How to sell to CTOs at SaaS companies in Netherlands
CTOs at SaaS companies in the Netherlands are primarily measured on system uptime and scalability. They respond to outreach that clearly shows an understanding of their need to optimize infrastructure while managing costs. Addressing specific challenges like data security or integration issues can significantly increase engagement from this role.
Written and maintained by the SoloRiff team, who build outbound software and run outbound with it. The figures below are our own: we measured 559 saas company domains over public DNS on 2026-09-03. Last updated 2026-09-03.
What actually hurts
- system downtime complaints
- data security breaches
- integration challenges
- scalability issues
The playbook
- 01
Identify recent funding rounds
Search for SaaS companies in the Netherlands that have recently secured funding. Use platforms like Crunchbase to filter for funding events in the last 3 months. This indicates growth and potential needs for infrastructure improvements.
- 02
Analyze tech stack changes
Utilize tools like BuiltWith to identify any recent changes in the tech stack of your target companies. Look for shifts towards cloud services or new programming frameworks, as these often signal an openness to new solutions.
- 03
Highlight compliance and security needs
Craft your message to emphasize how your solution can address specific compliance and security challenges faced by SaaS companies. Focus on recent regulations in the EU that may affect their operations, making it clear you understand their priorities.
- 04
Leverage industry events
Identify upcoming SaaS conferences or webinars in the Netherlands and mention them in your outreach. Reference your shared attendance or a relevant topic being discussed to create a connection and increase the likelihood of a response.
- 05
Follow up with insights
After your initial outreach, send a follow-up email that includes a relevant article or report on SaaS trends in the Netherlands. This positions you as a knowledgeable resource and keeps the conversation going without being overly salesy.
Can saas companies even receive your mail?
We measured the DNS of 559 saas companies, sampled evenly across company sizes, to see how many authenticate their own email. It matters in both directions: a domain that does not authenticate is a domain whose team is used to mail going missing — and if your own domain is in the gap, yours is the mail going missing.
Publishes a DMARC policy of quarantine or reject — the domain actually asks receivers to act on failures.
The gap is the finding: 16.7% of 1–10-person companies against 80.9% of the largest — 64 points apart. Small companies are where the unauthenticated domains are, and small companies are who most cold outreach is aimed at.
Where does your domain sit?
Same three lookups, run live against your domain. Nothing is stored and nothing is emailed to you.
How this was measured
Company domains were sampled within employee-count bands, then queried over public DNS for SPF (TXT at the apex), DMARC (TXT at _dmarc.) and MX. One domain per company, deduplicated. Anyone can reproduce any single row of this with dig.
DKIM is deliberately absent. A DKIM key lives under a selector that cannot be enumerated from outside the domain, so a company with flawless DKIM under a name we did not guess would be counted as having none. That would measure our guess list, not the industry.
Domains with no MX record are excluded rather than counted as failures — parked and redirect-only domains would otherwise drag every figure down and make the result an artefact of the sample.
Sampled within bands, so this describes the population of companies, not of employees: a 10-person company counts once, as does a 10,000-person one. Each band is at least 60 domains; bands below that are not published. Figures are percentages of the sample, not of the whole industry, and we publish no company names — only counts.
Measured 2026-09-03. Re-measured monthly.
The full census across every industry — sortable, with sample sizes, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0.
Subject lines that fit
- Funding insights for SaaS growth
- Tech stack changes at your company
- Navigating compliance in SaaS
Questions
- Why do CTOs at SaaS companies ignore outreach about infrastructure solutions?
- CTOs often overlook outreach that lacks specificity or relevance to their current challenges. They are inundated with generic pitches and prioritize communications that provide clear, actionable insights related to their specific infrastructure needs or pain points.
- What are common objections from CTOs regarding new software solutions?
- CTOs frequently express concerns about integration with existing systems, potential downtime during implementation, and the overall cost versus ROI of new solutions. Addressing these concerns upfront can help in gaining their attention and trust.
- How can I demonstrate value to a CTO in my outreach?
- Demonstrating value requires a clear understanding of their unique challenges. Share insights or case studies that align directly with their current projects or pain points, particularly around scalability and security, to show you can provide relevant solutions.
- What communication channels do CTOs prefer for outreach?
- CTOs typically prefer email for initial outreach but are increasingly open to LinkedIn messages. They value concise, well-researched communications that respect their time and provide immediate relevance to their current objectives.
Or have it run itself
SoloRiff does every step above on its own — finds the companies, finds the people, writes each of them individually, and handles the replies. Drop your URL and watch it work before you sign up for anything.
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