SaaS Backwards Episode 85: When you should specialize – with Corey Quinn, fractional CMO and GTM Strategist

Welcome to episode eighty-five of the SaaS Backwards podcast, where we interview CEOs and CMOs of fast-growing SaaS firms to reveal what they are doing that's working, and lessons learned from things that didn't work as planned. 

You can listen to the full episode directly below via Spotify, or visit SaaS Backwards on Buzzsprout or wherever you listen to podcasts.

When a company starts out, verticalization may not be the best thing. In fact, today’s guest Corey Quinn, fractional CMO and GTM strategist prefers to work with companies who went broad first, since there’s value in exploring different verticals and learning the nuances in the different markets.

But at a certain point, verticalization becomes necessary to scale. It reduces complexity, improves marketing, and helps to differentiate from the competition.

In this episode, host Ken Lempit and Quinn discuss how to narrow down and exploit areas of specialization.

Key Takeaways:

• Understanding your best fit customer by conducting qualitative and quantitative analyses of your business.
• The role of thought leadership content and the importance of ensuring subject matter expertise within the chosen vertical.
• Ensuring that your marketing efforts align with your sales process and provide valuable insights to potential customers during sales conversations. 

Other resources to check out:

Interview with Vinay Bhagat, Founder and CEO of TrustRadius who publish a yearly report about how B2B buyer behavior is changing.

The Lead Gen Mistake I Guarantee You’re Making – how to create content that better identifies intent from today’s b2b buyer.

And, if you want an outside look at your content with actionable advice, take advantage of our Content Audit. Valued at $20K in free consulting