Podcasts about 1m arr

Is founder-led growth helping or holding you back?Early wins often come straight from the founder's voice. Nobody knows the problem better, or tells the story with more passion. That credibility is what gets the first customers to sign, keeps them close, and often carries a young company through its earliest deals. But founder-led growth has limits. Time runs out. Markets expand. What worked at $1M ARR may stall out at $15M.In Episode 89 of B2B SaaS Marketing Snacks, host Brian Graf and Kalungi founder Stijn Hendrikse unpack both sides of founder-led growth: why it's such a powerful accelerator in the beginning, and why it can quietly become a ceiling if companies don't evolve.You'll hear how to recognize the signs that your business is over-reliant on the founder, and what founders, teams, and investors can do to keep growth compounding even as the company matures.Critical topics in this episodeWhy founder-led growth works: The credibility, subject matter expertise, and customer intimacy that early adopters can't resist.Where it breaks: The hidden ceiling that appears when everything still flows through the founder.Transition challenges: Letting go of sales, messaging, and culture without losing the magic.Investor view: How search funds and acquirers spot businesses that need to move past the founder model.The Kalungi story: What happened when Stijn stepped away, and how Brian navigated the shift to a broader team-led approach.Amplifying the founder's voice: Ways to scale thought leadership without burning out the founder.By the end, you'll see founder-led growth for what it is: a launchpad, not a permanent operating model. And you'll walk away with sharper instincts for when to double down on the founder's voice—and when it's time to build beyond it. B2B SaaS Marketing Snacks is one of the most respected voices in the SaaS industry. It is hosted by two leading marketing and revenue growth experts for software:Stijn Hendrikse: Author of T2D3 CMO Masterclass & Book, Founder of KalungiBrian Graf: CEO of KalungiB2B SaaS companies move through predictable stages of marketing focus, cost and size (as described in the popular T2D3 book). The best founders, CFOs and COOs in B2B SaaS rely on a balance of marketing leadership, strategy and execution to produce the customer and revenue growth they require. Staying flexible and nimble is a key marketing asset in a hard-charging B2B world.Resources shared in this episode:BSMS 77 - Leveling up your go to marketThe 4 SaaS Marketing Leadership Maturity Stages ExplainedLooking for a Startup Marketing Agency? Here's What Every B2B SaaS Founder Needs to Know T2D3 CMO MasterclassSubmit and vote on our podcast topicsABOUT B2B SAAS MARKETING SNACKSSince 2020, The B2B SaaS Marketing Snacks Podcast has offered software company founders, investors and leadership a fresh source of insights into building a complete and efficient engine for growth.Meet our Marketing Snacks Podcast Hosts: Stijn Hendrikse: Author of T2D3 Masterclass & Book, Founder of KalungiAs a serial entrepreneur and marketing leader, Stijn has contributed to the success of 20+ startups as a C-level executive, including Chief Revenue Officer of Acumatica, CEO of MightyCall, a SaaS contact center solution, and leading the initial global Go-to-Market for Atera, a B2B SaaS Unicorn. Before focusing on startups, Stijn led global SMB Marketing and B2B Product Marketing for Microsoft's Office platform.Brian Graf: CEO of KalungiAs CEO of Kalungi, Brian provides high-level strategy, tactical execution, and business leadership expertise to drive long-term growth for B2B SaaS. Brian has successfully led clients in all aspects of marketing growth, from positioning and messaging to event support, product announcements, and channel-spend optimizations, generating qualified leads and brand awareness for clients while prioritizing ROI. Before Kalungi, Brian worked in television advertising, specializing in business intelligence and campaign optimization, and earned his MBA at the University of Washington's Foster School of Business with a focus in finance and marketing.Visit Kalungi.com to learn more about growing your B2B SaaS company.

What SaaS metrics and financial metrics really matter when you're scaling toward your first $1 million in ARR? In episode #305, Ben Murray breaks down the essential numbers to track using his Five Pillar SaaS Metrics Framework. From building a strong accounting foundation to tracking investor metrics like retention, bookings, and gross profit, this episode gives you the tools to set your business model up for scale and eventual company valuation growth. Whether you're a founder, CFO, or finance lead, you'll learn how to implement the right KPIs before you cross the $1M mark, so you can confidently present metrics to your team and/or investors and operate with clarity. What You'll Learn: SaaSfy Your Accounting Foundation Why your accounting system (QBO, Xero, etc.) needs a SaaS-specific structure. How a clean P&L improves your ability to track revenue, margins, and KPI's. Track Bookings Data Early Why executed contracts (new ARR, expansion ARR, and contraction) are one of the most important SaaS numbers. How bookings feed your go-to-market efficiency calculations and help measure sales ROI. Retention Is Key Gross revenue retention, net revenue retention, renewal rates, and logo retention — and when each matters most. How retention signals product-market fit and impacts valuation. Other Metrics to Watch Gross profit, EBITDA, cash flow forecasting, and cash runway. How do these connect to financial strategy and your long-term investor metrics? Why These Metrics Matter Before $1M ARR: Creates a financial systems foundation for scale. Equips you to benchmark your performance against peers. Builds a data story for fundraising and valuation discussions. Avoids costly gaps in financial modeling once growth accelerates. Resources Mentioned"

Connectbase is transforming how service providers buy and sell connectivity in what founder Ben Edmond calls "the connected world" - a massive $1.6 trillion industry that powers our entire digital infrastructure. With $70 million in funding, Connectbase serves 427+ service providers including 82% of the global Gartner Magic Quadrant, creating the ecosystem fabric that connects data centers, towers, fiber networks, and the thousands of providers that deliver connectivity services. In a recent episode of Category Visionaries, we sat down with Ben Edmond, CEO and Founder of Connectbase, to learn about the company's journey from solving Excel spreadsheet chaos to building the digital backbone for an entire industry. Topics Discussed:  Connectbase's rapid path from MVP to $1M ARR in 14 months without initial funding The three-layer architecture of the "connected world" industry ecosystem Building "location truth" as a core positioning strategy to unify fragmented data Evolving from "friends of Ben" sales approach to scalable go-to-market systems The strategic shift from product-focused selling to brand-driven market education Critical lessons from selling to wrong customers and wasting time on bright shiny objects Creating "categories of one" versus competing in crowded red ocean markets The 17 times rule for effective communication and message penetration in complex industries GTM Lessons For B2B Founders: Ship fast when you deeply understand the customer problem: Ben launched Connectbase's first product just six months after starting the company, reaching $1M ARR 14 months later without initial funding. This speed was possible because he had lived the industry pain for years at companies like MCI. "I understood the problem very well," Ben explains. B2B founders with deep domain expertise should leverage that knowledge to move quickly from problem to solution rather than over-engineering initial products or getting trapped in endless customer discovery cycles. Resist the bright shiny object customer trap at all costs: Ben's biggest mistake was selling to consultants, real estate companies, and other customers outside his core ICP who seemed interested but weren't sustainable. "Selling to the wrong customers would probably be the number one thing," he reflects. "It's pretty easy for lots of people to deliver one time value and then move on, but it's not very valuable really focusing on customers that are going to get durable long term value and you're aligned to accelerating, supporting and uniquely positioned to help." B2B founders should resist revenue from customers outside their ideal customer profile, even when cash flow is tight, and focus exclusively on customers where they can deliver repeatable, long-term value. Time brand investment strategically around behavior change requirements: Around year three, Ben realized Connectbase needed to shift from direct sales to brand building because they were "fundamentally changing behavior and behavior is hard to change." The insight: when your solution requires market education and behavior modification, brand investment becomes more valuable than incremental sales tactics. B2B founders should time this transition carefully - after achieving product-market fit with core customers but before growth stalls due to market education barriers. Apply the "17 times rule" for message penetration in complex markets: Ben developed what he calls the "17 times rule" for market education: "If I don't say the same thing 17 times, you know, very confident that the words are not going to be completely understood and actioned on. But if I do, I'm going to get my point across and be relevant in positioning." This applies to both internal teams and external market positioning. B2B founders in complex industries should systematically track how many times key positioning concepts have been reinforced across all channels and customer touchpoints. Create categories of one by focusing on unique ecosystem positioning: Instead of competing in the crowded $35 billion telecom software space, Ben positioned Connectbase as the only "ecosystem fabric with location truth" for service providers. "I like categories of one instead of categories of many," he explains. B2B founders should identify unique positioning that combines multiple capabilities or approaches in ways competitors cannot easily replicate, rather than trying to be incrementally better at existing category definitions. Build revenue-focused marketing DNA from the foundation: Ben insists on hiring marketers who view themselves as part of the revenue engine, not just lead generators. "Vanity metrics, don't pay anyone's payroll. So you know, really focus on people that have a belief that marketing is part of the revenue engine and an important critical part and driving, you know, the marketing mix to get to close one customers and upsells and long term relationships." B2B founders should establish revenue accountability for all marketing hires and avoid the trap of optimizing for engagement metrics that don't drive business outcomes. Treat fundraising as partnership selection, not capital acquisition: Ben approaches investor selection "almost like getting married" - focusing on partners who understand the industry and can provide strategic value beyond capital. "Find the partners that actually understand your space that you operate in, be choosy, and partners that are going to, you know, help you move forward. Because business is hard... you want people in the corner with a belief and a set of skills and capabilities that are going to elevate you, challenge you, and make you better." B2B founders should prioritize investor expertise and long-term support over valuations, especially when building in specialized or complex industries.   //   Sponsors: Front Lines — We help B2B tech companies launch, manage, and grow podcasts that drive demand, awareness, and thought leadership. www.FrontLines.io The Global Talent Co. — We help tech startups find, vet, hire, pay, and retain amazing marketing talent that costs 50-70% less than the US & Europe.  www.GlobalTalent.co   //   Don't Miss: New Podcast Series — How I Hire Senior GTM leaders share the tactical hiring frameworks they use to build winning revenue teams. Hosted by Andy Mowat, who scaled 4 unicorns from $10M to $100M+ ARR and launched Whispered to help executives find their next role. Subscribe here: https://open.spotify.com/show/53yCHlPfLSMFimtv0riPyM 

