Flowsell.me — a startup that helps service businesses manage their customer relationships

The CEO and founder of the Kazakh startup Flowsell.me shared how it all began and discussed achievements over the past years. Read more in our article.

Dauren Makenov, city — Astana, CEO and founder of Flowsell.me, LinkedIn, Facebook

How it all began

It all started in 2013 when my wife, Aigerim, opened a beauty salon. At that time, I was working in the corporate sector but simultaneously helped her manage the business.

Over the years in the beauty industry, we went from managing franchises to creating our own network of SuperMe salons. Managing six salons in two of Kazakhstan's largest cities, I constantly faced challenges in effectively managing the customer base.

We tried using tools like Yclients and AmoCRM, but they did not meet our needs for automation and customer retention. Then, in 2019, the idea to create Flowsell.me was born — a service that helps small and medium-sized businesses in the service sector and HoReCa retain and bring back customers.

Startup launch

The launch of Flowsell.me coincided with the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, which created additional challenges but also opened up new opportunities. Beauty salons, including ours, were forced to close and reopen depending on quarantine measures. We urgently needed a tool for rapid customer notification.

Using SMS aggregators turned out to be too expensive and inconvenient. In just a couple of weeks, we spent around 300,000-400,000 tenge on SMS notifications. This pushed us to create our own solution.

The first steps were difficult. We faced challenges in finding reliable developers. But we did not give up, and eventually found talented guys in Astana who helped us refine and launch Flowsell.me.

Target audience

Flowsell.me is designed for small and medium-sized businesses, especially in the service sector and HoReCa. We help companies effectively work with their customer base, automate communication, increase repeat visits, and improve the customer experience.

Today, we have more than 2,400 clients in 68 countries. Among our clients are large chain beauty salons in Russia and Kazakhstan, medical centers, and educational platforms.

Our service helps increase revenue by 26.7% in just three months through the use of RFM segmentation of the customer base.

Incubation programs

We actively participate in various programs to develop our startup. In 2022, we completed the Google for Startups program. In 2023, we participated in Hero Training from Draper University in Silicon Valley. And in 2024, we were invited to the AlchemistX accelerator in Silicon Valley.

Challenges

One of the main challenges for us was creating a product that truly solves business problems. We continuously improve our service based on feedback from clients. Another difficulty is working with the different time zones of our clients around the world. We created a system that operates 24/7 to ensure support for all users.

Additionally, we faced the problem of finding talented personnel — it is becoming increasingly difficult to find qualified specialists, especially in the IT sector.

Another challenge has been the constant increase in customer acquisition costs. Each year, marketing and sales expenses grow, requiring us to constantly optimize our strategies for attracting and retaining customers.

Achievements

In 2022-2023, we achieved impressive results. Our LTV — lifetime value of a customer — is $760. At the same time, our monthly churn rate is 4.7%. Our CAC, or customer acquisition cost, is $101, and the LTV/CAC ratio is 7.5%.

Plans

By the end of this year, we plan to significantly strengthen our position in the American market. We already have integrations with Shopify and Yelp platforms, as well as our first clients in the US.

A key element of our growth strategy is an innovative AI assistant that we have already developed and are actively selling. This product was created in response to the requests of our clients, who, after implementing our service, saw a three-to-five-fold increase in customer communications.

Our AI assistant effectively handles incoming traffic, correctly qualifies potential clients, nurtures leads, and passes prepared clients to the second line of sales. One of the key advantages of our AI assistant is its ability to handle more than 500 conversations simultaneously and operate around the clock, significantly improving the efficiency of our clients' work.

We have already adapted our AI assistant for different business sectors, allowing us to offer specialized solutions for a wide range of companies. Among our clients:

— educational platforms, such as Qalan
— mortgage brokers, including Ipoteka Group
— real estate sales centers and real estate agencies
— insurance companies
— microfinance organizations
— medical centers.

Considering the unique needs and communication specifics in each of these industries, we ensure the most effective interaction.

Our AI assistant helps businesses automate and optimize customer service processes. This solution not only increases the quantity and quality of communications but also significantly boosts the conversion rates and revenue of our clients.

Our goal is to become a key partner for businesses in the field of customer service and communication automation, helping companies adapt to the rapidly changing digital world.