10 SaaS Win-Loss Trends from 2025 That Will Shape How Companies Win More Deals
2025 marked a year of change for B2B software companies. AI reshaped how organizations operate, sell, and scale, while customer expectations continued to rise, forcing vendors to adapt quickly. Across 500+ win-loss, churn, and Voice of Customer interviews that we conducted on behalf of our clients last year, some clear patterns emerged.
1. The Sales Experience Can (Still) Seal the Deal
In win-loss interviews, buyers repeatedly told us that strong sales execution makes a meaningful difference. Reps who were described as responsive, patient, and deeply knowledgeable often tipped deals in a vendor’s favor. Tailored demos and thoughtful discovery helped buyers feel confident the vendor truly understood their needs. One interviewee highlighted a “fantastic, thoughtful” rep who listened carefully and demonstrated – specifically – how the product would address his challenges. That experience alone differentiated the vendor.
2. Pricing Models and Pricing Expectations are Evolving
With AI adoption increasing, we are seeing more discussion about consumption and credit-based models, as well as hybrid user/credit based models. Outcome-based pricing seems ideal, but we've only seen it successfully work in some cases.
Given ongoing market pressure, buyers often sought flexible deal structures, renewal terms, or packaging, as a way to move forward. That said, premium pricing was still acceptable when the ROI was well-supported.
3. Scalability Is No Longer a Future Problem
Scalability came up more often in buying conversations. Buyers want assurance that a solution will continue to perform reliably as volume, complexity, and use cases expand. A credible, practical path to scale can be an important differentiator.
4. Sell AI Through Relevance First and Foremost
Customers want help extracting relevant insights from large volumes of AI-generated data. We also saw that buyers preferred AI that is embedded naturally within existing workflows rather than offered as a standalone or bolt-on feature.
5. Customers Want an AI Guide, Not Just Features
Customer interviews revealed a desire for vendors to provide guidance around AI usage. Customers want thought leadership and practical advice on how to use AI effectively within their organizations, and they are appreciative when vendors offer this proactively.
6. Implementation Still Breaks (or Builds) Trust
Even a strong product and a positive buying experience can’t overcome a poor onboarding process. Our churn interviews found that incomplete implementations (from the customer’s point of view) and insufficient enablement are often early warning signs of future churn.
The “failure to launch” theme appeared frequently, particularly in mid-market accounts, when slow or disorganized implementations undermined confidence before value could be realized.
7. Hidden or Unexpected Costs Create Friction
Pricing transparency plays a major role in customer trust. Interviews revealed frustration when features, integrations, or capabilities required unexpected add-on fees. Several customers compared the experience to buying a car, where each additional feature comes at a separate cost. Sticker shock at renewal time was another recurring friction point.
8. UI, UX, and Innovation Gaps Are Costing Deals
In many competitive win-loss interviews, buyers cited outdated UI, clunky workflows, and slow innovation as reasons for switching vendors. Competitors with modern interfaces and clearly articulated AI roadmaps often stood out. Increasingly, buyers expect visible product evolution, and AI capability is now part of their evaluation criteria.
9. Customers Notice When Support Slips
Declines in customer success and support quality surfaced repeatedly in churn interviews. Frequent CSM turnover, especially without thoughtful transitions, can disrupt continuity and increase the risk of churn. We also heard some frustration related to AI-driven generalized support and lack of specific help.
10. Controllable vs. Uncontrollable Churn
As the SaaS market matures, we are seeing that most win-loss interviews are conducted not with first-time buyers but with those who are churning from their current platform. In many cases, customers wanted to stay with their existing vendor. But rising prices, inconsistent support, or poor experiences often triggered a market re-evaluation, followed by a proof of concept and, eventually, a switch. Much of this churn was preventable.
Turning Insight into Action
Win-loss and churn insights only matter if they’re acted on. IcebergIQ helps B2B software companies uncover what’s really driving buying decisions, renewals, and churn – and translate those insights into clear, strategic action. Learn more about our win-loss analysis, voice of customer research, and churn prevention solutions and if you’d like to chat, just reach out.