Podcasts about GTM

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Best podcasts about GTM

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Latest podcast episodes about GTM

Integrate & Ignite Podcast
20 Marketing Leaders Revealed the 6 Strategies That Will Define 2026, feat. Annika Björkholm

Integrate & Ignite Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 4, 2025 41:33


2026 is closer than you think. Are you ready for what's next? Learn the 6 strategies top marketers say will separate leading brands from the rest. Get real-world tactics for perception, positioning, brand, demand generation, GTM alignment, and metrics that matter.And don't forget! You can crush your marketing strategy with just a few minutes a week by signing up for the StrategyCast Newsletter. You'll receive weekly bursts of marketing tips, clips, resources, and a whole lot more. Visit https://strategycast.com/ for more details.==Let's Break It Down==05:09 "Marketing Insights for 2025-2026"08:23 "Connecting Dots to Impact"13:50 "Humor & Boldness in B2B"17:39 "Inconsistency Threatens Brand Integrity"18:45 "Consistency with Creative Freedom"24:55 "The Funnel Is Dead"26:58 "Awareness: Key to Marketing Funnels"31:03 "Go-to-Market vs. Sales Strategy"35:20 "Aligned Metrics for Pipeline Success"37:07 RevOps: The Glue for Alignment==Where You Can Find Us==Website: https://strategycast.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/strategy_cast/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/strategycast==Leave a Review==Hey there, StrategyCast fans!If you've found our tips and tricks on marketing strategies helpful in growing your business, we'd be thrilled if you could take a moment to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts. Your feedback not only supports us but also helps others discover how they can elevate their business game!

Go To Market Grit
Rebuilding Front for the AI Era | CEO Dan O'Connell

Go To Market Grit

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2025 59:50


The hardest part of transformation is knowing what to let go of.Dan O'Connell, now leading Front as CEO and formerly on the board at Dialpad, joins Joubin Mirzadegan to explore the delicate balance between legacy and innovation as he leads a decade old company through the AI revolution.He also reflects on why courage and control can coexist in leadership, and what it means to “make decisions that give you energy.”Guest: Dan O'Connell, CEO of Front​Connect with Dan O'ConnellXLinkedIn​Connect with JoubinXLinkedInEmail: grit@kleinerperkins.com​Learn more about Kleiner Perkins

Corporate Escapees
646 - Why This Consultant Targets Job Postings Instead of Cold Outreach (And Gets Better Results) with Andy Culligan

Corporate Escapees

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2025 33:04


Why you should listenDiscover why targeting companies posting job ads on LinkedIn crushes cold outreach, and how Andy positions himself to connect directly with decision-makers actively looking for his expertise (no complex funnels required).Learn how podcasting opens doors. Andy shares how it gets him in front of impossible-to-reach prospects, plus the truth about why most consultants quit after two episodes.Get Andy's exact visibility playbook including how to leverage awards and PR for massive LinkedIn engagement, why offline networking is making a comeback, and the AI-powered intent data strategy that identifies which accounts are actively searching for solutions like yours right now.Most consultants hit the same wall. Their personal network dries up. Cold outreach feels like screaming into the void. Every marketing guru pushes complex funnels and expensive ad campaigns that don't work for high-ticket consulting.In this episode, Andy Culligan breaks down how he built his fractional CMO practice serving $10M-$50M SaaS companies without cold outreach at scale or massive marketing budgets.We explore why SaaS companies get stuck at key revenue milestones and what changes in their go-to-market approach. Andy shares his team's MarTech stack and how they've automated client operations using AI agents that analyze contracts and recommend pricing to prevent churn.If you're selling high-ticket services and tired of tactics that don't work for consultants, this delivers the blueprint.About Andy CulliganAndy is a fractional CMO, and CEO / Co-Founder at purple path, a GTM partner for B2B SaaS companies.Andy describes himself as a sales person stuck in a marketer's body, and excels in aligning marketing and sales teams to drive revenue growth.With over a decade of experience in SaaS martech, Andy has built and lead teams to success, making him the go-to CMO resource at a fraction of the cost.Resources and LinksPurplepath.ioAndy's LinkedIn profilegrowth path PodcastApollo.ioClayBomboraLeadfeederRiversidePrevious episode: 645 - How to Build AI Automations That Actually Make You Money with Jason AlbertiCheck out more episodes of the Paul Higgins PodcastSubscribe to our YouTube channel: @PaulHigginsMentoringJoin our newsletterSuggested resources

Partnerships Unraveled
Nihil Morjaria - Scaling Human Risk Management at usecure

Partnerships Unraveled

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 3, 2025 22:30 Transcription Available


In this episode of Partnerships Unraveled, we sit down with Nihil Morjaria, Chief Revenue Officer at usecure — a UK-based cybersecurity vendor that has built its go-to-market strategy around managed service providers (MSPs) and distribution partners. Nihil unpacks how usecure pivoted from a direct sales model to becoming a channel-first organization, scaling to over 1,800 billing partners without compromising depth of enablement. From rebuilding their product and licensing model for MSP scalability to embedding automation and self-serve onboarding technology, Nihil shares a playbook that's turned strategic alignment into measurable growth.Channel professionals will gain a blueprint for what it really means to build a partner-centric organization. Nihil dives into the key elements that make vendors channel-friendly from flexible billing and multi-tenancy to product simplicity and marketing enablement. He also highlights one of today's most overlooked growth opportunities: compliance-as-a-service. Offering practical advice and real-world frameworks, this episode is a must-listen for anyone looking to evolve faster and scale smarter in the channel.Tune in for a refreshing, hands-on perspective on GTM transformation, MSP enablement at scale, and the growing importance of human risk management in evolving compliance needs._________________________Learn more about Channext

Web3 with Sam Kamani
315: Filling crypto's data gap: Catherine on ZK-proofed databases & institutional growth

Web3 with Sam Kamani

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 31, 2025 21:48


Catherine (Space and Time) breaks down why blockchains alone can't power complex apps—and how a verifiable, decentralized database with ZK proofs closes the gap for enterprises, devs, and AI agents. We cover: what SxT is, how its patented ZK approach offloads compute to a single node and proves correctness on-chain, why institutional adoption is sticky, and marketing tactics that actually work in Web3 (what to outsource vs keep in-house). She also shares the Indonesia education rollout (UGM + Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison/IOH), token-powered payments, and what she'd do with unlimited community budget.Key timestamps (YouTube format)[00:00:00] Opening clip: From “future of money” to “verifiable data for smart contracts” [00:01:00] Live at Token2049: who Catherine is and what we cover [00:02:00] Origin story: joining Space and Time to solve crypto's database gap [00:03:00] Mission: empower devs/enterprises/AI agents with verifiable data [00:04:00] Why chains ≠ databases: limits, complexity, and enterprise SLAs [00:05:00] The core innovation: patented ZK proofs for database compute [00:05:45] How it works (plain English): single-node compute, on-chain verification [00:06:30] Catherine's background: technical marketing roots → Web3 [00:07:00] Founder tip: what to outsource vs keep internal (PR, events, community) [00:08:00] Campaigns that win: enterprise/institutional stories beat gimmicks [00:09:00] Example: Microsoft Fabric integration momentum[00:10:00] Listening to the market: community as your feedback engine [00:11:00] Indonesia rollout: IOH partnership and 100k+ students onboarding [00:12:00] UGM framework: verifiable diplomas/records; SXT as payment rail [00:13:00] Longevity question: decentralization and community node operators [00:15:00] If starting today: what they'd build vs leverage in the ecosystem [00:16:00] Why institutional demand is slow but sticky (and good for cycles) [00:17:00] Competing for attention vs building fundamentals and partnerships [00:18:00] What Space and Time needs now: builders to ship with verifiable data [00:19:00] Who they admire: Chainlink's dual GTM (community + enterprise) [00:20:00] Unlimited budget thought experiment: country leads and community depth [00:20:45] Advice to community managers: shared values, inclusion, tight feedback loops [00:21:30] Close: links, how to try SxT, and why this matters for Web3 buildersConnecthttps://www.spaceandtime.io/https://twitter.com/SpaceandTimeDBhttps://discord.gg/spaceandtimeDB https://www.linkedin.com/in/catherinehdaly/https://www.linkedin.com/company/space-and-time-db/DisclaimerNothing mentioned in this podcast is investment advice and please do your own research. Finally, it would mean a lot if you can leave a review of this podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and share this podcast with a friend.Be a guest on the podcast or contact us - https://www.web3pod.xyz/

