6 Go-to-Market Lessons from WurkNow’s Journey in Enterprise Software
Success in enterprise software isn’t always about moving fast and breaking things. In a recent episode of Category Visionaries, WurkNow founder Sammy Singh shared how his company achieved 70-80% monthly growth by taking the opposite approach: moving deliberately and fixing things.
- Build What Customers Actually Need, Even If It Means Going Broader
Most startup advice suggests focusing on a narrow niche. But Singh’s experience reveals a different path. When customers identified gaps in WurkNow’s platform, the team responded by building solutions. “If someone’s matching an individual, they’re like, ‘oh, how do I track the time?’ We’re like, ‘oh God, we’re brand new, let’s solve that problem,'” Singh explains. While this approach consumed resources, it resulted in a comprehensive platform that genuinely serves customer needs.
- Turn Customers Into Investors
Rather than chasing traditional venture capital, WurkNow found success through customer investment. Singh shares, “Everything we have raised has come from friends, people we have done business with in the past. But the largest chunk came from our own clients who looked at our software and said gosh, if you’re solving this for me, I know others can use this.” This approach not only provided capital but also validated their product-market fit.
- Maintain High-Touch Customer Service, Even During Challenges
Despite the difficulties of COVID-19, when it was “near impossible to get someone on the phone, let alone on a meeting,” WurkNow maintained their commitment to customer success. As Singh notes, “Our folks are physically still showing up at clients, making sure success is occurring and then following up accordingly.” This dedication to customer service has been crucial to their growth.
- Plan for Longer Development Cycles
Singh advises founders to “Go slow to go fast,” noting that “what you think will take you one month is going to take you three to five months.” This realistic approach to planning helps manage both technical development and team morale. He suggests planning quarterly rather than monthly because “a quarter goes by sooner than what you think.”
- Focus on Building Trust in Regulated Industries
In highly regulated industries like staffing, trust is paramount. WurkNow addressed this by developing features like blockchain-based time card tracking to create immutable records for compliance. This focus on trust has helped them win enterprise clients and build lasting relationships.
- Prioritize Customer Success Over Growth
Singh’s philosophy is simple but powerful: “Work as hard as possible to make who you’re serving as successful as possible, and it’ll come back to you in leaps and bounds.” This approach has driven both product development and customer acquisition, resulting in consistent growth without sacrificing quality or customer satisfaction.
The results speak for themselves. WurkNow is “pretty much at track of doubling our business from last year 70% to 80% growth every month versus last year.” More importantly, they’re building toward a bigger vision: becoming “the authority of hourly labor” with “a fair, equitable and amazing user base system that really flags not only the client but as well as the temporary worker.”
For founders building enterprise software, particularly in regulated industries, these lessons challenge conventional wisdom about rapid scaling and minimal viable products. Sometimes, the path to success requires a more measured approach focused on solving real customer problems, maintaining high-touch relationships, and building trust through reliable technology solutions.
As Singh’s experience shows, this patient, customer-centric approach can lead to sustainable growth and strong market position, even in highly competitive and regulated industries.