Tackling B2B Growth Challenges: Tamara Ceman’s Global SaaS Playbook

In today's interconnected global economy, B2B SaaS companies are increasingly looking beyond their domestic markets to fuel growth. However, international expansion is far from straightforward, presenting unique challenges that require careful navigation and strategic planning. From product-led growth strategies to localization complexities, expanding into new territories demands a comprehensive approach that goes well beyond simple translation.

The Journey of a Marketing Expert

Tamara Ceman has built an impressive career traversing various marketing roles, from copywriting to content production, eventually rising to marketing leadership positions in major tech companies. One of her most significant achievements includes leading Microsoft's Voice of the Customer program across multiple regions. 

Today, she channels this wealth of experience into her consultancy, Practical Marketer, which helps B2B SaaS companies implement product-led growth strategies for successful global expansion.

Understanding Product-Led Growth in Global SaaS Contexts

The Foundation of Successful Product-Led Growth

As an experienced marketer, Tamara is a firm believer in the potential of product-led growth, which, at its core, relies on two fundamental premises:

1. Solving a Recognized Problem: "The product itself has to solve a real problem. And bonus points if the audience is aware of that problem, because that makes the go-to-market much, much easier," Tamara emphasizes. 

2. Intuitive User Experience: The product needs to have a relatively intuitive user interface that demonstrates value to the user and helps build usage habits.

These principles become even more critical when entering international markets, where cultural differences can significantly impact how users perceive and interact with products, which is why it’s important to approach market expansion in a strategic way, starting with thorough research

Evaluating Market Potential

When considering international expansion, businesses should first of all decide which international markets to enter. In order to do so, the first step is, without a doubt, conducting thorough research to understand each market's unique characteristics.

Companies must also consider qualitative factors, such as cultural fit and market readiness for their solution. Tamara points out that "what works in your home market may not resonate elsewhere without significant adaptation."

Or if it does resonate, it might have a significantly different perceived value, which influences the pricing strategy. In Tamara’s words: "And then less obvious, you have to think about the pricing, because in a lot of cases, companies forget to engage with the purchasing power in the country where they're trying to expand."

Failing to take any of these elements into consideration can be the difference between a successful expansion that propels the business into new territories and a costly and time-consuming misstep. 

The Multidimensional Challenge of Localization in Global SaaS

Beyond Simple Translation

One of the most common mistakes companies make when expanding internationally is reducing localization to mere translation. As Tamara points out, "localization goes far beyond converting text from one language to another. It involves adapting your entire messaging to align with local sensitivities, cultural references, and specific pain points."

For example, in some European markets, data security and privacy concerns might be paramount, while in others, cost efficiency or integration capabilities might be the deciding factors for purchase decisions. Understanding these nuances is crucial for crafting effective localized messaging.

Moreover, localization extends to the visual elements of your product and marketing materials. Colors, images, and even layout can carry different connotations across cultures. What seems sleek and professional in one market might appear cold and unapproachable in another. Conducting thorough user testing with local audiences can help identify these discrepancies and guide necessary adaptations.

All of the above clearly highlights the importance of approaching international expansion in a strategic manner, one that includes localization considerations at the planning stage, rather than just as an afterthought. In one of our previous blog articles, our guest Morana Perić, Head of Localization at DeepL, had already stressed the importance of incorporating localization in the discovery phase as well as in the delivery so as to better align digital products with local expectations and preferences, thus increasing the chances of successful market penetration.  

Adapting Marketing Strategies for Global Audiences

Marketing is another element B2B SaaS businesses should pay close attention to when entering a new territory. Strategies that prove successful in one region may fall flat in another, so it's important to adopt a flexible marketing approach that can be tailored to each target market.

For instance, while webinars might be a popular lead generation tactic in North America, they may not resonate as strongly in markets where in-person events are preferred. Similarly, the social media platforms that drive the most engagement can vary significantly from country to country. 

Effective global marketing requires a deep understanding of local communication styles, media consumption habits, and trusted information sources. Partnering with local marketing agencies or hiring in-market talent can provide invaluable insights to guide your strategy.

Daniel Nackovski and Thomas Sjöberg, co-founders of SaaSiest, a community born to help companies navigate B2B growth challenges, also strongly advocate for the potential offered by local partnerships, both to ensure the messaging resonates with local audiences and as a way to increase a brand’s authority and credibility in a new market, where they are virtually unknown.

Creating Seamless User Experiences Across Borders

Localized Onboarding Processes

Moving along from the preliminary phases of the expansion and into adoption on the users’ part, the onboarding experience represents a critical juncture in the customer journey, particularly for product-led growth strategies. When expanding internationally, companies must ensure this process accommodates local expectations and behaviors, rather than being exactly the same as it is in the home market.

"Activation is not the same size everywhere and not the same size for every audience," Tamara points out. "If you are marketing to a more technical audience that is familiar with similar products, then your activation and onboarding process can be pretty slim. But if you're moving into a market where there's a completely different implementation of a solution, then you have to think about how easy it will be for a person coming into the platform to figure out what's the right next step for them."

Localized onboarding should go beyond simple language translation to consider cultural norms around communication, support expectations, and learning preferences. For example, some cultures may prefer highly detailed, step-by-step guidance, while others value more exploratory, self-directed experiences.

Tools like Pendo or Appcues can be invaluable for creating customized onboarding flows tailored to specific markets, as they allow companies to design different user journeys based on location, language preference, or other relevant factors, ensuring a personalized experience for each user.

