From good to great: How SaaS shapes the customer engagement of tomorrow for consumer brands?

Constant innovation and a profound understanding of customer needs are crucial for maintaining relevance in the ever-evolving SaaS industry. And it goes beyond just deciphering customer requests. True insight is gleaned by actively listening to their perspectives and aligning innovations with their overarching business goals. Raviteja Dodda, Founder and CEO of MoEngage, emphasised these principles during a compelling discussion with Jeff Klaus, Head of Worldwide ISV Strategy and Development at AWS India. This discussion is part of the SaaS Scions web series, jointly hosted by Business Insider India and AWS India.

Dodda underscored the foresight required to anticipate how enterprise brands will leverage SaaS products in the next five years, stressing on the pivotal role of forward-thinking in fostering innovation and evolution within companies. This strategic approach involves meeting customers’ current needs and addressing future requirements, thus ensuring a cycle of improvement.

The conversation delved into the significance of generative AI in enhancing customer experience and the interconnectedness between technology and innovation in the SaaS industry. Regardless of the industry, be it e-commerce, retail, or financial services, technology helps decipher consumer behaviour. By harnessing the power of AI-driven personalization and automation, enterprise companies can extract valuable insights about their customers, enabling them to craft more tailored and effective engagement approaches.

Speaking about the importance of AI within his company, Raviteja outlined their journey – commencing with their investment in AI capabilities in 2016, just two years after the inception of their venture. They bring all engagement channels to one platform through strategic integration of AI and automation. This empowers consumer brands to guide customers through different life cycles and stages. By leveraging AI, MoEngage helps identify the optimal engagement moment for each customer and the type of content that drives high conversions, fine-tune the message cadence, and profile customers based on their propensities.

Sharing suggestions and best practices that have helped MoEngage capture the market beyond India, Raviteja explained that they have constantly evolved their go-to-market (GTM) approach over the past nine years, especially in the SaaS landscape. Recognizing the time it takes to witness tangible results in SaaS endeavours, he emphasised the need to sow seeds in the present to drive growth in the future.

"We have taken our GTM structure geographically and have GTM teams independently for each geography," Raviteja added. He credited their success to recruiting adept market launchers who spearhead the initial zero-to-one phase in each market, bringing seamless collaboration between sales, customer success, and marketing.

For smaller SaaS enterprises grappling with uncertainties about initiating customer events or ensuring customer satisfaction, Raviteja advises leaping forward – underlining the direct correlation between brand awareness and accelerated growth.

Sharing his top recommendations for others in the industry, Raviteja said that the first crucial resource is honesty about the product market fit, the right value proposition, and whether it resonates with the customer.

"Don't be a tourist," he added. He cautioned against playing it by the ear in the initial months without a long-term plan. "Do different keywords to get up in terms of establishing the PMF, build a strong founding team, and scale it from there," Raviteja concluded.

Raviteja's insights are a blueprint for navigating the dynamic SaaS landscape, advocating a blend of innovation, localization, and steadfast commitment to long-term goals.

Disclaimer: This article is generated and published by the Insider Studios team. You can get in touch with them at insiderstudios@businessinsider.in