Web Summit: Why nobody wants to buy SaaS from you – and how to fix it

This week, our team had the privilege of being at Web Summit, the largest technology conference in the world. We loved hearing from technology leaders who are shaping our future, and we were even more excited to share Vendr’s story in a keynote presentation.

Vendr CEO and Co-Founder Ryan Neu took the stage on the SaaS Monster track to share a solution for a problem many of us have faced: how we buy software. Here’s the quick recap of what Ryan shared:

1. SaaS sales is broken.
2. Data brings trust and fairness into purchasing decisions. Vendr is fixing sales, and we have all the data to do it.
3. When we fix sales, we fuel innovation and the best product wins.

SaaS sales is broken

Think about the last experience you had buying software. For most of us it looks something like this: visit a company website, click the contact sales button, and sit through a lengthy demo where you maybe get pricing on that first call. After that, you’re thrown into a lengthy sales process that focuses more on the needs of the seller than the buyer.

Sales is broken. The average sales cycle in SaaS looks like this: 60+ day sales cycles, 20% close rates, and 20% churn. You can buy a house faster than you can buy your CRM or HR software. Does that make sense? No.

Software is humankind’s best invention. Yet, the distribution of software is a major problem — and not just because long sales cycles are inefficient.

The average company spends 30-50+% of its money selling and marketing its products. Because sales and marketing costs are so high, the average investment in R&D is only 20%. The bottom line is this: the cost of sales and marketing is so high, it prohibits us from building the best products. Sales and marketing are eating innovation. 

Data brings trust and fairness into purchasing decisions

Vendr is fixing sales, and we have all the data to do it.

The high price of sales and marketing is nothing new. Having spent nearly a decade in SaaS sales, our CEO found himself asking the same question, “Why is it so hard to sell a great product?”

Five years ago, Ryan founded Vendr, the SaaS buying platform. Today, Vendr is managing nearly 1% of all software spend in the world. Working with 2,000 software suppliers for more than $2 billion of software spend, Vendr has unparalleled data into how companies buy software.

This unbiased data has given us insight into two important things: a fair way to purchase software and a fast path to purchase. Data brings trust and fairness into purchasing decisions. 

At Vendr, we believe there is a new way to sell. The winning formula is Trust + Fast + Fair.

When we fix sales, we fuel innovation and the best product wins

When we fix sales, we don’t just fix one department’s problem. Fixing sales frees up resources across the entire company. Imagine if you could spend 50% of your company’s money on R&D rather than 20%. How much would your product grow? How could you increase innovation?

Now, what about if your sales process was shorter? How much more could you sell this quarter?

At Vendr, we’re not just imagining a world where innovation wins, we’re building it. By removing friction from the sales process and building a process that benefits both buyers and sellers, we’re helping customers get the software they need fair and fast.

When we fix sales, we fuel innovation and the best product wins.

Think about the most powerful software you use today. Now, imagine if you had that software six months earlier. What would your business look like today?

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We’re excited to show you! Check out how Vendr could benefit your business with our free savings analysis.