WalkMe Guides You Through Complicated Websites

From bank transfers to shopping, almost everything today can be done with the click of a mouse. Or to be more accurate, most things can be done online with half a hundred clicks of the mouse. We all know what it’s like getting stuck in the labyrinths of complicated websites. WalkMe, an Israeli startup, is helping businesses by guiding customers through sites. The founders describe their service as a “GPS for website navigation.”

“The idea came from my colleague, whose mother always nags him to help her with her online bank account. We thought that it is unbelievable that there are no tools to help her figure it out on her own,” described co-founderRafi Sweary. Businesses can now upgrade their sites by adding WalkMe’s step-by-step walkthroughs to explain complex aspects.

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“The aim of WalkMe is to increase end-user interaction and customer conversion, while lowering companies’ customer service costs,” Sweary tells NoCamels.

How does it work?

Companies can either integrate the WalkMe API directly to their website, or more commonly, add lines of code. No technical expertise is required to use the system. The development platform, which is available as a web browser plug-in, gives full control over content, design, placement and functionality of each step of the guide.

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“We suggest that our customers identify the most commonly asked questions or issues that users face while on their website, or whatever lesser-known product they’d like to push and based on this create walkthroughs,” says Sweary. Once this is decided, a “Walk Thru” balloon, which lists the different walkthroughs available, is generated. On a banking site, for example, the “Walk Thru” options could include “money transfers” or “change mailing address.”

Once an option is selected, the user is guided through each step with any number of instruction balloons, according to the company’s choice. A trigger, such as adding text or clicking the correct button, moves the user from one instruction balloon to the next.

Website owners also receive WalkMe’s analytics service so they can add, remove, or update walkthroughs as necessary – based on users’ behavior.

“The beauty of the system is that it not only gives the online service provider a better end-user experience, but it is giving the service an easy way to help its customers. Unlike video tutorials, which are our biggest competition, the Walk Thru system knows where you are at each moment and you don’t have to do one thing while watching another,” explains Sweary.

Silicon Valley

According to WalkMe, they already have thousands of websites that are using their services. “As of last week, we have already helped 350,000 people complete online processes,” he added. Most of WalkMe’s customers are banks, e-commerce sites, and vendors, largely based in the United States.

This is leading WalkMe to open a new branch in the Sillicon Valley to gain further market awareness from both end users and the startup’s target customers. They are also developing a system of employee training guides, called Just In Time Training that can save businesses money on employee tutorials.

Subscriptions for the WalkMe service are based on a monthly premium that changes by number of Walk-Thru’s. The free subscription is for sites that only use threeWalk-Thru’s that help up to 300 people a month, but complex sites will need more. The most expensive subscription of 40 Walk-Thru’s and 30,000 assists costs $975 a month.

WalkMe was founded in 2011 by Rafi Sweary, Eyal Cohen, Yuval Shalom, and Dan Adika. The 20-employee company is currently based in Tel Aviv and recently raised $1 million from Mangrove Capital Partners. Well-known customers include CreditLoan.com, one of the largest loan and debt-consolidation websites in the US and 21Diamonds, one of the largest online jewelry stores in the world.