Estimated learn time: 13 minutes, 27 seconds
When TestDome was created, CEO and co-founder Mario Zivic knew the pre-employment testing software program firm wouldn’t be capable of depend on home gross sales to succeed.
“As a startup with solely two or three folks, it might be completely unimaginable to go worldwide with out this type of platform.”
Since selecting FastSpring as their service provider of file supplier, TestDome has seen quite a bit — together with regular progress round 30-40% per 12 months pre-pandemic, hiring market fluctuations in the previous few years, and in 2023, launching a brand new dwell interviews function and reassessing their take a look at questions to assist them keep forward of the AI curve (extra on that beneath).
Now as a profitable worldwide enterprise, TestDome has been with FastSpring by all of it, and even when different fee platforms launched intriguing new merchandise, Mario by no means noticed a great purpose to depart FastSpring.
Right here’s why.
Are you on the lookout for a service provider of file that can companion with you to develop your online business internationally? FastSpring offers an all-in-one fee platform for SaaS, software program, and digital items companies, together with VAT and gross sales tax administration, fee localization, and client assist. Arrange a demo or attempt it out for your self.
Promoting Software program Internationally With FastSpring
Croatia is a comparatively small nation with a inhabitants of solely 4 million folks. “We do lower than 1% of our enterprise in Croatia, so it’s probably not an enormous marketplace for us,” added TestDome’s head of buyer success and gross sales Igor Novosel. Promoting internationally is essential to their enterprise mannequin.
The Croatia-based firm was began across the time Croatia joined the European Union, however the nation additionally wouldn’t begin utilizing the euro till 2023. Mario defined that “having a checking account in Croatia and explaining to somebody within the US to ship cash to Croatia was unimaginable.”
Plus, as a result of transactions to buy TestDome on the time have been just a few hundred {dollars}, that was typically too little for worldwide wire transfers.
As Mario additionally identified, TestDome is within the data enterprise, which may be valued in another way in numerous nations. They wished to be obtainable in as many nations as attainable the place their product could be extremely valued — particularly within the US, UK, Australia, and different English-speaking nations.
It was paramount for TestDome to have a companion to assist them simply scale throughout borders and take many sorts of funds from many various locations, however there weren’t many choices obtainable to them on the time.
“Now, Stripe presents it. Braintree presents it. Paddle presents it. There are 10 native rivals that provide a service provider of file. However 10 years in the past, there have been like zero! So for us at the moment, we have been truly fairly comfortable that you simply existed — it wasn’t about selecting; it was like, ‘Nice, a minimum of there’s one!”
And with so many service provider of file choices obtainable available on the market right now, why has TestDome stayed with FastSpring all these years?
Mario and Igor cite FastSpring’s complete service provider of file mannequin, our dedication to creating our product to maintain up with enterprise’s wants, and our excellent assist as explanation why they’re so proud of FastSpring.
TestDome’s Lengthy Standing Partnership With FastSpring
FastSpring appeared like the one choice even obtainable to TestDome at one time, however the relationship has confirmed to be an actual partnership that has withstood the take a look at of time — and rivals.
There have been solely two situations when TestDome was tempted to take a look at different choices in addition to FastSpring, and in each instances, FastSpring was the clear and straightforward winner.
This was bolstered by the superb service and assist FastSpring has supplied all through the years, each to TestDome and to their customers.
FastSpring Help Goes All of the Technique to the High
Igor has been with TestDome for seven years and has been working with FastSpring for many of his tenure there. A lot of what he does entails buyer assist, together with dealing with requests for refunds, clients contacting them as a result of they used the mistaken bank card, and related points.
“Working with FastSpring assist, these points have been very simple to unravel. Our clients have been fairly proud of the service.”
When points get extra complicated, akin to a buyer making a refund request to TestDome whereas additionally submitting a chargeback with their card issuer, FastSpring’s assist group actually steps up. “I’m fairly proud of the cooperation and all totally different sorts of assist — not solely when a buyer wants assist, however when we want assist,” Igor defined. “We are able to at all times rely on somebody to offer an answer to us.”
Igor stated they haven’t had any main points utilizing the FastSpring platform. The one non-minor platform concern he might consider in all his time at FastSpring — involving an API change — he was solely keen to explain as “non-minor,” not “main,” and it was solved comparatively shortly.
“They’re at all times there,” Mario added. “There are at all times issues we are able to recommend to enhance, however that’s regular. That’s not one thing I can ‘complain’ about.”
