How to Expand Your B2B SaaS in Europe Without Burning Your Team Out with Filippo Irdi
- Nicola Calabrese
- Feb 3
- 8 min read
Expanding into new European markets requires more than translating your website and copying successful strategies from your home market. This episode explores the critical mistakes US companies make when expanding internationally and reveals why building local success cases matters more than perfect translations.
Filippo Irdi brings years of experience working with B2B SaaS scale-ups across European markets, currently serving as a marketing professional at OrderChamp. Originally from Italy and now based in the Netherlands, he has navigated the complexities of international expansion across diverse European business cultures and market dynamics.
The conversation addresses the fundamental challenges B2B SaaS companies face when expanding beyond their home markets. Filippo discusses why the copy-paste approach to international expansion fails, how market dynamics differ dramatically across European countries, and why building local success cases should take priority over translation efforts. The discussion covers practical strategies for market prioritization, resource allocation, and team management during expansion.
For B2B SaaS teams planning international growth, this episode provides grounded advice on avoiding common pitfalls, setting realistic expectations around AI translation tools, and building sustainable expansion strategies that don't burn out internal teams. The insights are particularly valuable for companies considering European expansion and marketers managing multi-country go-to-market strategies.
Episode 48, Broken Down
Use this timeline to jump to the topics most relevant to your multilingual content, localization, and global growth challenges.
The Copy-Paste Mistake in International Expansion
Filippo introduces the most critical mistake companies make: expecting success to replicate across markets by copying strategies. He emphasizes the importance of understanding how each European market has different dynamics before investing resources.
Building Localization Strategy: Success Cases Over Translation
Discussion of how finding and showcasing local success cases matters more than website translation. Filippo explains how market dynamics vary dramatically across countries, using examples from water companies in the UK versus Italy and Spain.
AI Translation Tools: Speed vs. Quality Trade-offs
Exploration of how AI translation technology is transforming workflows while creating new pressures on teams. The conversation covers the illusion that AI enables expansion into all markets simultaneously and the importance of maintaining quality in core markets.
Cultural Communication Differences and Platform Preferences
Filippo shares specific examples of cultural miscommunication, including how WhatsApp isn't used in the Nordics (replaced by Facebook Messenger) and how Germany uses Xing instead of LinkedIn, illustrating how platform preferences can make or break campaigns.
Strategic Priorities for Early-Stage SaaS Companies
Advice on resource allocation for companies with limited budgets: nail your home market first, build success stories, and ruthlessly prioritize one or two core markets for high-quality localization while maintaining standardized approaches for others.
Managing Team Workload and Setting Realistic Expectations
Discussion of how to prevent team burnout during international expansion by setting realistic expectations about AI capabilities, establishing strong processes, and ensuring human oversight maintains quality output.
Three Key Advisors for SaaS Founders and Marketers
Filippo summarizes his core recommendations: nail your home market first, maintain focus on one market rather than pivoting constantly, conduct thorough research, and prioritize building local social proof through strategic partnerships and one-on-one initiatives.
Overview of Key Sections
The Failure of Copy-Paste Expansion Strategies
The most common and costly mistake in international expansion is assuming that successful strategies from one market will work in another. Filippo emphasizes that European markets have fundamentally different dynamics, from regulatory environments to communication preferences. For example, water companies operate privately in the UK but publicly in Italy and Spain, completely changing the buying process. These differences extend to platform usage—WhatsApp dominates in the Netherlands and Italy but is replaced by Facebook Messenger in the Nordics, while Germany prefers Xing over LinkedIn.
Companies that invest resources expecting replicated results without understanding local market dynamics face disappointing outcomes and resource drain. Success requires doing the groundwork to understand how each target market differs from your home market before launching campaigns or allocating significant budgets.
Why this matters for B2B SaaS and localization:
Avoid wasting budget on campaigns built for the wrong platforms or market dynamics
Understand that industry structures (private vs. public sectors) fundamentally change buying processes across European markets
Recognize that communication platform preferences vary dramatically by country, requiring platform-specific strategies
Save time and resources by validating market differences before full-scale expansion rather than after failed campaigns
Success Cases as Foundation for Market Entry
Filippo argues that finding and showcasing local success cases should take priority over website translation when entering new markets. When your product solves a problem, potential customers in a new market need to see that companies similar to theirs—ideally competitors or peers—have succeeded with your solution. Building case studies from these early wins provides the social proof that drives conversion more effectively than perfectly translated marketing materials.
This approach requires doing work that doesn't scale initially: picking up the phone, offering deals to strategic customers in exchange for case study participation, and building relationships one by one. Once you have two or three success stories in a market, you've established the trust foundation that makes broader marketing efforts effective.
Localization isn’t just about language — it’s a strategic foundation for market success. For a deeper look at how companies can embrace global markets with strategic localization, see our detailed guide on embracing global markets through strategic localization.
Why this matters for B2B SaaS and localization:
Prioritize resources on building local credibility through customer success stories rather than perfect translations
Use early customer relationships strategically to create case studies that demonstrate product value in local context
Leverage social proof from local companies to overcome skepticism from prospects in new markets
Build sustainable market entry through trust and validation rather than volume marketing alone
AI Translation: Balancing Speed with Quality and Team Pressure
AI translation tools have dramatically accelerated localization workflows, but they've also created unrealistic expectations about what small teams can accomplish. The technology enables faster translation, but content still requires human oversight to ensure it doesn't feel like 'AI slop'—translations that are technically correct but lack emotional resonance or cultural appropriateness. This is especially critical for marketing content where emotional components and storytelling matter.
