SaaS pros often confuse strategies with tactics or practices.

I’ve seen it while working with SaaS companies. I’ve also seen it when reading social media posts about SaaS ‘strategies.’

Usually, SaaS pros will talk about tactics or practices when referring to strategies. That’s a problem because they’ll make mistakes.

For example, this confusion may lead SaaS pros to:

• Make decisions take don’t match the company’s goals
• Focus on the wrong areas or tasks
• Fail to invest resources correctly.

So let’s settle it once and for all. What’s the difference between SaaS strategies, tactics, and practices?

What’s a strategy?

Think about strategies as roadmaps. They include:

Context

• Where am I in relation to the bigger location?
• Identifying the issues to fix and the bigger goal to achieve.

Direction

• Where do I want to go?
• Moving from point A to point B to reach the goal.

Resources

• What do I need to complete my journey?
• How much time, money & effort are necessary to reach point B?

Explaining strategy as a roadmap

Let’s say you want to move from point A to B and you have to decide which route you’ll take. Each route involves challenges and requires different resources.

• Route X: Travel by boat. Do you have one? Do you have the money to get one?
• Route Y: Walk on foot. Do you have hiking equipment? Do you have the stamina to do it?
• Route Z: Travel by car. Do you have a car? Do you have resources for fuel?

Each route represents a ‘strategy’ or a ‘way to get there.’ Which one should you choose? It all depends on your preparedness to take a specific route.

For example, you may have severe seasickness. This excludes traveling by boat. Or, you may be injured. As a result, you can’t walk long distances on foot.

You decide to travel by car because you have the resources. Also, you can deal with route challenges.

Just like routes, you choose your strategy based on your preparedness.

Your strategy should fit on half a page. It must include the bigger context or the why, the direction you want to take, and the resources you’re willing to allocate.

Keep the ‘how’ out of this document.

Example

A SaaS brand may decide to simplify and unify SaaS product messaging across all touchpoints. The decision to adopt this strategy may derive from a company’s specific context.

Let’s look at it closer.

Context:

• The company has identified multiple ambiguities and inconsistencies in their (micro) copy and public-facing assets.
• This situation causes confusion among leads and users, turning them away from the product.

Direction:

• Go from confusing, inconsistent SaaS product messaging to a clear, consistent one. By achieving this, the company expects to capture its leads and users easily.

Resources:

• Time and effort from the team that will lead the strategy.
• Investments into learning material and tools necessary to execute the strategy.

What’s a tactic?

Tactics usually refer to the ‘how’ you’ll make the strategy happen.

Let’s go back to our roadmap example. If you decide to go from point A to point B by car, you’ll have the option to choose how you want to travel.

For example, if it’s a multi-day car trip, you can:

• Drive during the day and rest at night in hotels.
• Schedule long rest and sleep stops in the car without overnight stays in hotels.
• Travel with someone else who can take turns driving without having to stop overnight.

Choosing the ‘how’ you travel will help you execute the strategy, aka reach point B.

A strategy may require one or more tactics. It depends on the variables the strategy involves.

In the scenario above, apart from the trip dynamic, you can also decide on the:

• Specific itinerary, considering traffic, road conditions, and scenic value.
• Type of car you will use, considering fuel efficiency, comfort, and storage capacity.

Example

Let's say a company’s strategy is to simplify and unify SaaS product messaging. After analyzing possible tactics, the executives decided to adopt controlled language company-wide.

Controlled language is a style of communication that is clear, concise & consistent. It uses a restricted vocabulary and simplified sentence structures.

It’s helpful to take one tactic and break it down into steps. In this case, we will have steps such as:

• Review all existing public-facing copy, materials, and docs.
• Identify areas of complexity or inconsistencies.
• Create a guide that includes restricted vocabulary, syntax rules, guidelines for sentence constructions, and more.
• Socialize this guide company-wide.
• Design a feedback mechanism to ensure everyone adheres to the guide.

The list goes on.

What’s a practice?

Practices are (sometimes recurring) actions that help apply a specific tactic.

Let’s go back to our roadmap example.

If you travel by car, a good practice is to map out the route in advance to identify rest areas. Another practice is to regularly check the vehicle’s oil levels and tire pressure.

Good or best practices may increase the probability that your tactic will work.

Example

If a company’s tactic is to adopt controlled language company-wide, it may benefit from practices such as:

• Inform teams about the reasons why controlled language is necessary. This will help people understand the tactic’s value and adhere to this change.
• Assign a person responsible for adopting controlled language company-wide. They will be the one who can answer any questions or doubts other team members may have.
• Make the controlled language guide accessible. This way everyone will know where to find it easily and consult it when necessary.

The list goes on.

Helpful questions

When defining your strategy:

• What are the issues that delay growth?
• What are the company’s goals and priorities?
• What’s the best way to fix issues and achieve a priority goal?
• How can I go from point A (problem) to point B (problem solved)?
• What are the resources I need to get from point A to B?

When deciding upon your tactic(s):

• How can I make my strategy happen?
• Is there more than one tactic?
• What’s the easiest and fastest tactic to make my strategy happen?
• What are the steps to implement this tactic?

When identifying practices:

• What are the common pitfalls of my tactic?
• How can I avoid these pitfalls?
• How have others applied similar tactics in different contexts?
• How can I execute this tactic successfully?