CUENTOS DE LA CASA DE LA BRUJA
376 - Lágrimas en Píxel, Rojo y Fuego, de César Seijo

CUENTOS DE LA CASA DE LA BRUJA

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 31, 2025 26:57


“Lágrimas en Píxel, Rojo y Fuego”, de César Seijo, es un viaje hacia el lado más oscuro de la nostalgia, donde el juego termina… pero la pesadilla no. En colaboración con el autor, el podcast El Vuelo del Cometa y la revista de videojuegos GTM, hoy os traemos un verdadero descenso al infierno de los 16 bits. - Narración: Juan Carlos Albarracín - Locución Sintonía: Antonio Runa - Música: Epidemic Sound, con licencia - Imagen: Pixabay, con licencia https://pixabay.com/es/illustrations/mario-dibujos-animados-arte-8158697/ Los Cuentos de la Casa de la Bruja es un podcast semanal de audio-relatos de misterio, ciencia ficción y terror. Cada viernes, a las 10 de la noche, traemos un nuevo programa. Alternamos entre episodios gratuitos para todos nuestros oyentes y episodios exclusivos para nuestros fans. ¡Si te gusta nuestro contenido suscríbete! Y si te encanta considera hacerte fan desde el botón azul APOYAR y accede a todo el contenido exclusivo. Tu aporte es de mucha ayuda para el mantenimiento de este podcast. ¡Gracias por ello! Mi nombre es Juan Carlos. Dirijo este podcast y también soy locutor y narrador de audiolibros, con estudio propio. Si crees que mi voz encajaría con tu proyecto o negocio contacta conmigo y hablamos. :) Contacto profesional: info@locucioneshablandoclaro.com www.locucioneshablandoclaro.com También estoy en X y en Bluesky: @VengadorT Y en Instagram: juancarlos_locutor CONVOCATORIA ABIERTA – Los Cuentos de la Casa de la Bruja. ¿Eres escritor o escritora y te gustaría escuchar uno de tus relatos narrado en el podcast Cuentos de la Casa de la Bruja? Estoy abriendo la puerta a autores emergentes que quieran compartir relatos originales dentro del tono del programa: historias de terror y ciencia ficción con atmósferas inquietantes, elementos fantásticos, oscuros o insólitos, y una cuidada calidad literaria. ¿QUÉ TIPO DE RELATOS BUSCO? • Relatos de terror y ciencia ficción • Con una extensión de entre 3.000 y 4.000 palabras • Con una narrativa sólida, buen uso del lenguaje y que se presten a ser narrados en voz • Textos originales e inéditos (o que al menos no estén vinculados a compromisos editoriales) ¿CÓMO PARTICIPAR? Puedes enviar tu relato en formato Word o PDF a info@locucioneshablandoclaro.com con el asunto: Relato para el podcast. Acompáñalo, si quieres, de una pequeña nota biográfica para que pueda presentarte adecuadamente. IMPORTANTE: La recepción de un relato no garantiza su publicación. La selección dependerá de criterios narrativos, temáticos y de estilo, siempre con el objetivo de mantener la atmósfera y el nivel que caracterizan al podcast. ¡No se trata de emitir juicios definitivos sobre ningún autor o texto! Yo no soy crítico literario, ni pretendo serlo. Se trata de encontrar aquellos textos que mejor encajen con el universo del programa. Si tu relato es elegido me pondré en contacto contigo. En caso contrario agradeceré igual tu confianza y el gesto de compartir tu trabajo. Gracias por hacer crecer esta casa con tu obra. ¡Espero leerte! Juan Carlos “Corman” Albarracín Escucha el episodio completo en la app de iVoox, o descubre todo el catálogo de iVoox Originals

Explore Podcast | Startups Founders and Investors
[Weekly] The Case For "Boring" Industries

Explore Podcast | Startups Founders and Investors

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 31, 2025 28:43


FutureCraft Marketing
From Funnels to Playgrounds: Atlassian's Ashley Faus on Human-Centered Marketing in the AI Era

FutureCraft Marketing

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2025 51:40 Transcription Available


What happens when an Atlassian marketing veteran who decorates cakes and rides motorcycles decides the traditional marketing funnel is completely broken? You get Ashley Faus, Head of Lifecycle Marketing Portfolio at Atlassian, author of "Human-Centered Marketing," and today's guest on FutureCraft. Ashley has spent 8+ years at Atlassian revolutionizing how B2B marketers think about customer journeys, replacing linear funnels with her "content playground" framework where audiences can go up, down, and sideways through your content—just like kids on an actual playground. In this episode, we get into: Why ChatGPT 5 might be getting worse for marketing professionals (and what to use instead) Erin's live demo of Gemini's deep research for account-based marketing that analyzes hundreds of sources Ashley's content playground framework that treats audiences like humans, not funnel steps How trust becomes your only defensible moat when AI can fake everything else Why organizational silos are killing your customer experience (and how to fix them) The "18-month rule" for career evolution in an AI-accelerated world Whether you're a CMO fighting for budget, a product marketer drowning in requests, or a lifecycle specialist trying to prove ROI, Ashley breaks down how to keep humans at the center while leveraging AI as your creative co-pilot.  

DGMG Radio
GTM Growth Decoded: 100 Companies, 3 Stages, 1 System with Sangram Vajre, Co-Founder & CEO of GTM Partners

DGMG Radio

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2025 50:04


#299 Drive | This episode is from Drive 2025, our 2 day in-person event for B2B marketers in Burlington, VT. Our first speaker was Sangram Vajre, Co-founder and CEO of GTM Partners and expert in GTM strategy. He shared a great session on building a repeatable GTM Operating System for sustainable growth, offering insight from 100 companies on what separates teams that scale from those that stall.Head over to exitfive.com/drive to join the waitlist for Drive 2026 and be the first to know when tickets go on sale.Timestamps(00:00) - – Intro from Dave (02:51) - – Sangram's background + setup (04:51) - – What GTM really means (11:46) - – The 3 stages of GTM maturity (12:11) - – Why NRR is the key metric (20:51) - – The “boring marketing” advantage (27:42) - – How to say no and prioritize (29:42) - – Why GTM alignment beats tactics (33:42) - – Building your GTM Operating System (36:02) - – Q&A: GTM alignment, discovery, growth Send guest pitches and ideas to hi@exitfive.comJoin the Exit Five Newsletter here: https://www.exitfive.com/newsletterCheck out the Exit Five job board: https://jobs.exitfive.com/Become an Exit Five member: https://community.exitfive.com/checkout/exit-five-membership***This episode of the Exit Five podcast is brought to you by our friends at Paramark. You've heard it before – every B2B marketer's top pain point is marketing attribution. It's complicated, messy, and too often leads to fights with your CRO over whose lead deserves credit.That's where Paramark steps in. Their platform makes it simple to understand what's driving results (and what isn't) with tools like marketing mix modeling and incremental testing. No more relying on outdated click attribution or chasing UTM links. Instead, Paramark gives you actionable insights across channels, campaigns, and geographies to help you grow.Paramark's founder & CEO Pranav has been in your shoes as a B2B marketer. He's so passionate about solving this problem, he's offering listeners a free brand assessment. Pranav will personally analyze your brand's performance and share his insights—an opportunity you don't want to miss.Slots are limited, so act fast. Head to paramark.com/brand-consult to claim your spot. Trust us, this is worth your time.***Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode and handling all of the Exit Five podcast production.They give you unlimited podcast editing and strategy for your B2B podcast.Get unlimited podcast editing and on-demand strategy for one low monthly cost. Just upload your episode, and they take care of the rest.Visit hatch.fm to learn more