I interview ChatGPT (calling it Alex) and challenge it to create a roadmap from zero skills to $1M ARR in five years. We break down the best skills to learn (coding, sales), how to choose a profitable niche, and why B2B SaaS for remote creative collaboration is a strong bet. I dive into practical steps: market research, MVP building, pricing, and B2B outreach. I reflect on sales cycles, pricing strategy, and the impact of AI tools on entrepreneurship. I question bootstrapping, validation, and staying ahead as the landscape rapidly evolves.Timestamps by PodSqueezeIntroduction and Episode Setup (00:00:00)  Naming ChatGPT and Framing the Challenge (00:02:09)  Defining “Rich” and Setting the Revenue Goal (00:03:10)  Defining the Starting Point and Essential Skills (00:04:03)  Learning to Code in the Age of AI (00:05:56)  Timeline for Learning Coding Skills (00:07:09)  Sales as an Alternative Path (00:08:02)  Combining Skills and Setting the Five-Year Plan (00:09:22)  Market Selection and Research (00:09:44)  Examples of Promising Markets (00:10:58)  Evaluating and Sizing a Market (00:12:01)  How to Research and Validate a Market (00:13:01)  Choosing the Best Market Right Now (00:14:06)  Existing Tools in the Remote Work Space (00:14:43)  Framework for Finding Opportunities in Remote Work (00:15:17)  Selecting a Specific Problem to Solve (00:16:20)  Zeroing in on a Concrete Product Idea (00:17:33)  Distribution and Go-to-Market Strategy (00:18:13)  Targeting and Reaching Decision Makers (00:19:19)  Preparation Timeline for Outreach (00:21:02)  Warming Up Specific Contacts (00:21:26)  Example Target Companies (00:22:06)  Pricing Strategy for B2B SaaS (00:22:48)  Justifying Tiered Pricing (00:24:14)  Timeline to Reach 1 Million IRR (00:25:09)  Step-by-Step Action Plan (00:26:33)  Closing and Reflections (00:28:03)  Final Thoughts and Outro (00:36:07)

In this episode of Tank Talks, we're joined by Gaurav Jain, co-founder of Afore Capital, one of the earliest and most respected players in the pre-seed investing space. Gaurav shares how growing up in a small town in India, moving to Canada, and working at Blackberry, Amazon, and Google helped him understand the value of momentum, iteration, and building products that truly matter.He walks us through how a random dinner at Harvard led to meeting his future co-founder, how they built Afore around the belief that the best founders are often overlooked too early, and why the firm exclusively focuses on investing before there's a product or sometimes even an idea.Gaurav dives into what makes a great founder at the earliest stage, why he believes momentum is the only moat, and how the rise of AI has only accelerated opportunities for young, technical entrepreneurs to build enduring companies with less capital. He also opens up about the firm's "Founder-in-Residence" and "UTransfer" programs, his view on the Canadian tech scene, and the power of bespoke, high-conviction investing.We explore:* Why is momentum the only true moat in early-stage startups?* Can pre-seed investing still deliver alpha now that it's crowded?* Is seed-strapping the future of venture capital?* How do you identify founders before they've found their idea?* What happens when you give 19-year-olds the capital to build?Building a Pre-Seed Fund Before “Pre-Seed” Was a Thing (00:03:54)* Interning globally to chase experience and perspective* The turning point: joining Founder Collective* Meeting co-founder Anamitra through a lucky dinner at Foundation Capital* Launching Afore in 2016 to fill the pre-seed voidFounder Empathy & Early-Stage VC Lessons (00:08:17)* Mistakes from being a first-time founder* Learning that exits don't matter, products and pain points do* Why Canadian angel advice focused too much on sales, not software* Why product-led growth is a must-have, not a nice-to-haveThe 10,000 Coffees Rule of Venture (00:11:27)* How judgment is built: time, exposure, and repetition* Why investing based on ideas (not teams) is a rookie mistake* Filtering “this could work” vs. “this must work”* The real constraint in VC: time, not capitalAfore's Mission: Investing Before the Idea (00:15:00)* The “Too Early” problem founders face and why Afore exists* How FIR (Founder in Residence) and Transfer University fund ideation* Building a support system, not a portfolio of call options* Why being idea-stage isn't a red flag, it's a sign of ambitionConvincing LPs That Pre-Seed Was Real (00:19:19)* LP skepticism: “Isn't this just the bad deals no one else wants?”* How talking to founders not seed managers won over investors* Working with PitchBook and Crunchbase to split out pre-seed data* Making pre-seed visible helped founders self-identify and alignSeed-Strapping and the Rise of Efficient Startups (00:24:00)* How AI-native startups are hitting $1M ARR 2x faster* Case study: Gamma's hypergrowth on ultra-low burn* Why founders can delay growth rounds longer than ever* Capital efficiency is now a competitive edgeMomentum Is the Only Moat (00:26:07)* How Android's rise taught Gaurav speed = survival* Lessons from RIM's downfall: never rest on product laurels* Why the AI era is reshaping iteration timelines* Pre-seed startups now move at the speed of launches, not quartersPivot-as-a-Service in the AI World (00:34:16)* FIR teams pivoting from speech therapy to CX platforms* Younger founders = more raw talent, less domain bias* Startups pivoting every 6–8 weeks—and why that's healthy* Embracing pivots as a feature, not a flawScaling Afore with Purpose (00:35:21)* Fund IV, $500M+ AUM, and 150+ companies later* Why concentrated portfolios beat spray-and-pray* The dangers of being too dogmatic on stage or valuation* Supporting breakout talent like Neo, Gamma, and BenchGlobal Perspective: Canada's Role in Venture (00:41:19)* Why Canada produces world-class engineering talent* The upside and limits of building in the North* Hybrid models: Canada for R&D, U.S. for GTM* Afore's belief in serving Canadian founders, wherever they buildFailure may define most early-stage startups, but for Gaurav Jain, the real story starts before the pitch, before the product, even before the idea. With Afore Capital, he is betting on people over polish, instinct over perfection, and helping founders build long before the rest of the world is watching. His journey reminds us that great companies don't always start with traction; they start with trust.About Gaurav JainCo-founder and Managing Partner at Afore Capital. Ex-Android, BlackBerry, and founder of Polar Mobile. Afore is known for being one of the first firms dedicated to pre-seed, supporting founders before they even have an idea.Connect with Gaurav Jain on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gjainvcVisit Afore Capital Website: https://www.afore.vc/Connect with Matt Cohen on LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/matt-cohen1Visit the Ripple Ventures website: https://www.rippleventures.com/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit tanktalks.substack.com

SaaS companies were traditionally measured on how many years it took to achieve $100M ARR - a key milestone! In today's brave new world of AI, this milestone is now measured in MONTHS. Dave "CAC" Kellogg and Ray "Growth" Rike highlight discuss this new AI growth metric in today's episode with many examples including:LovableCursorWizBoltAnthropicOpenAIDave and Ray discuss how these new hypergrowth AI-Native companies compare to some of the fastest growing traditional SaaS companies including DocuSign, Atlassian, Box, HashiCorp, Zoom and Slack.The Metrics Brothers then dive a little deeper into the details of the "months to $100M" to discuss WHEN does that clock begin to tick, at launch or at $1M ARR? They then go beyond just AI and discuss how Product-Led Growth was once viewed as a key to accelerating growth to $100M and where the reality meets the expectations.Lastly, CAC and Growth discuss one example of a fast growing AI company that could not quite sustain the early growth trajectory that was greatly helped by the hype and the hope of AI - a cautionary tale for other high flyers or just an interesting data point?Take a listen to this episode if you are involved, interested or evaluating how growth rate expectations for software companies in the new era of software!!!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Immad grew Mercury to $500M in annualized revenue and profitable. Mercury is one of the fastest-growing fintech startups ever. No wonder they just raised $300M from Sequoia at $3.5B. Immad breaks down exactly how he structured a viral launch, why fundraising is easier with zero customers than you think, and how he unlocked massive word-of-mouth growth. If you're building a startup, especially in fintech, you can't miss this episode.Why You Should ListenHow Mercury went from $0 to $1M ARR in just 5 monthsHow Mercury leveraged Twitter to explode user growth at launchWhy building with zero users might be your secret advantageWhy Immad believes defining company culture at employee #4 was critical to hitting $500M in revenueKeywordsMercury, Sequoia, Immad Akhund, startup fundraising, fintech startup, product market fit, neobank, early-stage growth, Y Combinator, banking as a service, startup culture00:00:00 Intro00:09:23 How Immad Validated the Idea for Mercury00:17:53 Why Immad Turned Down VC to Start Another Company00:28:11 How Immad Raised a $6M Seed Round Before Writing Any Code00:36:08 Launching Mercury and Going Viral on Twitter00:47:08 Knowing You Have Product Market Fit00:51:48 Raising a $20M Series A Just 3 Weeks After Launch00:53:10 The Importance of Defining Your Culture EarlySend me a message to let me know what you think!

Chanakya Yerneni didn't want another promotion. He wanted freedom—and the chance to build something of his own.After a decade in enterprise SaaS, he quit corporate, browsed Acquire.com, and bought a small AI grading tool for teachers. It had $5K MRR, no SEO, and no real growth engine.Twelve months later, that product—EssayGrader—is on track to hit $1M ARR.In this episode, Chanakya shares how he evaluated listings, rebuilt the product from scratch, and scaled an EdTech SaaS with product-led growth and word of mouth.You'll learn:How he picked the right SaaS to acquireWhy talking to 400+ customers changed everythingWhat made the product go viral in schoolsHow to approach SEO from zero and winWhy founder fit matters more than perfect metrics3 lessons from Chanakya's exit journey:Start with PMF, not just profitBuild for a customer you deeply understandA clean, focused process beats complexity every timeWhether you're buying your first startup or scaling your next, this episode is a playbook in clarity, conviction, and customer-first growth.Follow Chanakya's journey on LinkedIn.

