The Software as a Service market is growing faster than ever. Since 2015, the SaaS industry has grown from $31.4 billion to an estimated $172 billion by 2022. According to BetterCloud, SaaS applications now account for 70% of companies‘ total software usage. So, we can safely say it is a growing market with many opportunities.
However, you might have come to a point where you want to move on to new ventures or take a break, and are wondering how to sell SaaS business assets successfully. Doing so might come with its fair share of challenges as it involves many moving parts, but in the post below we share 4 strategies to help you sell your SaaS business in a smooth and efficient way.
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Do Some Preparation Work
When planning to sell your SaaS business, you must prepare your sale as early as possible, and the perfect period would be one or two years ahead. Planning ahead of time will help you improve your financial records, boost the business structure, and expand your client base, which ultimately will enhance the company’s profitability and marketability.
Such improvement will make the purchase process run much faster and it will ensure that the organization is functioning smoothly even once the purchase is finalized. You should start by introducing documented procedures and processes for your business. Your information package should include an overview of how the company is run and an up-to-date operating manual.
Remember that the easier the checklists and documents are to understand and follow, the better for everyone. Before the sale, you should also review your tax returns and financial records from the last couple of years with an accountant and ensure that any worn-out or damaged equipment and components are replaced or repaired and that the company is well-presented.
Seek Help From a Professional
Going alone about the sale of the SaaS business might help you save money on the broker’s commission, but going through the sales process by yourself can bring you stress, and frustration, especially if you haven’t done it before. To help you move in the right direction and ensure that the sales process runs smoothly, you should consider partnering up with a reputable professional.
An experienced and trained professional will answer all the questions that might be keeping you awake at night and all the dilemmas that might arise during the sale process. On top of that, they’re more than likely to have an established network in the field and can help you find potential buyers, assist in ongoing negotiations, and keep both parties informed about all the important details of the sale process.
Make Your Business Easy to Run
If your business requires plenty of technical skills to run and manage, you will limit your pool of buyers as investors usually look for businesses that are easy to take over. This is why you should take a step back, and make sure to highlight the business’s autonomy.
Giving the prospective buyer a 12-18 month roadmap can also be helpful. As nobody knows your company better than you, your specific knowledge will be deeply valued. In addition, a roadmap will allow them to understand the big picture and gain trust and confidence in your company’s value.
Optimize Your Customer Service
You might have the best product, but without quality customer support, your SaaS business is not worth a lot. In fact, 90 % of Americans look at customer support as an essential factor in deciding whether to do with a company or not, and as much as 50% of consumers have stopped doing business with a company due to their bad experience with the customer service department.
If a lot of complex customer queries are congesting your email, helpdesk, or ticketing system, prospective buyers will quickly lose interest and turn to your competitors. So, before putting your SaaS business for sale, review your customer support and assess your average response time, what type of customer service software you’re using, and whether your clients are satisfied.
A rule of thumb is that the shorter it takes to provide answers to customer questions and requests, the better. If a lot of time is required to answer complex questions, your customer service functionality is not optimized enough. Content like videos and FAQs are also an excellent way to help you reduce the number of questions and make your customer service team more efficient.
Final Thoughts
Regardless of the size of your SaaS business, selling it can turn out to be a complex and challenging process. For this reason, it might be in your best interest to consider the abovementioned tips as they can help you increase the value of your business and sell it successfully.