can incorporate the answers to the webpage, I think people will react differently to your offering. I have to admit that I did not 100% get it, which makes me hesitate.

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            Thank you Philip!
            We are expanding our product from team mode to personal mode , in our new version of Cubo online office, will be launching soon! This all-in-one platform is designed for individuals, freelancers, digital nomads, coaches, consultants, solo entrepreneurs, and remote/hybrid teams to communicate effectively without any disruption due to real-time connection.

            Now we are looking for beta testers for our product testing. We are sure once you get inside Cubo, there is no going back, as it will reveal a new pleasure you never would have thought possible.

            If you're interested in being a part of our VIP beta testers list, we'll be sharing with you the beta test version soon!

            Please share your email Id for further communication.

            Regards,
            Jason

  7. 1

    Hi Philip, I'd love to hear your thoughts on vibits.co

    1. 1

      Hi @ItsKev, thank you for sharing your service. It looks really interesting. So here my reasons:

      1. You mix different messages between the lines. I kind of understand what you fix, but am confused about what links to what. Content to many platforms is time consuming makes sense, but why? What does that have to do with bite-sized? Complicated is too generic.
      2. The benefits in the circle switch and I have to wait to see them all. It is a waste of the users time to let them wait.
      3. Huge pay plans and I don't know what a discovery form is supposed to be.
        The service is really promising and if you like, we can take a look at it on how to improve your page, if you struggle bringing it to the level marketers will buy this in seconds. If you are interested, please reach out to me via e-mail.
      1. 1

        Thanks a lot Philip! Yea, I've been collecting feedback to see what cna be improved. I wasn't exactly sure about what to call the CTA button yet, as the form is for me to determine if they would be a suitable client. If they are not in a position where I think they would benefit from the service, I'd let them know so that they can invest their money into some other things that might be more suitable to their current contenxt.

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          Hmm, I understand that it makes sense from your perspective, but why should a user reach out when he sees these prices, when he knows that he will not pay you that much. I would turn it around. Kill the prices and only provide them with the price information once you have talked/written to them. This way, you can learn about customer segments, how they think and what their exact needs are as well as what they are ready to pay. If they are willing to pay more, they will, because you did not ask for a price, which is to low.

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            I think that might be a good test to run. I was thinking more in terms of, "if someone can't afford it and we get to talk, we would be basically wasting each other's time" Do you think that I should ask for their budget in the form? Or should I just keep it as concise as possible?

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              Depends on what you think is more relevant for you to know. I am an advocate of collecting as much information as possible when you talk to them. In a form, that could be counterproductive (they hesitate even writing, because you ask for it). I would not ask for it and then when talking about it, ask them how they would have reacted, if you asked in a form. Or do A/B-testing, if you have the capacity.

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                Definitely! I've been talking with a bunch of clients of mine that run agencies and also do software sales, and I think taking it out might be the way to go. That way I can learn more about the customer segments as you mentioned. Thanks a lot for your input!

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                  One thought:
                  Frustrated of putting a lot of time into content, but only getting low number of views?
                  With vibits, you can identify key moments that users will view and recycle your content in a way it is useful to the viewers.

  8. 1

    We just launched last week and mainly been doing cold outbounds + blogs + answering questions online related to secret management; getting some traffic but not enough conversions. Would appreciate your input!

    https://infisical.com

    1. 1

      Ok, looks pretty cool.

      1. Who are you targeting mainly? Number of team members, etc.
      2. What are the alternative solutions and why are you better than them?
      3. What is the real quantifiable benefit? Simple and secure is ok, but the text below is still generic. Your targets are probably people with a technical background, so give them numbers. Number of minutes saved every day or reduce probability of something bad happening by x% or whatever. You need something tangible, so people know which pain you solve by how much. Make it measurable.
      1. 1

        Thanks so much for the feedback!

        1. We're targeting startup teams of size 10-50; at this scale, the problem we're solving becomes more apparent and it becomes more important to adopt a secret management solution.

        2. Alternative solutions are primarily either complex and expensive (e.g. HashiCorp Vault) or simple and not end-to-end encrypted (e.g. Doppler). We're better because we're simple (takes 3 minutes to set up) and end-to-end encrypted/secure.

