How to Build Your Brand With Capterra, GetApp, and Software Advice

In this article, we’ll guide you through four best practices to build your brand and capture demand across the Gartner Digital Markets platform. From creating a compelling profile, collecting reviews, and showcasing badges to launching Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns—learn how to increase visibility and build a category-disrupting brand that captures buyer attention.

1. Optimize profile descriptions and features to attract the right buyers

To effectively reach your target audience, it is essential to create a compelling product profile that is tailored to the specific categories you are targeting. This will enable you to connect with buyers who are actively searching for your type of software.

Specifically, your profile should include a detailed product description that clearly communicates the value and benefits of your product and what sets you apart from the competition. Here, you should highlight who your ideal buyer is and include category keywords that resonate with them. We recommend adding media, screenshots, and videos to show off your product in action. 

Since many buyers filter their search based on the specific product capabilities they require, it is crucial to provide a comprehensive list of features that align with the targeted category. It’s also important to provide pricing information as cost is the number one factor buyers care about when searching for software.**

Remember, your profile serves as the first impression for potential buyers. By providing product information aligned to the category, you can stand out in search filters and ensure that you are attracting the right buyers to your profile.

2. Collect reviews to influence buyer perception of your product and earn badges

Reviews play a crucial role in building trust and influencing potential buyers. Nearly all (98%) software buyers say reading reviews before making a purchase is important, with two-thirds emphasizing the significance of verified third-party reviews.

Reviews offer valuable insights into your product's strengths and differentiators, highlight key features, and provide buyers with ease of use and customer satisfaction feedback. In fact, 93% of buyers sort by most recent reviews since fresh reviews provide the latest information on a solution’s features. 

In addition, reviews are rich in product keywords that help attract organic traffic to your profile and expand your reach. We offer the possibility to collect reviews in local languages to connect with your target audience globally. Most buyers (72%) consider it either extremely or very important for a software provider to offer reviews in their primary language,** so collecting in-language reviews will help you better position your product among international buyers.

By collecting reviews, you not only fill your profile with highly relevant information that attracts buyers, but you also increase your chances of earning badges. These badges serve as valuable social proof, showcasing your product as top-rated and trustworthy, which can be highly persuasive to potential buyers.

3. Share earned badges across marketing channels to build trust and showcase category leadership

Earning badges is the perfect way to increase buyer confidence and stand out against the competition. Badges serve as verified pieces of social proof content to help you promote your offering and showcase its many strengths to prospective buyers.

Using content made from feedback from real customers instills buyer trust and enhances brand credibility. In fact, 98% of software buyers say product recognition based on ratings or user reviews influence their purchase decision.**

Badges are reviews-driven recognition that serves as an external validation of your product's quality and performance. Elevate your brand with diverse recognition—our star-rating badges reflect your most recent rating, while “Best of” badges highlight your most-valued attributes, and top-rated badges demonstrate your category leadership.

^{Our top-rated badges: Capterra Shortlist, GetApp Category Leaders, and Software Advice Front Runners.}

Showcasing these achievements can help you build brand authority, earn the trust of potential customers, and increase conversion rates. To amplify their marketing impact, prominently display badges on your website and product pages, incorporate them into press releases and email campaigns, share them on social media, and highlight them during sales pitches.

If you are running PPC campaigns, remember to include your earned badges on your landing pages. This allows high-intent buyers who arrive at your website to immediately recognize you as a category leader, helping boost form-fill conversion rates.  

4. Sponsor your profile and run PPC campaigns to boost visibility and traffic

To maximize brand exposure, consider sponsoring your profile and launching PPC campaigns to promote your product or service across Capterra, GetApp, and Software Advice, and gain visibility in paid and organic search results.

Sponsored Profiles are prominently displayed across our platform, increasing brand awareness and helping you stay top-of-mind as buyers explore products. With an effective bidding strategy, you can position your product at the top of category pages and maximize brand visibility.

With PPC campaigns, you are bidding to displace competitors’ share of voice. The higher your bid, the greater the reach of your Sponsored Profile on relevant category pages, and the more brand views share you receive. That is, you gain a higher percentage of impressions (or views) received out of the total amount of impressions across all products in the same category or auction.

Beyond boosting your brand awareness, Sponsored Profiles direct interested buyers to your website. When buyers see your product and click through the “Visit Website” call-to-action (CTA), they will reach your landing page. Your landing page should, in turn, motivate buyers to take action, whether it's booking a demo, signing up for a free trial, or speaking with your sales team.

Build your brand to attract and convert your target buyers

Cutting through the noise in a crowded software market is a challenge. But, with a strong brand presence on Capterra, GetApp, and Software Advice, you can make a lasting impression on buyers, securing your place on their shortlists.

Improve your visibility and attract the right buyers for your business through compelling product profiles, verified reviews, badges, and PPC campaigns. Investing in brand building is the first step to capturing buyer demand and driving sustainable growth.

Kari Test

Kari Test is a Product Marketing Director on the Vendor Marketing team at Gartner Digital Markets. Originally from Annapolis, Maryland, Kari graduated from Elon University before moving to the Washington, D.C. area. In her free time, she loves exploring Old Town Alexandria, traveling and trying new recipes. Connect with Kari on LinkedIn.