Cloud 100 Companies Share Their Top Trends and Advice. Here’s What They Said.
Cloud computing is king. The category’s success in recent years is a sheer testament to the way of the future with little stopping it. But how did SaaS rise the ranks across the globe, taking over every industry by storm? We asked four of the 19 AppExchange partners on the Forbes Cloud 100 — a list that honors the top 100 private cloud companies in the world, ranging from customer service to sales enablement to e-commerce, created in partnership with Salesforce Ventures. We wanted to know how they reached success, the trends they’re seeing for the future, and the key to customer satisfaction. Read on to learn more.
Education is the key to scalability.
Education isn’t limited to brick and mortar institutions anymore. In this digital age, anyone can learn and work from anywhere, which also means that businesses can hire from anywhere. Talkdesk, a contact center platform, is revolutionizing learning for agents via Talkdesk Academy and helping them find roles via Talkdesk CX Talent. Talkdesk Academy helps train agents in two hours, allowing valuable upskilling, no matter where they are. In addition, Talkdesk CX Talent connects contact center professionals and businesses seeking to grow their support or sales teams. Pairing these two programs, along with Talkdesk’s ability to provision up to 10,000 licenses, enables nearly immediate scalability. Kathie Johnson, CMO of Talkdesk, says, “What used to be a role where supervisors could talk face-to-face with their call center agents is now becoming remote.” This new remote culture has opened up a world of work-from-anywhere, so companies should take advantage of this pivot by providing individuals with the skills they need to do so.
Internal culture leads to external excellence.
Company culture not only benefits employees — it impacts the customer experience. The leadership team at Highspot, a revenue enablement platform, created a culture based on the notion of MRI: Most Respectful Interaction. MRI is an approach where employees interact in the most respectful way with other colleagues, partners, and customers. And Highspot has seen this sentiment directly translate to their customer satisfaction. Jon Perera, CMO of Highspot, shares that they have a 4.7 out of 5 rating for customer satisfaction within their deployment operations. He says that when respect and kindness are deeply rooted in your culture, they will make their way into your product and strategy. Jon adds that in order to maintain a strong company-wide sentiment, “culture has to be just as important as innovation.”
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Simplicity leads to adoption.
Apple is one of the most innovative B2C companies we’ve seen in the modern day. Their interface is known to be the most user-friendly among brand loyalists. It’s the simplicity and usability of their product that has made them so popular among consumers. The idea of simple tech may seem like an oxymoron, but it’s what will drive user adoption and even open the door for product integrations. Both Highspot and Yotpo, an eCommerce marketing platform, integrate with the Salesforce Platform for its seamless customer experience. Especially during the pandemic, customers require solutions that can help them pivot quickly. Will Schnabel, SVP of Business Development and Partnerships at Yotpo, adds that “customers are seeing a need to have simpler and faster ways of getting ROI.” By partnering with Salesforce, Highspot and Yotpo have been able to simplify their customers’ journeys.
This is the time to build relationships in a whole new way.
A significant contributor to customer success is the practice of building relationships. This pandemic may present itself as a hurdle to creating strong connections, yet you can always find the silver lining if you look close enough. AppsFlyer, a mobile marketing analytics and attribution platform, has been tackling that exact obstacle and might have found the opportunity amid the challenge. Elad Mashiach, Chief Partner Officer of AppsFlyer says, “I used to meet people at their office. Now I’m invited into their home. I don’t only meet colleagues in a neutral work environment, I meet their families, and all of the sudden we’re not just talking about business and the weather, but we’re also opening up about personal challenges we’ve encountered during this time.” It’s clear that while we may not be able to be close in proximity with one another, these unprecedented times have provided us with a unique opportunity to strengthen relationships in a way we’ve never done before.
Keep your eyes off the competition.
“If you get distracted by what others are doing, you end up taking your eyes off your customers,” says Will from Yotpo. He shares that companies often look to their competition to stay ahead, yet this can actually hinder your company’s roadmap. Listening to your customers is what will take you further. Kathie from Talkdesk also adopts the philosophy that the answer to innovation is oftentimes right in front of you. She says, “We encourage Talkdesk employees to find inspiration in the interactions they have in their day-to-day lives and how our solutions can evolve to serve a customer before they ever know they need it.” Creating the right solutions to customer challenges is the way to long-term loyalty.
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