The SaaS Revolution Show
Inside ElevenLabs GTM: Speed, culture, and growth

The SaaS Revolution Show

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2025 20:06


In this episode of The SaaS Revolution Show, recorded live at SaaStock Europe, Jonathan Chemouny (GTM Europe, ElevenLabs) and Alex Theuma (Founder & CEO, SaaStock) take you behind the scenes of one of the world's fastest-growing AI startups. You'll hear how ElevenLabs builds go-to-market like a startup within a startup: - Why moving fast is their key differentiator - Their mindset and approach to experimentation and pipeline growth - How removing “distractions” like job titles fosters team alignment - Why assembling a high-performing team begins with the hiring process - What's working in their current GTM motion and how they use their own tech to drive it - Jonathan's personal AI stack and what's next for ElevenLabs' GTM engine

We're Not Marketers
Why B2B events sucks for PMMs? (And why we're starting our own)

We're Not Marketers

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2025 46:35


Season five kicks off with the announcement nobody asked for but everyone needed: We're Not Marketers is throwing an event, and it's nothing like the stale hotel ballroom marathons you're used to. Eric, Zach, and Gab break down why they're risking it all to create a three-day PMM experience that's equal parts tactical workshop, adventure vacation, and therapy session for product marketers who are tired of pretending B2B has to be boring. Get the juicy details on how they infiltrated Drive 2025, why they're limiting attendance to 150 people, and what happens when three solopreneurs decide confidence beats certainty. → Why three solopreneurs with zero event planning experience think they can beat PMA→ The real reason behind the fake mustaches at Drive (hint: it's not just for laughs)→ The "sitting makes you stupid" theory: Why ballroom marathons kill creativity→ How wearing a Halloween costume to a B2B event makes you more yourself, not less→ Most PMMs need a recharge and haven't had one in yearsIf you've ever wondered why PMM events feel like eating cardboard while someone reads you PowerPoint slides, this episode will either inspire you or make you think we've completely lost it.Timestamped00:00 - Season 5 Intro: Two Years of We're Not Marketers 02:15 - The Big Announcement: We're Throwing an Event 04:30 - Why PMM Events Are Broken (And Why We're Fixing Them) 08:45 - The Mustache Origin Story: From Highline to Drive 12:20 - Behind the Scenes: How We Decided to Commit to the Bit 15:20 - Analysis Paralysis vs. Bold Action: Our Decision-Making Process 18:50 - The 150-Person Formula: In-House, Fractional, and CMOs 22:15 - Why Events Should Feel Like Vacations, Not Work 26:40 - The Fractional PMM Problem: Gatekeeping in B2B Events 29:30 - What Makes a Great Event: Lessons from Highline and Drive 32:10 - The Ryan Holiday Moment That Validated Everything 35:45 - Our Event Philosophy: Shipping Over Theory 38:20 - Why We're Taking the Risk (Even If It Fails) 42:00 - What Attendees Are Asking For: Tactical, Fun, and RealSHOW NOTES:Courage Is Calling" by Ryan HolidayHighline ConferenceDrive ConferenceWe're Not Marketers Event WaitlistHosted by Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Silicon Valley Tech And AI With Gary Fowler
Agentic AI & The Future of Work: Redefining Go-To-Market Strategy with Daniel Saks

Silicon Valley Tech And AI With Gary Fowler

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2025 39:05


Join Daniel Saks, CEO & Co-Founder of Landbase, in conversation with Gary Fowler, as they explore how Agentic AI is revolutionizing the way companies generate demand, build relationships, and drive growth. Discover how the next evolution of AI — systems that act intelligently on our behalf — is reshaping go-to-market strategy and redefining the future of work.

Women in B2B Marketing
124: How AI Is Changing PR (and Why It's Having a Comeback) - with Molly George, CEO & Founder of Kickstand

Women in B2B Marketing

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 29, 2025 40:55


Molly George has spent her career inside B2B tech and on the agency side. Today she is the CEO and founder of Kickstand, a PR and research firm helping brands win in an AI-shaped search world.In this episode of Women in B2B Marketing, we unpack why PR is having a comeback in B2B, how AI search is changing the playbook, and what modern comms leaders are doing to show up in the consideration set. We also get into Molly's founder story, the power of setbacks, and practical ways to make PR work alongside demand, content, and product marketing.Here's what we cover:PR's real job in B2B and why quick wins are the wrong expectationAI search and brand visibility: how citations shape considerationOwned vs earned in 2025: your site, plus offsite owned profiles like G2, AWS, WikipediaPress releases today: when they help train models and when wires waste budgetFormatting for LLMs: structure, subheads, and consistent boilerplates across propertiesUsing query data to guide narratives, pitches, and thought leadershipReddit for B2B: participate with value, not a megaphoneBudget shifts: why teams are moving dollars from classic SEO to brand and PRStarting an agency while employed, finding the tipping point, and trusting your gutKey Links:Guest: Molly George: https://www.linkedin.com/in/molly-george-kickstand/Host: Jane Serra: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janeserra/Kickstand: https://meetkickstand.com/Kickstand Research Report on AI and GTM: https://meetkickstand.com/landing/the-zero-click-era-is-here-are-you-ready-to-show-up/––Like WIB2BM? A quick rating or review helps new listeners find the show.

Grow Your B2B SaaS
S7E10 - Build the Right GTM Engine: Hiring, Structure & Growth for SaaS Founders with Christopher Gannon

Grow Your B2B SaaS

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 28, 2025 37:37


In a world where anyone can generate a “perfect” email with AI, does perfection even matter? According to Christopher Gannon, founder of Captivate Talent, what truly matters are the fundamentals: relationships, brand, and aesthetics. In this episode of the Grow Your B2B SaaS podcast, hosted by Joran from Reditus, Chris breaks down how startups should think about hiring go-to-market (GTM) talent, structuring teams, leveraging AI, and expanding into the US. This article summarizes their conversation into clear, actionable insights every founder should know.Key Timestamps(00:00) The Perfect Email Myth: Why Human Connection Still Wins(00:55) Meet the Masters of B2B SaaS Growth(01:31) Why Headcount Won't Scale Your SaaS Revenue(01:51) From Filling Seats to Building a GTM Powerhouse(02:10) The Birth of Captivate Talent: A Founder's Bold Pivot(03:33) The $1M ARR Question: When to Hire Your First GTM Pro(03:50) The Founder's Dilemma: Sell It Yourself or Hire Early?(04:58) The Brutal Truth About Early-Stage Onboarding(05:39) Who Comes First—Sales or Marketing? The Real Answer(05:54) Never Outsource Your Superpower(07:20) Overhiring vs. Underhiring: The Startup Goldilocks Problem(08:16) The Rolodex Trap: Why Big Titles Burn Startups(09:22) Forget Titles—Hire for 12-Month Outcomes Instead(10:15) Inside the Ideal GTM Team Structure for SaaS Growth(11:08) The Secret Weapon: Your Customer Call Library(11:39) AI Is Taking Over GTM (But Here's the Catch)(12:11) Beyond ChatGPT: How to Spot True AI Fluency(13:48) Reditus Break: The Affiliate Engine Powering B2B SaaS(14:11) How to Measure Real AI Impact in Your Workflows(15:06) “At the Table or on the Menu?” AI Skills That Protect Your Career(15:44) The Truth About GTM Hiring in a Post-Layoff World(16:24) Why Relationships Beat Perfect AI Emails Every Time(17:44) The Costly Mistake: Hiring an SDR for US Expansion(18:10) The Founder-Led Playbook for Cracking the US Market(19:09) The Full-Stack Expansion Model Every SaaS Needs(20:22) Stop “Testing” the US with One Hire—Here's Why(22:08) PLG vs. Enterprise: When Remote Expansion Stops Working(23:33) Why Big Logos Abroad Don't Impress US Buyers(24:24) US to Europe: How to Win with Local Talent and Presence(25:29) The Hidden Legal Maze of US Hiring(26:26) The Real Cost of US Expansion (and Cultural Fit)(28:34) The Culture Clash: Vacations, Burnout, and Commitment(29:21) Burn the Boats: The Only Way to Win in the US(30:12) The Future of GTM: How AI Is Rewriting Hiring Rules(31:16) From 0 to $10K MRR: Discipline Over Everything(32:47) From $10K to $10M ARR: Hire Ahead and Pay for Talent(36:49) Connect with Christopher Gannon and Captivate Talent

The SaaSiest Podcast
198. Jakob Lilholm, Co-founder & CEO, Formalize - The S-Curve Bet: How to time product #2 before product #1 peaks?