Most founders think they're "doing PLG” simply by launching a free trial. They add a signup form, make pricing transparent, and let people try the product for free. Then they wonder why it's not working. But you've only scratched the surface. In this episode, Wes reveals why most PLG attempts fail using a perfect analogy - the "We repair what your husband fixed” marketing campaign. Just like that leaky faucet that got worse after a DIY attempt, most founders unknowingly break their growth engine by doing surface-level PLG without building the foundation underneath. Key Highlights: 01:14: Why founders need professional PLG help02:37: The surface-level PLG trap 03:43: The fastest path to value problem06:08: Strategy misalignment and unknown ideal users07:03: Random free models that deliver no outcome08:03: Missing the right data to track user success09:25: No organizational buy-in for the PLG transition11:03: Why you can't bolt PLG onto a sales-led business12:15: The $1M ARR guarantee (and July bonus offer) Stop building your house from the roof down. Use this framework to build the real foundation that makes PLG actually work. Resources: 

Forget what you thought about early-stage growth. In this must-listen episode, you'll hear firsthand how startup success truly happens—and spoiler alert, there's no playbook. From companies like Carbon6 using roll-up strategies to Graphite pivoting multiple times before exploding, we unpack real founder journeys that prove getting to $1M ARR fast isn't what matters. You'll see why the real winners chase true product-market fit, why copying competitors is a trap, and why patience in the early stage might be your biggest competitive advantage. If you're building a startup, stop what you're doing and listen now.Why You Should ListenDiscover why getting to $1M ARR fast is NOT the goal (and what really matters instead).Learn how randomness and serendipity shape startup success—straight from real founder stories.Understand why chasing product-market fit beats obsessing over short-term revenue milestones.Hear why copying existing playbooks can sabotage your startup's long-term growth.Find out how radically different paths—roll-ups, pivots, or total serendipity—can all lead to success.Keywords product market fit, startup growth, early-stage startups, founder stories, zero to one, ARR milestones, startup pivots, product differentiation, scaling startups, startup playbook00:00:00 Intro00:02:47 Carbon6's $210M Exit—Roll-ups and Serendipity00:04:27 Lightspeed's Unplanned Journey to $1B00:06:04 Graphite's Pivots—How a Failed Idea Led to Success00:07:27 Vapi's Rapid Rise After Three Years of Flat Growth00:08:55 Why There's No Single Path to Product Market Fit00:11:19 The Million-Dollar ARR MythSend me a message to let me know what you think!

About MatiMati is currently Co-Founder & COO at School In One, an EdTech App (Endeavor ScaleUp 2025 Miami-based) operating in the USA as a SaaS or "SIS" (Student Information System) for K12 schools (kindergarten to 12th grade). The platform also operates back in LatAm, with +700,000 users, 40 full-time employees, $2.5M ARR, and +800 schools in 120 different cities. The team raised $500K from one Investor in LatAm for the US market expansion.Over the last few years, he helped +300 startups internationalize in Miami, with an accelerator that Mati co-managed until October 2023, owned by businessman Moishe Mana. During that moment, He structured strategic alliances with Dell for Startups, Wilson Sonsini, Zendesk, Delta & LatAm Airlines, Marriott, Deel, and acceleration, internationalization, and local economy promotion programs with Microsoft, IDB, ProChile, ProColombia, Uruguay XXI, Ingenio Incubadora, Ganesha Lab, etc., bringing $1M ARR and growing the team from 2 to 8 people.Learn more about Mati on LinkedIn. School In One websiteInstagram: School In OneLinkedIn: School In OneAbout RachelleEducator, Keynote Speaker, Consultant, Attorney, and AuthorSubscribe to my ⁠newsletter⁠.Check out my ⁠blog⁠ and submit a guest blog.Contact me for speaking & training related to AI, AI and the law, Cybersecurity, SEL, STEM, and more!⁠bit.ly/thriveineduPD⁠Interested in a sponsored podcast or collaboration? Contact me! Rdene915@gmail.com

In this episode of the Grow Your B2B SaaS podcast, we sit down with Alexander Estner to talk about how to grow a SaaS company from zero to $1 million in ARR — and why many founders struggle to get there. Alex is a SaaS expert who has helped lots of startups build strong go-to-market (GTM) strategies. He shares a simple, step-by-step playbook that breaks the journey into three key stages: hustle, focus, and expansion. You'll hear why it's so important to start with a clear plan, how to avoid common mistakes like trying to sell to everyone, and why it's better to test and learn than to aim for perfection from day one. Alex also gives practical tips, useful tools, and real-life examples that show what works and what doesn't. Whether you're just starting out or already have some traction, this episode is full of helpful advice to move your SaaS business forward. If you're trying to figure out how to grow the right way, without burning out or wasting time, this conversation is definitely worth a listen.Key Timecodes(0:38)-Guest Introduction: Introduction of Alexander Estner and today's topic(1:34)-Why Go-to-Market Strategy is Important: Alex explains the significance of a go-to-market strategy(3:05)-Strategy vs. Execution: Differentiating between strategy and execution in go-to-market(3:39)-Misconceptions in SaaS Growth: Discussing common misconceptions about reaching $1 million ARR(5:23)-Iterative Growth Approach: The necessity of an iterative approach in SaaS growth(6:41)-Common Mistakes in Go-to-Market Strategy: Alex shares frequent pitfalls founders encounter(8:49)-Owning Go-to-Market: The importance of founders owning their go-to-market strategy(9:05)-Three-Step Go-to-Market Process: Introduction to the hustle, focus, and expansion modes(13:27)-Documentation in Hustle Phase: Importance of documentation to ease the transition to focus mode(15:54)-Expansion Mode: Options for growth beyond $1 million ARR(17:02)-Tools and Templates: Recommended resources for executing go-to-market strategies(18:22)-Real-Life Implementation Challenges: Where founders struggle in real-life execution(21:07)-Immediate Actions Post-Episode: Steps for founders to take immediately after the episode(24:32)-Who to Work With: Identifying the key players in executing a go-to-market strategy(26:04)-Transparency in Go-to-Market: The importance of transparency in pricing and product information(29:18)-Summarizing Go-to-Market Advice: Key takeaways for founders(31:12)-Advice for Early-Stage Founders: Tips for growing to 10K MRR(32:15)-Scaling to 10 Million ARR: The role of customer success in driving revenue(34:21)-Summary of Key Points: Recap of the three-step process and key advice

This is a re-run of a 2022 episode with ClickUp CEO and Founder, Zeb Evans. This is a re-run of a 2022 episode with ClickUp CEO and Founder, Zeb Evans. ClickUp is now doing over $200M in revenue but this popular episode is a look back at the early days. Zeb joins host Alex Theuma to discuss how the company reached $10M ARR in just two years, including. - How ClickUp got its first customers. - Why Zeb chose the VC route and how did they raised their first round. - Focus areas for getting to $1M ARR fast. - What needs to change when you go from $1M ARR to $10M ARR. - The best advice he's ever received. Guest links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zebevansclickup/ Website: https://clickup.com/       Check out the other ways SaaStock is helping SaaS founders move their business forward: 

This episode is for SaaS founders building in regulated industries—and anyone tired of chasing the next quick win. Most SaaS companies fail because they launch too early. Dimitri Masin, Co-Founder & CEO of Gradient Labs, took a different path. He spent 14 months building before serving a single customer—against every startup playbook. His AI customer support platform now guarantees better performance than human teams and hit $1M ARR in five months after launch. And this inspired me to invite Dimitri to my podcast. We explore how setting impossibly high standards creates customer trust that competitors can't match. Dimitri shares tactical insights about building for regulated industries, creating objective guarantees, and why most automation claims are misleading math. You'll discover the quality standards that created 100% POC win rates. We also zoom in on two of the 10 traits that define remarkable software companies:  They focus on the essence  They acknowledge they can't please everyone Dimitri's story is proof that traction often starts by doing what most others avoid. Here's one of Dimitri's quotes that captures his quality-first philosophy: "We kind of set the bar very, very high for us, because from the beginning... the bar needs to be at least as high as humans in those companies can produce, or higher, ideally." By listening to this episode, you'll learn: Why building for 14 months before launch created competitive advantage What objective guarantees do for risk-averse financial services buyers When focusing on one vertical becomes your biggest growth lever Why 50% ticket automation only delivers 20% business value For more information about the guest from this week: Guest: Dimitri Masin, Co-Founder & CEOWebsite: gradientlabs.aiLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dimitrimasin/  Want to dig deeper into the 10 traits of remarkable SaaS companies? Get my book The Remarkable Effect at valueinspiration.com/book  Or sign up for Espresso with Ton at valueinspiration.com/daily  - a 2-minute daily email to sharpen your thinking and strategy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After two pivots and nearly running out of runway, Merrill Lutsky found insane growth—scaling Graphite to tens of thousands of daily users and millions in ARR. He reveals exactly how Graphite landed its first massive enterprise customer, doubled revenue overnight by changing pricing, and turned user feedback into  momentum. Merrill shares hard-earned lessons on recognizing true product-market fit, leveraging internal tools as a market wedge, and surviving the chaos every early-stage founder faces. If you're building, pivoting, or scaling your startup, this is a must-listen episode.Why You Should ListenHow to Know When It's Time to Pivot—or Keep GoingLanding Your First Enterprise Deal (and Getting to $1M ARR in 10 Months)Why Daily User Feedback is a Secret WeaponFinding the Real “Must-Have” ProductWhy Your First Pricing Model Probably Won't Work (and How to Fix It)Keywordsproduct market fit, developer tools, pivot, enterprise sales, startup growth, code review, pricing strategy, software startups, founder lessons, Graphite dev tool00:00:00 Raising a seed round on Airbnb Wi‑Fi00:10:40 Lessons from the first failed DevTool00:16:00 Why daily‑use products win00:24:30 Pivoting from mobile rollbacks to code review00:31:00 Ex‑Meta engineers spark a viral wait‑list00:40:00 Switching on pricing and racing to $1 M ARR00:48:30 The pricing tweak that doubled revenue00:50:00 Surviving outages, bank collapses and chaos00:52:30 Co‑founder trust makes or breaks startupsSend me a message to let me know what you think!

