The post was originally published in Russian on Startup of the Day. Alexander kindly agreed to republish what we think is of great value to our readers.
When a potential client leaves their email address to a SaaS, they are instantly inside the database – they will receive warm-up letters and special offers, similar cases. If you subscribe, the content of those support letters will be different, but their amount will remain the same – now it becomes the struggle for keeping as opposed to attracting. If you stop paying, then you will receive a third series offering arguments to return.
Hourwork, the American startup of the day, transfers the same mechanics to working with candidates, employees, and former employees. From its point of view, a DoorDash carrier or a McDonald’s staff is the same marketing manipulation object, they need to be persuaded to come, stay, and return. Online letters are sent, surveys are offered. In the offline realm, Hourwork organizes supporting meetups between the employers and the employees.
As a result, the startup promises to double the number of candidates and increase the retention rate of the current workers by 30% – naturally, there is no independent evidence to support it. Either way, the clients observe some effect if they continue working with Hourwork.
From a distance, it seems that the magic here doesn’t lie in the specialized CRM but rather in the choice of offers and arguments, but it may be that the default templates are good enough and the share of consulting at the point of implementation is big.
The startup remains at a very early stage. It received USD 10M in its March round.
#crm #use #rounda #work #retention
Translation: Kostiantyn Tupikov
Alexander made his career in Russian internet companies including Mail.Ru, Rambler, RBC. From 2016 to 2018 he was Chief Strategy and Analytics officer in Mail.Ru Group. In this position, he worked on M&A, investments, and new project launches. In 2018 he became Deputy CEO in Citymobil, a Russian Uber-like company that was invested by Mail.Ru Group and Sberbank (the biggest Russian bank), then he left the company to launch his own projects. Now Alexander is a co-founder of United Investors – the platform for co-investments in Russian early-stage startups. His blog #startupoftheday (#стартапдня) is one of the most popular blogs about startups in Russia.
