Earning Income and Building a Community with AppSumo | The Success Story of the Top Performed Deal on the AppSumo

Can an epic triumph be forged within a mere four days? Let’s dive into the remarkable journey of how Retable reaches such astonishing heights!

Retable made $154,358.75 in sales just in 4 days!

Sounds like a joke, right? But it is not. Let me explain to you how. 🙌🏻

Let’s rewind a bit. A year ago, the AppSumo team reached out to us with an enticing proposition to introduce Retable on their platform. As a startup in its early stages, aiming to attract initial corporate clientele, this opportunity appeared intriguing. We must confess, we gave it serious thought. We analyzed other products featured on AppSumo, delved into the expectations of its user base, and assessed the potential usefulness of Retable for those users.

There were countless aspirations and numerous paths we wished to explore. Retable was still relatively fresh, with a long journey ahead, and we were well aware of that fact. We were so immersed in our ideas that it became a challenge to rein them in at times. Our team was a veritable fountain of creativity, generating captivating concepts each day. We viewed Retable as more than a mere product to be sold; we were determined to push our boundaries. However, after thorough research and evaluation, we concluded that we weren’t quite ready for this launch (Thank goodness!).

And now, the moment has arrived. We were fully prepared for our much-anticipated launch on AppSumo. 🎯

The invaluable feedback we received from our customers and the collaborative efforts with other SaaS companies provided us with a boost of confidence. Encouraged by these interactions, we reached out to the AppSumo team once again. It marked a significant milestone for us when they offered to feature Retable as a selected deal. This meant that not only would we have a two-month presence on AppSumo, but we would also extend an exclusive 10% discount to AppSumo users on Sumo Day, the platform’s biggest sale event. The excitement was palpable because, despite our extensive research, we couldn’t predict the exact outcomes we would encounter.

To gain further insights, we engaged in conversations with fellow startups who had already experienced an AppSumo launch, eagerly absorbing their experiences and advice. Their wisdom proved invaluable, as we now find ourselves encountering almost everything they had mentioned. Throughout this journey, we have forged meaningful connections with like-minded entrepreneurs from around the globe, offering support and camaraderie. And now, with our preparations complete, we were ready to embark on this thrilling endeavour!

AppSumo Launch: Sumo Day

And on June 11, 2023, Retable’s AppSumo launch started! We launched Retable to all AppSumo users with 92% discounts during Sumo Day, which will last from 11 to 15 June. Retable will be launched with its lifetime deal on AppSumo for 2 months, but there was something else that made the 4-day Sumo Day special. Additional 10% off all discounts for everyone!

As Sumo Day kicked off, an exciting journey began for all of us. We wasted no time in spreading the word about Retable’s launch through various channels: Facebook groups, Twitter, email, LinkedIn, and more. In no time, people started buzzing about Retable, leaving reviews and expressing their curiosity. We made it a priority to respond to over 1,000 questions on Facebook alone. Meanwhile, AppSumo users flooded us with inquiries, and we were thrilled to see such genuine interest in Retable.

To provide faster assistance, we integrated a live support chat within Retable. As soon as people started trying out Retable, they reached out to us with their questions. It was an incredible experience to connect with thousands of people from all around the world in such a short span of time. This intense and busy process continued for four days straight (yes, four sleepless nights, but it was definitely worth it!).

At the end of the first day, we were overjoyed with the results. Let’s take a look at the numbers together.

While our AppSumo campaign will continue for two months, the success we achieved in just four days reassured us that we have created a well-analyzed and thoughtfully developed product that genuinely meets people’s needs.

The results of our AppSumo campaign have received praise not only from the AppSumo team but also from many other startups. And yes, the hardworking Retable team, consisting of 19 incredible individuals, deserves the highest recognition. We are immensely proud that Retable offers features that go above and beyond what our competitors, whom we once considered as major players, can provide. However, we must admit that we never expected to become the best-selling new deal on Sumo Day. A big thank you to the Retable team for making this success possible! 💙

🎯 Results from Retable’s AppSumo Launch

• Total Sales: $154,358.75
• Net Revenue: 30,871.75
• Unique Visitors: 16,087
• Sales: 1505
• Conversion Rate: 9.51 (This is normally 5% on average for other products)
• Reviews: 21 (yes, 5 tacos!) 🚀
• AppSumo Questions: 122
• New Community Members: +284
• The best-selling new deal of the Sumo Day! 🌟
• Questions & Reviews From Other Social Channels: +750

How did Retable manage to become the top-performing new deal on Sumo Day? 🚀

Let’s be honest, it wasn’t an easy journey. We made it a point to prioritize delivering exceptional support. Ensuring that people could easily reach us and even connect directly with our founder became a top priority. We went the extra mile to explain Retable in the best possible way and provide thoughtful responses to their questions. Each and every request was carefully analyzed, and we took note of the most commonly sought-after features. In record time, we incorporated these requested features into our roadmap, keeping everyone in the loop about Retable’s progress. We even made it a point to inform users whenever we fixed a bug.

But here’s the real magic — our users have now become the driving force behind Retable’s development!