In this episode, we're joined by Hamza Alsamraee, CEO of NewForm — a top-tier NYC-based app marketing agency producing over 2,500 ads every month.Hamza's journey started at just 16 when he built the largest math page on Instagram, eventually driving 100M+ organic impressions and over $1M in book sales. With a strong background in math and a knack for creative growth, Hamza has led performance-driven campaigns across consumer apps, including scaling Faves to a $1M ARR in just months.We'll dive into how AI-generated content (AIGC) is changing the marketing game — from TikTok-first strategies to AI agents in UGC creation, and why many AI creatives fail to convert.Whether you're just launching or managing multi-million-dollar ad budgets, this episode delivers the math-backed truth on what's working (and what's not) in 2025.You will discover:

In this episode, we're joined by Hamza Alsamraee, CEO of NewForm — a top-tier NYC-based app marketing agency producing over 2,500 ads every month.Hamza's journey started at just 16 when he built the largest math page on Instagram, eventually driving 100M+ organic impressions and over $1M in book sales. With a strong background in math and a knack for creative growth, Hamza has led performance-driven campaigns across consumer apps, including scaling Faves to a $1M ARR in just months.We'll dive into how AI-generated content (AIGC) is changing the marketing game — from TikTok-first strategies to AI agents in UGC creation, and why many AI creatives fail to convert.Whether you're just launching or managing multi-million-dollar ad budgets, this episode delivers the math-backed truth on what's working (and what's not) in 2025.You will discover:

Kyle is the cofounder of Depot.  Depot accelerates your Docker image builds and GitHub Actions workflows. Kyle shares how Depot were able to grow to $1M ARR and beyond with a very lean team.This episode is brought to you by WorkOS. If you're thinking about selling to enterprise customers, WorkOS can help you add enterprise features like Single Sign On and audit logs. Links:Depot Kyle Galbraith 

In episode #276, I'm tackling a subscriber question who is just starting their SaaS journey. There are definitely some building blocks to put into place so you have no regrets later. - Selecting your accounting software - Who does the accounting? - Building your accounting foundation - Cash or accrual accounting - Tracking your bookings - What metrics to track? Be in the know! Join our SaaS community. https://www.thesaasacademy.com/offers/ivNjwYDx/checkout Subscribe to Ben's SaaS newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page

Today's show: Jason and Alex unpack a wild week in tech and the markets — including a fake tweet that moved $4 trillion and Trump's latest tariff talk. Lon jumps in for another round of Founder Fridays Pitch Madness, where four early-stage startups compete for a spot in the Elite Eight. Plus, Alex chats with Sunny Khamkar, CEO of MenuData, about how AI is revolutionizing the food industry. They also dive into how founders should rethink their runway, what Shopify's bold AI memo means for the future, and whether VCs are placing earlier bets to chase that $1M ARR milestone. Don't miss the founder pitches and a fresh take on AI-powered food trend tracking!*Timestamps:(0:00) Jason kicks off the show!(2:11) Market chaos, tariffs, and their effects(5:59) Economic uncertainty: Advice for founders(8:00) Tariffs' potential impact on tech sectors(9:58) Fidelity Private Shares℠ - Visit ⁠https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com ⁠! Mention our podcast and receive 20% off your first-year paid subscription.(13:27) SignalFire's billion-dollar fund(17:32) Achieving significant startup revenue and its importance(20:20) Coda - Empower your startup with Coda's Team Plan for free—get 6 months at https://www.Coda.io/twist(21:54) Krea's $87 million raise and subscription model analysis(27:33) Big tech's influence on niche subscription services(30:02) Gusto - Get three months free when you run your first payroll at http://gusto.com/twist(31:09) AI advancements: Midjourney v7 and voice activation(36:43) Shopify's AI Manifesto(41:00) Founder Friday bracket updates(57:16) Founder Q&A: Lessons for first-time founders(1:05:00) MenuData's CEO Sunny Khamkar interview(1:16:10) MenuData's pricing, customer base, and growth plans(1:23:38) AI's vertical impact and Menu Data's strategy*Subscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcp*Links from the show:Check out MenuData: https://www.menudata.ai/Check out Krea: https://www.krea.ai/Check out Tobi Lutke's ”AI Manifesto” https://x.com/tobi/status/1909251946235437514Check out Pitchfire: https://www.pitchfire.com/Check out CREATANT: https://www.creatant.com/Check out Vidala Labs: https://vidalalabs.com/Check out Kippy: https://kippy.ai/Follow Sunny Khamkar:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunny-khamkar-84b905a*Follow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelm*Follow Lon:X: https://x.com/LonsLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lonharris*Follow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanis*Thank you to our partners:(9:58) Fidelity Private Shares℠ - Visit ⁠https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com ⁠! Mention our podcast and receive 20% off your first-year paid subscription.(20:20) Coda - Empower your startup with Coda's Team Plan for free—get 6 months at https://www.Coda.io/twist(30:02) Gusto - Get three months free when you run your first payroll at http://gusto.com/twist*Great TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarland*Check out Jason's suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis*Follow TWiST:Twitter: https://twitter.com/TWiStartupsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/thisweekinInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisweekinstartupsTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisweekinstartupsSubstack: https://twistartups.substack.com*Subscribe to the Founder University Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@founderuniversity1916

Z47 invested in WizCommerce in 2022. Since then, Divyaanshu Makkar and team have scaled to $1mn in revenue from the B2B Commerce SaaS mid-market. In this episode of #ZeroToInfinity, Divyaanshu Makkar, Co-founder & CEO of B2B Commerce SaaS startup WizCommerce -, joins Sudipto Sannigrahi and Ashwin Pandian to unpack:

Today's show: Jason and Alex dive into the startup world's latest chaos — from Nasdaq's slide and Trump's tariffs to Klarna's IPO pause and Rippling's $16B target. They break down what founders really need to know: tightening CIO budgets, longer sales cycles, but easier hiring. Plus, TikTok's ban gets another delay (with Bezos possibly lurking?). In Office Hours, they chat with two sharp founders: Luke Belbina from PodEngine, who's building AI for podcasters and doubling revenue, and David Moscatelli from Abacus, who's bringing secure, on-prem AI to banks and just hit $1M ARR. Don't miss it!

In this episode I sit down with Wade Foster, the founder and CEO of Zapier. We explore Zapier's unique path, from building its first integrations on nights and weekends in Missouri to scaling with minimal funding through Y Combinator. Wade shares how “don't hire till it hurts” became a guiding mantra, why Zapier embraced remote work early on, and how the rise of AI is unlocking new automation possibilities through Zapier Agents. Whether you're curious about seedstrapping, enterprise workflows, or the frontier of AI benchmarks, this conversation delivers practical insights for building a lean, innovative company.00:00:00 - “Don't Hire Till It Hurts” Mantra00:01:24 - The First Zap & Early Users00:03:42 - Joining YC & Minimal Funding00:05:09 - Profitability & Lean Hiring00:06:57 - SEO for Marketplace Growth00:08:10 - AI Agents & Unstructured Data00:10:28 - Enterprise Playbook & GTM00:13:14 - ARC Prize & Future of AGI00:17:29 - Remote Culture at Zapier00:20:29 - Seedstrapping Advice in AI00:25:09 - Reimagining Processes w/ AI00:28:54 - Final Insights & Future

Noah Greenberg grew a content-distribution product from zero to $1M ARR in just one year (and to $4M in 2 years) by focusing on a single channel most founders underrate: LinkedIn. He posted insights daily, highlighted key players in his industry, and made it impossible for prospects not to notice him.In this episode, Noah reveals the exact step-by-step playbook, including how to structure 3-month pilots for fast feedback, craft DMs that actually get replies, and pick the right content “watering holes” so your future customers come to you eager to sign. If you're a founder trying to figure out your go-to-market approach, you need to see what Noah did.______Why You Should Listen1. Turning LinkedIn into a Free PR Engine – Noah shows how daily micro-posts drive high-value leads without needing to go viral.2. Finding Your First 10 Customers with 3-Month Pilots – Short trials = instant feedback on who'll stay and who'll churn.3. Never Stop Triangulating – How 50 customer conversations per month reveal the right product, price, and packaging.4. Selling without Selling – The “this isn't a pitch” call that makes prospects lean in and ask, “Wait, how do we buy?”5. Earning Credibility at Scale – Noah's “watering hole” posts spark real engagement from decision-makers (and reel in 5-figure deals)._______KeywordsB2B Sales, LinkedIn Strategy, Early-Stage Growth, Founders' Playbook, Bootstrapped Startup, Content Distribution, Sales Prospecting, Pilot Contracts, Outbound Leads, Product-Market FitTimestamps(00:00:00) Intro(00:02:35) Stacker's Origin Story(00:06:00) How to generate warm leads(00:15:53) How to use LinkedIn for lead gen(00:21:42) No One Wants To Be Pitched(00:26:06) How to get feedback on pricing(00:38:08) LinkedIn Go-To-Market Strategy(00:42:20) Breaking Above The NoiseSend me a message to let me know what you think!