The challenge for teams is managing pressure from executives who expect ChatGPT to enable expansion into every market simultaneously at no cost. As we explored in The Future of Localization: AI, Workflows, and Professional Evolution, AI works best when paired with clear processes and human oversight — not as a replacement for strategy. Filippo emphasizes the importance of maintaining focus on core markets with curated, proofread translations while using AI for secondary markets where you're testing traction with less resource investment.
Why this matters for B2B SaaS and localization:
Set realistic expectations with leadership about AI translation capabilities versus human quality requirements
Establish clear processes for when AI translation is sufficient versus when human proofreading is essential
Protect team capacity by distinguishing between core markets requiring quality localization and test markets using AI-driven approaches
Maintain brand quality in priority markets while still serving inbound demand from secondary markets efficiently
Market Prioritization and Resource Allocation Strategy
For companies with limited resources, ruthless prioritization of one or two core markets is essential for successful international expansion. Filippo repeatedly emphasizes that companies must nail their home market first before expanding, building strong traction and validation before spreading resources thin. Once ready to expand, focus intensive resources—native speakers, partnerships, curated translations, proofread content—on your priority markets while maintaining a lighter, more standardized approach for others.
This strategy allows companies to build deep market presence and success in core markets while still serving inbound demand from secondary markets. The alternative—spreading resources across many markets simultaneously—leads to mediocre results everywhere and team burnout. Focus also means sticking with a market strategy long enough to understand why it's working or not, rather than constantly pivoting to new markets.
For a broader view of international growth strategy — including frameworks for prioritizing markets and adapting your business model for sustainable success — see our guide on international expansion strategies for global business success
Why this matters for B2B SaaS and localization:
Avoid the diminishing returns of chasing multiple markets without traction in any single one
Allocate high-quality localization resources strategically to markets with highest potential impact
Build sustainable expansion by validating success in one market before adding complexity
Maintain team effectiveness by setting clear priorities rather than expecting coverage of all markets simultaneously
How to Expand Your B2B SaaS in Europe Without Burning Out Your Team
International expansion creates significant pressure on internal teams, especially with AI tools creating expectations of superhuman productivity. Filippo emphasizes that setting realistic expectations is critical—one person with AI cannot produce the output of ten people while maintaining quality. Strong processes, clear directions, and human oversight at the right points in workflows help teams maintain quality output without burning out.
The key is ensuring that when teams have high workloads, the output quality remains good, which is less draining than producing high volumes of mediocre work. This requires leadership to resist the temptation to push for faster or better results 'because of AI' and instead focus on sustainable processes that balance speed with quality.
Why this matters for B2B SaaS and localization:
Establish realistic productivity expectations that account for quality requirements, not just AI-enabled speed
Create clear processes and templates that make localization work more efficient without sacrificing quality
Maintain team morale by focusing on output quality rather than volume-based productivity metrics
Protect against burnout by setting boundaries around market coverage rather than expecting universal expansion
Highlights & Insights
Key takeaways for B2B SaaS teams working on multilingual content, localization, and international expansion:
Nail your home market first before expanding internationally—build strong traction and validation before spreading resources thin across multiple markets
Finding and showcasing local success cases in a new market matters more than having perfectly translated website content
Never assume strategies that worked in one market will work in another—European markets have fundamentally different dynamics, regulations, and communication preferences
Research platform preferences before launching campaigns—WhatsApp isn't used in the Nordics, Germany prefers Xing over LinkedIn, and these differences can waste entire campaign budgets
Ruthlessly prioritize one or two core markets for high-quality, curated localization while maintaining lighter, AI-driven approaches for secondary markets
AI translation accelerates workflows but still requires human proofreading for marketing content with emotional components and brand voice requirements
Set realistic expectations with leadership about AI capabilities—one person with ChatGPT cannot produce the output of ten people while maintaining quality
Stick with a market strategy long enough to understand why it's working or not, rather than constantly pivoting to new markets when results are slow
Build local trust through partnerships and native speakers when possible, especially for priority markets where deep market presence matters
Start with work that doesn't scale in new markets—phone calls, strategic customer deals in exchange for case studies, one-on-one relationship building—before launching broad campaigns
Conclusion: Scaling in Europe Without Burning Out Your Team
Expanding into Europe doesn’t fail because of lack of ambition — it fails because teams try to do too much, too fast, without the right structure in place.
At Undertow, we help B2B SaaS companies expand internationally in a way that’s focused, realistic, and sustainable. As a fractional partner, we take the pressure off your internal team by helping you prioritize markets, avoid costly localization mistakes, and build a clear expansion path that actually works.
If you’re planning to grow internationally — or already feeling the strain of doing too much with too few resources —get in touch with us. We’ll help you understand what’s worth investing in now, what can wait, and how to scale without burning out your team.
So what does it really take to expand your B2B SaaS in Europe without stretching your team too thin or burning through your budget?
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