The SaaSiest Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 28, 2025 49:47


In this episode, we're joined by Jakob Lilholm, Co-founder & CEO at Formalize, the Danish-based compliance SaaS that went from a single-point whistleblowing tool to a multi-product GRC platform used by 8,000+ customers across ~80 countries. Jakob shares how his team timed EU regulatory tailwinds, built whistleblowing software, and then layered products on top, shifting from high-volume transactional sales to a focused, consultative motion for regulated industries. Fresh off announcing a €30M Series B, Jakob walks through the internal rewiring it took: carving out an innovation pod with its own OKRs, resisting flattering false positives from the existing base, and proving platform demand with new-logo sales first, going from ~€100k ARR on the platform to >50% of company revenue in a year.  Here are some of the key questions we address: When do you expand from a point solution to a platform? We discuss the timing model Formalize used (EU roadmap + S-curve “next wave” before the first peaks). What's the right ICP for a platform? Why did they end up narrowing their ICP and say “not yet” to others? How do you avoid false positives when you already have thousands of customers? Jakob explains why he decided to validate platform fit with new logos first. What org design supports a second act like this? How do you shift GTM, pricing, and messaging? What is the process moving from low ACV sales to higher-ACV, consultative deals without breaking the engine? Which metrics matter in the first year of a platform bet? How do you prove value creation, track conversion quality, and know when to re-inject the core team?

Sunny Side Up
Ep. 568 | Driving 80% more deals: Hexagon's ABM transformation with Demandbase

Sunny Side Up

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 28, 2025 30:47


In this OnBase Podcast episode, host Chris Moody sits down with Brynna Self to unpack how Hexagon SIG moved from “running ads to accounts” to a true account-based GTM—and what changed when they adopted Demandbase as their shared sales–marketing system of record. Brynna details the journey from agency days to client-side leadership, why data discipline beats “order-taking,” and how a North America pilot became the blueprint for global rollout. They cover what actually fixes sales–marketing silos (hint: shared facts beat opinions), why clean CRM + intent + journey data created pull from sales, and how one-to-one onboarding for reps, weekly pipeline rituals, and regional frameworks turned ABM from theory into closed-won outcomesKey takeawaysData-driven transformation is the foundation of growthHexagon's marketing evolution began with a cultural shift toward analytics and measurable outcomes. By implementing KPIs and attribution models, Brynna's team moved from intuition-based decisions to data-backed strategy, aligning every initiative to revenue impact.Sales and marketing alignment is non-negotiableBrynna emphasized that ABM success depends on equal partnership between sales and marketing. Breaking the “order-taker” mindset and fostering collaboration built the trust required for true go-to-market alignment.Demandbase became the catalyst for ABM maturityTransitioning from Terminus to Demandbase allowed Hexagon to unify data, surface actionable insights, and bridge communication gaps between sales and marketing. The platform became the single source of truth for their account strategy.Start small, prove value, then scaleLaunching with a North America pilot allowed the team to test, refine, and validate their ABM approach before expanding globally. The result was a 53% increase in web visits and an 80% rise in closed-won opportunities, setting a model for global rollout.Data transparency builds adoptionBy personalizing reports and dashboards for each salesperson, Brynna's team achieved over 90% adoption. Showing tangible, account-level insights built credibility and helped sales see marketing as a strategic partner.ABM success is globally adaptableWhile each region has unique challenges, the ABM framework proved scalable across geographies. Success came from combining consistent methodology with localized execution.Clean data powers the future of AI in marketingBrynna's closing insight underscored that AI can only enhance ABM if the data foundation is clean, accurate, and consistent across systems.Quotes“We need each other. Sales and marketing can't be order-takers; we're partners driving growth.”Tech RecommendationsConsensusDemandbase Resource RecommendationsNewsletter:The Marketing Operations Leader by Darrell AlfonsoThe Marketing Operations Strategist with Sara McNamara by Sarah McNamaraBlog:Niel Patel: Author: Neil Patel | Co Founder of NP Digital & Owner of UbersuggestShout-outsSarah McNamara - Founding Revenue Operations & GTM Strategy Lead. VectorDarrell Alfonso - VP of Marketing Ops and Martech,Foundever.Neil Patel - Co-Founder at Neil Patel DigitalMaureen Mack - Northam Marketing Director,Hexagon.Mallory Hilderbrand  - Senior Manager, Global Campaign Operations,Hexagon.About the GuestBrynna Self is a seasoned growth and marketing executive with 20 years of experience driving global digital strategy, demand generation, and account-based marketing. As Director of Global Digital Marketing at Hexagon's Safety, Infrastructure & Geospatial division, she leads initiatives that align marketing, sales and customer success to create stronger go-to-market execution. Recognized for advancing ABM adoption, AI-powered analytics, and data-driven decision-making, she has delivered measurable growth across the software, manufacturing and e-commerce sectors. Brynna holds an MBA in Marketing from the University of Maryland.Connect with Brynna.

THE Sales Japan Series by Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo, Japan

We've all had those weeks where the pipeline, the budget, and the inbox gang up on us. Here's a quick, visual method to cut through noise, regain focus, and turn activity into outcomes: the focus map plus a six-step execution template. It's simple, fast, and friendly for time-poor sales pros.  How does a focus map work, and why does it beat a long to-do list? A focus map gets everything out of your head and onto one page around a single, central goal—so you can see priorities at a glance. Instead of scrolling endless tasks, draw a small circle in the centre of a page for your key focus (e.g., "Time Management," "Client Follow-Up," "Planning"). Radiate related sub-topics as circled "planets": prioritisation, block time, Quadrant Two focus, weekly goals. This simple visual cues the brain to spot what moves the needle first and what's just distraction. In 2025's noisy, Slack-popping world, mapping beats lists because you see interdependencies, not just items. It's a low-tech cognitive offload that scales across roles—from B2B SDRs to enterprise AEs—in Japan, the US, or Europe alike.  Do now: Grab a blank page, pick one central outcome, and sketch 6–8 sub-topics in 3 minutes. What's the six-step template I should run on each sub-topic? Use this repeatable mini-playbook: (1) Area of focus, (2) My current attitude, (3) Why it matters, (4) Specific actions, (5) Desired results, (6) Impact on vision. Walk a single sub-topic (say, "Prioritisation") through all six prompts to turn fuzzy intent into daily behaviour. This prevents feel-good plans that never reach your calendar. The key is specificity: "Block 90 minutes at 9:00 for top-value tasks, phone on Do Not Disturb" beats "be more organised." Leaders can cascade the same template in pipeline reviews or weekly one-on-ones to connect tasks to strategy and help teams self-coach.  Do now: Copy the six prompts onto a sticky note and keep it next to today's focus map. Can you show a concrete sales example for time management? Yes—prioritisation in practice looks like: organise, calendarise, and execute the top-value items first, every day.Start by acknowledging the usual blocker: "I never get around to it." Then translate to action: buy or open your organiser, maintain a rolling to-do list, and block time in your calendar for the highest-value, highest-priority items before anything else. Desired result: your best time goes to tasks with the greatest impact (e.g., discovery calls with ICP accounts, proposal updates due this week). Vision impact: consistency compounds—your effectiveness rises, and so does your contribution to team revenue. This is classic Quadrant Two discipline (important but not urgent) adapted for post-pandemic hybrid work.  Do now: Book tomorrow's first 90 minutes for your top two revenue drivers and guard it like gold. How should I prioritise when markets differ (Japan vs US vs Europe) or company size varies? Anchor priorities to value drivers that don't care about borders: ICP fit, deal stage risk, and time-to-impact. In Japan (often relationship-led and consensus-driven), prioritise follow-up and multi-stakeholder alignment; in the US (speed + experimentation), prioritise high-velocity outreach and fast iteration; in Europe (privacy/regulatory sensitivities), prioritise compliant messaging and local context. Startups should weight pipeline creation and early GTM proof; multinationals should weight cross-functional alignment, forecasting hygiene, and large-account expansion. The focus map adapts: the central circle stays constant ("Close Q4 revenue"), while the "planets" change by market and motion (ABM research vs channel enablement vs security reviews).  Do now: Label each sub-topic with the market or motion it best serves (e.g., "JP enterprise," "US SMB," "EU regulated"). How do I turn focus maps into weekly cadence without burning out? Run a lightweight loop: Monday map, daily 90-minute deep-work block, Friday review—then iterate. On Monday, pick one central theme (e.g., "Client Follow-Up") and 6–8 sub-topics. Each morning, choose one sub-topic and run the six-step template; protect a single 90-minute block to execute. On Friday, review outcomes vs. desired results, retire what's done, and promote what worked. Leaders can add a shared "focus wall" for visibility and coaching. This cadence blends time-blocking (Cal Newport), Eisenhower Quadrants, and sales hygiene—without heavy software. As of 2025, hybrid teams using this approach report better handoffs, cleaner CRM notes, and fewer "busy but not productive" days.  Do now: Schedule next week's Monday-Friday 09:00–10:30 focus block in your calendar. What are the red flags and watch-outs that kill focus? Beware "activity inflation," tool thrashing, and priority drift. Activity inflation = doing more low-value tasks to feel productive. Tool thrashing = bouncing between apps without finishing work. Priority drift = letting other people's urgencies displace your high-value commitments. Countermeasures: (1) Tie each sub-topic to a KPI (meetings booked, qualified pipeline, cycle time), (2) pre-decide your top two daily outcomes before opening email, (3) make your Friday review public to your manager or team to add gentle social accountability. Keep the map hand-drawn or one-page digital; if it takes longer to maintain than to act, you've over-engineered it.  Do now: Add KPI labels beside three sub-topics and delete one low-value "busywork" task today. Is there a quick checklist I can copy for my team? Use this one-pager and recycle it weekly. Central focus (one phrase): ____________________ Planets (6–8 sub-topics): ____________________ Six Steps per sub-topic: Area of focus → 2) My attitude → 3) Why it matters → 4) Specific actions → 5) Desired results → 6) Impact on vision Time block: 90 minutes daily, device on Do Not Disturb KPIs: meetings booked, pipeline $, cycle time, win rate Friday review: what shipped, what's next, what to drop This blends visual clarity (map) with behavioural clarity (six steps), making it easy for sales managers to coach and for reps to self-manage under pressure.  Do now: Print this checklist for the team stand-up and agree on one shared KPI for the week. Conclusion Focus maps + a six-step template turn overwhelm into action. They help you see what matters, schedule it, and ship it—fast. Start with one central goal, map the "planets," and run one sub-topic per day through the six prompts. That's how you get better results when time is tight.  Optional FAQs What's the difference between a focus map and mind map? A focus map is smaller and execution-oriented: one central outcome and 6–8 sub-topics you'll actually schedule this week.  How many sub-topics are ideal? Six to eight forces trade-offs; more invites sprawl and context switching.  How quickly should I see results? Usually within two weeks once you're blocking 90 minutes daily for the top-value tasks.  Next Steps for Leaders Run a 30-minute "Monday Map" with your team; pick one shared KPI. Make the 90-minute deep-work block part of your sales playbook. Review focus maps in pipeline meetings; coach actions, not anecdotes.    About the Author Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). A Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg delivers globally across leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He is the author of Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, Japan Presentations Mastery, Japan Leadership Mastery, and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training; his works are also available in Japanese. 