It took eWebinar 18 months to go from idea to product launch, then another 36 months to hit $1M ARR; this is the core theme of this season. That's a total of 54 months from incorporation date.You might have read about companies that get to $1M in a year, much less now with AI startups and the world riding that wave. Those are outliers and not the norm. 36 months to $1M is actually the median, even for funded companies.“Normal” is not newsworthy and doesn't get the media spotlight it deserves so you might feel like you're moving too slow even when you're in the right place.On this season finale episode, Melissa and Todd dive into the 12 most shocking surprises on their way to $1M ARR after everything they tried, learned, and failed, which formed the foundation by which they continued to iterate on the business and product.Thank you for tuning into Season 2 of ProfitLed!! Your support is deeply appreciated.If you enjoy this podcast, please consider leaving us a review as that will help us continue to make episodes for you. Takeaways:• Things they thought would have a huge impact, but didn't• Assumptions that made them think they'd get to $1M faster• Things that took a lot more effort and time than anticipated• Why you don't need fancy metrics to prioritize roadmap• Why $1M is not the magic number even though it seems like it isContact ProfitLed Tweet us at @profitledfm. Find show notes of each episode on ProfitLed.fm. Connect with our host Follow Melissa Kwan on LinkedIn where she share stories & lessons from her founder journey weekly. Subscribe to 'your founder next door', Melissa's bi-monthly newsletter on how to build a company without an abundance of resources and friends in high places. Follow @themelissakwan on Instagram and YouTube where she shares short videos of business advice and other truth-bomb sound bites. This podcast was brought to you by eWebinar. Learn more at ewebinar.com and find out how you can turn pre-recorded videos into automated webinars that perform better than a live webinar.Thanks for listening!

Meg Lister is a leading voice in Web3 funding, transforming capital allocation as a Managing Director at Gitcoin Labs to drive financial returns for ecosystems and builders while ensuring long-term, sustainable growth. She specializes in designing multi-layered funding strategies that support every stage of a project's lifecycle—quadratic funding for onboarding, retroactive funding for retention, and direct grants for scaling—empowering Ethereum ecosystem participants to achieve more.Gitcoin (May 2023 – Present): Leads Grants Lab, the core business unit powering Gitcoin's multi-mechanism funding infrastructure. She initially joined to oversee Grants Stack, one of Gitcoin's flagship products, and was quickly promoted to lead its consolidation and strategy.Flipside Crypto: As VP of Product & Ops, she launched a flagship analytics product that secured a $50M Series A, making on-chain data more accessible and actionable for ecosystem builders.WordStream: Scaled the company post-Series A, earning five promotions, launching a $1M ARR business unit, and contributing to its acquisition by Gannett.Meg is reshaping Web3 funding models by creating efficient capital distribution mechanisms that support ecosystem-wide goals, ensuring Ethereum builders and enterprises have the resources needed to innovate, scale, and succeed.Why VC Funding Model Fails Web3 ProjectsExperience driving Web3 capital efficiency: Media mentions: 

Meg Lister is a leading voice in Web3 funding, transforming capital allocation as a Managing Director at Gitcoin Labs to drive financial returns for ecosystems and builders while ensuring long-term, sustainable growth. She specializes in designing multi-layered funding strategies that support every stage of a project's lifecycle—quadratic funding for onboarding, retroactive funding for retention, and direct grants for scaling—empowering Ethereum ecosystem participants to achieve more.Gitcoin (May 2023 – Present): Leads Grants Lab, the core business unit powering Gitcoin's multi-mechanism funding infrastructure. She initially joined to oversee Grants Stack, one of Gitcoin's flagship products, and was quickly promoted to lead its consolidation and strategy.Flipside Crypto: As VP of Product & Ops, she launched a flagship analytics product that secured a $50M Series A, making on-chain data more accessible and actionable for ecosystem builders.WordStream: Scaled the company post-Series A, earning five promotions, launching a $1M ARR business unit, and contributing to its acquisition by Gannett.Meg is reshaping Web3 funding models by creating efficient capital distribution mechanisms that support ecosystem-wide goals, ensuring Ethereum builders and enterprises have the resources needed to innovate, scale, and succeed.Why VC Funding Model Fails Web3 ProjectsExperience driving Web3 capital efficiency: Media mentions: 

Anton Osika is the Co-Founder and CEO @ Lovable, the fastest growing startup in Europe. With Lovable, you can turn your idea into an app in seconds with just a prompt. After just 3 months, the company has scaled to $17.5M in ARR. They are adding $2M in net new revenue every single week. Even better, Lovable has 85% Day 30 retention rate, making it more retentive than ChatGPT.  In Today's Episode We Discuss: 03:41 How a Side Project Turned into a $200M Company  05:39 Why Talent is 10x More Valuable Than Experience 08:57 How to Use a Waitlist Pre-Launch to 10x Growth 12:29 How to Master a Public Launch: $0 - $1M ARR in a Week 18:02 Why Raise a Large Seed Round 22:22 How Sustainable is Lovable and AI Revenue 25:22 What are Lovable's Biggest Threats: Incumbents or Open Source 27:00 Raising Series A: Should You Always Take the Money 27:46 How to Compete in the US from Europe  28:25 Is Europe as F****** as the World Thinks 29:02 Building in Europe vs. Silicon Valley 31:20 The Future of Foundation Models: Who Wins 33:47 Grok vs OpenAI vs Anthropic: Buy and Short 41:37 Quickfire Round: Insights and Reflections  

In 2005 most people didn't even have cellphones yet. Those who did used flip phones. That's when Noah started Olo, a webapp to let people pre-order coffee from nearby shops. Users had to login on web, add a credit card, create pre-made orders and then send a text to a preset number when they wanted to pre-order. It was way, way ahead of its time. Noah and his team 7 years to hit $1M in ARR. In the meantime, they raised a round with 50% dilution the week before the financial crisis, went on live TV to an audience on 6M viewers and had to pivot from a marketplace to B2B SaaS.But overtime smartphone penetration increased, on-demand ordering became a trend, and then, one day, Starbucks launched their app. All of a sudden, every single restaurant in the world wanted a way to let their users pre-order.And there was Noah and his team at Olo.Today, Olo is a public company worth over $1B and generating nearly $300M in sales. Here's the story of how it happened.Why you should listen:How to use guerrilla marketing tactics to get early growth.Why PR can move the needle but not in ways you expect. How to pivot from a marketplace to B2B SaaS.Why it often takes much longer than you might hope to hit an inflection point.Why fundraising was so hard, even though Olo became a $1B+ public company. Why Noah thinks founders should embrace challenges and adversity.KeywordsOlo, Noah Glass, entrepreneurship, product-market fit, restaurant technology, mobile ordering, startup journey, business challenges, marketing strategies, innovationTimestamps:(00:00:00) Intro(00:02:20) Building an app in 2005(00:13:20) The Burn the Boats Moment(00:16:31) Building A Network Business(00:26:08) The Cold Start Problem(00:30:33) A Happy Accident(00:36:55) Going through the 2008 Financial Crisis(00:51:20) Finding Product Market Fit(00:57:20) Blueprint of Values(01:05:11) Best Piece of Advice(01:06:08) A Big MilestoneSend me a message to let me know what you think!

TheAssistant : https://bit.ly/theassistant-cadeauHey je te prends 1 min pour te présenter mon nouveau partenaire que j'aime de ouf : TheAssistant.comJ'te la fais courte :Il y a 6 mois, j'étais débordé. Je passais mes journées à jongler entre factures, DM LinkedIn, et réservations de train.Bref, tout sauf avancer sur mes vrais projets.Et puis j'ai découvert TheAssistant, et là je te promets, ma vie a changé.Dis moi si tu te reconnais là-dedans :→ Tu veux tout faire toi-même parce que t'as peur de déléguer.→ T'as l'impression de perdre ton temps dans des tâches sans valeur.→ Et tu te demandes toujours : 'Comment je peux tout gérer ?'Alors reste avec moi. J'ai la solution pour toi.TheAssistant.com, c'est comme ton super bras droit.Ils gèrent pour toi toutes les tâches qui te bouffent du temps :Tes factures, tes relances clients, ta pré-compta.Ton community management : la planification, réponses aux DM, recherches de prospects.Même les urgences : billets d'avion, recherches de prestataires, ou mails stratégiques.Tu gagnes des heures, mais surtout : tu gagnes en sérénité.Et crois-moi, après avoir testé, tu ne reviendras jamais en arrière.Donc essaie dès maintenant avec 30% de réduction sur ton premier mois. Donc tu n'as pas grand chose à perdre, mais tout à gagner.Merci TheAssistant de soutenir La Chapelle RadioEt bonne écoute à toutes et tous !

Alon was a hacker for the Israeli Defence Forces' cyber department. There he saw the most advanced methods used in cyber warfare. So when he left, he started IntSights-- a company that helped enterprises defend themselves from cyber attacks. He was a first-time founder who didn't even know the word 'unicorn'. He made all the mistakes you could make. But he had real, undeniable pull. He grew to $1M ARR in a year and to $4M a year later. By the end of it, he was doing $30M in revenue and exited for $335M.But when I asked him what it felt like to sell for hundreds of millions, he said it 'felt like emptiness'. Alon is a builder—that's all he wants to do. So he quit post-acqusition and left millions of dollars on the table. Moeny he was guaranteed to make if he just stayed in his role.Instead, he started PointFive to help enterprises reduce wasted spend on cloud infrastructure. He know nothing about the space. One year in, he's raised $36M and grown to millions in ARR—it's even faster than IntSights.Here's the story.Why you should listenWhy Alon felt empty after exiting for $335M.Why he left millions of dollars on the table to start a new startup.Why the mistakes he made in his first startup helped his second one grow way faster.Why he raised $36M in under a year.Why true customer pull comes from solving top of mind problems.KeywordsLinkedIn, video content, cloud cost optimization, engineering responsibilities, startup funding, second-time founders, product market fit, customer traction, entrepreneurshipSend me a message to let me know what you think!