We’ve cultivated a highly engaged and active Discord community. Our community members have taken it upon themselves to help one another, going above and beyond by answering questions from fellow users. It’s truly incredible and speaks volumes about the supportive environment we’ve built.

AppSumo users are seasoned experts when it comes to lifetime deals, and we’ve learned so much from them. Many of these users have tried out countless products and possess an impressive level of technological savvy. They know exactly what they need, and their invaluable feedback has been instrumental in making Retable even better every single day. Retable has now become a product that caters specifically to their needs. And the best part is, these enhancements benefit not only AppSumo users but also our customers who were with us before the AppSumo launch.

Let’s not forget, customer experience is everything. It’s the customers who truly define and shape a product, transforming it into something extraordinary.

What is Retable aiming to do?

Let’s step back before we started developing Retable. We all rely on various data management tools in our personal and professional lives, and it’s hard to imagine how things would work without them. Excel has been a trusty companion since the early days of computers, especially for our grandmothers. But as our data management needs evolved, we found ourselves using multiple tools that fell messy, and it became tiresome to juggle them all. We needed a solution that would centralize and streamline our data management. That’s where Retable comes in.

Retable set out to revolutionize data management by combining the power of databases with the flexibility of online spreadsheets. Our goal was to provide users with a clean and user-friendly database where they can effectively manage their data. Not only that, but we wanted to empower users to create customized business applications using that data right within the platform they’re already using. No more tedious formula writing or jumping between different applications to track projects, calendars, and other data points. With Retable, we aimed to simplify and optimize the whole process.

During our journey, we explored numerous tools, assessing their strengths and weaknesses, all with the aim of delivering the best possible solution without overwhelming our users. We wanted to create a tool that anyone can use effortlessly and benefit from across various use cases. Our mission is to make data management a breeze, so you can focus on what matters most — growing your business and making informed decisions.

What did we do to prepare for AppSumo?

We mentioned earlier that AppSumo reached out to us a year ago to launch Retable. We were aware that we weren’t ready for that launch. So, we set a goal for ourselves and spent a whole year rolling up our sleeves to make Retable an optimal solution for everyone. It’s challenging to summarize everything we did, but here’s a brief overview for you.

• We have demo meetings for countless companies and tried to understand their needs
• We identified the weaknesses and strengths of Retable with the use cases we learned from the companies
• We detected the sectors where we can position Retable
• We have created an extensive website and content library
• We’ve run marketing activities on all social channels
• We started to automate marketing processes
• We managed development and marketing in alignment and focused on our customers’ needs by getting to know them better
• We analyzed our competitors and used those products like real users. We identified the difficulties of these products and tried to do it better in Retable
• We brainstormed on really niche features and developed them.
• We launched sub-products on Product Hunt and got our first launch experience (this product has been the most upvoted product in Product Hunt so far in its category)
• We have grown our teams
• We started acquiring customers from different countries
• We launched our enterprise solutions and improved our relations with corporate customers
• We collaborated with other SaaS startups
• To support many small businesses, we have provided Retable’s solutions for free and onboard them
• We worked with NGOs and got some very pleasant use cases on how we can use Retable for the benefit of society (Retable was used in aid operations of NGOs during the great earthquake disaster in Turkey in February 2023 and integrated with other tools. In this project, dozens of people collaborated on the data flowing from WhatsApp chatbots to Retable in real-time and provided assistance to incoming help requests.)
• 14 new column types
• 5 new data views
• Organization & team management module
• Support for hundreds of formulas
• Integration with Zapier, Make.com, Pabbly, and Integrately
• Automation improvements
• UI & UX enhancements
• And numerous other developments…

That’s not all, but these were some of the milestones that were important for us. We are still working to do better.

What to expect during the preparation process for AppSumo?

Marketing: You will embark on a coordinated marketing process with the AppSumo team. This involves creating assets that best represent your brand, shooting demo videos, writing product descriptions, and more. Marketing is crucial because you need to effectively showcase and demonstrate your product to potential customers.

Testing: BetaLing testers within the AppSumo team will conduct comprehensive testing of your product. These tests will determine how suitable your product is for the AppSumo launch and provide valuable insights into its strengths and weaknesses. It’s important to take the feedback from these tests seriously and address any development requests within the specified deadlines. BetaLing testers have a deep understanding of AppSumo users and can think like them, so their feedback is highly valuable. Before presenting your product to customers, consider the results of these tests. Here’s an example of Retable’s test results:

Development: After the testing phase, you will enter a development process to complete the tasks identified before the launch. During this process, you may need to prioritize these tasks over other non-essential development activities. Once you complete your development tasks, the AppSumo team will retest your product.

Community Building: To establish healthy communication with customers who purchase your product through AppSumo and help them better understand your product, you should start preparing for community building before the launch. Choose a widely used and accessible platform for your community. We chose Discord because it’s easy to manage and accessible to everyone. Create, announce, and increase engagement in your community before the launch. Also, make sure to direct all users who reach out to you through different channels to your community. By managing communication through a single channel, you can streamline your workflow. With proper community management, you’ll witness users supporting each other without needing your intervention.

