When Andrey Kustarnikov created G-Accon, he had a key goal in mind: to make people’s lives easier with automation in the cloud. And that’s exactly what he’s achieved with his Google Sheets integration.

Many businesses operate on spreadsheets, then face the challenge of having to manually enter that data into their accounting software. It’s an approach that’s not only time-consuming, but error prone. G-Accon for Xero allows users to automatically extract live data and reports directly from Google Sheets into Xero, making manual data entry a thing of the past.

“We don’t try and over-complicate things. We keep our solution simple and focus on how we can make things better for our users. One of the biggest benefits we hear from them is just how much more time they have after using G-Accon for Xero,” Andrey said.

It’s a recipe that’s proved successful. Since launching in Xero’s app marketplace in 2018, G-Accon for Xero has experienced rapid global growth, servicing over 5000 shared customers across five continents. We talked to Andrey about how being part of Xero’s ecosystem has also been a crucial ingredient to success.

Support to reach global customers

Before integrating with Xero, the team at G-Accon had developed a number of integrations with other SaaS providers. As experienced developers, they knew they had a great product. But how to successfully market it and gain customer feedback from their Detroit location was where joining Xero’s app partner program really paid off.

“Our strength is in software development, so we know how to make a really great app. But to be successful, the next big thing you need to work out is how you’re going to actually sell it. Many startups struggle because they make good apps, but then can’t get anyone to use them. When we joined Xero’s app partner program the process was smooth and simple and it was really clear what we needed to do from day one to take our app to market. This included being provided with education and advice, as well as ensuring we had done enough user testing before we launched.”

Being part of Xero’s ecosystem allowed G-Accon to not only tap into a global customer base from day one, via Xero’s app marketplace, but it also opened up a channel for meaningful interactions with users.

“User feedback is crucial and something we’ve placed a much bigger emphasis on since joining Xero’s ecosystem. It can be challenging to communicate with end-users when we’re sitting behind our desks in Detroit. Often we only hear from those really active users with strong opinions, rather than our everyday customers. Attending Xerocon has been huge for us. Being able to meet users face-to-face and chat with them about what they like and what they really need has been invaluable in shaping the updates and direction of our product,” Andrey said.

Building trust

Every app on Xero’s marketplace has gone through a certification process. This includes demoing, pilot testing and being reviewed personally by one of Xero’s developer evangelists. Andrey has found this rigour, coupled with Xero’s strong reputation in the accounting space, gives his users a high level of trust in his application.

“We are dealing with financial data. So making sure that’s secure and protected is hugely important. In integrating with Xero, our users have that extra level of assurance that they can trust us,” he said.

Xero also provides G-Accon with a channel of customers who are already cloud-savvy and make the most of the integration from the outset.

“Many of our users are accountants and bookkeepers who already have a good understanding of software and are creating automated solutions for their clients. We’ve noticed people coming from Xero are usually more precise, more professional, and they know Xero very well. We can get them up and running quickly so they can start experiencing all of the benefits of automation in the cloud for themselves and their clients,” Andrey concluded.

To learn more about how G-Accon integrates with us, visit Xero’s app marketplace at https://apps.xero.com/us/app/g-accon-for-xero.  And find out how partnering with Xero can help you fast-track global growth here: https://developer.xero.com/partner/app-partner-program