Introducing the Top 100 most influential recruiters on LinkedIn...This week, I am re-joined by Jordan Shlosberg, founder of Atlas, for an unmissable episode of The RAG Podcast.Since we last spoke in September, Atlas – the world's first AI-powered CRM for recruiters – has skyrocketed to nearly £1M ARR in just 9 months! But this episode isn't just about AI: it's about how recruiters can leverage technology, brand building, and social selling to drive real revenue. Here's what we cover: How AI is reshaping recruitment CRMs & why voice tech is the future. The Atlas x Hoxo Top 100 – ranking the most socially engaged recruitment leaders. Why personal branding & social selling aren't just buzzwords – they drive real business growth. How the most successful recruiters are using content to generate inbound leads. The power of consistency – why audience building is a long-term game with massive payoffs.If you're in recruitment and want to understand how AI, branding, and content can transform your business, this one's for you!Check out the ELITE TOP 100 list by Atlas & Hoxo discussed in this podcast here: https://hubs.ly/Q035mrPg0Chapters00:00 Introduction to the RAG Podcast and Atlas01:55 Atlas's growth and AI integration10:36 Customer base and SaaS metrics12:02 Balancing work and personal life16:20 The Atlas and Hoxo partnership20:37 The importance of social selling25:23 The role of opinion in recruitment29:03 The future of recruitment and AI33:37 Navigating recruitment challenges in 202534:58 The power of building an audience36:53 Personal growth and brand building39:14 The importance of consistency in recruitment41:32 Understanding market dynamics43:54 Purpose beyond placements46:21 The role of authenticity in content creation49:47 Crafting engaging content and hooks53:39 The importance of authenticity in communication56:36 AI's role in recruitment and sales01:01:28 Delayed gratification in building relationships01:05:41 The future of recruitment and brand building__________________________________________Episode Sponsor: AtlasYour memory isn't perfect. So Atlas remembers everything for you. Atlas is an end-to-end recruitment platform built for the AI generation. It automates your admin so you can focus on the business tasks that matter. How many conversations do you have every day? With clients. Candidates. Your team. Service providers.Now how many of those conversations can you recall with 100% accuracy? How many hours a week do you spend making notes to try and retain as much as possible? And how much is still getting lost along the way? Traditional CRM systems weren't built for the type of recruitment business you're running right now. They were built to rely on the structured, tagged, categorised, and formal data you could feed it. Manual processes that needed you to input specific information, based on specific questions and answers. But what about all the other conversations you're having every single day? Atlas isn't an ATS or a CRM. It's an Intelligent Business Platform that helps you perform 10X better than you could on your own. How? By removing all your low value tasks, acting as your perfect memory, and providing highly relevant recommendations to impact your performance. Learn more about the power of Atlas – and take advantage of the exclusive offer for...

Today, we're talking with Adam Schoenfeld, CEO at Keyplay, a SaaS solution to help B2B marketers make GTM more efficient. In this episode, Adam talks about: How he built 3 startups to over $1m ARR His process that's allowed him to reliably reach Product Market Fit again and again And the critical mistakes founders always make...and how you can avoid them Links LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamschoenfeld/ Chapters 00:00 Intro 01:19 Adam Schoenfeld's Journey to Keyplay 01:59 How to Build A Startup 02:33 Building a Product Audience and Discovering Problems 02:50 From PeerSignal to Keyplay 03:17 Monetizing the Discovery Process 04:05 Finding Product Market Fit 07:11 The Role of Design Partners 13:36 Early Product Traction and Validation 17:49 Challenges in Scaling 19:12 Challenges of Founding a SaaS Company 21:34 Adapting Sales Processes and Proving Value 23:29 Understanding Market Changes and Effective Marketing 28:59 Lessons from Past Ventures and Scaling Challenges 34:19 Insights on Product Market Fit and Distribution 36:57 Navigating Acquisitions and Future Outlook Follow LaunchPod on YouTube We have a new YouTube page (https://www.youtube.com/@LaunchPod.byLogRocket)! Watch full episodes of our interviews with PM leaders and subscribe! What does LogRocket do? LogRocket combines frontend monitoring, product analytics, and session replay to help software teams deliver the ideal product experience. Try LogRocket for free today. (https://logrocket.com/signup/?pdr) Special Guest: Adam Schoenfeld.

Sub to my email newsletter for growth tactics - https://investorupdate.beehiiv.com/subscribeBrought to you by...Talent Fiber: Hire global talent for your growth marketing positions - https://talentfiber.com/In this podcast episode, I discussed the challenges early-stage founders face in enterprise sales and how traditional marketing strategies often fall short. My guest, Colin, shared a unique solution: hosting intimate dinners with target customers to build relationships and generate leads. By spending just $1,500, founders can create a valuable networking opportunity that can lead to significant revenue growth.We also explored the importance of partnerships with agencies to expand reach without the need for a dedicated sales team. Colin emphasized that these partnerships should focus on educating the agencies about the product, ensuring they can effectively promote it to their clients. This approach not only helps in generating leads but also builds a strong community around the brand, which is essential for long-term success in the health and wellness industry.Timestamps:(0:00) - Intro(0:21) - Hosting Dinners for Target Customers(3:07) - Partnership Arbitrage in E-commerce(5:56) - Impact and Outcomes of Hosting Events(10:09) - Logistics and City Selection for Events(19:03) - Cold Outreach Strategies for Event Invitations(29:03) - Leveraging Agency Partnerships for DistributionHost LinksPersonal email newsletter - https://investorupdate.beehiiv.com/subscribehttps://twitter.com/codyschneiderxxhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/codyxschneider/https://codyschneider.com/https://inthepitpodcast.com/Guest Linkshttps://www.instagram.com/colindougherty_/https://www.camskns.com/

A remarkable growth story unfolds in this episode of the Product-Led Podcast as David, CEO and founder of Submagic, shares how his company scaled from $0 to $1 million ARR in just three months. Learn the strategies behind their success, including timing with the AI boom, a unique affiliate program, and an unwavering focus on customer feedback. Discover the practical steps and tools used by Submagic to build a sustainable business, and how their lean team of 15 now serves over 2 million users globally. Show Notes: [00:09] Introduction: From $0 to $1 Million ARR in 3 Months [00:40] The Perfect Timing: Leveraging the AI Boom [01:16] Submagic's Vision and MVP Process [02:03] Building the Affiliate Strategy with Small TikTok Creators [05:13] Gamification and Incentives for Affiliates [07:00] Scaling Beyond the Affiliate Model [09:12] Focus on Three Pillars: Product, Distribution, and Customer Experience [12:10] Structuring a Lean Team for Growth [13:14] Insights into Customer Engagement and Feedback Loops [16:04] Sustaining 10% Monthly Growth and Competing in the Market [18:06] Upcoming Features: Saving Time with Magic Clips [20:09] Habits for Product-Led Growth: Listening and Prioritizing [21:27] Final Takeaways for Founders About David David is the CEO and founder of Submagic, a bootstrapped SaaS company that focuses on empowering businesses with short-form content creation tools. His leadership blends creative expertise and a relentless focus on customer-centric growth. About Submagic Submagic revolutionizes short-form content creation for businesses with AI-powered tools designed for simplicity, efficiency, and scalability. Connect with David LinkedInSubmagic

Timestamps: 10:22 - Defining and testing the Ideal Customer Profile 13:11 - Does ICP vary from B2B to B2C? 20:40 - Metrics that prove you've hit PMF 30:29 - When is it time to start scaling? About Laurent Decrue & Boris Manhart: Laurent Decrue is the co-founder of the moving company MOVU and the software company Holycode, and the former CEO at Bexio. Currently he is active as CFO and co-CEO at Holycode. He holds an MBA from the University of Basel and previously worked at DeinDeal. Boris Manhart is a serial entrepreneur and the founder of Growth Unltd, a company that helps scale your business. He was previously involved with CodeCheck and Numbrs, and studied for a couple of years at the Universität Zürich. During their chat with Silvan, they discussed how to achieve the all-coveted product-market fit. Naturally, this journey starts with defining and testing your ICP, i.e. your Ideal Customer Profile: You'll create an ICP in your head based on assumptions, at the beginning. That's normal. You might even be more or less right. But you can't rely on your intuition alone;  First of all, niche down. Go for a smaller market than the one you had in mind; Then conduct interviews to find out if it's the right market. This is how you can actually test all your customer development assumptions. Once you've more or less figured out your ICP based on real customer data, you can start thinking about metrics. Which ones can tell you if you're really selling your product/service to the right market? Boris and Laurent don't like the common overreliance on figures like Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) or the 1M ARR benchmark. They both prefer to use the Sean Ellis test, which consists of asking people how disappointed they'd be if they could never use your product again. But don't get too hung up on the “40% were very disappointed” metric one sometimes sees floating around: each company is its own unique case. It's often considered that once PMF is reached (or, at least, once you reach it for the first of many times), that's when you should start scaling your company. But you might want to think carefully about how to go about it: during his chat with us, Laurent shared his story of how Holycode made the mistake of hiring 2 new sales people in Switzerland and Germany to move from founder-led sales to employee-led sales, when in fact they should have hired a growth marketing team to help generate more leads — because without generating more leads, what use is having the sales people to convert them? Check out the conversation for more valuable learnings on how to (continuously) reach PMF.  The cover portrait was edited by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.smartportrait.io⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Don't forget to give us a follow on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠,⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠and⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Linkedin⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, so you can always stay up to date with our latest initiatives. That way, there's no excuse for missing out on live shows, weekly giveaways or founders' dinners.

