Scaling Smart: Zep's Success Story with Schematic

Case Study
·
06/11/2024

"We knew that without a flexible and scalable system for managing pricing and entitlements, we would be stuck, unable to innovate, and ultimately frustrating our customers and sales team. Schematic provided the solution we needed to avoid that nightmare." -- Daniel Chalef, CEO, Zep

Customer Overview

Zep was founded by Daniel Chalef and focuses on solving long-term memory management for large language models (LLMs). The company emerged from Daniel’s personal need to manage state in applications utilizing LLMs. Zep has rapidly gained traction in the market, leveraging its innovative approach to dialog memory and analysis to offer advanced tools for developers.

Before Schematic

Initially, Zep faced significant challenges related to managing pricing and packaging. As a startup, they anticipated the need for multiple pricing plans and entitlements that would evolve over time. Daniel recognized that building a flexible and scalable system for managing these aspects internally would divert valuable engineering resources from their core product development.

Challenges:

  • Limited ability to innovate with pricing structures and plans.

  • Diverting engineering resources from core product development.

  • Customer and sales team frustration due to inflexible pricing.

“I knew from past experience how complex it would be, and doing it right is not a core competency of our business, nor should it be.”

Implementing Schematic

Zep decided to partner with Schematic to address these challenges. The integration process was quick, taking only a day or two to get set up. With Schematic, Zep could swiftly adapt and innovate with new pricing models without the need for expensive internal development. This partnership allowed them to allocate engineering resources to core product improvements and focus on delivering differentiated value to customers.

“It was really quick. We were able to integrate Schematic into our workflow within a couple of days.”

Outcomes:

  • Rapid Integration:

    Schematic was integrated into Zep’s workflow within a couple of days.

  • Renewed Focus on Core Competency:

    Minimized time and cost associated with developing a custom entitlement and billing solution in house. Engineering resources were redirected to core product development rather than re-inventing the wheel.

  • Flexibility by Design:

    Enabled quick iteration with pricing models and plans.

  • Enhanced Customer Satisfaction:

    Smoothly managed plan grandfathering and pricing adjustments.

“We wouldn't have built something like Schematic. It would have been inflexible, probably hard-coded, and the first time we needed to change pricing or plan structure, we'd end up with a mess."

Value Delivered

With Schematic, Zep experienced a significant reduction in the time required to manage and roll out new pricing plans. The company avoided the high costs associated with developing a custom entitlements and billing solution. Additionally, better management of customer plans and entitlements led to higher satisfaction and retention among customers.

By leveraging Schematic, Zep streamlined its pricing and entitlement management, allowing the company to focus on its mission of providing sophisticated memory management solutions for LLM applications. This partnership has positioned Zep for scalable growth and continued innovation in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.