Go To Market Grit
ElevenLabs' Vision for Voice Interfaces | CEO Mati Staniszewski

Go To Market Grit

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 27, 2025 64:38


Before AI became a buzzword, a few true believers were already building.Since early 2022, Mati Staniszewski and his team at ElevenLabs have been among them, working to create voices that “actually represent emotions.”He shares with Joubin Mirzadegan how voice AI is transforming diverse fields, from delivering personalized healthcare for different age groups to amplifying creativity in filmmaking.Guest: Mati Staniszewski, co-founder and CEO of ElevenLabsConnect with Mati StaniszewskiXLinkedIn​Connect with JoubinXLinkedInEmail: grit@kleinerperkins.com​​Learn more about Kleiner Perkins

The Tech Blog Writer Podcast
3467: How Springboard IQ is Helping Startup Founders Rebuild Go-To-Market Strategies

The Tech Blog Writer Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 27, 2025 28:25


What happens when early-stage founders realise their go-to-market strategy just isn't working? Do they double down on outdated advice or take a fresh look at how modern buyers actually engage?  In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Richard Lowry, founder of Springboard IQ, to unpack how he's helping startups rebuild broken GTM strategies in just seven days through a crowdsourced, operator-led model that challenges everything we think we know about growth. Richard explains how Springboard IQ brings together six active operators to co-create a go-to-market blueprint that's fast, focused, and grounded in the realities of today's market. This approach delivers practical strategy and design rather than execution, giving founders clarity on where to focus their time and energy. As Richard puts it, founders should save their passion for the demo because that's where it really matters. The conversation explores why technical founders often mis-hire sales talent, why relying on outdated accelerator advice can derail growth, and why many teams hit a “GTM wall” long before real scale begins. We also discuss why the future of GTM might look very different from the digital-first strategies of the past. As inboxes flood with automated outreach and AI-generated content, Richard believes human-led activation through curated events, community experiences, and even spontaneous moments of connection will define the next era of startup growth. It's a conversation that blends practical lessons, honest stories (including one involving a soup kitchen in Lisbon), and a call to bring the human element back to how we sell, connect, and grow. So, could a crowdsourcing strategy from active operators be the smarter way for startups to go to market? And in an era of AI-saturated noise, will the next big differentiator simply be showing up in person? I'd love to hear your thoughts after you listen.

The Product Market Fit Show
He burned $4M to hit $100K ARR—but with 1 big change, he grew to $4.5M ARR in just 12 months. | Guy Podjarny, Founder of Snyk & Tessl

The Product Market Fit Show

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 27, 2025 50:43 Transcription Available


Guy spent 2 years and $4M building Snyk to $100K ARR. Thousands of developers loved the product. They just wouldn't pay.Then he figured out the problem: he had product-user fit, but not product-buyer fit. Developers loved Snyk. Security teams (the actual buyers) didn't care about it. The distance between user and buyer was killing him.So Guy spent a year building governance features, reporting, and enterprise capabilities—all the stuff developers didn't care about but security teams needed to write checks. Four months later, Snyk hit $650K ARR. A year after that, $4.5M. Then $19M. Today it's over $300M ARR.This episode breaks down the brutal reality of PLG when your user isn't your buyer, why Guy thinks the worst outcome for a founder is getting stuck (not failing), and how he's now raising $125M for his next company Tessl.If you're building PLG, selling to enterprise, or wondering why your users love you but won't pay—this is required listening.Why You Should Listen:Learn why thousands of users loving your product means nothing if they won't payDiscover the difference between product-user fit and product-buyer fitUnderstand why the worst outcome isn't failure—it's getting stuck in the grey zoneMaster the art of anchoring in the future instead of just filling today's gapsKeywords:startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, product market fit, PLG strategy, product-user fit vs product-buyer fit, developer tools, security startup, enterprise sales, bottoms-up GTM, Snyk founderChapters:(00:00:00) Intro(00:01:37) The first start up :Blaze.io"(00:06:16) The Beginning & Concept of Skyk(00:15:27) Why use Snyk(00:23:41) The Product Led Growth for Snyk(00:33:08) Raising for Snyk(00:38:58) The Beginning & Concept of TESL(00:46:39) Raising for TESL(00:48:52) Finding PMF(00:49:26) One Piece of AdviceSend me a message to let me know what you think!

Growth Vertical
B2B SaaS Metrics to Track - Understand Which GTM Channels Actually Work

Growth Vertical

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 27, 2025 20:21


A lot of B2B SaaS startups drown in vanity metrics while missing the core metrics that actually drive revenue growth. This tutorial walks you through the exact marketing trended funnel dashboard I've used with various clients to build proper measurement infrastructure and track the metrics that actually move the needle for your business in the early stages of GTM growth.This systematic approach to marketing measurement has helped clients identify where they're overspending, where to scale down budgets, and where to scale up to influence pipeline generation - against performance. Some clients have discovered 2-3x more qualified opportunities simply by analysing their data through this tracking approach.In this video, you'll discover:- The core funnel metrics every B2B SaaS startup should track.- Critical conversion rates that reveal where your funnel is performing well or not.- Which vanity metrics to avoid early on.- Why optimising too early can harm growth.- How to implement this measurement infrastructure using Google Sheets and your CRM.Perfect for B2B SaaS founders who need to understand which GTM channels actually work, and aspiring marketers who want to learn the systematic measurement approach that separates strategic marketers from tactical executors. This video focuses on building marketing infrastructure, not isolating and understanding "feel-good" metrics.

