The Ultimate Demand Generation Tech Stack for SaaS Marketers

Sources: Cleo

If you work in the SaaS industry, you obviously know how important software is to the growth of your business. But with so many softwares to choose from, how do you know which ones are right for your business? We know how intimidating it can be to sort through the long list of softwares you can leverage to boost your demand generation efforts. Unfortunately, software reviews can sometimes be misleading due to the fact that there is a lot of bias on what softwares work best.

If you're looking for a truthful answer in your quest for the perfect software stack, there is no specific software that stands heads and tails above the others. The best tech stack you can choose for your demand generation efforts will depend on your specific company. In this post, we'll outline some of the foundational types of software you'll need in order to execute successful demand generation initiatives, provide you with some suggestions softwares for that purpose and give you some options for other types of software that are worth your investment as you grow your business. Let's dive in!

The Foundational Demand Generation Tech Stack 

CMS Software

To put it plain and simple, you really cannot accomplish anything without a website. Content Management Software should be the first software on your list to enhance your demand generation efforts. Creating a clean website with well laid out conversion paths is key to executing a strong demand generation strategy. While there are a ton of options out there you could take into consideration, here are a few of the top CMS softwares we suggest:

• WordPress: WordPress is definitely a standout for CMS softwares. Users say one of the top benefits of WordPress is that it is extremely user friendly. WordPress started out as a blogging software, but know allows users the ability to create and host their website. One of the biggest drawbacks of WordPress are its frequent updates, causing changes to your website without warning. But overall, many WordPress users would highly recommend it. We created our website on the HubSpot CMS, but frequently work with WordPress users and see the draw for this product.
• HubSpot: As we mentioned, our own website was created through the HubSpot CMS. The great thing with the HubSpot CMS is your ability to expand your efforts beyond website development. HubSpot is a one-stop shop for all your marketing, sales and service needs. HubSpot provides simplicity for users and allows them to design templates, schedule blog posts and create email campaigns all from one central location. The biggest problem with HubSpot that we have found, lies in their analytics tools. While you have the ability to track your website performance, the extensiveness to which you can develop deeper insights is pretty limited with HubSpot.
• Wix: Wix is another CMS that has gained a lot of traction recently. It is a great option for those who are new to web development and know little about HTML. Another great thing about Wix is that it is one of the cheaper options, which could be great for people who are testing the waters with website creation. The downside many users have found with Wix is the customer service. If you are facing a problem or have a question, there is not an actual person there to help you. Instead, you would have to go through help forums.

CRM Software

Another foundational software you'll need in your demand generation tech stack is a CRM software. Gone are the days when people tracked their leads through an Excel spreadsheet. Customer Relationship Management software does exactly what it sounds like, helps you to manage relationships with your customers and prospects. But more than that, CRM software enables you to simplify your outreach methods through workflows and reminders. Here are a few CRM softwares we recommend considering if you are looking to invest:

• HubSpot: The biggest draw to HubSpot CRM is the fact that it is user friendly and integrates seamlessly with other marketing initiatives to promote better marketing and sales alignment. If you are looking to get the most bang for your buck for all your demand generation efforts, HubSpot seems to be the obvious choice. But while HubSpot caters to all your marketing and sales needs, it is a bit more basic than other CRMS. Customization and flexibility are less prominent with HubSpot than other options.
• Salesforce: Salesforce has long been the leader in the cloud-based CRM industry, and for pretty solid reasoning. With the ability to tailor, schedule and individualize reports, the flexibility with this CRM software is one of its key attributes. The setback with Salesforce is its lengthy implementation process, and the fact that it is definitely better suited for enterprise companies rather than small to medium business.
• Microsoft Dynamics: Dynamics is another solid option for larger companies who are seeking deeper insights regarding business intelligence. The problem Dynamics faces is integration capabilities. Because it is a Microsoft product, it is optimized for integration with other Microsoft products such as Sharepoint, Outlook and Office 365, but if you are looking to implement other types of demand generation software, your options are limited.
• Zoho: The last CRM software we'll mention is Zoho. This software is suited for those smaller companies who likely have little experience with CRM software. Zoho is a great option if you are looking for something cheap. However, Zoho is basic, it lacks a good share of the advancements other CRM softwares offer.