What's a great ARR per FTE, and is it even realistic to get to $1M? And if you could, why should you?This and more we discuss in todays episode.(00:00) - Introduction (02:32) - Why $1 million, like really? (06:46) - The Mindset Shift (13:00) - What can we automate first? (18:31) - Average quality of talent (25:48) - Investing in Assets for Growth This episode is brought to you by by Everstage - the highest rated Sales Commissions Platform on G2, Gartner Peer Insights, Trustradius with over 2,000+ customer reviews. Some of their customers include leading brands like Diligent, Wiley, Trimble, Postman, Chargebee etc.,You can go to https://www.everstage.com/revenue-formula to check out Everstage and mention Revenue Formula to unlock a personalized Sales Compensation Strategy Session with Everstage's RevOps experts—crafted for enterprise teams to maximize performance.Never miss a new episode, join our newsletter on https://revenueformula.substack.com

Jen Abel is the co-founder of JJELLYFISH, where she and her team have worked with over 300 early-stage founders to learn how to sell, do early customer discovery, and set up a repeatable sales motion on the way to their first $1M ARR. In our conversation, Jen shares:• Why founder-led sales is so crucial early on• The sales process, step by step• How to craft effective outreach messages• Where to find leads• What three channels work best for outreach• What to say on your first call• How to maintain momentum• Strategies for navigating procurement and closing deals• Common pitfalls in the sales process and how to avoid them—Brought to you by:• Brave Search—A smarter way to search• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security• Paragon—Ship every SaaS integration your customers want—Find the transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/master-founder-led-sales-jen-abel—Where to find Jen Abel:• X: https://x.com/jjen_abel• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/earlystagesale—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Jen's background(02:20) The importance of founder-led sales(08:24) The steps of a sales cycle(12:01) Tactics for effective cold outreach(16:47) Conversion rate vs. win rate(20:20) The time it takes to find product-market fit(23:06) Identifying and engaging prospects(30:58) Nailing the first phone call(34:14) Buying vs. selling(38:08) Testing the questions to ask(41:57) Avoiding common sales questions and securing the second call(43:08) Co-authoring with customers(45:06) Time-boxing service contracts(49:20) Why you should avoid demos on the first call(51:05) Dealing with procurement(54:22) The power of enterprise sales(58:14) Getting a signature(01:00:15) Choosing a focus and overcoming sales challenges(01:02:19) General timelines(01:04:27) Final thoughts and advice(01:13:32) Working with Jen—Referenced:• Wiz: https://www.wiz.io/• JJELLYFISH: https://www.jjellyfish.com/• Clay: https://www.clay.com/• A guide for finding product-market fit in B2B: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/finding-product-market-fit• Airtable: https://www.airtable.com/• Figma: https://www.figma.com/• GitHub: https://github.com/• Vanta: https://www.vanta.com/• Christine Cacioppo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ccacioppo/• Glengarry Glen Ross: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104348/• A step-by-step guide to crafting a sales pitch that wins | April Dunford (author of Obviously Awesome and Sales Pitch): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-step-by-step-guide-to-crafting• Sales Pitch: How to Craft a Story to Stand Out and Win: https://www.amazon.com/Sales-Pitch-Craft-Story-Stand-ebook/dp/B0CHY6BNDN• Sprig: https://sprig.com/• Zip: https://zip.co/—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. Get full access to Lenny's Newsletter at www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe

David's startup failed. But he had everything going for him: a solid thesis, $16M in funding across 3 rounds, $1.5M in ARR. At a high-level it seemed like everything was going the right way. And yet, it didn't work out.This is what happens to 95% of startups. On thhis show, we mainly speak with the top 5%-- the ones where things went right and everything worked out. But you tend to learn more from failures than successes.On this episode, we go deep with David to see what building Tandym was like, why it ultimately didn't work, and what he would do differently the second time around.Why you should listen:Why you should always start with the model that requires the least capital Why you need to be a number one priority for your customersWhy even hitting $1M ARR doesn't mean you will succeed.Why you need to pivot quickly as soon as things are clearly not working.  iKeywordsproduct-market fit, startup journey, fundraising, fintech, brand partnerships, business model, sales challenges, urgency in sales, Tandem, lessons learned, startup, fundraising, product strategy, compliance, revenue growth, entrepreneurship, lessons learned, business pivot, mid-market brands, capital managementTimestamps(00:00:00) Intro(00:03:30) The Origin of Tandym(00:09:26) Taking the Leap(00:11:37) The Business Model(00:17:22) Developing the Product(00:21:05) Struggling to Create Urgency(00:26:50) Raising Rounds & Shifting(00:35:11) First Signs of Problems(00:39:01) The Product that we should've launched(00:42:12) How it All Ended(00:49:56) Final Thoughts & AdviceSend me a message to let me know what you think!

Spending money on marketing is often not an option for bootstrapped startups, at least not enough to make a meaningful impact.Without an abundance of resources, there's no choice but to get creative.While found-led sales can get you off the ground, your network can exhaust pretty quickly, leaving you with the challenge of figuring out new ways to generate demand.On this episode, Melissa and Todd share the 12 most effective zero-dollar marketing strategies that got eWebinar to $1M ARR.Takeaways:• Why paid marketing should be your last resort• How to create evergreen content that lasts forever• 12 $0 strategies you can steal to grow your own businessContact ProfitLed Tweet us at @profitledfm. Find show notes of each episode on ProfitLed.fm. Connect with our host Follow Melissa Kwan on LinkedIn where she share stories & lessons from her founder journey weekly. Follow @themelissakwan on Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube where she shares short videos of business advice and other truth-bomb sound bites. This podcast was brought to you by eWebinar.Learn more at ewebinar.com and find out how you can turn pre-recorded videos into automated webinars that perform better than a live webinar.Thanks for listening!

In this episode of the SaaS Revolution Show our host Alex Theuma is joined live from the SaaStock Studio at SaaStock Europe 2024 by Amos Haggiag, Co-Founder & CEO at Optibus, who shares his biggest learnings from building Optibus to a global unicorn. "We sell a mission critical product. When a customer chooses Optibus, if Optibus doesn't work, the public transportation stops working - busses don't arrive on time or don't arrive at all, passengers get the wrong information, like, it's a disaster. So the risk is so high that in order to anyone to choose Optibus, it's not enough to just bring like a really good product, you need to also convince [them] that you're not introducing risk, that you know how to work in complexity, you know how to work in different regions, it's very local. And because of that, at some point, we decided to change the organisation into more focus on the local region kind of management." Amos shares: • Optibus' funding journey to a $100M Series D funding round and a $1.3B valuation • The moment they realised they had surpassed $1M ARR (and why he didn't think they had product market fit at the time!) • Scaling their sales team to accommodate for their global customer base • From localised to centralised- the painful process of restructuring • Challenges with delegating tough decisions as CEO • The importance of having a long term focus and more!Check out the other ways SaaStock is serving SaaS founders

Jaspar graduated YC & closed a $11.5M seed round this week. He launched Artisan just 8 months ago. And this is the first venture-backed startup he's ever ran. He started with product-led-growth but struggled. In May, he moved to a sales-first go-to-market & scaled from $200K ARR to $1.3M ARR by September. We go deep and tactical to figure out exactly what he did to grow so fast: from hiring a Chief of Staff as one of his first hires, to living in the same house as his employees, to meeting 50-100 Account Executives for each AE he hires. He shares specific numbers, specific tactics, and specific mistakes he made along the way.Why you should listen- How solving a #1 priority problem is the single biggest reason for fast growth.- How to use LinkedIn, Reddit, and SEO to generate so many leads your AE's are drowning. (Jaspar's AEs do 20 demo calls per day).- How to close yourself by hiring a Chief of Staff early on.- How to find 10/10 Account Executives that closes $300K ARR in their first month.Keywordsstartup growth, sales strategy, marketing tactics, customer success, hiring AEs, product-led growth, sales-led growth, founder insights, business scaling, ARR, product-market fitTimestamps(00:00:00) Intro(00:03:44) Getting leads from Reddit(00:06:00) Launching V1 quickly(00:12:28) Getting leads from blogs & SEO(00:15:33) Getting leads from LinkedIn (00:17:10) Why you should hire a Chief of Staff Early(00:21:30) How to hire the best Account Executives(00:24:46) How to get to $1M ARR(00:26:10) Making Customers Successful(00:29:43) One Piece of AdviceSend me a message to let me know what you think!

In this episode of the SaaS Revolution Show our host Alex Theuma is joined by Job van der Voort, Co-Founder & CEO at Remote, who shares their hypergrowth journey and how they scaled Remote to hundreds of millions in ARR. "I would always say this is a great problem to have. If you grow really, really fast and it's a luxury problem, and if you just embrace it like that, then everything becomes much easier. Just embrace it in the most honest possible way, which is that, wow, we get so much interest that we have to solve these really difficult problems right now. It's for sake of, you know, our success, or at least the direction of success. To me, that was never difficult. What is difficult is how it affects the rest of your life." Job shares: • From $0 to $1M ARR in six months, and $1M ARR to hundreds of millions in three years: the operational and human problems Remote faced during rapid growth • His attitude towards increased responsibility and fighting fires - 'it's a great luxury to have problems to solve' • Why too many people get distracted by 'building for the sake of building' and deprioritise talking to customers and actively marketing the product • How to stay clear-headed during a period of hypergrowth • 'The sun will shine tomorrow', how he stays motivated when times get tough and more!Check out the other ways SaaStock is serving SaaS founders