In reality, fairly the other — Mario has personally skilled the dedication FastSpring group members must serving to companies that use FastSpring.
“Once we lately had an government enterprise evaluation assembly with our buyer success supervisor Gareth, your CEO David Nachman was current.”
Mario stated David stunned them with the quantity of options and thought he put into their interactions, past simply info associated on to FastSpring.
“After that decision, he despatched me an e-mail providing his assist and recommendation, as a result of earlier than FastSpring, he had labored at an organization much like TestDome. We had an entire name the place he gave us a particularly beneficial piece of recommendation. The willingness to assist and assist was not restricted to Help — it went all the best way as much as the CEO.”
FastSpring vs. Stripe
When Stripe was first made obtainable in Croatia, TestDome seemed into it as an choice, out of curiosity. “It’s one of the vital widespread in Silicon Valley crowd corporations,” Mario stated.
However Stripe didn’t do all the pieces FastSpring does.
“Then we’d have two or three additional issues. And once you begin including third events, or Stripe’s personal add-ons, or no matter, then it’s not a 2% payment anymore — then it’s extra just like the FastSpring degree payment.
“After which we’d be switching for no purpose, from an built-in resolution with one firm to an answer cut up by three totally different service corporations, which simply makes issues extra fragile and extra dangerous for us on the similar value!”
It didn’t make sense to depart FastSpring simply because Stripe was the brand new sizzling factor available on the market.
Are you on the lookout for a service provider of file that can companion with you to develop your online business internationally? FastSpring offers an all-in-one fee platform for SaaS, software program, and digital items companies, together with VAT and gross sales tax administration, fee localization, and client assist. Arrange a demo or attempt it out for your self.
A Extra Fashionable Consumer Expertise Proper Right here
The opposite time TestDome thought of wanting elsewhere for a service provider of file funds platform was after they have been taking a look at their gross sales motions from a consumer expertise perspective.
Since TestDome has been with FastSpring since their early days, on the time of this UX evaluation, they have been utilizing the unique model of FastSpring, known as our Basic platform. Whereas it presents most of the similar nice options that adopters of our newer model know and love, it didn’t have as many fashionable updates to compete with the slicker consumer interface Stripe was then promoting.
“This began making an issue for us, as a result of folks would get confused,” Mario defined. “Once they clicked the hyperlink to purchase, all of a sudden the URL modified — all the pieces modified. We didn’t comply with the colour scheme… It was complicated.”
And since TestDome is a B2B SaaS firm, it was much more complicated to stylish consumers who anticipated a smoother expertise.
So that they reached out to us — and came upon that FastSpring was working an unpromoted beta of its new Contextual platform, a same-page pop-up checkout model of FastSpring that got here with many further options, akin to a customizable client expertise, a client account administration portal, and extra.
“We realized that’s what we would have liked! We have been on board earlier than it was a public product, as a result of your improvement on the FastSpring facet was just about aligned with the event of our wants and desires,” Mario stated.
“Principally, each time we’ve wished to vary one thing, FastSpring was already prepared for it.”
FastSpring’s dedication to repeatedly bettering and upgrading its merchandise proved to TestDome that we’re a long-term companion to their enterprise.
Are you continue to utilizing the FastSpring legacy Basic platform (Springboard)? To benefit from our Contextual platform, its subscription and pricing capabilities, B2B choices, and superior reporting instruments, simply open a ticket with our assist group right here: https://group.fastspring.com.
Learn how Partitions.io noticed their quarter-over-quarter income go up 11.87% when they switched to Contextual!
A Two-Means Partnership
In addition to TestDome utilizing FastSpring, we’ve additionally utilized TestDome’s app to help us with hiring for an online improvement place. For a latest open position, one in every of our inside hirers truly discovered TestDome by way of Google search as a high-quality choice for hiring testing — earlier than realizing TestDome is likely one of the many software program companies that makes use of FastSpring for his or her on-line software program gross sales!
We utilized among the questions and solutions TestDome presents for WordPress improvement (which we validated — they have been nice), and we added our personal customized questions. We have been particularly impressed that the coding testing options enable candidates to submit code that’s scored mechanically, making the platform simple to make use of. The notifications and candidate administration options have been additionally very consumer pleasant.
If wanted, we hope to make use of TestDome once more sooner or later for related candidate proficiency testing.
Staying Forward of AI’s Affect on Enterprise: “Work Is About to Change”
As TestDome’s enterprise continues to develop, one other market change they’re rising with is the affect of AI on the distant testing trade.
