Listen to this article
Thryv Holdings is revolutionizing the way that small businesses operate and on Oct. 1 the company completed its direct listing on the Nasdaq, opening for trading at $14 a share. When Thryv CEO Joe Walsh rang the closing bell in celebration of the company’s direct listing, it was a reflection of just how far the company has come.
“Today marks a major milestone in Thryv’s history at a time when our services are more essential than ever before,” said Walsh. “The global pandemic has impacted businesses of all sizes and stature, but we believe Thryv’s innovative solutions have been effective in driving increased operational efficiencies to the small and midsize business market.”
Thryv had its start in the traditional Yellow Pages business, both print and digital. Today, while it still offers marketing services as a component of its business, the core of Thryv’s business is 40,000 SaaS clients with the daily demands of running a business. With Thryv, they can get the job, manage the job, and get credit. Thryv’s award-winning platform provides modernized business functions, allowing small-to-medium-sized businesses (SMB) to reach more customers, stay organized, get paid faster, and generate reviews. These include building a digital customer database, automated marketing through email and text, updating business listings across the internet, schedule online appointments, sending notifications and reminders, managing ratings and reviews, generating estimates and invoices, and processing payments.
“I am immensely proud of what Thryv has achieved thus far and look forward to continuing to capitalize on future opportunities,” said Walsh.
With Thryv’s services, businesses have more than Customer Relationship Management (CRM).hey have Customer Experience Management (CXM). Thryv gives small business owners end-to-end support for attracting customers, integrating them into their platform, establishing regular communication, and expanding their reach.
Walsh doesn’t see the Yellow Pages business as obsolete, but rather as a dependable source of revenue for funding the newer software-as-services business, which is currently growing at a rate of 30% per year. For example, small businesses continue to get high visibility through the company’s proprietary search sites like Yellowpages.com, Superpages.com, and Dexknows.com as well as Thryv’s extended network of partner sites and traditional print product, The Real Yellow Pages
The company has filled a real need for small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic in particular, as many businesses look for online solutions to maintain and build customers and sell products digitally in the face of declining store sales and health-related restrictions.
Thryv gives small businesses the same modern communication tools used by big businesses to keep them strong during uncertain times and well-positioned for the future. In addition to its all-in-one software, entrepreneurs can access Thryv’s platform from their phones, working on the go. Thryv also offers 24-hour, 7-days-a-week support with online chats and a robust Support Center. There, users can find guides on topics related to running and growing a small business, including branding, mastering CRM, winning email marketing campaigns, and setting up a business website. There are also videos on topics like making emails mobile-friendly, fixing an online reputation, and prioritizing your time. There’s a podcast, “Winning on Main Street,” that features entrepreneurs talking about their successes and challenges. And a Thryv blog follows the latest marketing trends and offers advice, including how to provide the best customer experience during the global pandemic.
Thryv even helps small business owners discover new customers through a product called Thryv Leads. This is an innovative solution marrying the marketing services business and the SaaS business for capturing contacts and compelling customers to buy, with robocall blocking, customized estimates, and high-quality opportunities. Leads are kept inside Thryv’s CRM so businesses can stay connected and grow their customer base.
Thryv also invests directly in small business owners and has provided them with skills and support to stay afloat during the pandemic. With the Thryv Foundation, the company empowers, develops, and invests in American small businesses, including a recent 2020 Small Business COVID-19 grant. In the first six months of the pandemic, nearly 100,000 businesses shut down permanently, according to Yelp, which has been tracking these shut-downs. Restaurants, bars, and nightclubs were hit hardest, followed by retail and beauty businesses.
Through the grants, Thryv provided between $2,500 and $15,000 to small businesses subject to hardships during the global pandemic, distributed in three waves. They received thousands of applications from around the country. “We’re proud that our team has been able to move so quickly to help Small Business America,” said Matthew Gourgeot, head of corporate and business development at Thryv.
And it’s not just one-time grants. Thryv also supports entrepreneurs through its Small Business Ambassador Program, which offers webinar and seminar training around the country.