Marketing Automation Software

Closing out our list of absolute must-have softwares in your demand generation tech stack is marketing automation. Marketing Automation platforms play a pivotal role in campaign execution and have been proven as a key growth driver for businesses. Marketing automation softwares are flexible in that they provide users with the ability to run their email marketing campaigns, social media campaigns and nurture campaigns all from one central location. If you are considering marketing automation software we recommend looking into:

• HubSpot: If it wasn't already evident, we are definitely HubSpot fans. HubSpot is the world's #1 inbound marketing platform. From blogging, social media monitoring and publishing, SEO, email marketing and analytics, HubSpot provides their customers with a user-friendly and well-rounded marketing experience. However, their analytical tools could provide a bit more depth in terms of the insights they provide.
• Pardot: Pardot is owned by Salesforce, and with a good share of the market leveraging Salesforce as their CRM software, the fact that Pardot integrates with it rather seamlessly is a huge advantage for this software. Unlike some of the other options though, according to users Pardot is not the most user-friendly of marketing automations.
• Marketo: Unlike HubSpot or Pardot, Marketo tends to serve the enterprise-level businesses due to its scalability. Users tend to say their favorite part about about Marketo is the fact that the customer's have a strong voice. Marketo takes into their customer's recommendations on features into consideration on a frequent basis. But the biggest issue found with Marketo is that it can be slow, particularly when creating smart lists, which tends be one of the more frequently used features in marketing automation.
• Mailchimp: Mailchimp is probably less notable than the softwares previously mentioned but could be a great choice for companies who have little experience with marketing automation. It is affordable, easy to use and provides users with a wide variety of templates. Unfortunately, Mailchimp provides users with little customization and flexibility and would not be a great choice for those who are experienced with marketing automation softwares.

Other Demand Generation Softwares to Consider Adding to Your Tech Stack 

The foundational softwares we mentioned above are critical elements to your demand generation strategy. If you don't already have a CMS, CRM and Marketing Automation software then those should be your top priority. But if you already have these foundational softwares and are looking to expand your demand generation tech stack even further, here are some other types of software we would suggest.

Conversational Marketing Software

The use of conversational marketing in demand generation strategies has increased significantly in 2018 and will continue to become more prominent in 2019. Here are some of our top suggestions for softwares to implement your conversational strategy:

• Drift: Drift is the world's lead conversational marketing and sales platform. It's diverse set of sales enablement tools and playbooks make it a great choice for those looking to implement a powerful conversational strategy.
• HubSpot: HubSpot's conversations tool is new and because it is so easy to use, it provides the less experienced users with a smooth transition into conversational marketing.
• Conversica: Conversica is greatly known for its ability to engage with leads through all stages of the marketing and sales funnel without the need for human interaction. Depending on your stance regarding the need for human interaction, this could be a blessing or a curse.

Video Hosting Software

Video marketing is another trend from 2018 that is here to stay. If you aren't already leveraging video in your demand generation efforts, we highly recommend you start. Here are some platforms to get you started in video marketing:

• Vidyard: The great thing about Vidyard is that they aren't just a marketing tool, they are a sales enablement tool. Their new feature GoVideo is providing sales teams with a creative and interactive way to reach out to prospects through video.
• Wistia: Wistia is known for being an all-in-one platform for video creation, hosting and management. The easy to use software provides users with a wide variety of tools to enhance video creation.
• Vimeo: Vimeo is another high-regarded video hosting software that is well-known for producing videos of the highest-quality.
• Youtube: Last but not least, Youtube. The great thing about YouTube is it helps increase your brand awareness because it is a search engine. The downside is that when you publish videos on YouTube, they own your content, whereas for the other platforms we mentioned, you own your content. Regardless of this, having a YouTube presence is a great way to expand your reach.

Reporting/Analytics Software

In today's data-driven world, it's no surprise that reporting and analytics tools are on our list for softwares you should adopt. Here are a few of our favorites:

• Bizible: Bizible is marketing attribution software that helps unifying marketing and sales team by measuring marketing initiatives in terms of revenue.
• InsightSquared: InsightSquared helps to simplify sales operations with actionable, real-time intelligence. It is a great software for sales forecasting and pipeline management.
• Grow: Grow is a great options for smaller businesses looking to leverage a business intelligence software. It is simple to use and helps business report on key metrics.

Sales Acceleration/Enablement Software

After you've successfully executed your marketing initiatives you'll want to make sure your sales team is set up for success when you pass off your qualified leads. Sales acceleration and enablement tools are where your sales reps will live in order to work the database. Here are some softwares we recommend for sales acceleration and enablement:

• HubSpot: One of HubSpot's newer features, the HubSpot Sales Hub provides users with a variety of sales enablement tools to automate and simplify the selling cycle.
• SalesLoft: SalesLoft is a sales engagement platform that enables an easier flow of communication between salesperson and lead.
• Gong: Gong is a conversation intelligence platform that allows sales team to analyze their sales call.
• Outreach.io: Outreach is a sales engagement platform that is best known for its efficiency in moving opportunities through the pipeline.