More or Less with the Morins and the Lessins
TPUs Are Winning? Gemini + Anthropic vs NVIDIA, and OpenAI's Atlas Explained

More or Less with the Morins and the Lessins

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 24, 2025 54:41


The gang is back with a spicy opener: Brit calls out Dave for dismissing her “AI-assisted” doc as work slop, while Sam argues lowbrow culture now imitates machines and highbrow culture resists them. We break down OpenAI's early, hallucination-prone Atlas browser and debate whether it's a real agent platform, just memory capture, or total $$$ burn. Sora hype is cooling as TPUs rise—with Jessica noting how The Information's TPU scoop even nudged NVIDIA to move faster. OpenAI's compute could approach ~$45B/year at ~3 GW, forcing new financing models and tough research vs GTM trade-offs—Sam calls it Pascal's Wager for Big Tech. We close on AWS outages, crypto leverage swings, and why “swag is dead,” replaced by bespoke gifting as the new status move. Just another week of your favorite Technology podcast with the Morins and Lessins.Chapters:00:38 — Gang is back: notes on last episode and Yasso bars01:20 — Revisiting last week's “AI Work Slop”: Brit vs. Dave 03:49 — Culture vs. LLMs: highbrow resists, lowbrow imitates07:16 — Bot etiquette: Bot joining Zoom calls and writing thank you letters12:16 — OpenAI Atlas: early tests, hallucinations & agency potential17:29 — Sora hype cools: the consumer AI novelty cycle19:47 — The TPU plot twist: NVIDIA gets pushed to move faster22:40 — $45B compute future: Pascal's Wager for Big Tech29:05 — AWS outages: one-offs vs systemic risk33:29 — The X Game: Mr.Beast, “manual slop,” and the screenshot era43:38 — Swag is dead: bespoke gifting = new status flex53:43 — Sports, socials & 2026 predictionsWe're also on ↓X: https://twitter.com/moreorlesspodInstagram: https://instagram.com/moreorlessYouTube: https://youtu.be/VDYdIoHe4XAConnect with us here:1) Sam Lessin: https://x.com/lessin2) Dave Morin: https://x.com/davemorin3) Jessica Lessin: https://x.com/Jessicalessin4) Brit Morin: https://x.com/brit

Spark of Ages
Revenue Culture That Survives the Boom/Jeff Perry - Carta, Cap Tables, Private Capital ~ Spark of Ages Ep 49

Spark of Ages

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 24, 2025 62:27 Transcription Available


We sit down with Jeff Perry, CRO at Carta, to explore how growth leaders redefine success when capital tightens, buyers get smarter, and AI reshapes cost structures.  We unpack how growth has changed, why IPO-ready now means post-IPO durable, and how Carta scaled from a cap table tool to an ERP-like platform for private capital while staying efficient and customer-first. Jeff shares concrete tactics for moving upmarket, using AI wisely, and building teams that perform under pressure.• redefining fast growth and IPO readiness in private markets• evolving from SMB velocity to enterprise endurance• expanding from cap tables to fund admin and private credit• measuring meetings as a leading productivity indicator• using curated events and customer proofs over vanity metrics• aligning sales, marketing and product around shared pipeline• adding K-1 tax and LP data products to deepen value• AI as a force for 10x productivity, not headcount cuts• disciplined acquisitions to accelerate the CFO ERP vision• leadership choices: pausing sales, saying no when not readyIPO dreams used to hinge on hitting 100 million ARR. That world is gone.  Jeff takes us from Carta's earliest days digitizing stock certificates to building a networked platform that now powers cap tables, fund administration, LP data, and private credit—an evolving ERP for the office of the private capital CFO.We dig into the hard pivots after the 2021 surge: why “more capacity” stopped working, how meetings per AE became a reliable leading indicator, and where curated events and customer-led storytelling outperform saturated digital tactics. Jeff explains the move upmarket into venture and private equity, the new enterprise seller profile it requires, and the partnership with marketing to identify real switching intent. He also shares how acquisitions like Accelex and Sirvatus support an end-to-end vision across funds, LPs, and loan servicing.AI looms large throughout. Jeff contrasts application-layer SaaS with AI-native companies carrying heavy compute costs, and why that bifurcation changes CAC, payback, and headcount plans. Rather than using AI to cut roles, he shows how Carta uses it to 10x productivity—accelerating RFPs, territory coverage, and performance workflows—while standardizing experiments so wins become reusable process. Along the way, we unpack bold leadership choices: pausing sales to protect implementation quality, and walking away from a marquee IPO transition when the product wasn't ready.If you care about efficient growth, enterprise GTM, and building products that compound value across a connected market, this conversation delivers practical playbooks and memorable lessons on performing under pressure. Follow, share with a teammate, and leave a quick review to help more operators find the show.Jeff Perry: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-perry-380233/Jeff is a proven revenue superstar, whose career journey spans Oracle and DocuSign.  Under his leadership as CRO at Carta, Carta's annual recurring revenue scaled from approximately $20 million ARR to $450 million ARR. Jeff attended Santa Clara University where he received a B.S. in Political Science and where he also played NCAA baseball.Website: https://www.position2.com/podcast/Rajiv Parikh: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajivparikh/Sandeep Parikh: https://www.instagram.com/sandeepparikh/Email us with any feedback for the show: sparkofages.podcast@position2.com

The Marketing Hero Podcast
Why the Smartest Marketing Teams Still Bet Big on In-Person Events

The Marketing Hero Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 24, 2025 52:57


In this RevOps Hero episode, Chris Strom interviews five marketing leaders live at Dreamforce to unpack why top teams still invest in in-person events — and exactly how they plan, execute, and measure them. We cover pre-event planning and process, on-site actions (booth, breakouts, side events), post-event follow-up, and how these leaders run attribution that ties events to pipeline and revenue.You'll learn:How in-person accelerates trust (and thus deal velocity)What to do leading up to the event (lists, invites, cadences, creative, logistics)On-site tactics that actually convert (meetings, scans, activations)Post-event follow-up that doesn't feel spammySimple, workable attribution (lead source + campaign influence) and realistic ROI targetsGuests:Ann-Marie Fleming (Traction Complete), Laura Sweet (Riva), Rachel Kim (Mutiny), Milissa Holland (Spaulding Ridge), Aishling Finnegan (Copado)Subscribe for more RevOps and GTM breakdowns.

Category Visionaries
How ZayZoon built 300+ payroll partnerships to reach 15,000 businesses without direct sales | Tate Hackert

