It’s the buzzword that business owners love to hate: innovation. It can be ambiguous and difficult to define at the best of times but, ironically, when it happens, you’ll know. A worldwide leader in finance specialising in small business offerings, Xero is the cloud-based accounting software paving the way for all accounting software. When it comes to innovative businesses, Xero has not dropped the ball on maintaining its competitive edge thanks to the driving force behind the platform; the people.
Beyond the extensive catalogue of business awards dedicated to innovation and forward-thinking under their belts, Xero has become a household name in the SME world for good reason. Dissecting how they have ‘fallen’ into this success is a great way for any business owner to feel inspired and excited about the future, but how have they reached this level of consistent growth as a SaaS business?
First-hand experience
Like many business owners, Rod Drury, the founder of Xero, was struggling with his current accounting software and saw a significant gap in the market, a prime opportunity to create something better. His passion for the software grew out of frustration as someone who felt the solution was not a ‘dream’ but something that could help other business owners who were in the same position with their current providers. Armed with this experience, Drury was able to address the specific pain points that were not being solved by those who are now his competitors, and it has proven to be a big payoff.
World-Class Customer Value
From round the clock support to their actively used ‘feature request section’ of their community site, Xero has blossomed into one of the leading customer-centric platforms that exist for small businesses today. One of the primary reasons the company has been driven in this direction is thanks to the internal ‘inside-out approach’ whereby they focus heavily on hiring employees who have a shared purpose and goal to create a product that has a positive impact on the wider community. To ensure the extensive ecosystem of suppliers, partners, and customers consistently have a 10/10 experience with Xero, they understand it is a ripple effect from the inside out.
Consistent Messaging
What may seem like a given in 2020 to some, is often hard to come by when it comes to businesses communicating directly to their customers in a hyper-personalised manner without crossing a line. True innovation happens when there is a significant and measurable increase in value for customers. Xero excels at providing the right type of information and content to the right group of customers at the right time by sharing specific guides for small businesses and accountants alongside training courses, blogs, and podcasts to engage with their community and share relevant tips and tricks. With most business owners not enjoying the luxury of spare time; having the right type of help can provide huge value when it comes to both time and money.
Utilising AI
Xero Central is an intuitive, personalised hub of online content built on data that has been accumulated to create a customer experience like no other. The team at Xero has come a long way to be able to leverage data and insights from their current customer base to keep personalisation at the forefront of each customer’s journey with Xero.
Innovation is a concept we stand behind when it comes to our business programs and engagement platforms here at WorkPlan. Details matter now more than ever when it comes to keeping your team on the same page and connected no matter the climate. Get in touch with us today to keep your business moving in the right direction!
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