TestDome’s major service has been pre-employment screening testing that helps hirers discover the perfect candidates for a job. Candidates full checks on-line — akin to work-sample checks — and may be sorted primarily based on what expertise hirers are on the lookout for.
TestDome even consists of options like dishonest safety for testing, whereas permitting the choice for on-line sources to be utilized throughout the take a look at if that’s one thing the place requires in on a regular basis work.
Nonetheless, with the rising recognition of AI companies akin to ChatGPT, even complicated solutions about work-related eventualities may very well be composed by such companies, and lots of people aren’t but certain how they really feel about that.
Mario defined that at the moment, if a candidate is given a take a look at, pastes a query to ChatGPT, after which pastes the reply again, many could really feel like that is dishonest. Most candidates don’t wish to cheat, and they’re conscious that in the event that they get the job, they should use that info which they in any other case don’t know offhand. So candidates often received’t use a service like ChatGPT throughout a take a look at.
That stated, hirers should still wish to guarantee candidates produce the data or the answer themselves.
The Quick-Time period Plan
As a part of their short-term plan to remain forward of this new curve in how data is measured, TestDome is bettering their present testing companies and rolling out a brand new product function.
To enhance their present testing, they’re evaluating their present query base to grasp which questions are simpler and that are much less efficient, adjusting or eradicating these much less efficient choices, and highlighting to their customers which questions are “protected” to make use of in relation to ChatGPT and AI companies.
They’re additionally bettering the present proctoring providing that’s already a part of the TestDome platform.
Moreover, TestDome is launching a service for dwell interviewing as a part of a expertise take a look at, which permits hirers to work together with candidates dwell by way of video or chat throughout the evaluation.
This can enable hirers to proctor the take a look at themselves, with each a dwell dialog and the testing occurring on the similar time.
Mario explains that desirous to additional strengthen testing requirements now “is simply the primary response we anticipate from our customers, so we’re making an attempt to cowl that floor in order that they have an answer with us, whichever route they select as a primary step.
“However then there’s an extended step, about understanding how the work will change, and making a correct evaluation for that point.”
The Lengthy-Time period Plan
Regardless that some could contemplate using AI “dishonest” proper now, working in completely closed environments shouldn’t be at all times how work occurs, particularly as our entry to sources continues to increase.
“The second when these sorts of AI fashions turn out to be a part of the event environments we use, akin to in Microsoft Workplace as they lately introduced, then it is not going to be dishonest anymore — it would simply be a brand new method of doing issues.”
For instance, squiggly crimson strains beneath misspelled phrases in Microsoft Phrase are simply commonplace options of the software program product right now, all as a result of Microsoft ultimately integrated a dictionary into the app. And that most likely doesn’t really feel like dishonest to most individuals.
“Work is about to vary,” Mario stated. “What’s altering is the precise work from which we take a pattern, to make a take a look at, to pick a candidate. We have to change how expertise are examined and establish new capabilities candidates must must carry out nicely in future roles just a few years from now, when AI has been propagated to all our every day instruments.”
So in addition to evaluating their present query base, TestDome can also be targeted on studying find out how to create new checks primarily based on what shall be vital on this new period of labor. “Then we are able to create checks to establish candidates which can be able to doing the work in a brand new method on a brand new degree.”
As with all future-looking expertise and data, this isn’t at all times simple. “Sadly, this isn’t one thing that’s crystal clear,” Mario stated. “Nobody can let you know proper now how software program developer work will look 5 years from now. It’s very a lot a guessing recreation.” He laughed. “We’re not simply making an attempt to guess — we’re making an attempt to first determine how we’ll guess. We’re one step earlier than guessing.”
However with a strategic plan in place, TestDome is in a great place to proceed their sample of robust progress, at the same time as work — and hiring — proceed to evolve.
Associate With FastSpring
FastSpring is proud to have been a key a part of TestDome’s success to this point, and we’re excited to see the place TestDome takes its enterprise into the longer term as AI continues altering the character of labor.
In the event you’re on the lookout for a service provider of file that will help you develop your online business internationally, we can assist. FastSpring offers an all-in-one fee platform for SaaS, software program, and digital merchandise companies, together with VAT and gross sales tax administration, fee localization, and client assist. Arrange a demo or attempt it out for your self.
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Katie Stephan
Katie Stephan is the Senior Content material Strategist at FastSpring. In addition to her in depth advertising and marketing expertise, she has an MFA in artistic nonfiction writing and has served her native communities as a school writing teacher.