“In every capacity, we’re committed to helping small businesses become more successful, make better decisions and inspire a community…for small businesses to thrive,” said Gourgeot.
Thryv knows that entrepreneurs need smart solutions to weather the pandemic and to take their businesses to the next level. At the heart of Thryv’s model is the customer experience. Thryv gives small business owners insights into what their customers are saying online, evaluates their social media relevance, reviews ratings, and provides website experience and performance reviews. Then Thryv works with business owners to help them reach more customers, stay organized, get paid faster, and generate reviews. Small businesses who use Thryv see an average 25% increase in numbers of customers, a 61% increase in the number of appointments booked, and an 86% increase in annual revenue through bookings and payments.
Sierra Smith, owner of Hair by Sierra in Fresno, California, said when she first launched her beauty salon, she didn’t realize the amount of scheduling and marketing that would be required to maintain her day-to-day operations. She found herself interacting with customers and fielding queries from her cell phone and became quickly overwhelmed. Thryv was a lifesaver.
“I was just blown away by how much you can do with it,” she said.
Smith says her favorite tool is the Client Card. “I can set up questions premade so as soon as [customers] book, they can answer all my questions, they can see what’s available and not available.” As the client’s appointments get closer, Thryv sends them reminders, rather than Smith having to send them individually from her phone. “It makes my life so much easier,” she said, “and my clients love it, too.”
Thryv knows that customer experience is a crucial component of business success, and its tools help small business owners deliver an experience that is responsive, personalized, and rewarding. Research shows that 86% of buyers are willing to pay more for a great customer experience.
With Thryv, business owners can communicate with customers using intuitive platforms, including email, text, and online messaging. Customers receive personalized messages fast, and Thryv stores all communications in one organized place. Follow-ups and reminders are crucial for repeat business, and Thryv makes it easy.
In all, Thryv gives small business owners command over key tools any SMB needs and integrates seamlessly together to deliver an amazing customer experience. These include social boosting appointment scheduling, social management, email marketing, video creation, and payment processing, among many others. By combining all of these platforms in one easy-to-use end-to-end software, business owners pay 60% less than if they purchased each service individually.
Nanette Pace, the owner of 4 Legs of Love Boarding and Boutique in Temple, Texas, said Thryv has made everything about running her dog grooming and pet boarding business more efficient and productive. “We’re growing very, very rapidly and we’re full all the time,” Pace said. “It’s a good problem to have, but we didn’t expect it this fast.”
With Thryv in place, she said, she was able to “book appointments and invoices at the drop of a hat on my phone.”
She loves that clients can easily book appointments and pay from their phones and that Thryv’s integration means that payments are processed in one day, streamlining her accounts. Thryv’s integration across social platforms, meanwhile, means that her grooming business is getting noticed in places it normally wouldn’t.
“It has really helped a lot with getting the word out,” Pace said. “Not just to the community, but we have people that come to us from other communities because they’ve seen us on social media.”
About Thryv Holdings, Inc.
The company owns the easy-to-use Thryv® end-to-end customer experience software built for small businesses that helps over 40,000 SaaS clients with the daily demands of running a business. With Thryv, they can get the job, manage the job, and get credit. Thryv’s award-winning platform provides modernized business functions, allowing small-to-medium-sized businesses (SMB) to reach more customers, stay organized, get paid faster, and generate reviews. These include building a digital customer database, automated marketing through email and text, updating business listings across the internet, schedule online appointments, sending notifications and reminders, managing ratings and reviews, generating estimates and invoices, and processing payments.
Thryv supports franchise operators and multi-location business owners with Hub by Thryv™, a software console that enables business managers to oversee their operations using the Thryv software.
Thryv also connects local businesses to consumer services through our search, display and social media management products, our print directories featuring The Real Yellow Pages® tagline, and our local search portals, which operate under the DexKnows.com®, Superpages.com® and Yellowpages.com URLs and reach some 35 million monthly visitors.
Thryv delivers business services to more than 360,000 SMBs across America that enable them to compete and win in today’s economy.
