Sayroom is a mobile app that captures the real voice of the customer for companies through the power of audio. People naturally react to the things around them; their mission is to capture those “in-the-moment” reactions and understand them. By leveraging the use of the customer’s actual voice, the platform enables marketers to capture candid reactions and feedback.
We met Sayroom at Flashpoint’s most recent demo day and wanted to bring their story to you. Read below for the scoop on Sayroom, Inc. from the  founder Jovonni Pharr.
Year/Date founded:
2011
Number of employees:
7 (check out the team)
Founders/Execs:
Jovonni Pharr (Founder)
Funding or bootstrapped?
Bootstrapped
How’d you get the idea for It?
We began to contemplate how we could get around the issue of “having something to say” to a company, and having to “jump through hoops” just to get that message heard by them.
Who are your customers and what do they get?
Our customers are marketers & market research types that have to capture consumer response data, and analyze it to answer business questions.
Who are your competitors and how do you stand out?
Our main competitors are companies like qualitrics, survey monkey, and many other consumer response platforms. The way we stand out is we put an emphasis on capturing those reactions that are more “in-the-moment”. Also being that we analyze audio primarily, that provides us with a different source of analytics.
Revenue model:
We are experimenting with different revenue models with our early access customers. This has included a subscription model, and a pay-as-you-go model. This way, companies only have to pay to analyze the responses that they received — opposed to paying per month, but not using the system.
How does ATL weave into your story?
Ah, Good Ol’ ATL. So Atlanta is where we launched the company, and Atlanta is also where we got accepted into Flashpoint — an accelerator at Georgia Tech. Through the Flashpoint program, this is where we really began to understand the customers that we were servicing, and were able to speak to over 200 of them face-to-face. This taught us a lot about the customer discovery process, and how to do it effectively. Finally, Atlanta is where our development lab is located —Â Nuracode. Being a part of Nuracode has really helped us refine our development talents & become a part of projects that are a lot bigger than ourselves.
Are there any tools/services you use to manage your day-to-day?
This may sound weird, but we built all of the tools and services that we seriously use. Of course we may use excel for financial needs, but our processes have been working for us with this custom approach. If you have any suggestions, let me know 🙂
Oh yea, and Gmail!
How do you stay connected with your audience/customers?
Well, we have a pretty strong following on Twitter & Instagram. Our audience tends to just keep up with us on there. Our blog is where we post updates that we want the public to just “stumble on”. Everything else is pretty much done as we go. Lastly, the face to face interactions with our audience is always the best route — we like hearing the support through our own ears.
How do you stay informed & on top of emerging trends?
Our entire team is very avid about reading research papers, and remaining updated on all of the technology that is making the headlines. We ensure to never let a relevant discovery or breakthrough slip past our radar.Â
If you could have one mulligan (do-over) in the process of launching and running this startup what would it be?
It’s very simple, we would begin the customer discovery endeavors that we learned at Flashpoint, as soon as we first launched. Could’ve, would’ve, should’ve, but we have learned to roll with the punches,and enjoy the journey that we are on.
What kind of mentor could you use the most right now?
We welcome all types of mentors from various backgrounds. We enjoy keeping up with the mentors that we have now. We take great pride in including them into our monthly/quarterly endeavors.
Is there anything else you need (that money can’t buy)?
We would love to have more business development guys on our team, as most of our are all developers by trade — we love the dynamic though 🙂
[Photo Credit:Â http://sayroom.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/4c43058e929711e39aae122a3fda00c8_8.jpg?w=940]
About the Author: Ryan is a well traveled Atlanta native, sunshine addict, and startup enthusiast. Lover of people, tacos, and lemonade. Professional busy bee.
