Startup Solidarity

http://sethbannon.com/startup-solidarity

by sethbannon • 11 years ago

50 8 11 years ago

Ataub24• 11 years ago

great post. I'm going to try to become customers of every single one.

I like the post but I think you're incorrect on cause. I don't think it's a matter of how large or small the provider is; I think it's a matter of empowering customer support reps (a rose by any other name: the people you talk to on behalf of providers.)

When the rep has the ability to make decisions and give these small deals I think they often will and your blog post is the reason why: it's not hard to see that the discount was relatively minor (I imagine you're not breaking the bank with your monthly GitHub bill) and by giving it to you their downside is the small temporary discount while the upside is a nice blog post praising them and lock-in loyalty for the rest of the life of your company.

Big company example would be Amazon. Every time I have an issue and email them I am amazed by how reasonable they are in the first email. No "here's a bad offer and I'll go talk to 'my boss' about a better one only once you yell at me", no "sorry you should have read the terms of service" but rather "here's the obviously reasonable solution, have a nice day sir"

sethbannon• 11 years ago

That's a good point. The ability to talk with someone at a company who's empowered to make such decisions might be what makes the difference here.

astanway• 11 years ago

Another big fan of Chris DeMayo here - extremely helpful NYC startup accountant, highly recommend him for all.

patio112• 11 years ago

This is, FWIW, an absolutely no-brainer move for almost any SaaS business: if a user signals severe financial stress and needs a one-time discount, give it to them. You have two options: a) future LTV = 0 (they cancel immediately) b) future LTV > 0.

This is not a hard call. I have, incredibly, had some people disagree with me loudly on this.

My usual copy for this is: "Don't worry Bob. I've run a small business for 8 years. We've all been there before. Tell you what, I'm comping you the next three months. You worry about getting things humming again, I'll deal with the accountant. [+]"

[+] A little white lie. My accountant naturally does not ordinarily second guess my marketing decisions, particularly when they're numbered in the low three figures, but injecting him into the discussion keeps us honest about this being a matter of business-to-business professional courtesy rather than personal charity (which doesn't have an expiration date).

elamadej• 11 years ago

In some cases the LTV <0 (when you need to give a refund to a company that might go out of business). That's a harder call.

patio112• 11 years ago

At low-touch SaaS price points, eating a one-month refund shouldn't take more than an eyeblink of consideration. (That's certainly how long the credit card company will give it when they call to chargeback anyhow.)

lubos• 11 years ago

How is this a startup solidarity? I'm pretty sure all those companies couldn't care less whether he is a startup or a plumber. They would react the same just on the basis that he has asked nicely and they were confident he can get through it. What other options did they have? Lose him as a customer?

Startup Solidarity

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