Userlist: Revolutionizing SaaS Communication with Founders' Insights
Company profile
Company business details
Motivation to build the product
The founders were motivated by the need for better communication tools tailored for SaaS companies, recognizing that understanding user behavior is crucial for effective engagement and retention.Problem that their product solves
Userlist solves the problem of ineffective customer messaging in SaaS applications. The end users are SaaS companies that need to engage their customers effectively to improve retention and user satisfaction. Solving this problem is important as it directly impacts customer loyalty and business growth.Their unfair advantage
Userlist's unfair advantage lies in its focus on behavior-based messaging specifically for SaaS applications, allowing for more tailored and effective communication strategies compared to generic email marketing tools.Strategies
Idea Validation Stage
Customer Research and Interviews
In the early days of their startup, the founder emphasized the importance of conducting customer interviews to validate their assumptions about the target market. They implemented a round of interviews using the methodology from the book 'The Mom Test' by Rob Fitzpatrick, which focuses on understanding customer feelings and behaviors without directly pitching the product. This approach allowed them to gather insights on how potential customers were currently managing their businesses and what pain points they faced, which informed their product development.
Pre-Launch (Product Development & MVP)
Customer Research for Product Development
In the early stages of User List, Jane and her co-founder Benedict conducted extensive customer research to understand the needs of their target audience. They discovered that potential users wanted a tool that could consolidate all their email marketing needs into one platform. This insight led them to pivot from focusing solely on customer lifecycle emails to incorporating marketing emails, thus expanding their product offering to meet the demands of their users.
Iterative Positioning Changes
The team initially positioned their product as an email automation tool but later pivoted to customer messaging based on feedback and market research. They utilized April's method and created a blog post detailing their process of analyzing customer pains and clustering them into themes. This iterative approach to positioning helped them refine their messaging and align it with the needs of their target audience, ultimately leading to a more effective product launch.
Customer Interviews for Product Validation
Before launching Userlist, Jane Portman and her co-founder Claire Suellentrop conducted around 20 in-depth interviews with potential customers to understand their struggles with email automation. This research aimed to define their ideal customer and uncover specific pain points that would inform the product's development. They asked targeted questions about the users' experiences and needs, such as, 'What’s still really painful at this point?' This approach not only helped them refine their MVP but also shaped their go-to-market strategy.
Launch Stage
Behavior-Based Messaging Implementation
User List differentiates itself by offering behavior-based messaging capabilities, which require tracking user actions within the product. Jane explained that this approach allows for more personalized and relevant communication with users. They provide resources and templates to help customers plan and implement these strategies effectively, ensuring that users can leverage the full potential of the platform.
Learn more about Userlist
Jane Portman @Userlist. Core positioning for b2b SaaS
2Inspire Series – Interview with Jane Portman from Userlist