Discover the ad creative strategy that helped ReciMe go from $500 to $20,000 a DAY on ad spend with a positive ROAS. Ivy Nguyen is the Co-Founder and Head of Growth at ReciMe – the ultimate recipe app for organizing your recipes, which recently achieved $1M ARR. Ivy brings a wealth of experience in growth strategies and paid advertising. Ivy will share invaluable insights on creating a “unicorn” ad, how ReciMe became the #1 grossing food app in Australia (and #3 in the US), and how she rapidly tests ad creatives with a small team. You will discover: -How to create a unicorn ad -Game-changing ad creative ideas -How they went from 8% to 22% free trial start rate Learn More: www.recime.app https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivy-nguyen-66b04b1a2/ App Audits: App 1: iOS Link: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/dandelion-habit-tracker/id6448731173 GP Link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=me.aravi.dandelion App 2: iOS Link: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/unscripted-photography-poses/id1438843099?platform=iphone GP Link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.unscripted.posing.app&hl=en You can also watch the video: https://youtube.com/live/H3NbHEucY8k Book a consultation call: https://calendly.com/appmasters-alok/30min Work with us to grow your apps faster & cheaper: http://www.appmasters.com/ ********************************************* SPONSORS Tired of App Store limitations? FunnelFox empowers mobile apps with web funnels that offer 100% attribution, low payment commissions, and higher subscription retention. Build and optimize your web funnel with a no-code builder, seamless payments, and A/B testing. Ready to boost your app's revenue? Visit https://funnelfox.io/ to get started. ********************************************* We all have developer horror stories. From language barriers to bad code to developing on time. That's why I recommend using B7Dev.com. They are affordable, fast and more importantly trust worthy. Go to B7Dev.com. ********************************************* Follow us: YouTube: ⁠AppMasters.com/YouTube⁠ Instagram: ⁠@App Masters Twitter: ⁠@App Masters TikTok: ⁠@stevepyoung⁠ Facebook: ⁠App Masters⁠ *********************************************

Don co-founded Vena & was CEO for 8 years. Last month, Vena became a Centaur crossing $100M in ARR. Don & his team launched Vena in a crowded market, where everyone else was trying to replace excel. So they built a budgeting and planning (FP&A) solution that instead leveraged excel. As Don says, they "disrupted the disruptors".Don knew the problem, he knew the space, he knew the customers— that's why he grew from 0 to $1M in ARR in 18 months. Here's exactly how he did it.Why you should listen How to close the first few customersHow to close 6-figure deals without any proof pointsHaving knowledge and a network in the industry you're entering makes it easier to find success as a founder.In crowded markets, a differentiated approach and the ability to solve pain points for customers are key to standing out.Why there's no feeling like the satisfaction of taking an idea and product to market, working with great people, and seeing others succeed.Keywordsstartup, scaling, Vena Solutions, network, crowded markets, budgeting and planning, differentiation, pain points, revenue intelligence, SaaS, founders, startups, entrepreneurship, entrepreneur, venture capitalTimestamps:(00:00:00) Intro(00:02:36) The Beginning of Vena Solutions(00:06:06) Step 1 of Vena(00:09:35) First Conversations(00:11:09)The Market in Planning(00:17:50) The Market in Workflow(00:20:02) Wealth Fargo(00:22:23) Getting to a Million(00:26:05) The Biggest ROI(00:29:03) Una(00:34:33) Not Retiring(00:35:55) Finding Product Market Fit(00:38:29)One Piece of AdviceSend me a message to let me know what you think!

In this episode of the SaaS Revolution Show our host Alex Theuma is joined by Mikita Mikado, Co-Founder & CEO at Unicorn SaaS PandaDoc, who shares his lessons in scaling past $100M ARR. "It takes a lot of patience to run a business at scale. I'm not sure I have it, I feel like I need to build a lot of it. And this tendency of, like, getting something done instead of having conversations around the topic so that people get an insight or bring their perspective on, like, how something needs to be done. It's a really tough transition and I still struggle with it." Mikita shares: - Getting to $1M ARR and the tedious work that went into building a functioning customer flywheel - From hiring generalists to specialising teammates - How PandaDoc's tenure-defying CROs helped make the company what it is today - The important transition to optionality (and why he struggles with it) - A sneak peek into his SaaStock Europe 2024 speaking session and more.Check out the other ways SaaStock is serving SaaS founders

Ashutosh is one of those rare founders who founded not just one, but two unicorns. He worked at Google for 4 years, left and started Bloomreach, which was last valued at $2.2B.  Halfway through that journey, he left to do it all over again.  He started Eightfold AI which is the one we're talking about today. In 2021, he raised $220M from Softbank at a $2.1B valuation. When he left Bloomreach, he didn't even have a clear idea of what he was going to build. He just knew he wanted to have more impact and go from 0 to 1 again.It took him about 2 years to  figure it out, but once he did, he found true product market fit and he scaled from $1M ARR to $3M ARR the year after & $12M ARR the year after that. Why you should listenWhy founders need to validate ideas with an open mind to not have tunnel vision.Why even unicorn founders don't get it right and often need to pivot to success. How to address problems that are not just today problems, but likely to be problems for a long time. Keywordsunicorn founder, Bloomreach, Eightfold, product-market fit, pivot, HR space, digital marketers, talent, hiring, market need, scalingTimestamps:(00:00:00) Intro(00:01:41) His first unicorn - Bloomreach(00:05:22) Starting Eightfold AI(00:08:50) Not Marrying Yourself to One Idea(00:11:55) Finding real customer problems(00:14:46) Solving Today's Problems vs Future Problems(00:16:47) Hiring From Already Rejected Candidates(00:22:50) Fundraising(00:24:40) Building a V1(00:27:00) Pivoting and then Reverting Back(00:30:43) First Customers(00:32:59) Finding Product Market Fit(00:35:04) One Piece of AdviceSend me a message to let me know what you think!

Pierce launched a consulting business that grew to millions in revenue and dozens of employees. But he noticed his customers kept asking for the same solution. So he launched Knak, an email marketing and landing page builder that integrates to Marketo. Unlike most founders, he didn't go all-in. He kept working on his consulting business full-time until Knak hit $1M in ARR. After he transitioned over to Knak, he bootstrapped it to $5M ARR and then raised a $25M Series A. Here's the story of how Knak found product-market fit. Why you should listenHow to transition from a consulting/services business to a scalable tech startup-- and why it might be more painful than you think. What you need to do to shift from SMB to midmarket and from midmarket to enterprise. How to use enterprise customers to scale to $10M+ without needing thousands of customersHow to balance urgency and patience to build a successful startup Keywordspatience, learning, building a company, failures, product-market fit, consulting business, marketing automation platforms, template product, creation platform, raising funding, urgencyTime Stamps:(00:00:00) Intro(00:08:50) The Story of Knak(00:11:04) Going from Zero to a Million(00:16:16) Pivoting from SMB to midmarket(00:19:42) Adding "obvious" features to get closer to PMF(00:24:07) How to position against incumbents(00:27:35) Turning Into a Enterprise  Platform(00:30:30) Finding True Product Market Fit(00:33:34) Bootstrapping to Series A(00:40:02) One Piece of AdviceSend me a message to let me know what you think!

Saam Motamedi is a General Partner at Greylock, where he has led investments in Abnormal Security (incubated at Greylock), Apiiro Security and Opal Security, as well as AI companies like Adept, Braintrst, Cresta, Predibase, Snorkel, and more. Before Greylock, Saam founded Guru Labs, a machine learning-driven fintech startup, and worked in product management at RelateIQ, one of the first applied AI software companies. In Today's Conversation We Discuss: 1. Seed Today is Frothier than 2021: How does Saam evaluate the seed market today? With seed pricing being so high, how does he reflect on his own price sensitivity? When does he say too much and does not do it? Despite seed pricing being higher than ever before, why does Saam believe it is rational? How has the competition at seed changed in the last few years? 2. Series B and Growth are not a Viable Asset Class Today: Why does Saam believe that you cannot make money at Series B today? Why has pricing gone through the roof? Who is the new competition? When does it make sense to "play the game on the field" vs say this is BS and do something else? What would need to happen in the public markets for Series B to be a viable asset class again? 3. Markets vs Founders: The Billion Dollar Mistake and Lessons: How does Saam prioritise between founder vs market? What have been Saam's biggest lessons when it comes to market sizing and timing? What is Saam's biggest miss? How did it change his approach and company evaluation? Which other VC would Saam most like to swap portfolios with? Why them? 4. Saam Motamedi: AMA: What does Saam know now that he wishes he had known when he got into VC? Saam has had a meteoric rise in Greylock, what advice does Saam have for those younger investors look to really scale within a firm? Sourcing, selecting and servicing: Where is he best? Where is he worst? Why does Saam believe that most VCs do not add value? 20VC: Why We Are in a Bubble & Now is Frothier Than 2021 | Why $1M ARR is a BS Milestone for Series A | Why Seed Pricing is Rational & Large Seed Rounds Have Less Risk | Why Many AI Apps Have BS Revenue & Are Not Sustainable with Saam Motamedi @ Greylock

Going from zero to $1M in annual recurring revenue is worth celebrating, but it's no guarantee that your startup is on a path to success. How long did it take to reach this milestone? How much did you spend to acquire each customer, and how many have renewed or extended their contracts? When it comes to sales, repeatability equals success. To learn more about the tactics startups use to reach $1 million ARR (and beyond) I interviewed Rehan Jalil, CEO of Securiti. Drawing from his experience as a three-time founder, we talked about setting up an initial sales motion, understanding and validating the problem you're solving, focusing on a specific audience to hone your value proposition, and building trust with early customers. Episode breakdown: “Before we even get to the revenue, it actually is important to understand what problem you're trying to solve.” [2:10] “The only metric is repeatability.” [4:55] “So we coined the term ‘privacy ops'… we wrote a book on it.” [7:35] “Teams have to be very much in sync, which means information has to flow.” [10:39] “By the time you get to MVP, you better have refined this thing. [12:40] “Before you bring in sales teams, it's important that you actually have the content for them.” [15:34] “The bar is very high within the enterprise, and it takes much longer.” [18:29] “If you don't start with conviction, don't do it.” [21:41] “Find people who have a common interest on the problem that you're trying to solve.” [26:08] “If they feel like you helped them… they can actually be advocates.” [28:14] “Just putting things freemium out there doesn't mean people are going to adopt it.” [30:41] “Prioritize finding a viable use case and viable product strategy vs. rushing into something.” [32:36] Thanks for listening! Follow Fund/Build/Scale on LinkedIn and Substack.