RevOps Docs for Startups
  • Welcome
  • Getting Started
    • Quickstart
    • About LeanScale
  • Growth Modeling
    • Building a Growth Model
      • Growth Model Assumptions
      • Growth Model Approaches
      • Growth Model Segmentations
    • Sales Capacity Plan
    • Marketing Plan
    • Customer Success Plan
  • Go-to-market Lifecycle
    • Go-to-Market Lifecycle
    • Lead Lifecycle
    • Sales Lifecycle
    • Customer Lifecycle
    • Proof of Concept Lifecycle
    • Lifecycle Measurement
  • Lead Attribution
    • Attribution Overview
    • Lead Source Taxonomy
  • Measuring Metrics
    • Reporting and Data Analytics
    • Sales Metrics
      • Created Pipeline
      • Weighted Pipeline
    • Marketing Metrics
      • Lead Impact Matrix
      • CAC to LTV
    • Customer Success Metrics
      • Net Retention
    • Partnership Metrics
    • Presenting Metrics
  • GTM Tech Stack
    • GTM Tech Stack Overview
    • When To Buy New Systems
    • Driving System Adoption
    • CRM Considerations
      • User-Oriented CRM
      • Data & Reporting CRM
      • Security-Focused CRM
  • Aligning Sales/Marketing
    • Alignment Overview
    • How to Align?
    • What is an SQL?
    • Building Marketing Operations
    • Defining GTM Process
    • Interviewing GTM Leaders
    • Finding The Right Talent
  • System Demos
    • Data Enrichment
      • Clay
      • Traction Complete
    • Conversational Intelligence
      • Gong
      • Unthread
    • CPQ
      • Dealhub
      • Salesbricks
    • Data Analytics
      • RevVue
      • QFlow
  • CRM Tips
    • Salesforce
      • Create Opp from Contact
      • Validation Rules in Flow
      • Roll Up Summary Field
      • Close Date Change Counter
      • Lead Stages
      • Sales Stages
      • Customer Stages
      • Next Step Fields
      • Lead Source Taxonomy
      • Proof of Concept Stages
      • Displaying Record Information
      • Display Dynamic Lists
      • Messages to End Users
      • Create Custom Buttons
      • Tips for Data Loader
      • Salesforce Inspector Reloaded
      • SFDC Navigator for Lightning
      • Bypass Validation Rules
      • Sales Manager Notes Field
      • Renaming Fields and Objects
      • Getting Faster to Record ID
    • Hubspot
      • Disable Picklist Options
      • Create Yesterday's Date
      • Create Today's Date
  • Strategic Walkthroughs
    • Revenue Operations Flywheel
    • Post-Fundraise Playbook
    • Building Board Decks
    • Building Dashboards
      • CEO Dashboards
      • Executive Dashboards
      • Marketing Dashboards
      • Sales Dashboards
      • CS Dashboards
      • Funnel Analytics
    • ChatGPT as a Salesforce Admin
    • Sales Commission Plans
    • Building Sales Territories
Powered by GitBook
On this page
  • Designating Prospects
  • Operational Steps
  • Value
  • Entry Criteria
  • Reasons for Success or Failure
  • Conclusion

Was this helpful?

  1. Go-to-market Lifecycle

Proof of Concept Lifecycle

PreviousCustomer LifecycleNextLifecycle Measurement

Last updated 7 months ago

Was this helpful?

In the world of B2B SaaS, companies often go through a proof of concept (POC) phase before fully committing to a product or service. This phase allows both the vendor and the customer to assess the product's fit for the customer's needs and to identify any potential issues or challenges.

For most B2B SaaS companies, there is some level of proof of concept, proof of value, or pilot phase in the product or service that they're offering. It's important to have stages designated for this process alone so that you can track progress and measure success.

Designating Prospects

The first stage in the POC process is designating whether a prospect is moving into this phase or not. This decision is often made by sales engineers or the customer success team. It's important to track how many prospects are going into the POC process and to assess whether this process is paying off.

Operational Steps

Once a prospect is in the POC process, you'll want to outline a few operational steps that designate the type of process that you go through. These steps should be clear and concise, and they should help you measure progress and identify any bottlenecks. Some common operational steps in a POC process include:

  • Technical integration phase

  • API connection phase

  • Data transfer phase

Value

At the end of the POC process, you'll need to assess whether or not the POC showed value. This assessment should be independent of the closed won or closed lost stages that you had earlier. You want to know if your POCs are able to show the value that you're expecting to show, and if so, whether that's related to closed won business.

Entry Criteria

The entry criteria for the POC process will vary depending on your company and your product or service. However, it's important to have clear and documented entry criteria so that all teams are following the same process. Some common entry criteria for a POC process include:

  • A minimum number of users

  • A certain level of revenue

  • A specific industry or vertical

Reasons for Success or Failure

When you move a prospect to the "able to show value" or "unable to show value" stage, it's important to document the reasons for either of those cases. This information will help you improve your POC process and increase your chances of success.

Conclusion

The POC process is an important part of the sales cycle for B2B SaaS companies. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can increase your chances of success and improve your overall RevOps efficiency.