How to Write a SaaS Buying Guide? 13 Must-Ask Questions for Higher Sign-Ups

SaaS Buying Guide Template: 13 Questions to Craft Conversion-Ready Product Lists

Get the 13 expert questions that turn ordinary SaaS listicles into buyer guides that rank and convert. Learn to position, compare, and answer objections in minutes. Grab the 13-question checklist below and start building a buyer guide that drives qualified demos today.

On the surface, buying guides (think: product listicles like X tools for doing Y and alternative lists like X tool alternatives) seem simple.

All you’ve gotta do is knock out a list highlighting each tool’s key features, pricing, and who exactly the tool is for, right?

Wrong. Because:

1. AI tools can easily put together such shallow content
2. It does little to help prospects in their buying journey

As a result, the content may end up ranking, but it does little to drive conversions.

Now, of course, the solution isn’t simple either.

But a good starting point is asking the right questions to inform your strategy.

It’s really a foundational part of my processes around building (and executing) product-led content strategies. And trust me when I say this, the right questions help you create content that:

• Is as objective as marketing-ly possible
• Speaks to the right folks that’ll actually convert
• Answers questions different decision-makers have

Here are 13 of my must-ask questions to create utterly helpful buying guides — broadly divided into three areas:

Start with the basics of your tool

1. What itch do we scratch? How are people scratching that itch without our tool?
2. How do users describe the tool we’re marketing? Do I have the permission to use their words?
3. What are some ways users are using our tool? (The idea is to find use cases outside of recommendations your product team makes)
4. What are some outcomes and/or results users have driven using our tool?
5. How exactly do we want to position the SaaS solution we’re selling? (Example: the budget-friendly fit for early-stage startups? The tool that sits well in mature, enterprise tech stacks?)
6. What does using our tool look like? To fully answer this one, break it down to the following sub-questions:
   1. How can people get started? What is and who is involved?
   2. How long does it take before users/teams can start using our platform?
   3. How long before other users have started seeing results using our platform?

Now get in your buyers’ shoes — how do they make their purchase decision

1. What does our target buyer’s journey look like? Who are the people they ask for referrals? What channels do they use to learn about new tools?
2. Who is on our target user’s buying committee? What questions are they asking and what objections are they raising?
3. What are some obstacles interested buyers encounter when reviewing a solution like the one we’re selling? (Example: Gated demos, budget unfriendliness — head to Reddit for this + talk to your sales team to find what prospects share)

Review the industry now — where does everyone stand

1. How has the market for our tool evolved? Where does our tool and each of the competing tools sit in the industry?
2. Who exactly is our tool for and who is it NOT for? Answer the same for alternative tools.
3. What are competing tools’ strengths and shortcomings? (Instead of answering this yourself, head to Reddit to find unbiased answers)
4. How does our SaaS solution’s feature set compare to our competing tools’ features? (Remember: there’s a different set of features to compare with each tool — never one).

Did I miss any? What are some questions you ask?