B2B SaaS Startups: How to Go up Market to Sell into Enterprise
Selling to enterprise companies in B2B SaaS requires more than just Single Sign-On (SSO) and SOC 2 compliance. Enterprises look for specific things like: security, scalability, integration, and strong business value. It’s not just GTM, it also takes your product hitting the mark. But as marketers our job is to highlight the things that are important to them. If you don’t have these and want to go up market, then work with your product team on how to get these things on the roadmap.
Here’s what’s crucial:
1. Security & Compliance Beyond SOC 2
Enterprises have strict security requirements beyond SOC 2:
✅ ISO 27001 – Global security standard
✅ HIPAA (if dealing with healthcare data)
✅ GDPR & CCPA – Data privacy laws and showing you are compliant
✅ Data Encryption & Role-Based Access Controls (RBAC)
2. Enterprise-Grade Integrations & APIs
Large companies use many SaaS tools—seamless integration is key.
✅ Native Integrations with Salesforce, Workday, HubSpot, Slack, etc.
✅ Robust APIs & Webhooks for custom workflows and for reporting
✅ iPaaS Compatibility (Zapier, Mulesoft, Boomi)
3. Scalability & Performance
Enterprises need a product that scales with them:
✅ Multi-Tenant & Single-Tenant Deployment (depending on needs)
✅ 99.99% Uptime SLA – Reliability is non-negotiable. At one company I worked Enterprise brands insisted on five nines (99.999%) because even .009 can make all the difference in their business.
✅ Auto-Scaling Infrastructure – You need to be able to show your tool can handle surges or spikes in demand.
4. Procurement & IT-Friendly Features
Enterprises have complex buying processes—you need to make life easier for IT & procurement teams.
✅ Flexible Deployment – Cloud, On-Prem, or Hybrid options
✅ Custom User Permissions – Granular admin controls
✅ Audit Logs & Activity Tracking – Helps with compliance & security
✅ Custom Contracts & Pricing – Enterprises expect volume discounts and custom SLAs
5. Advanced Analytics & Reporting
Enterprise buyers want deep insights & real-time reporting:
✅ Exportable Reports – CSV, Excel, PDF, especially API connections/integrations
✅ Predictive Analytics & AI Insights or the ability to connect their BI tool via API
🟨 Custom Dashboards – For different stakeholders (C-suite, managers, IT). This is a nice to have, but most Enterprise companies will export into their own BI instance.
6. Dedicated Support & Success Programs
Support is a huge factor for enterprises—they expect white-glove service.
✅ Dedicated Account Manager – A single point of contact to streamline communications.
✅ 24/7 Priority Support – usually provided within SLAs for issue resolution.
✅ Onboarding & Training – Customized for large teams and you need to lay this out in a slide or two of what the engagement will look like for them.
7. Proof of Value (ROI & Business Case)
Enterprise deals require justifying ROI before purchase:
✅ Case Studies & Customer References – Show success stories in their industry, an adjacent industry, or a company of their size. They need to be able to relate.
✅ ROI Calculator – Quantify savings & efficiency gains —> even if this is only a spreadsheet calculator your sales team can use to send out a slide showcasing the ROI, it’s better than not showing it. You don’t need a fancy schmancy one on your website. Stop making it hard on yourself.
✅ Pilot or Proof of Concept (PoC) – Let them test before committing. I know, you don’t like to do it, but a 7-14 day trial should be sufficient and never go more than 30 days.
8. Enterprise Pricing & Contract Flexibility
Large companies expect tailored pricing & contract terms:
✅ Volume Discounts & Custom Packages
✅ Multi-Year Agreements – Lock in long-term deals, usually they are looking for 2 or 3 year deals. (Covid has made most Enterprises shy of locking in at anything beyond 3 year deals with no out).
✅ Usage-Based Pricing – Pay for what they use
In summary…
Enterprise sales is about trust, security, and long-term partnerships. If you focus on these areas, you’ll stand out from competitors and be able to go up market a lot more easily.
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