Category Visionaries

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 23, 2025 34:13


ZayZoon pioneered the earned wage access category a decade ago and has become the leading embedded provider through partnerships with over 300 payroll companies. With over $50 million raised and a team of 200, ZayZoon now serves 15,000+ businesses across the US. In a recent episode of Category Visionaries, I sat down with Tate Hackert, Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of ZayZoon, to unpack their B2B2C distribution strategy, the economics of three-sided marketplaces, and how they're expanding from earned wage access into the connected workplace. Topics Discussed: Building for two years without revenue while signing payroll distribution partners Why embedded B2B2C distribution beats direct sales for hourly workforce products Engineering three-way marketplace economics that align payroll, employer, and employee incentives The November 2017 trade show that killed their Canadian market strategy Educating three distinct buyer personas in a category creation motion Product expansion strategy: when to stay focused vs. when to launch adjacent products Positioning shift from "financial wellness" to recruitment/retention/productivity outcomes The underwriting advantage of payroll-integrated repayment for reducing loss rates Building 300+ payroll partnerships through relationship-driven GTM GTM Lessons For B2B Founders: Solve distribution economics before product-market fit: ZayZoon spent 2014-2016 building product and signing payroll partners before generating first revenue in 2016. The insight: "Why would we go and try to sign up business by business...Let's sign up the payroll company because they're this umbrella organization." For B2B2C models, solve the distribution layer first—even if it delays revenue. Your bottleneck is partner adoption curves, not product readiness. Structure three-way economics where everyone wins big: ZayZoon discovered payroll companies had "this gold mine of employees that they hadn't yet monetized" and built a model where they pay payroll partners "a really hefty revenue share" while keeping enough margin for ZayZoon and keeping the service low-cost for employees. In platform businesses, the unit economics must be compelling enough that each party actively sells for you, not just tolerates you. Map your value prop to your buyer's actual job metrics: ZayZoon's breakthrough came from reframing earned wage access as solving recruitment, retention, and productivity—the metrics small business owners are measured on. Tate explained the unlock: "It's free for me, and it's deployed seamlessly through the HCM provider that I already use. Yeah, turn it on." Your features matter less than your impact on the specific KPIs in your buyer's quarterly review. Kill underperforming markets immediately, even after years of investment: After building in Canada from 2014-2017, one US trade show in November 2017 generated "more signed business than we had done in the previous couple of years in Canada." They put Canada "on life support" by January 2018. Resource reallocation speed matters more than sunk cost. When signal clarity emerges, move capital and team within weeks, not quarters. High-touch relationship GTM beats automation until you hit scale: Tate's core partnership advice: "Pick up the phone...be gritty as hell. Those first hundred customers that you do, be gritty." He emphasized personal outreach builds "pattern recognition and learnings that you receive from being ultra curious." For partnerships specifically, bring "humility, transparency and the expectation that you're building a ten year plus relationship, not being transactional." Automation scales what works—but relationship GTM discovers what works.   //   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  

CryptoNews Podcast
#485: Saneel Sreeni, Head of Special Projects at Ritual Foundation, on Creating the Sovereign Execution Layer for AI, The Current L1 Landscape and What's Next for Crypto

CryptoNews Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 23, 2025 32:14


Saneel is the Head of Special Projects at the Ritual Foundation, where he broadly runs ecosystem, strategy, and GTM for the Ritual Chain. Prior to this, he was on the Founding Team of Ritual Labs, Alkimiya, and on the Investment teams at Dragonfly and Polychain. He also did ML/AI at large logistics companies before entering crypto. He is also a Partner at Accomplice. In this conversation, we discuss:- Recap of the 10/10 market crash - The current L1 landscape  - L1 consolidation and why most chains won't survive - AI and crypto - How AI powers on-chain decision-making - Becoming the sovereign execution layer for AI - Bringing options trading to crypto - The importance of having a “bid” - Infernet  Ritual Foundation X: @ritualfndWebsite: ritualfoundation.orgDiscord: discord.gg/ritual-netSaneel Sreeni X: @sanlsrniLinkedIn: Saneel S.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------This episode is brought to you by PrimeXBT.PrimeXBT offers a robust trading system for both beginners and professional traders that demand highly reliable market data and performance. Traders of all experience levels can easily design and customize layouts and widgets to best fit their trading style. PrimeXBT is always offering innovative products and professional trading conditions to all customers.  PrimeXBT is running an exclusive promotion for listeners of the podcast. After making your first deposit, 50% of that first deposit will be credited to your account as a bonus that can be used as additional collateral to open positions. Code: CRYPTONEWS50 This promotion is available for a month after activation. Click the link below: PrimeXBT x CRYPTONEWS50FollowApple PodcastsSpotifyAmazon MusicRSS FeedSee All

