How to Execute a SaaS Land and Expand Strategy

Many SaaS companies leave money on the table by relying on organic growth and failing to develop a relationship between the organization and the product.

The best way to complement bottom-up growth is to have a top-down account sales strategy. Let users spread your solution across the organization. But, while that is happening, work on developing strategic relationships with high-level decision makers in the organization.

Land and expand is about transforming your product from a tool that some employees use, to a solution that the organization has adopted.

1. Monitor new sign-ups to catch ideal customers early
2. As soon as you have one, start researching their company: potential stakeholders, organization structure etc. Focus on understanding the potential use cases and business impact of your product.
3. As product adoption increases inside their company, work on making connections with high-level decision makers (ideally with introductions from the current users). Use sales activities (demos, presentations, high-level business conversations, etc), and execute them boldly because your foot is already in the door.

Land and expand is a long-term strategy that requires patience and resources. As such, you should assign it KPIs so you can track and monitor its impact.

KPIs can include:

• MRR (Monthly Recurring Revenue)
• ARPU (Avg Revenue Per Unit) from key organizations
• LTV (Lifetime Value) from organizations
• Customer and revenue retention
• Adoption rate inside organizations (as a direct result of customer development)