Keep your community informed about all developments, whether it’s a new feature or a bug fix.

Keep them updated on all the changes and incorporate their requests into your development plans.

Networking: Reach out to companies that have previously launched on AppSumo and listen to their experiences. This will give you insights into scenarios you may encounter. These experiences are invaluable and will greatly help you in preparing for your own launch. Also, join Facebook communities related to your industry. Start engaging with people in these communities before your launch. Remember not to advertise, but focus on building relationships and helping each other. When the time comes, they will be happy to support you.

Communication Planning: AppSumo users are predominantly from the United States, but there are thousands of users from various time zones. To provide support across different time zones, plan your communication strategy accordingly. Develop a shift schedule that ensures efficient support without overwhelming your team.

Product Roadmap: Seeing the progress of your product will always make your customers happy. Before your AppSumo launch, create a public roadmap and showcase the status of the tasks to your audience. Here’s an example for you: https://www.retable.io/roadmap

It’s the time: AppSumo launch 🚀

If you launch on Sumo Day like us, you’ll face an extremely intense period in the first 4 days. It’s undoubtedly challenging, but equally enjoyable. Managing a successful launch process will be satisfying despite all the fatigue because the attention your product receives will be rewarding.

From the first day of the launch, we focused on promptly answering people’s questions across all channels. We received the most questions from AppSumo and Facebook. Facebook has a critical importance. It’s essential to find and engage with the most popular lifetime deal communities and announce your launch there. As a statistical observation, in the early days, the questions were mostly basic and easy to answer. However, as the days went by, the questions became more technical and challenging to answer. The main reason for this is that people can quickly access fundamental answers about your product by reading the responses you provide before. As interest in your product grows, it attracts more attention from a wider audience.

Alongside questions, you’ll also receive numerous feature requests. It’s nearly impossible to fulfil all of them, but you should definitely record and evaluate the requests with your team. The important thing is to prioritize requests that align with your product and can benefit its entirety. Even if there are requests that you won’t fulfil, be honest and clearly explain the reasons to the users. Remember, they will understand you when you explain it correctly. They are not obligated to purchase if it doesn’t meet their needs, so avoid making wrong promises. When responding to requests, try to understand the users’ use cases accurately. It’s crucial for them to know that you have developed the product together. Be cautious when making commitments because, remember, they will remind you of those promises :)

An example table that requests from Retable users.

In the first 4 days we had;

• 1,500 Facebook questions
• +200 email
• +1,000 online chat questions
• 122 AppSumo questions
• +∞ Offering a review in exchange for a tier upgrade (Red flag)

There will be users who offer to provide a review in exchange for a tier upgrade. You should be cautious about these requests because AppSumo considers this as a red flag. Unfortunately, it can result in the termination of your launch. You should never request reviews in exchange for a tier upgrade and should not approve such requests.

The first 4 days are truly crucial, but the most important is the 4th day. If you launched your product on Sumo Day, AppSumo offers a +10% discount during the first 4 days, and users who don’t want to miss out on the deal tend to make purchases, particularly on the 4th day. Therefore, it’s important to focus on receiving positive reviews until the 4th day. Here is a comparison of Retable’s results from the first 4 days and the first month:

Here’s the daily sales trend of Retable for the first 4 days;

Here’s the daily conversion rate of Retable for the first 4 days;

And although it’s impossible to add ll of them here, here are some of the reviews we received from various channels during our launch;

Some awards that felt us extremely happy! 🌟

The Top Performing New Deal of Sumo Day

The Best Lifetime Deal of the Week

Tips to Create a Successful Community:

• Choose accessible and widely used platforms for everyone.
• Organize yourselves to provide support across all time zones.
• Embrace all positive/negative ideas from community members with maturity and tolerance.
• Be active on multiple platforms but try to direct people to a single channel.
• Attempt to respond to questions with voice videos and hold quick real-time meetings with users.
• Don’t forget to show appreciation and express gratitude.
• Adopt a communication style that allows community members to help each other.
• Announce even the smallest changes you make.
• Avoid being too demanding.
• Involve community members in your product development processes.
• 🌟 Learn to say no.
• 🌟 Be natural :)

TLDR; Experiences and Tactics

• Try to launch your product on Sumo Day
• Ensure you have a well-prepared demo video and FAQ videos
• The best support will come from those who know the product best, so if you’re thinking about outsourcing support, start training those outsource employees months before the launch
• Focus on Facebook, as you’ll receive the highest engagement there
• Don’t neglect your routine marketing activities
• Try to engage more with people who leave negative comments and help them regardless of their attitude
• Avoid any actions that could be considered red flags
• Group requests based on priority and workload, and plan flexible sprints to develop them quickly
• Try not to overload your development team with support tasks, be a facilitator
• Prepare for the final days of the launch and create special campaigns if necessary on the last day.
• And feel free to contact me if you need any assistance :) https://www.linkedin.com/in/arzu-ozkan/

It was a great experience and you’ll learn so much from this process. Good luck! 🍀