Scaling a SaaS company is no small feat, especially in today’s evolving go-to-market (GTM) landscape. Many founders and growth leaders look to past success stories, attempting to replicate formulas that once worked. But as Mac Ren, CEO of Commsor, points out, clinging to outdated strategies could be the biggest pitfall in B2B SaaS today.
In this episode of NextGen GTM, Mac shares his journey—from bootstrapping businesses to millions, exiting two companies, and continuously redefining his approach to growth. This blog post unpacks Mac’s insights on why traditional GTM playbooks are failing, how B2B SaaS is shifting, and what companies must do to break through.
Many founders and GTM teams attempt to follow in the footsteps of tech giants like Uber, Airbnb, and Snowflake. Mac warns against this approach:
“People tend to overly glom onto success stories. But when you reflect back on how a company grew, the full truth often isn’t told.”
The reality? Many of the SaaS companies that went public in the last five years aren’t profitable. The growth-at-all-costs model that defined the last decade has left many companies scrambling to recalibrate.
Mac sees B2B GTM leaders splitting into two distinct schools of thought:
“If you look at companies that thrived after the 2008 downturn, they were the ones that tried new things instead of clinging to old models.”
The B2B SaaS market has evolved through three key phases:
2000-2010: Moving on-premise tools to the cloud.
2010-2020: Expanding SaaS with niche and category-defining products.
2020-Present: Oversaturation, where most companies already have tools, making it harder to differentiate on features alone.
“10 years ago, you were the first SaaS tool in your category. Now, you’re one of 15,000. Good isn’t good enough anymore. Buyers expect better.”
This shift means that SaaS companies can’t sell “new” anymore—they must sell “better.” The pressure to outperform competitors is higher than ever.
Mac highlights a major gap between how companies sell and how buyers want to buy:
🔴 Buyers want fast, frictionless purchases. Many SaaS buyers are ready to swipe a credit card, but vendors force them into a long sales process.
🔴 Sales teams prioritize their own process over customer experience. Many GTM teams force buyers into unnecessary demos and discovery calls—even when they already know what they want.
“I tried upgrading a tool we already paid for. It was confusing, took a week to reach a rep, and I ended up buying a competitor’s PLG version instead.”
✅ Audit Your Own Buying Experience – When was the last time you requested a demo or tried buying from your own company?
✅ Reduce Unnecessary Friction – If buyers want to self-serve, let them. Sales should enhance the process, not block it.
✅ Publish Transparent Pricing – Pricing secrecy creates mistrust. Be upfront.
✅ Optimize for Buyer Enablement – Empower buyers to make informed decisions, rather than force them into a rigid sales cycle.
AI isn’t a silver bullet—it’s a tool that amplifies whatever foundation you’ve built. If your sales and marketing processes are broken, AI will scale inefficiency, not solve it.
“People are training AI on bad cold emails, then wondering why they’re just sending more bad emails at scale.”
The best AI implementations focus on buyer enablement, not enforcement—helping buyers move at their own pace while improving efficiency behind the scenes.
If B2B SaaS companies want to break through today’s noise, Mac suggests following these principles:
“Instead of designing for a sales process, start by designing for a buyer experience.”
1️⃣ Audit your own GTM process – Would you enjoy buying from your own company?
2️⃣ Identify 3 friction points in your sales funnel—and remove them.
3️⃣ Experiment with buyer-led strategies – Try transparent pricing, self-serve options, or relationship-driven outreach.
