Torgsoft experience: how to successfully sell a "complex" product? Interview with the company's director and experts

"The history of Torgsoft began when our chief developer was asked to create a program to automate a children's store in Kharkiv. In 2008, the Torgsoft program was customized to the needs of a children's store, and gradually the first features appeared that were very popular among our customers — gift certificates, a discount system, and the sale of goods in sets. For example, thanks to the program, it became possible to sell diapers by the piece, which was in great demand at the time," says Sergey Markov, Director and Head of Development at Torgsoft. 

Gradually, the program acquired the features it has now: it reflects real accounting, records everything that happens in the store. We did not overload it with complex accounting processes, but made accounting as clear and easy as possible for entrepreneurs.

We still use our original slogan, "Accounting is easy!" to this day. Not only because the program is as clear as possible for everyone, but also because the program itself can correct errors. It is quite flexible and allows developers to make adjustments, improve its functions and capabilities for users.

On the other hand, we try to maintain our own uniqueness in a product that develops in its own "cycles", of course, with understanding and consideration of market needs. After all, it is our customers who have been and are our main guideline in the development of the Torgsoft program," says Sergey.

"When we created the Torgsoft program, among other things, we were guided by the negative experience of our competitors. In particular, at that time, many of them used software that was quite difficult to master. Our developers set out to eliminate such shortcomings in the program and simplify accounting to the level of an average entrepreneur with minimal knowledge of automation. In the program, we have reproduced all business processes step by step as they are in real life.

And our slogan "Torgsoft — the experience of thousands of entrepreneurs" confirms that we are again based on the real needs and problems of our customers, which we observe and solve every day with the help of the accounting program," said Anna, Deputy Head of Development.

"Torgsoft has three versions of the program — the Start, Ultra, and Terminal versions. The choice of the accounting program depends on the size of the business and the ambitions of the owner. If you have a small store in a small town, and you do not intend to scale your business, open several outlets in the city, or launch your own online store, the basic version of the accounting program — "Start" — will be enough for you. By switching to this license, the owner covers the most necessary accounting needs, which are usually warehouse and inventory management, receipt, sales and returns of goods, financial accounting, work with basic reports and analyzes, fiscal goods accounting, etc.", said Vyacheslav, Head of Technical Support.

If you need complex automation of business processes, for example, work with customer databases, deeper sales analytics, a marketing system, bonus or accumulative discount systems, as well as if you plan to transfer sales online, open an online store, in this case, the "Ultra" or "Terminal License" version is best suited for you to account for a retail chain or a store with many cash desks — workplaces.

The choice of license also depends on the method of using the program: if you want to use it on one work computer or on several in one local store network, then the Ultra or Start license is suitable for such purposes. If you plan to keep records from different retail locations, or if you have several outlets in different parts of the city, then you need the Terminal version of the program. In this case, you will have one local server on which the Torgsoft program is installed, and all work computers will connect to it via a remote desktop, which requires an Internet connection. 

Thus, if you plan to open an online store in addition to a physical store, you will need to: select the "Ultra" license type, upload the product database to the accounting program, and additionally purchase the "Synchronization with an online store" option, which allows you to automatically transfer the product database from the accounting program to the online store system and continue to accept order information and conduct sales directly from the accounting program without switching between systems.

In addition, Torgsoft offers an additional option — Online Market — a convenient platform for creating a store website from scratch, without developers and the need for special technical knowledge. With a complete product database in the Torgsoft program, you can create an online store in the Online Market in just 1 day.

After you have installed the accounting program, decided on which platform you will have your website on or with which marketplace you will synchronize, you only need to understand how the Torgsoft program works. To quickly master its basic modes, you can use the web help for users on our website, watch video tutorials for beginners, or contact the technical support department. 

In the end, you will get a ready-made tool for automating and controlling your inventory, synchronizing your online orders and sales with the Torgsoft program, which will reduce the time for processing them," Vyacheslav, Head of Technical Support.

"In addition to offering the main product, the accounting program, our company also sells commercial equipment that complements the program. In the example of a small clothing store, you will need the following basic equipment: a scanner for reading barcodes, for posting, selling goods, and taking inventory. This is a printer for printing labels on goods that do not have their own barcode or that you want to label with a special label. It is also a receipt printer that can print non-fiscal receipts if you do not work with a software registrar of payment transactions (ECR), or fiscal receipts if a software ECR is connected to the accounting program," comments Yana, Head of the Order Department at Torgsoft.

For other types of business, we have electronic scales for weighing goods, scales with a receipt printer, which are used in self-service stores. Such scales can be connected to the accounting program and keep records of the weighed goods. We have special consumables for all basic equipment. They can also be ordered either in our online store or by calling the ordering department, where you will be advised in detail about the equipment for your type of business." 

"Our team really does help entrepreneurs in every way possible to automate and organize their business, which, of course, increases our customers' loyalty and trust in us in the long run. However, our accounting program has many other useful advantages that attract entrepreneurs, without our, so to speak, assistance," Yana continues.

Yes, the Torgsoft program is a Ukrainian licensed product. Since the beginning of the war, many people have reoriented their views and started looking for truly Ukrainian accounting programs, firstly, to move away from Russian software, and secondly, to support domestic developers.

In addition, our program is tailored to the specifics of Ukrainian enterprises and the requirements of Ukrainian legislation, which allows you to do business transparently and within the law. 

Working with Ukrainian software, entrepreneurs have a certain guarantee that their software will not be lost or blocked.

I would also add that the Torgsoft accounting program is already quite well-known in the Ukrainian market, it is known and recommended, which is also an advantage for customers."

