Buyerstage: The genesis of our journey!

Ah, the summer of 2021, when the sun was shining, and we decided to turn our dreams into reality by venturing into the wild world of startups. Little did we know that the journey would be as exhilarating as a rollercoaster, complete with twists, turns, and a fair share of loop-de-loops.

As we birthed our first startup into existence, we found ourselves in a bustling market, armed with a stellar SaaS solution but clueless about the challenges that awaited us. Selling in a competitive space turned out to be the ultimate Olympic event, and we were the underdog facing seasoned athletes.

Roadblocks, setbacks and stopgaps

Our calls? Ignored. Cold emails? They became icier than a polar vortex. Inbound leads? Oh, they were like a treasure chest, but instead of gold, we found ourselves with a bunch of tire kickers and professional ghosters.

Our sales team found themselves trapped in the Bermuda Triangle of demos - harbor tour demos, to be precise. Hours were slipping away like sand through our fingers as we showcased our solution endlessly, hoping for a breakthrough.

And then came the quest to identify the key decision-makers on the buyers' side. It was like playing a game of hide-and-seek in a dark labyrinth. We had more question marks over the decision-makers than a mystery novel, and it was slowing us down in this fast-paced startup race.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled chaos. Our resource-sharing strategy resembled throwing carefully crafted materials into a vast sea of potential clients.?but here's the kicker: we had no clue who was diving in and who was just splashing around. Information consumption within the buying committee was a mystery, a riddle wrapped in an enigma.

Burnout became our roommate. It was like we were stuck in a loop of rejection, and morale was lower than a limbo stick at a tall people's party.

Basics over acceptable traditions

What we usually do, we figure out a work around to overcome the setbacks as quickly as possible. But not this time. This time we decided to dig deeper into the root cause for our challenges and we are so glad that we did stick to our basics.

Eventually that led us to the core of our issues in-hand – B2B buyer’s evolution. It was like unlocking the secret code to a puzzle we had been trying to solve. Here's what we uncovered:

1. Buyers avoid early conversation with the sales team: It was like trying to start a conversation at a library - silence. Modern B2B buyers preferred to keep it hush-hush until they had gathered enough information on their own terms.

2. Misinterpretation about the product offerings and capabilities: Our product was like a Shakespearean play, open to interpretation. Clear communication became our guiding star as we realized the importance of avoiding a 'to be or not to be' scenario.

3. Buyers explore 4-5 products in parallel: It turns out our potential clients were juggling us like a circus act, exploring multiple options simultaneously. We needed to stand out in this bustling arena.

4. Multiple stakeholders are involved and it is very hard to identify and engage them: ?Identifying and engaging stakeholders became a strategic challenge, like playing a game of corporate chess.

5. Shared collaterals are not properly distributed among the stakeholders: Our collateral distribution resembled a game of telephone gone wrong. Ensuring that everyone had the right information at the right time turned into a logistical challenge.

6. Modern B2B buyers expect a B2C-like self-serving buying experience: Our buyers were not just buyers; they were customers expecting a B2C-like experience. The shift was clear - a self-serving buying experience was the new gold standard.

Problems + Solution = PMF

If our journey so far has taught us anything, it's that sometimes the best solutions come from navigating the messiest of problems.?

Now Picture this: a platform that didn't just enable buyers but saved our sanity too. We built Buyerstage as an in-house solution to tackle the very problems that once haunted us - the chilly emails, the mysterious buyers, and the burnout blues.?

Today, Buyerstage has evolved into a robust B2B buyer enablement platform that fast-track inbounds from qualifications to conversions. ?

But why go through all the trouble of building a SaaS product from scratch instead of opting for an off-the-shelf product. More on that on my next article. ?

Until then, ?

Here's to the wild ride of startups, to turning challenges into triumphs, and to building something extraordinary out of the ordinary. The rollercoaster continues, and we're strapped in, ready for whatever loop-de-loops come our way! ????

#StartupJourney #Buyerstage #Saassales #buyerenablement #buyerexperience #FounderStory