        3. Will think about this more and talk to my co-founder about it. I definitely agree and think quantifying it will make it feel more tangible to people looking through our website!

        1. 1

          Hi @dangtony98
          Your points make sense. I think you have to implement this into your page in a well structured way and then know how to target these startups. Using LInkedIn Sales Navigator and outreach/automation tools via e-mail and phone, are probably the most appropriate. If you need any further help, please reach out.

  9. 1

    Any feedback on https://crashcatch.com would be much appreciated.

    I have been getting the odd signups here and there, they usually sign up, register a project and send an initialisation request and then they don't go any further. Can't see anything going wrong and all tests I've done shows it works fine but I can't get any feedback  😭

    1. 1

      I hope my feedback was helpful. If you need further support in optimizing, please reach out. You can find my contact information in my profile.

    2. 1

      Well, what you are describing might be a problem with the UX of your product. So people don't understand what to do next. Why can't you get any feedback? Have you tried to reach out in a personal and authentic way (e.g. is there something that pissed you off? Are you missing something? What were you hoping to find? etc.). If they don't answer, follow-up multiple times. Each time with value added to them (e.g. free for 2 months instead of 14 days). Maybe even offering them something for their input.
      Story looks legit. Do you still want me to give you up to 3 reasons? I think, you should try fix the above part first, if possible.

      1. 1

        Sorry Philip. Not sure how I missed the notification.

        I could be wrong but I don't think its a UX issue. The reason I think that is because when the user signs up and they register a new project they get a page with how to set the project.

        This page provides them details on how to download the SDK, how to initialise the project library and then submit a test crash.

        Most signups do 95% of this page, where they download the SDK, add it to their project and initialise, they just do the final step which is a little strange.

        I have contacted each user asking them if they need more time, or did they run into an issue but I never get a response. I usually only email them once and if they don't respond I leave it as I didn't want to seem pushy but maybe I should try contacting again and offer a discount for feedback.

        Thanks for the suggestions, and sorry again I've taken so long to respond.

        1. 1

          Hi @boardy, no worries at all. That's how you get feedback ;) Following up multiple times. As they signed up, they bought into your service, so it is not spam.
          Their behaviour really sounds strange. What's the final step? From what you are describing, this actually sounds like some UX issue, if they really fall off at the same point. Maybe they are afraid of the crash test... But yes, I would need more information on this. All the best with it :) And thanks for your response.

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            It is very strange. The last step is just to throw an Exception and call the ReportCrash method on the catch handler to test the crash submission is working OK. Before that they call the Initialise method with their API key and project Id which most of them do, they just don't do the exception test.

            Its a very strange one.

            I'll reply back a couple of times and offer a discount in the future. :)

            1. 1

              Maybe a random idea on this. Why don't you record these steps on your screen and then just share the recording with people here to ask for feedback, if people don't reply to your e-mails. Happy to check it out, if you send me the link to the video.

  10. 1

    Would love to know what you think about https://norns.ai

    As people use it a lot as individuals, it's hard for me to sell to teams and enterprises, even with all the integrations.

    Thanks!

    1. 1

      Hi @Holger
      Ou, this one is fun. This is actually easy and maybe I am naive.

      1. What do you think somebody with a slightly dirty mind thinks of when seeing this? If you think this is playful... what do you think, if someone has to suggest it in a team? If you don't know what I mean... I hope there is somebody willing to point it out.
      2. I only see the benefits you want to offer without a link to the pains or on how you do it. "Being in the know" can be done with two clicks with other tools.
      3. There is a disconnect between the topic and the description of the benefit.
        Sorry that I did not get to the end, but if you are able to fix this, please let me know. I know some introverts that might find this helpful. Please don't forget that B2B means that someone earns money from doing exactly that. So why do you want to sell to teams or enterprise? You would have to target the person that fires the person hired to do exactly this. You will get some clients for sure, but I don't think for the right reason.
  11. 1

    Would like to listen from your experience https://tradly.app (use case: app marketplace and partner system for companies )

    with every user management, payout system, commission deduction, listing and app configuration etc

    1. 1

      Hi @Jkbaseer, I think I understand what you want to enable and I like the design, but this is where it ends.

