“How we've built a product people love” by Steve Anavi

Summary

The speaker, despite being sick, shares the journey of Conto, a modern business banking platform launched in 2016, aimed at addressing the dissatisfaction in the banking industry. Conto focuses on a killer product, stellar support, and clear pricing, achieving high NPS scores. The talk delves into the challenges of scaling while maintaining customer-centric practices, emphasizing the importance of culture over processes, and the need to prioritize customer success metrics. The speaker advocates for daily practices that genuinely improve customer satisfaction, using anecdotes over data, and promoting a 'one piece flow' for efficiency and quality.

Takeaways

• 🎤 The speaker is passionate about being on stage despite being sick and emphasizes the importance of not missing opportunities to connect with an audience.
• 🚀 The founding story of Conto began in 2016 with the goal to serve a large, underserved market in Europe with modern business banking solutions.
• 📈 The banking industry had a negative Net Promoter Score (NPS), indicating a high level of customer dissatisfaction which Conto aimed to address.
• 💡 Conto's vision has been consistent over the years: to be an all-in-one finance app for SMEs, focusing on a business account and finance tools.
• 🛠️ The company's early strategy focused on three pillars: a killer product that is easy and delightful to use, stellar 24/7 customer support, and clear pricing.
• 📊 Conto has achieved a high NPS and positive customer reviews, indicating success in their approach to customer satisfaction.
• 🔄 The speaker discusses the challenges of scaling a company, including maintaining a customer-centric culture as the company grows.
• 🤔 The importance of not assuming that all employees are focused on customers at all times, especially as the company scales.
• 🛑 The realization that traditional processes and 'hustle' may not work at scale, and the need for a cultural shift towards customer satisfaction as a practice.
• 📝 The emphasis on values and leadership principles as a way to embed customer focus into the company's daily operations.
• 🔍 The preference for anecdotal evidence over data when building products, as the 'average customer' does not exist and real customer experiences are paramount.

Q & A

What was the speaker's initial condition before going on stage?

The speaker was sick with a broken voice but took drugs to ensure they could perform on stage.

When was Conto started and what was its initial focus?

Conto was started in 2016, focusing on addressing the underserved modern business banking needs of 25 million SMEs in Europe.

What was the Net Promoter Score (NPS) of the banking industry when the speaker started Conto?

The banking industry had a negative NPS, with numbers ranging from minus 13 to minus 10.

What were the three pillars of Conto's strategy in the early days?

The three pillars were a killer product that is super easy to use and delightful, stellar 24/7 customer support with a human touch and short wait times, and clear pricing.

What is the current NPS of Conto according to the speaker?

Conto's current NPS is around 74, which is significantly high and consistent.

How did Conto initially acquire customers without advertising?

Conto relied on NPS-driven word-of-mouth from satisfied customers, often through personal networks.

What is the speaker's view on the importance of customer satisfaction in a growing company?

The speaker believes that customer satisfaction should not be a project or process, but a practice and culture ingrained in the company's model.

What misconception does the speaker address about customer expectations regarding new features?

The misconception is that customers always expect new features; however, they actually want existing features to work well and provide value.

What is the 'One Piece Flow' approach that the speaker advocates for in product development?

The 'One Piece Flow' approach encourages focusing on one task or feature at a time to completion, optimizing for speed and customer value delivery.

What is the speaker's stance on using data versus anecdotes when building products?

The speaker suggests that while data is important, relying solely on it can lead to overlooking individual customer experiences. Anecdotes can often reveal issues that data might not capture.

What is the concept of 'Kaizen' as mentioned by the speaker?

Kaizen, derived from lean management, means 'change for the better' and represents an ongoing activity or practice of continuous improvement, rather than a one-off process.

How does the speaker define the 'Conto way'?

The 'Conto way' is a set of practices and mental models that prioritize customer focus and satisfaction, leadership principles, daily problem-solving, and working one piece at a time to ensure speed and quality.