Zoho Corporation, a global tech company, announced the extension of Zoho for Startups to Australia. The Zoho for Startups program aims to empower all startups—from fintech, edtech and agritech, to healthtech, spacetech and beyond—with access to Zoho’s suite of over 55 apps and Zoho Wallet credits to explore the paid versions of any of the apps for 360 days.
What does the program bring to Australia?
Many startups overlook the importance of digitisation or automation until later in their journey. Only in hindsight do they understand the importance of implementing trustworthy, scalable, and affordable software. Through Zoho for Startups, Zoho is solving that by offering them with enterprise-grade technology that gives them financial flexibility and operational security, to experiment with the apps they want based on their goals and growth strategies.
In addition to Zoho’s 55+ apps and Wallet credits, the program provides eligible early-stage Aussie startups with consultation and support and by hosting customised workshops, with the goal of empowering them with the applications they need to scale, evolve and succeed from day one. Since its launch in 2017, Zoho for Startups has seen significant growth.
In India, where the Zoho for Startups program was first launched, the innovative program has reached 12,000 startups with over 100 collaborators, from incubators, accelerators and co-working spaces, to Government bodies and policymakers. In MEA, for example, 2,000 new users joined the program with a 50% conversion rate, along with over 20 collaborators.
The Zoho for Startups program has been customised and personalised for the Australian market, where it launched in conjunction with Zoho’s user conference Zoholics Sydney.
The launch comes as Zoho celebrates becoming the first bootstrapped SaaS company to reach 100 million global users, just a year after reaching USD$1billion in annual revenue. In Australia, Zoho has experienced a 21% CAGR increase in the last five years. Zoho is proud to have grown steadily and responsibly as, without ever taking external funding. This allows the company to preserve its long-term vision and culture without outside pressure or influence.
It’s also what keeps the company centred on its values, such as debt-free growth and serving customers closer to where they are—a product of the firm’s transnational localism efforts. As it looks to maintain that trajectory locally, Zoho for Startups will be a key focus for customer acquisition and for building a thriving community of users in the startup sector.
What does the program mean for Zoho?
“Australia has a thriving startup ecosystem, and being able to cater for that through the local launch of Zoho for Startups is incredibly exciting. Zoho for Startups exists to solve one of the most common challenges early-stage startups encounter: not investing time in researching SaaS tools,” commented Kuppulakshmi Krishnamoorthy, Global Head, Zoho for Startups.
“By design, startups are built to scale quickly. When they evolve from an idea or concept to a functioning business, founders and decision makers are easily distracted by funding, infrastructure, mentors, hiring, go-to market strategy and more,” Krishnamoorthy added.
“But Zoho for Startups is the foundation that underpins that, providing them with not only the software, but the agility, contingency and scalability that are vital in startup environments. Ultimately, SaaS adoption must be viewed as a long-term investment, through a lens of ‘can we scale using our software? And how do those solutions interact with each other?’.”
“Through Zoho for Startups, we help founders and decision makers plan, optimise and develop a holistic view of their software-as-a-solution adoption,” Krishnamoorthy said.
“The groundbreaking Zoho for Startups program has been customised and personalised to the Australian market, and as Zoho continues its sizeable growth in Australia, we intend to grow the Zoho for Startups program too. Australia has a rapidly growing startup ecosystem, especially in cities like Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane,” added Krishnamoorthy.
“The country offers a supportive environment for startups, with various govt initiatives, incubators, accelerators, and funding opportunities available. Bringing Zoho for Startups to a country that wholeheartedly supports and champions entrepreneurship, endeavour and innovation is a proud moment for Zoho and a commitment we take very seriously.”
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