#StartupsVsCovid19: SaaSBOOMi Sets Up Covid-19 Fund, Offers Counselling & More

Extending SaaSBOOMi from a yearly community event to a full-fledged startup support group, enterprise tech and SaaS entrepreneurs and investors are now scaling up efforts to help other businesses in the country.

Beyond sharing lessons and action plan to tackle Covid-19, the community is now setting up  COVID-19 SaaSBOOMi Fund. In a blog post, SaaSBOOMi team said that for some of the early-stage SaaS startups, a crisis of this magnitude can be existential.

“So we are in the process of putting together a COVID-19 SaaSBOOMi Fund,” it added. The group will support startups that need help in surviving this crisis over the next 9–12 months.

Further, the community is also looking to provide mental wellness counselling for founders and startup employees. “The kind of crisis we are going through can test our mental resilience and even affect employees’ morale overall. SaaSBOOMi is partnering with the WhiteSwan Foundation for focused counselling and workshops in these areas,” it added.

The community has also highlighted suggestions for SaaS startups:

• Think sustainability and not growth. Prepare for the next 12–18 months; this is not a 60/90-day crisis.
• Conserve cash — plan your scenarios including specific trigger points and timeframe for all cost cuts
• Talk to customers — people are more accessible. Show genuine warmth and understand them and be a partner.
• Double down on prospect conversations to understand any changes to the value proposition and help them realise that value faster
• Keep calm. Watch mental and physical health.

Earlier, SaaS unicorn Freshworks founder Girish Mathrubootham took up the onus to help SaaS community to tackle the business challenges. In a video addressed to founders who were part of SaaSBoomi, a yearly community event, Mathrubootham said that these are tough times and hence, several businesses and customers are suffering.

He also said that this quarter may have a smaller impact, but next quarter will have a larger impact on the company’s business. He suggested that CEOs need to re-examine the revenue cycles etc and should go into cash-conservation mode. With the pandemic locking people inside their homes, VC funding and investments are also expected to dry up.

“I am not here to give you panic. We will come out of this, bad times will end, it is important to manage bad times strongly. Companies with strong value systems, which manage their employees well will be able to retain talent. If we can take care of your employees, we can come out stronger,” he added.