What is B2B SaaS?

Written by Joran Hofman, Founder of Reditus

Basicswhat is b2b saas

B2B stands for business to business, and SaaS for software as a service. B2B SaaS is software that businesses use over the internet and pay for with a subscription, usually monthly or annually, instead of buying and installing it once. More terms in our glossary.

What makes software B2B SaaS

Subscription-based: customers pay a recurring fee instead of a one-off license, which spreads the cost for them and gives the provider predictable revenue.
Cloud-based: the software runs in the provider's cloud, so users work in it from anywhere with an internet connection.
Scalable: customers add or remove users, seats and features as they grow.
Updated by the provider: the provider handles updates and maintenance, so every customer works on the latest version.
Multi-tenant: many customers share the same application and infrastructure, while their data is kept separate.

How the B2B SaaS business model works

Revenue comes in as recurring subscriptions, measured as MRR (monthly recurring revenue) or ARR (annual recurring revenue). Because customers pay every month or every year, growth depends on whether they stay. Churn, the share of customers who cancel, eats into everything you add. Many B2B SaaS companies also grow inside their existing customers, through upgrades and extra seats.

That model is why B2B SaaS and recurring affiliate commissions fit together: an affiliate who brings a customer who stays keeps earning. On Reditus, affiliates earn commission on every payment within the commission period, upgrades and extra seats included.

Examples of B2B SaaS companies

Every company in our customer stories is a B2B SaaS, for example Expandi, Insightful, involve.me, Joiin, Potion, Snitcher, TimelinesAI and Warmup Inbox. Miro and Oneflow use Reditus too.

What is a B2B SaaS affiliate program?

A B2B SaaS affiliate program lets people outside the company, such as bloggers, newsletter writers, agencies and consultants, promote the software to their audience and earn a commission when someone they referred becomes a paying customer. The company pays for results, not for clicks or impressions. More: what is a B2B SaaS affiliate program?

How it works

Sign-up: affiliates apply to the program, or join directly if it accepts affiliates automatically.
Promotion: each affiliate gets a personal link, or a coupon code, to share through a blog, social media, email or a newsletter.
Tracking: when someone clicks the link and signs up, a cookie ties that signup to the affiliate.
Commission: when the referred customer pays, the affiliate earns a commission: usually a percentage for a set number of months, sometimes for the customer's lifetime, or a one-off amount.

See real programs in the Reditus marketplace. Running a B2B SaaS and want to set up Reditus? Start with the installation intro.

Benefits of a B2B SaaS affiliate program

A cost you control: you pay commission only for referrals that become paying customers, which keeps your customer acquisition cost predictable.
New audiences: affiliates reach potential customers you might not reach otherwise.
Trust: a recommendation from someone the buyer already follows carries more weight than an ad.
Room to grow: good programs get 20 to 30% of their new revenue from affiliates.

How B2B and B2C affiliate marketing differ

The differences between B2C (business to consumer) and B2B affiliate marketing come from how people buy:

Purchase behaviour: B2C purchases are often one-off and quick, driven by an immediate need or a promotion. B2B buyers subscribe, research longer and involve several people before they buy, so they look for value, ROI and long-term benefits.
Deal size: B2C relies on many sales at low prices. B2B subscriptions are worth more, so a few referrals can add up to real commission, month after month.
Relationship: B2C affiliates often push quick promotions. B2B affiliates build trust with content that teaches the buyer something about the software.
Channels: B2C leans on social media and influencer marketing. B2B relies more on content marketing, comparisons, webinars, case studies and recommendations from agencies and consultants.

Reditus is built for B2B SaaS only: consumer and ecommerce businesses are not a fit for the affiliate program.

Are you a SaaS company or an affiliate?

On Reditus, a B2B SaaS company signs up with a SaaS account to run its program. People who promote SaaS products sign up as affiliates, for free. Not sure which one you are? See SaaS vs affiliate.

Relevant articles

Want to learn more? Explore our articles on SaaS and affiliate marketing on the blog.