Why Does SaaS-service Require an International Multilingual Team or How to Achieve Product Growth in 6 Times in One Year
Elchin Aliyev, CEO of Enestech, which is part of the TECHIIA technology holding, sharing his secrets on how a multilingual team of active professionals and dedicated customer support helps SaaS service to perform multiple achievements and growth.
More than 4.5 million users in 40 countries around the globe. These are some small numbers for SENET Saas Service to start in 2020. Just a year earlier, the number of users of our cloud solution for managing computer centers was 6 times less. The product began its journey as an internal service for the network of computer centers in Kyiv and managed to penetrate the world market in its niche. You would probably ask ‘How’? In Kyiv, we have compiled an amazing team of native speakers from all over the world, made a multilingual sales department and a dedicated skilled support center 24/7.
Localize
High-quality software is the core. Otherwise, you can forget about any success of both local and international markets. If you are confident in your product, then the first rule of SaaS product development — proper localization. The user prefers to use the software in their native language. That is exactly what we’ve provided, and today SENET is available in seven languages: Ukrainian, Russian, English, Spanish, Turkish, Kazakh and Vietnamese.
Here is a tip. Do proper research and make localization of your product before entering any new market, it will help with your market-conquering plans big time. We are only planning to enter the markets of the Arab countries, and in the meantime already working on translation. Moreover, German and Portuguese localizations are almost complete.
How to Perform on the CIS Market
The market of the post-Soviet countries is enormous, do not ignore it, especially since the Russian language is quite universal over there. There is no need to hire a Kazakh, Tajik and Georgian for great sales department performance — Russian-speaking specialists cope with everything. Currently, our CIS market sales department consists of 5 high-performance specialists.
Tip #1. Always mind the national differences in countries in the European and Asian parts of the CIS. For example, in Ukraine and Belarus, customers expect more time-taking negotiations, while in Mongolia and Kazakhstan, on the contrary, they want to do everything in no time. The thing is that most entrepreneurs and managers in Mongolia and Kazakhstan make decisions almost instantly, without long and careful planning — they are guided by the recommendations of other users. The existing number of current users of your SaaS product also matters.
Tip #2. Try to hire a salesperson for some specific tasks, not full circle sales. Our experience shows that it is a mistake to hire a “can-do-everything-in-the-world” person for lead research, sales, onboarding, etc. in order to optimize costs. One person can properly perform in one or two tasks so that he/she still has time for training and skill development.
Take Care of Your Customer From the First Contact
SENET conquered the CIS market in the blink of an eye. Only a year has passed since the start of sales, and more than 23 thousand computers in 10 CIS countries have already been connected to the product. We treat each client like the most special one. Our first customer is the cyber center in Odesa, Ukraine. Our professionals went to Odessa, connected all computers to the service and made all configurations for its proper work. Later we kept in touch with the client and made 24/7 tech support so that everything was working smoothly and efficiently, and the customer was satisfied with both the product and our cooperation.
To get to know the product, we provided customers with a free demo before purchase. We help to set it up and maintain close contact with the client during the entire testing period, and in some cases, we even prolong the period of free testing so that the customer can check all the advantages of the product and make a proper decision.
Piece of advice. Come up with several price rates depending on the features of your SaaS product and on the market. Customized packages are better than selling the full version for everyone. For example, some customers will appreciate the benefits of a lite version of the product, and others in the form of a package with additional features.
English is not much of a universal language
Success in the CIS gave us inspiration and motivation to penetrate other markets. We made the English-language localization of our website and the product, hired native speakers from the USA and Australia in our sales department, and … did not even come close to the goal. In the USA, we faced a serious competitor who controls most of the market. Yes, we found our customers in Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom. But the blitzkrieg, as in the CIS, failed. In addition, we found out that the Spanish and German-speaking countries, Italians, French do not want to communicate in English. And there are also markets in Asia and Africa, where cultures and mentality of all are very different. It was a huge challenge for us.
We decided to create an international multilingual sales department in Kyiv — a call center full of native speakers. Now we have Colombians, Ecuadorians, Mexicans, Pakistanis, citizens of the United States and Australia. This made it possible to cover a big part of the global market, English-speaking countries, the LatAm region (Peru, Mexico, Ecuador, Argentina, etc.), the Gulf region (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan), India and Pakistan.
Tip #1. Don’t be afraid to hire foreigners. There are enough of them in Kyiv, and there is no need for relocation. To do this, you need an experienced recruiter in your team with a good network of contacts, because there are not many CVs of native speakers on job search sites. Student exchange programs and other international initiatives are the best places to look at. And do not forget about the representatives of the Ukrainian diaspora who came back to Ukraine.
Tip #2. You probably have a question on how to monitor the work of a native speaker? Quite simple — a closed deal and a satisfied customer will be the best marker of his/her successful and proper work.
Invest in Support and Customer Success
SaaS service is not just a software, it is a complex of services. Our support service has changed a lot since the time of the first customer. From one specialist, it was transformed into a large service of three departments. We support our customers 24/7 in Ukrainian, Russian, Spanish and English.
The Integration Department shows the capabilities of the IT solution and helps you understand how it works during the testing period. Technical Support eliminates any technical problems users might face while working with the software. The Customer Care Department helps in cases where, in addition to technical, communication assistance is also needed. For example, the computer center has a new admin, and there is a sudden influx of customers. The admin is in panic and requires help to solve a specific problem. Our specialist will defuse the situation and help to configure the software.
Tip #1. Use several communication channels for support. For example, the built-in module in SaaS itself, popular instant messengers. But exclude voice consultations, in cases of force majeure, it will be a problem to work with several customers at the same time.
Tip #2. Make a unique training center for new support staff. 90% of the success of a support center is knowledge of software, and you can learn it only in the office with guidance from colleagues and a trainer who knows the product thoroughly. In our experience, to train an employee who is fully prepared for independent work will take 3–4 months of study and practice under the guidance of experienced colleagues.
Tip #3. Collect feedback, customer reviews, any info you can have from your customers. Thanks to these, the Support Center will help to find errors in the program (bugs) and improve the product. In addition, you can localize not only the interface but also other elements that are dissimilar for different regions. For example, a payment or reporting system to automate reporting for government agencies
SENET is a cloud-based solution for managing esports arenas and computer centers, thanks to which the owner controls the business via his own smartphone anywhere in the world, the administrator coordinates the work, and the gamer gets the most out of the time spent in the center. Among SENET’s customers are small clubs like a game lounge cafe with 2–3 game consoles, as well as computer centers with 150 or more computers and consoles. In addition to software for esports-business, ENESTECH offers its customers its own development — a game console controller. It allows you to connect the PlayStation and Xbox alongside with your PC to the same management network and properly control the income from the time players spending on consoles, which was previously impossible. In 2019, ENESTECH provided more than 1,000 controllers for its customers.