SEO Software 

Organic traffic plays a huge role in your lead generations efforts. Aligning your website content with a solid SEO strategy is a great way to make people more aware of your brand Here's a list of what we consider to be the best options for SEO softwares:

• SEMrush: SEMrush is a great tool for those who want the full-scope of their SEO efforts. Not only is it great for looking into your own keyword rankings, but provides you with competitor research as well.
• Moz: If you're a beginner in terms of SEO, MOZ provides good basic tool for SEO research and analytics set at a reasonable price.
• Google: With Google being the top search engine by far, leveraging their own SEO tools is kind of a necessity. Google doesn't provide the extensive insights of an SEMrush, but considering their extensive market share of web search, we recommend becoming familiar with Google Search Console, Google Ads and Google Analytics.

SEM Software 

While SEO is a huge driver of website traffic, it typically takes a while to gain some traction. We suggest doing some paid advertising to get some quick-wins while working towards improving your SEO strategy. Our top SEM platforms are:

• Google Ads: Google Ads is great for paid search and can help you generate some quick leads.
• BingAds: Allow Bing is not as popular as google, depending on your customer base, BingAds is another great options for paid search.
• Social Advertising: Social media is a huge player in the B2B space. Leveraging Facebook, Twitter,LinkedIn and Instagram with display advertising is another great way to reach your audience.
• WordStream: WordStream allows you to manage your paid advertising efforts and even grades the effectiveness of your campaigns.

ABM Software 

Unlike inbound marketing, account-based marketing focuses on identifying good-fit companies prior to identifying their interest. This marketing strategy typically works well for smaller companies with a smaller audience. Here are some suggestions for platforms that would be beneficial to you if your company leverages account-based marketing:

• Terminus: Terminus is the industry's first account-based marketing platform that enables users to accelerate the velocity of its users' sales pipelines.
• Madison Logic: Madison Logic focuses on the unification of display advertising and lead generation. This full-funnel solution provides comprehensive data to track efforts.
• Demandbase: Demand base is a subscription-based software that focuses on Ad Targeting and Web Personalization.

Project Management Software

As marketers and salespeople, we wear a lot of different hats. Sometimes, it's difficult to keep up with all the projects we have going at one time. We suggest using a project management software not only to keep yourself up-to-date with ongoing projects, but to keep the rest of your team up to date as well. Some great project management platforms include:

• Excello: Excello is a personalized project management software that focuses on providing their clients with the resources needed to learn and lead their projects successfully.
• Basecamp: Basecamp is an effective, real-time communication tools that allows various teams to stay in the loop with project delegation and completion.
• Asana: Asana project management software allows teams to easily coordinate projects and assign deadlines.
• Mavenlink: Mavenlink is unique in that it hosts project management and time tracking abilities under the same platform.

Content Creation and Collaboration Software

Content marketing has become incredibly important in a successful inbound marketing strategy. Having a strong content strategy is a key driver in what differentiates the successful companies from the unsuccessful. Here are some ideas for content creation and collaboration softwares:

• Gather Content: GatherContent provides users with an easy and flexible content collaboration platform to manage your content pipeline.
• Google Docs: With many people using Gmail, Google Docs provides users with an easy content creation platform that is integrated with their email account.
• Ceros: Ceros is a content creation and collaboration platform that allows users to create an interactive and engaging content marketing strategy.

Graphic Design Software 

We've talked a lot about software that provide you with a lot of data, but making sure the content you are producing is appealing to the eye is just as important as content itself. Here are some tools we recommend for graphic design:

• Adobe: Adobe is a clear standout for graphic design. Whether you are creating icons in Illustrator or enhancing the looks of your Ebook in InDesign, Adobe can be leveraged in a variety of ways.
• Sketch: Sketch is great for those who are newer to graphic design. On the plus side, it's pretty easy to use, but on the downside, it doesn't provide users with nearly as many features as Adobe.
• Canva: Canva is another great choice for those with little graphic experience. For those looking for something simple and quick, Canva is a great choice.

Key Takeaway 

As you can see, there are A LOT of softwares out there that would be beneficial to your demand generation tech stack. And while we've mentioned quite a few in this post, there are way more out there that could be an asset to your business. Ultimately, the best piece of advice we can give when it comes to creating your tech stack is to really do your research and figure out what softwares will work best for your firmographics and your business model. But if you are completely lost on what types of softwares you should be using in the SaaS industry, this blog post is a great place to start!