In February 2024, Beamer’s multi-million-dollar acquisition of Userflow made headlines as both companies solidified their position as leading providers in the product engagement market. CEO Satya Ganni and Esben Friis-Jensen (Co-Founder and Chief Growth Officer, Userflow) are joining us at SaaStock USA for a fireside chat about what goes on behind the scenes during a deal like this one.

We sat down with Satya ahead of the conference to find out what to expect.

Can you tell me a bit about Beamer, Userflow, and the recent merger?

Beamer is a customer engagement platform that helps product teams and product marketers communicate with customers, gather feedback, and manage release notes. Userflow is a best-in-class user onboarding, guides platform that allows modern product teams to increase activation and feature adoption. 

Together, Beamer and Userflow are the foundation of a modern product team’s tech stack. This merger allows us to better serve the Product Management community with the strongest suite of product-led growth tools on the market. 

The journey to this deal, valued at $60M, started at SaaStock USA 2023 where Esben was approached by Camber Partners and introduced to Satya. Watch below to hear, in Esben’s words, how the deal unfolded.

How important is working with the right people in a deal like this? How do you go about building those relationships?

SaaS products meant for the product manager can seamlessly integrate, extending all the way from product integration, to co-marketing, and co-selling, and it’s this that lays the foundation for a successful partnership. It’s about recognizing that you are part of a broader ecosystem that sells to similar buyers or operates in adjacent markets. 

In every M&A deal, both buyer and seller need to have a shared vision for the future that sets operators, investors, customers, and employees up for success. For that to work, it’s important to build and nurture relationships across these groups over a period of time. Think of it like dating, before you fall in love and enter into a marriage.

With the Userflow merger, we know we can build an even stronger product toolkit that will supercharge product-led growth, boost user engagement, and increase product adoption for our customers.

What are your main focuses over the next 12 months? What about the biggest challenges you’re facing?

Our primary focus now is serving our customers with the highest level of product experience and customer support, while working on operational integrations across business functions, including HR/Finance, Sales & Marketing, Product, etc.

Both companies are PLG-first and customer-loved brands. While this is testament to what we’re building and gives us a loyal user base, it makes integrating the brands and product lines challenging. As we start this process, we’ll lean on our joint customers for direction and guidance on the most effective way to do this.

Where do you think the biggest opportunities lie for SaaS companies in 2024?

In the age of efficiency, there’s an opportunity to leverage your existing customer base both from an expansion and retention perspective. This way, customers are getting the most value for money, and your business can grow with them. It reduces reliance on acquisition and helps your company become more operationally efficient. Both are important while simultaneously getting to profitability, which is top of mind for every SaaS CEO, leadership team, and investor.

On that note, are there any lessons VC-backed companies can learn from bootstrapped ones when it comes to capital efficiency?

I think of this as a two-way street. There is no-doubt that VC backed companies can be  judicious around their spend on headcount, go-to-market (GTM), and new product investments, etc. VC-backed companies need to be thoughtful about the return on investment for every dollar they are spending, because they are trading equity and that equity isn’t going to come back if the money is spent.

If you could advise SaaS leaders to double down on one area throughout 2024, what would it be and why?

Predictable, profitable growth. To thrive in this market, leaders need to understand how they can reach a point of  predictable MoM growth, while at least forging a clear path to profitability.

You’ll be joining us in Austin to speak at SaaStock USA 2024. What three things are you most looking forward to?

There’s lots to look forward to! It’s going to be a great few days, but I’d say:

  • Meeting fellow SaaS operators—Founders, CEOs, VCs, CXOs, etc. 
  • Learning from my peers and exchanging notes on what’s working and what isn’t
  • Exploring possibilities together, meeting new people and understanding how we can help each other in our respective journeys

Hear more from Satya in Austin…

You can catch Satya Ganni and Esben Friis-Jensen talking about the Beamer/Userflow acquisition process at SaaStock USA:

  • When: Wednesday 14 May
  • Where: Scale Stage
  • Time: 11:00am