If a customer ever gets around to reading your SLA, one key question comes up sooner or later: Have you provided what you promised?
You could simply say yes—but that doesn’t give them reason to trust you. A status page does. It conveys accurate, up-to-date information that proves you’ve not only met, but exceeded the agreement. Simple as it sounds, the status page is one of the most powerful tools you can use to establish both a customer base and, over time, a fan base.
Status page as competitive advantage
Let’s face it, the SaaS world is competitive. Businesses realize they can profit from the lowered costs and increased productivity that SaaS offers, to the point that providers are in something of a SaaS war.
Winning requires more than adhering to the letter of your SLA. It means jolting your customers out of their complacency and into a minor state of awe (followed by five-star reviews).
One of the quickest ways to induce said altered state is to save your customers time. When your customers receive an up-to-date tool to track their services, they have one less operational issue to worry about. They can focus on keeping their own customers happy—and credit you for freeing up bandwidth.
Another advantage of a status page is that it functions as a resource. The more resources you provide, the more customers grow to trust your dedication to their wellbeing. Promises of accountability go a lot further, and customers view you as a resource that helps them achieve their goals. Without that perceived alliance, customers are more likely to move on.
Pulling back the curtain
Divulging the status behind the scenes isn’t just something customers deserve. In a world where business is made up of various SaaS services, customers require performance insight in order to keep the company humming.
The first step is to customize your status pages by adjusting colors to match your site, adding your logo and even customizing the domain name to make for easy navigation. You can make it stats.theirdomain.com or any other name that helps customize the status-page experience. It’s another sign that you’re prioritizing your customers.
If (okay, when) something does go wrong, your customers can simply refer to the status page to see what’s happening behind the scenes, no phone calls required. By reviewing minute-to-minute uptime, customers can not only understand when events happen, but recognize patterns and troubleshoot.
Building Better Relationships
Relationships are built with trust. Giving customers the stats they need, on demand, shows that a SaaS company is holding itself accountable for promises made. This sets the tone for strong business ties, and the success of your brand going forward.
