What actually gets you on a CMO’s radar
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Why do some SaaS brands make the shortlist while others never get a look?
In our How B2B SaaS CMOs Buy Software in 2025 Report, we discovered 79% of B2B CMOs say brand recognition influences which vendors make their software shortlist.
Learn why familiar names have the edge and exactly what smaller and newer SaaS players can do to break into a marketing leader’s consideration set.
In our recent Wynter survey with 100 CMOs in B2B SaaS (at $50 million+ companies), 79% of CMOs told us brand fame matters when making their shortlist, with 45% calling it a major factor. To them, a familiar name is like a security blanket; it signals credibility, stability, and a proven track record.
“I usually favor established brands I recognize from my industry, much like choosing Apple for reliability.”
But what if you’re not a household name in your category? Are shortlists only rigged in favor of the big players? Not necessarily. Our research uncovered exactly what levels the playing field for lesser-known vendors, and what it takes for CMOs to take a serious look at an “underdog”.
When CMOs are staring at 15 possible vendors for a solution, a quick way to trim the list is to go with names you already know and trust. Being well-known gives vendors a big advantage, and their familiarity acts like a stamp of approval before teams have taken a closer look. Brand fame often hints that the vendor has a track record, plenty of other happy customers, and isn’t likely to disappear next year.
One CMO told us: “I don’t have time to vet every new startup" this quote perfectly sums it up, their time is short and reputation fills in the blanks. Another CMO said brand fame can be a deciding factor because if a vendor is a market leader, it gives her confidence they can scale with her company. There’s comfort in going with the industry leader.
Yes, they still evaluate features, fit and price, but brand acts as a filtering mechanism and it’s a shortcut in the initial vetting. If two products seem similar, the one with name recognition will almost always get the nod to move forward.
“A well-known brand acts as a shortcut in our evaluation process. If it’s a name recognized by our peers, it gets extra weight on our shortlist.”
That last part is key: “recognized by our peers.” Brand power is reinforced by hearing the name in industry discussions, in LinkedIn comments, and seeing it at events. If everyone in your network is mentioning Vendor X, it feels like a safer bet.
For big vendors, this is all great news. Your years of marketing and customer success pay off and you’re off to a head-start with shortlist presence. But what about everyone else? How can a smaller or newer vendor counteract this big-brand bias?
While brand recognition is influential, it’s not unbeatable. Peer recommendations and trust can, in many cases, override pure brand fame. Think of it this way: a CMO might have Oracle or Adobe on their list because those brands are huge, but if three of their peers are recommending a smaller alternative, that smaller vendor will definitely get a look.
72% of marketing leaders told us they start their vendor search by asking peers in private communities, which makes these conversations more influential than Google or review sites. Word-of-mouth is now the main road in.
"We might give a newer vendor a shot if they come highly recommended from a peer or a private group like Pavilion."
If you’re an emerging SaaS vendor or a challenger brand, you might be thinking, “How do we beat the well-known vendors?” Luckily, our research provides a playbook.
Here are concrete ways lesser-known vendors can still make the shortlist, based on what the 100 marketing leaders said would persuade them:
Peer endorsements are the top reason CMOs consider new vendors. If your product gets mentioned in private Slack groups or industry chats, you’re suddenly on the radar. That kind of word-of-mouth only happens when your customers are happy (and vocal.)
Focus on relationships, not just features. Make sure your customers are well supported and that your customer service delivers. Remember every happy user is a potential champion, encourage referrals and create moments worth sharing.
Every single marketing leader who said they’d consider an underdog also said security and compliance checks were non-negotiable.
Get your documentation ready and proactively address concerns if decision-makers have them. When you demonstrate you’re ready on the back-end, you remove a huge barrier that often disqualifies startups.
38% of CMOs said unknown vendors must provide an easy-to-access trial or proof-of-concept to earn trust. Let the buyer try your product with minimal effort and make sure it’s not just a Loom recording.
By testing and seeing the real product in action, it proves your product’s value and signals confidence that you know your product will impress if they try it.
Identify areas where the big competitors are weak or have ignored customer pain, and bring innovation there. If you can tangibly say, “We do X better than anyone,” and X matters to the customer, you’ve earned a serious look.
Lower pricing alone won’t win you the deal, but when it comes with strong ROI and clear outcomes, especially for mid-market buyers, it’s a tiebreaker. One CMO told us: “If they can demonstrate a unique approach or significantly better pricing, they need to show us real ROI in a short pilot before we invest big.”
Each of the above points addresses a fear or obstacle that a decision maker might have about choosing a lesser-known vendor:
Your job is to give answers that build trust:
Above all, regardless of your brand fame, buyers want to see that you understand their specific problems and can solve them better than anyone else. Show them that, and it won’t matter if you’re not the biggest name in the category.
In the battle for getting on a vendor’s shortlist, brand recognition and peer trust are the two heavyweights. Big brands start with a leg up, they’ve earned mindshare and credibility through years of marketing and customer wins. But trust is a multi-faceted thing. Peers, personal experiences, and product excellence can rapidly build trust even for newer players.
If you’re a challenger brand, you’re not out of the race. By focusing on customer success, transparency, and targeted innovation, you can punch above your weight. Just remember, no sales pitch beats a happy customer shouting your name in their group chat.
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