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After the Launch: 3 Critical Areas That Can Make or Break ISVs
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Launching a product on Salesforce’s AppExchange is a huge achievement for ISVs (Independent Software Vendors). But that’s just the start of the journey. The real challenge begins after the launch, when Salesforce ISVs have to ensure their product succeeds commercially and operationally. Many ISVs make the mistake of focusing solely on product development, without paying enough attention to the strategies needed to sustain and grow their business after launch.
In this blog, we’ll discuss three critical areas that often challenge ISVs after they launch—and how to overcome them with a solid plan.
1. Mastering Your AppExchange Tools
When launching on the AppExchange, Salesforce provides a variety of tools to manage your product’s intellectual property (IP) and transactions, such as License Management Application (LMA), Channel Order App (COA), and Checkout Management App (CMA). While these tools are incredibly helpful, they can be overwhelming for new ISVs.
Imagine this scenario: you’ve successfully listed your app, and prospects start coming in. But instead of being directed to the live version of your product, they’re sent to a demo org that you forgot to deactivate. The result? Potential customers are frustrated by an incomplete experience, and you’ve lost valuable leads—potentially handing them over to your competitors.
Take the time to learn the nuances of these tools. For instance, LMA helps track the licenses of users testing your product, ensuring that you can follow up with trial users and convert them into paying customers. However, if not set up properly, you might miss out on these critical follow-ups. Another example is FMA (the Feature Management App), which allows you to control feature access based on licenses, but if misconfigured, it could lead to a limited user experience, frustrating admins who are evaluating your product.
Lastly, don’t underestimate the power of Salesforce’s analytics tools. AppExchange App Analytics and AppExchange Marketplace Analytics are tools provided by Salesforce to Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) to gain insights into their apps and their marketplace performance. App Analytics offers ISVs detailed data about how users are interacting with their apps, including metrics like – installation rates, feature usage, user flows, API usage etc. Whereas, AppExchange Marketplace Analytics tool gives ISVs insights into their presence on the AppExchange marketplace, covering – listing views, lead generation, conversion rates, competitor comparisons etc.
How they help ISVs:
| AppExchange App Analytics | AppExchange Marketplace Analytics |
|---|---|
| ISVs can see what features are popular or underused, helping them prioritize updates and enhancements. | ISVs can measure the effectiveness of their listings, such as which keywords or descriptions drive more traffic. |
| Track errors and resolve issues proactively. | Track lead conversions to improve marketing strategies. |
| Understand customer behavior to improve the app’s user experience. | Compare performance with competitors to fine-tune market positioning. |
By analyzing these insights, you can identify potential drop-off points and refine your product or listing accordingly. For example, if your analytics show that users abandon their trials at a specific feature, that’s your cue to simplify or improve that feature.
Pro Tip: Schedule regular reviews of your AppExchange setup to ensure your demo environments, listings, and licenses are aligned with your business goals.
2. Building Exceptional Customer Support
Customer support for a Salesforce-based app can be tricky, especially if your support team is unfamiliar with the intricacies of the Salesforce platform. Customers expect quick resolutions when issues arise, but without in-depth Salesforce knowledge, your team may struggle to pinpoint whether the issue stems from your app, the platform itself, or even another 3rd-party app.
Picture this: A customer reaches out because their org is crashing after they installed your app. Your support team, unfamiliar with the Salesforce release cycle or potential conflicts with other apps, spends hours troubleshooting without realizing the problem stems from an API conflict caused by the latest Salesforce update. As a result, your customer is left frustrated, and your team is chasing a problem that wasn’t directly caused by your app.
To avoid these pitfalls, it’s crucial to equip your team with a solid understanding of Salesforce, beyond basic certifications. This includes providing them with insights into how Salesforce updates can impact your app and when to escalate issues to Salesforce support. Additionally, develop a clear process for handling bugs and errors. Should you push a patch immediately? Or will a pull upgrade be less disruptive? The ability to make these decisions quickly can save time and customer relationships.
Example: Imagine a customer has an issue after the latest Salesforce update. Your support team quickly identifies that it’s due to a new API change in the latest Winter release. Thanks to a solid knowledge of the platform, they can confidently advise the customer on the steps to resolve the issue, while your development team works on a permanent fix.
Pro Tip: Invest in ongoing Salesforce training for your support staff, and partner with Salesforce experts to build your team’s knowledge base.
3. Navigating Salesforce’s Release Cycle
Salesforce rolls out three major updates every year—Spring, Summer, and Winter—and each update can affect your app’s functionality. ISVs are given a pre-release window to test their apps, but many overlook this opportunity or don’t have the bandwidth to fully vet the new update.
Failing to prepare for these updates can have serious consequences. After a new Salesforce release, your support team could suddenly be flooded with calls from customers reporting issues with your app. Without thorough testing and preparedness, your team might struggle to provide immediate solutions, leading to poor customer reviews and even potential churn.
Consider this: During a Summer release, your app’s integration with a popular Salesforce API breaks because the API has been deprecated. You didn’t catch this in time, and now hundreds of users are unable to complete their workflows. As a result, your engineering team is forced to drop everything and work overtime to roll out a fix.
By proactively testing your app with each Salesforce release, you can catch issues early and ensure a smooth transition for your customers. Salesforce even provides a Pre-Release Org where you can test your app before the new features go live. Use this time to not only troubleshoot but also explore new opportunities for app enhancements. Each update introduces features that could add value to your product.
Example: Imagine your app leverages Salesforce’s API, and the latest Winter release introduces a new API feature that could enhance your product’s reporting capabilities. Instead of being caught off guard, you can use the pre-release window to integrate the new API functionality and even highlight this enhancement in your marketing efforts.
Pro Tip: Set up a regular testing schedule for Salesforce’s pre-release windows and assign specific team members to stay ahead of platform changes.
Don’t Navigate This Process Alone
The AppExchange journey can feel overwhelming, but you don’t have to do it alone. Being one of the top salesforce ISV partners, CEPTES, we’ve helped ISVs navigate every aspect of the AppExchange—from mastering Salesforce tools to streamlining customer support and managing platform updates. With over 15 years of experience, we’ve supported ISVs in optimizing their operations, freeing up resources, and driving commercial success.
Our PDO Services cover all of the challenges we’ve discussed, plus we are happy to help you with consultation and strategic roadmap so that you can confidently tackle the AppExchange ecosystem. Let’s turn these challenges into growth opportunities for your business.
Ready to take the next step? Let’s discuss and build your AppExchange strategy!
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Nilamani Das
Nilamani is a thought leader who champions the integration of AI, Data, CRM and Trust to craft impactful marketing strategies. He carries 25+ years of expertise in the technology industry with expertise in Go-to-Market Strategy, Marketing, Digital Transformation, Vision Development and Business Innovation.
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