"In my opinion, in the current environment, the main advantage of Torgsoft is that we are working, we are alive, and no crises or wars have broken us," added Sergey. 

"Yes, our company responds quickly to various challenges. For example, during the covid times, when many stores were closing or were forced to stop receiving visitors, we reminded entrepreneurs that they had a warehouse and an accounting program. We told them to open online stores, and many people listened to us, and their online businesses are still operating and generating good profits," said Victoria, editor of Torgsoft. 

Another advantage we have is the introduction of a software-based cash register. We are one of the players in this market, and Torgsoft is its developer. When people needed a cash register, we helped them set it up, our technical support explained to entrepreneurs how to use it almost 24 hours a day, and reduced their fears, because at first they did not realize how much software fiscal accounting could simplify their lives."

"I agree with the opinion that our undoubted advantage is that Torgsoft supports Ukrainian entrepreneurs at any time, adapts to any of their working conditions and offers its customers the best solution, such as installing a software-based cash register in accordance with the law or creating an online store from scratch," summarized Yana. 

"I would add that our regular releases of educational content, where we talk about business automation and management, work both for our clients, increasing their loyalty, and for us," explained Victoria. 

Firstly, with the help of our accounting podcasts, video casts, and blog, entrepreneurs can solve their current business problems, analyze various work situations, and thus become stronger and more successful in their niche. 

Secondly, we simplify the work of ourselves, in particular, the technical support department. After all, we regularly explain to our clients how to use certain program options, show them the capabilities of the accounting system, so that they can read, watch videos, and understand in advance why they need automation and whether they are ready to take responsibility for its implementation. Thus, before calling technical support, the client is already a bit prepared and understands what kind of problem they want to solve with the help of the program. This is certainly useful for them as well. 

By the way, the number of listens to our podcasts on Soundcloud reached 15,000 last year alone, which is a good indicator in such a narrow niche."

"Ideas for podcasts and content in general are born in our narrow circle. For example, I come up with topics when I observe the work in and around the store and see some issues that I immediately want to cover. Usually, it is some typical, often repeated situation that is not just visible from the outside, but which begins to "annoy"," Victoria continued. 

Recently, an entrepreneur I know asked me to help him with his inventory in the Torgsoft program. He does it like this: he goes to the "Warehouse status" and changes the quantity of goods manually. After that, we couldn't stand it any longer and decided to record a podcast to explain to customers how to do a re-account so as not to complicate their lives.

And, of course, we constantly monitor trends, people's requests on the Internet, and try to convey to users through articles and a video blog that their problem can be easily solved using accounting systems."

"For me, working with clients is an endless source of inspiration. And the questions they ask can be so repetitive that it becomes a reason to record a podcast. Or we often task our marketers to write an extended article for clients, in which we remove fears and dispel doubts. And such articles turn out to be quite useful for clients," Yana added. 

"One of the unsuccessful marketing attempts we have tried to implement in the company is all kinds of business integrations and collaborations with other companies, as well as with third-party loyalty systems. This process requires emotional commitment from specialists, permanent support of communication, but we simply do not have time for this," said Victoria.

"There is also a psychological implication here — an unwillingness to give up something. Why is it so hard for people to part with expensive products or services? It's because they have paid a lot of money for them. Paid subscription programs are easier to give up because you pay a fairly small amount every month to use them. With Torgsoft, it's a different story: a person paid several thousand hryvnias more for the program, but immediately, so they are more serious about working with it," Victoria added.

"As for whether clients understand the value of software accounting, it depends on the situation. There are clients who already know what automation is and understand why they need it. Some people have seen it in their friends and realized that it is really convenient and necessary. And there is a category of entrepreneurs who doubt whether our accounting program will cover their specific needs," Yana commented.

For example, their request is how do I control sellers, or how do I set up a discount system in the store? All other features of the program of accounting are unknown to them. In such situations, we explain why it is important to keep records comprehensively, why it should be a holistic system, and not solve a single task. 

There are also situations when we need to convince customers why our software product is slightly more expensive than others on the market. How do people usually buy software? They are "led" by marketing "hooks" or advertisements that tell them that accounting is about some basic actions, such as receipts, sales, and returns. And when the owner starts to delve into the processes, he realizes that to run a business correctly and successfully, he needs to control a lot of other things: for example, setting up multi-currency sales, making payments to suppliers and contractors. 

So, gradually, such a client comes to the conclusion that the options of a cheaper program will not be enough for him and begins to listen to our advice. And in most cases, such clients choose our accounting solution.

And the last category of clients, which is the easiest for us to sell, is people who do not consider themselves technically literate and need us to explain the program's modes, settings, etc. We pay more attention to such clients, but gradually they master all the functions and even become accounting experts," Yana says. 

"The main thing I would like to preserve for many years is the unique customer experience of using the Torgsoft program. What we would like to leave in the past is the frequent "spraying" of attention on all possible trivial problems of entrepreneurs to be able to concentrate on developing really important features in our product," commented Sergey. 

"One of our significant achievements is that the Torgsoft program is universal. We have written a product that will suit any business area and format — from a small shop to a large retail chain, warehouses, manufacturing, e-commerce, and even the service sector.

Another achievement that I would definitely take into the future is our team. We understand each other at a glance, and no distances that have been created between us now hinder productive communication and quick solution of work tasks. We have a horizontal work structure, where each employee can communicate with anyone or in a team. We are not bureaucratized, which allows us to be flexible, fast and helpful to each other.

And one more important thing. We have developed a kind of "French style" of communication with clients, when we realize that the client is not always right. We do not try to please them in any way or work with them through manipulation. We build trusting relationships with clients through reasonable arguments on how to work with the program in order to get a good accounting result in the end," says Viktoria.