Activation Strategies for Different Markets

An essential part of activation is getting new users to experience the core value of your product. However, this may require different approaches across markets, as cultural differences can deeply influence how quickly users adopt new technologies and how much guidance they expect during the early stages of the process.

In markets where your product concept is novel, you may need to invest more heavily in educational content and support resources to help users understand the full value of your offering. This could involve creating localized product demos, in-app tutorials, or even in-person training sessions.

Conversely, in markets where similar solutions are well-established, long and detailed onboarding flows might come across as pedantic, so your activation strategy may focus more on differentiation: highlighting unique features or benefits that set your product apart from the competition. In these contexts, more streamlined onboarding flows that emphasize key differentiators can be much more effective.

Ultimately, successful activation in global markets requires a deep understanding of local user needs, expectations, and behaviors. Continuously gathering and analyzing user feedback can help you refine your approach over time.

Gathering and Implementing User Feedback

The Value of User Interviews

When expanding internationally, collecting meaningful feedback becomes even more crucial for product refinement and market fit. Tamara strongly advocates for user interviews as the most valuable method for gathering insights.

"The absolutely best way to get any type of user feedback is going to be interviews," she explains. "But interviews in a market where you don't necessarily have an in-house full-time representative who can lead the conversation can be a little bit tricky. So you have to be creative, especially if you are still in the process of experimentation." For example, Tamara suggests using in-app Net Promoter Score (NPS) tools not, as it’s often done, to ask for the user’s satisfaction with the product overall, but rather to get an immediate assessment of how clear the onboarding flow was. This way of collecting feedback can reveal unexpected insights about how your product is perceived and used in different cultural contexts. These insights can then inform targeted improvements to enhance market fit.

Complementary Feedback Methods

Feedback collected directly from the users should also be supplemented with other data sources for a comprehensive understanding of user behavior.

Additionally, monitoring support tickets and social media mentions can provide early warning signs of market-specific issues that might require attention, thus allowing the company to proactively take action to solve these issues before they result in reputational damage.

Navigating Competitive Landscapes and Compliance Requirements

Comprehensive Competitive Analysis

Entering a new market requires a thorough understanding of the competitive landscape, which extends beyond direct competitors to include potential partners and adjacent solution providers.

This analysis should examine competitors' pricing strategies, feature sets, marketing approaches, and customer bases to identify potential differentiation opportunities and market gaps. Tamara recommends looking at competitors in layers: 3-5 direct competitors, 3-5 alternatives with similar feature sets, and a couple of alternative ways of doing things. 

"Based on that, you have to look holistically. Who are they serving? Who's happy? Who's not happy?" Tamara explains. "Look at their Trustpilot reviews, Google reviews, understand exactly what people are saying works and doesn't work with their product. Reddit is my favorite place to go for anything that doesn't work, because people are going to be very vocal on Reddit about that." This type of detailed insight on the shortcomings of the competitions is invaluable because it not only allows you to avoid making the same mistakes, but it can also guide your messaging strategy towards elements of differentiation that will resonate with the target audience.

The Growth Syndicate’s Clément Dumont also highlighted the importance of looking at the competitive landscape not only in terms of market size and market share, but also in terms of Unique Selling Proposition (USP), as differentiation from established competitors can be a powerful way to gain traction in a new market.

Addressing Pricing and Compliance Challenges

Two other aspects that can be complicated to navigate as part of international expansion strategies are pricing and compliance requirements.

The first element to take into account when establishing a pricing strategy is the willingness to pay. What seems like a reasonable price in the company's home market could be perceived as exorbitant in another. But that’s not the only variable: currency conversion rates, sales taxes, and platform fees can significantly impact the final price presented to the customer. Furthermore, on the compliance front, in many countries, companies are responsible for collecting and remitting sales taxes in the countries where they sell, which can involve complex calculations and significant penalties for non-compliance. Tools like Stripe and Paddle can help automate these processes, but companies must still be aware of their obligations.

"Before you even start experimenting with the market, do have a sanity check in the background to understand what the compliance implications, the legal implications, and tax implications of that expansion are," Tamara advises.

If pricing is striking a chord with you, and you’d like a more in-depth breakdown on how to navigate this sensitive topic, listen to our chat with Ayon Bhattacharyya, founder and CEO of Biz Growth Spurt, part of the latest season of The Multilingual Content Podcast.

Conclusion: How To Address B2B Growth Challenges Strategically

International expansion for B2B SaaS companies represents both a tremendous opportunity and a significant challenge. Success requires more than simply translating your website or adjusting prices—it demands a comprehensive strategy that addresses everything from product localization to regulatory compliance.

As Tamara Ceman's insights demonstrate, companies that approach international expansion with cultural sensitivity, market awareness, and strategic flexibility are best positioned to succeed. By understanding the unique characteristics of each target market and adapting their approach accordingly, B2B SaaS companies can build sustainable global growth that extends well beyond their domestic boundaries.

The journey to international success may be complex, but with careful planning and market-specific strategies, B2B SaaS companies can effectively navigate the challenges and capitalize on the opportunities that global markets present. The key lies in recognizing that international expansion is not merely a geographical shift but a multidimensional transformation that touches every aspect of how a company operates and delivers value to its customers. At Underow, we are committed to helping you strategically approach international growth. From advising you on localization strategy to creating tailored workflows to manage your multilingual content efficiently, we’ll be by your side to ensure your B2B SaaS can be as successful abroad as it is in your home market. Get in touch if you want to know more.