      1. Do you want entrepreneurs to think about their product as little as possible? Not gonna happen.
      2. There are steps one should take, but they are not instructional. Most people will only be confused from that.
      3. There are so many language mistakes (translated with Google?) and there are pains, gains, processes missing from a logical perspective. Mentioning them does not make up for missing content and logic.
        The assumption might be interesting, but for B2B... it needs to be more consistent and logic.
      1. 1

        Hey Philip,
        Your words seems to be deep and well thought after. I want to ask something to avoid mis understanding

        1. So if we give them too much about what is needed, they naturally don’t like? You mean they want to think and build something?

        2. You mean the process bar or checklist we provide in the product onboarding? Doesn’t look creative?

        3. Agree might be grammatical issue from the initial time. We are still working on that. Not sure what this means > “ pains, gains, processes”

        We are not communicating what’s the pain point we are solving?

        Thanks for taking time to do this, would like to do in return from any marketing stuff you need.

        1. 1

          Hi @Jkbaseer, yes, please ask, if something is not clear.

          1. You already changed this point on the website, so it is difficult to refer to it. My point is that you want to enable builders to build the product they dream about without worrying about anything that surrounds it, right? Not the other way around. Before, it sounded like you want people not to think about their product. Do you know the concept of customer lifetime value? The longer they try to succeed and if they succeed, the longer they pay for your service and actually recommend it to others. So: Focus on the ones that will NEVER just build, but that are passionate about building.
          2. No, under templates you start off with 2 points. Not sure what your goal is with them, but they confuse me.
          3. What is the entrepreneur's process you want to improve, what pain do you know entrepreneur's have with that process and how do you solve that pain and create a gain? These are points that need to be covered in a logic and concise way. You have it disbursed throughout your page.
            Not sure what you mean with your last point.
          1. 1
            1. No, we didn’t change anything in the website. Can you share which url you are checking at?
            2. Okay got it. I feel like giving more options or info bit of confusing. May be we should reduce infos (will amend)
            3. In the home page , that’s the second section we explain. So you are saying it need to be communicated in different places as well?
            1. 2

              Well, a visitor to your website takes the decision of relevance about a service in the first few seconds. Relevance is decided when it hits the process/task I am in, when you mention the pain I am feeling right now and the gain you promise is logical. Then you can mention how you achieve the gain.
              I hope this was helpful. Won't get into it more. My offer is 3 reasons, because it is already helpful normally ;) Don't have that much time on hand ;)

  12. 1

    Alright, thanks for doing that, curious to hear your thoughts! https://payge.io

    1. 1

      Are these points useful to you?

    2. 1

      Hi @k3vin, thanks, appreciate it. I actually like what you have done here. There is some great stuff to work with. You start with the WHAT. So, I know what you sell.

      1. You lose me on line 6, because the relevance for businesses is gone there. What are you referring to and how are you solving this and why? Is it really a problem for businesses and if so... why do you think/know so?
      2. What's the differentiator to PayPal? And don't tell me the logo. I can include my logo their as well in some way.
      3. To the key point. How does branding of the payment process increase sales? As a business, I care about trust!!! I want my money. Why do you think that I increase sales, because it does says my little company name instead of PayPal? Maybe you are targeting very large companies, there is a completely different buying cycle and they mostly have many developers and designers hired. Not sure, they would pay for this. Here it is key to point who actually facilitates the payment.
  13. 1

    Great idea! Here we go: bowwe.com/en

    1. 1

      Hi @kandruszkow, well, this is kind of salesy. Some great points you thought of.

      1. Save up to 577£ is a great classic, but only works with nobody's job on the line? What is the frame and basis you are writing about? 577 of what and in what context?
      2. Is the problem really moving stuff online? Not sure, you are focussing on a relevant process and pain point here.
      3. What is the difference to a wordpress page? Or in general: What is the difference to any other website builder?
        I like the draw.co designs you used and enhanced. But wordings like "Best" need material support. Everybody saying they are the Best, are not.
      1. 1

        Thank you for your insight!