Win Win Podcast
Episode 136: Bridging the Gap Between GTM Strategy and Execution

Win Win Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 23, 2025


According to the GTM Performance Gap Report, 98% of leaders say their GTM strategy is active, but only 10% see it driving results. So how can organizations bridge this gap and turn strategy into meaningful execution that drives outcomes? Riley Rogers: Hi, and welcome to the Winland Podcast. I’m your host, Riley Rogers. Join us as we dive into changing trends in the workplace and how to navigate them successfully. Here to discuss this topic is Becky Payne, Vice President of Sales and Success Digital Enablement at Sage. Thank you so much for joining us today. Becky, we are super excited to have you. As we kind of get things kicked off, I’d love it if you could just start by telling us a little bit about yourself, your background, and your role. Becky Payne: Absolutely. Well, thank you so much for having me on the Win-Win podcast today. A little bit about me and my background. I’ve been at Sage for seven years. I’ve been in corporate America for almost 17, and what I can tell you is. When you really get under the hood of go-to market, that’s really what makes an organization home, right? And so my experience and my background is a lot of understanding the channel, a lot of understanding how go-to market works in real life, which is a phrase I like to use quite a bit. As well as then understanding how that connects into our strategy as we think about where we need to drive transformation to get to our ultimate outcomes along the way. My role at Sage is very unique. I sit in our routes to revenue organization, and so I get the privilege of enabling our go-to-market teams to drive the revenue that they need to and the various motions and go-to-market aspects of what they do every day. RR: Amazing. First of all, I love the Routes to Revenue team. That is the best team name. Based on what you’ve said here, it seems like we’ve got a lot to dig into. As you mentioned, you’ve got a pretty extensive experience in both channel and sales enablement, so can you walk us through how you journeyed into sales enablement, and now that you’re here, how that background influences your strategy today? BP: Well, I think my experience is probably a little bit of a unique one, but I’m happy to share it. So prior to this role, I actually served as our chief of staff or business executive in the North America space, and prior to that actually for our global partners and Alliance leader. So I have spent a significant amount of time in both of those spaces, and what I was able to identify is that. We had the most brilliant pieces of technology out there. We had the most brilliant strategies out there, but we didn’t have a great way of connecting those into the workforce every day to get them to drive the outcomes that the business really needed to see. So coming into this role, first of all, I think I have the best role at Sage, so I love to brag about what my team does. But what we get to do is we get to connect in with solving real world problems. We get to work with these sellers and these channel partners every single day to be able to deliver incremental value into what they do directly in relation to the customers, but also then how we make them operationally efficient in their day-to-day activities to be able to execute on that go-to-market strategy. RR: It seems like we got the exact right person to talk about the strategy and execution gap. I think you mentioned everything that I hope to cover, so super excited to dig into how you’re making that all this happen. Before we get into kind of the fix it strategies, I’d love to start with where we are today. So as you’re looking across the go-to-market stage and seeing some of the obstacles that pretty much every team is encountering in their day-to-day, what are some of the top challenges to sales success that you’re seeing? And then how are you addressing those challenges for both internal reps and channel partners? BP: Well, I don’t know that we have enough time today to get into all the details, but, but when you really think about it, it’s common in a lot of places, right? Yes, we might be in the high tech world, but a lot of what we’re experiencing is what is happening across the globe today. So if you think about it, a lot of our, both internal sellers, as well as our channel executives and partners, actually are experiencing information overload. And quite honestly, they’re not able to make the understanding of where that information overload then meets the relevance. Impact driver for what they’re dealing with every day. You know, a lot of our colleagues are flooded with content tools, data galore. We have a very, very data rich infrastructure here, which is amazing. However, the challenge isn’t access. To that, right? It’s really the precision and the action that they’re taking on that. We also have a bit of a previous history in having some consistency gaps when you think about that, right? So both direct teams and our channel partner teams that are out there selling and they’re engaging with these customers. Until recently, we didn’t really have a global blueprint. We didn’t really have a ton of global sales place, so we had a, a large inconsistency in how things were showing up, which their format, how we were measuring those outcomes and those impacts couldn’t be aligned on the day-to-day basis. We also are seeing a ton of pace of change. I mean, every organization is experiencing not only the AI transformation and AI change, but overall as a team at Sage, we experienced a significant amount of transformation in the last 24 months. So we’re kind of embracing that as we see a lot of the challenges as we embrace the AI transformation that’s on our doorstep. RR: You called out a couple things that I think most teams are gonna resonate with. Information overload, crazy pace of change, consistency issues across your channels. There’s a lot of noise out there, which makes it really difficult to create enduring, trusted relationships that drive the results you’re looking for. So from your perspective, what are some of the key building blocks behind a strong, effective partnership with your channel teams? BP: All right. This is one that goes a little bit like near and dear to my heart, right? What we have such a great ecosystem around us at Sage and such a great channel partner team, both internally and with our partners directly, is the clarity of the purpose. And the incremental value that they add to Sage. A lot of times our managing director of North America, Mark Hickman, he references the one plus one equals three equation, and that’s generally how we feel with our partner ecosystem. We have the best partnerships and those best partnerships start when both sides are really clear on the outcome and the impact that we mutually drive together. And what we’re able to see is when we do that in a very cohesive, consistent, and aligned strategic way from the leaders all the way down to the front line, we’re able to see incremental value driven through with and to our partners as well as back into Sage when you think about that bigger ecosystem play. RR: Okay, so we’ve covered a little bit of the philosophy of alignment, outcome, shared outcomes. I’d like to talk a little bit about the execution piece, so how you’re bringing that strategy to life with technology. Can you walk us through how an enablement platform helps you better equip both the internal and the partner side of the house? BP: Yes, this is where I nerd out just slightly ’cause this is absolutely what I love. So when you think about it, it does absolutely start with a unified go-to-market motion, which we have been able to deliver over the past year with my partner in crime, Mark Jackson. But we also have now, literally a couple weeks ago, launched our global unified enablement platform, which happens to be Highspot. And what we were able to learn from that is when you take a consistent blueprint and go to market mission, right, and then you add that. The best platform that we can. Not only can we surface insights and leverage some of the AI technologies that Highspot is offering, but we also have an ability to have mutually shared documents, mutually, you know, shared Digital Sales Rooms. Things that allow us to go to market together in an effective way that we’ve never had before. We really feel like this is a game changing strategy for us and really is a way for us to bring our blueprint, right, and that kind of strategy to life in the day-to-day execution. Some of the genomics aspects of your platform bring visibility into some of these sales plays and other items that we’ve never had before. We can now go in and we can see what partners are engaging with us, who within those partners are engaging at a different way, allow us to provide reporting to senior leaders, but also at those frontline sellers. So they’re going into their weekly strategic team meetings with these partners with a strategy that’s very clear. They’ve got content they can reference. They have points of which they can then articulate what is or is not working in sales plays and other things, and we’ve never had that capability before. RR: Well, that’s absolutely what I love to hear that the platform is becoming such a game changer for you guys, and you’re already seeing that difference between before and after. One thing I’d like to double click into what you said there was that you’re starting to dig into Highspot AI capabilities. So can you share how you’re building some of those features into your enablement strategy and then where you’re eventually hoping to go with them? BP: The future’s endless, right? Endless possibilities is where we’re hoping to go. But if you think about something like Sage, we are a global business. We do, you know, a significant amount of business across the world, but we also have, oh gosh, 160 ish products across the world. So when you think about how vast our content repository is, when you think about how much information is actually out there for both our internal sellers as well as our channel teams, we really need to think about smart ways to drive the right visibility at the right time for that, thinking about how to get the right information in their hands in a very short amount of time. You know, the name of the game for us is how do you drive the adoption? Drive adoption in a way that makes it make sense for how they’re using it in their everyday world. So things like the, you know, copilot plus features that has been game changing in and of itself. We cannot wait to get started with some of the content agents. I have a very, very lean team, and when you think about that, investing in places that are operationally supporting things is not likely what we’re to make our next investment, right? This is all about how do I drive the efficiency of my team as well in the background to then enable all of these sellers and these channel partners to do more with what they have. RR: Yeah. As somebody who also sits in the content world and deals with all of the wonderful governance tasks that come with that, I have to say I’m quite excited too, right there with you. Can I ask what it is about the platform that makes you such an advocate and really love to know? BP: Okay. This is, um, I must confess, I love the platform for a couple of different reasons, to be honest with you. First and foremost, I feel like it is one of the most dynamic. Adaptable platforms that I’ve seen where we have ideas, where we have, you know, thoughts for improvements, where we wanna take advantage of beta programs that you guys are offering. Everything is on the table with you guys, and it feels like a true open partnership when we’re having these discussions. It’s one of the only consistent conversations that I’m in where you guys are asking, okay, what is your strategy, Becky? What is Sage’s strategy? What do we need to help you achieve? And that becomes a really meaningful way for us to adapt what our strategic objectives are. Via your platform, and then mutually come up with ways to help us drive that adoption and the success moving forward. And a little bit of a shameless plug, I think I have one of the best account teams at Highspot. If there’s ever a crazy idea that we have, if there’s ever a way for us to try to bring something to life so I can try to get the feedback directly from our sellers, that has been the best thing with Matthew and Ed and Omar. It just becomes a real dynamic partnership in seeing how much value we can mutually drive through this platform. RR: It always makes us so happy to hear that. It really does feel like a true partnership, and I will certainly have to take that feedback back to your team. I’m sure they’ll be happy to hear it, but I’m sure they already know just how successful you’re feeling because looking at the data, you and your teams have achieved a really impressive 87% recurring usage rate, which is huge. So what are some of your best practices for driving that adoption? BP: This one kind of goes back to basics, to be honest with you. So we really started with what matters most, right? So we decided as a strategic team, you know, working on the Sage account and then ultimately within the leadership team at Sage, what is it that we needed to drive value out of this platform, right? We went out to a global RFP when we did this to define our global enablement platform. And so we really stuck to what those outcomes were that we were trying to get. First and foremost, when you think about the basics of adoption is. Old school is best when it comes to this consistent drum beep of updates. Consistent visibility of metrics, consistent visibility of good wind stories. There is nothing better than that ground up swell when people start talking to their peers about how much better their life is because they’re using this platform or something like that. There’s also been a significant amount of leadership visibility. This was a major investment for Sage, and we wanted to make sure that our leaders all the way down, we’re seeing the goodness. We’ve gone to the kind of executive level to bring visibility into. What’s out there, what’s happening, and also getting them licenses. Kinda giving them some quizzes along the way, making sure that they’re using it, making sure that they’re seeing the value in what it can provide back to these sellers and these partners, as well as making sure that we’re doing. I’ll call it the flare around some of these announcements. You guys do a great job of consistently releasing features. We also then try to do a great job of bringing visibility into that so it keeps things fresh and new and users wanting to come back to the platform. RR: I think you’re 100% right to say, you know. Bring it back to basics because no matter the size of the organization you’re at, nine times out of 10, word of mouth is gonna do far more for you than even the most well-planned launch. That trust from your users is huge. So fantastic advice. In addition to adoption, I know that for leaders like yourself, it’s a great metric. It’s a good indicator, but it’s not the end all, be all that you’re looking at. So aside from adoption, what other metrics are you using to measure and optimize your enablement strategy? BP: Woo. This is a great one. Adoption is absolutely key, but we’re also looking at new ways to get feedback around the productivity, the efficiency, and honestly with this platform, the efficacy that it can deliver for our internal sellers through their go-to market motions. So things like, what does the revenue per head look like? Or, you know, how long are they spending? What’s the metrics it takes? For them to be able to get the content that they’re looking for. How many times are they researching, you know, to get the same outcome that they need. There’s also a lot to be said for when we’re in different offices or if different sellers and partners, you know, we have the chance to get in front of them. We’re often asking the question, you know, what do you like about it? What could you change? What would you do differently? And we’re really open to that feedback to help us refine where our strategy is going to go so that the end user feels heard. There is no better way to know where you need to go or what you need to do to drive the consumption overall and the kind of value outta that tool than hearing people that need to use it every single day, hear where they have some feedback and some improvements on. RR: So knowing you’re keeping that close pulse on your teams, how they’re engaging with the platform, the value they’re seeing, the things they’d like to see improve. I’d be curious to know kind of where things are today. So since you’ve launched Highspot, what key results have you achieved? What wins have you seen or. Any achievements that you’re particularly proud of you’d like to share? BP: Yes, absolutely. So again, I think the genomics aspect of this makes it incredibly valuable. We are also just weeks away from our sales kickoff for North America, and as part of that we are going to do an AI pitch perfect aspect with the AI role play that is in the platform. And so we will then be doing a leaderboard for the various segments. Across the business in North America to see who is already able to find the materials that they need for their AI pitch perfect aspect, but then also see how they engage with the AI agent to be able to do their role play and get a leaderboard going. So that’s what we’re probably most excited about for that one. And we kind of got the idea after the Cloudy Carly role play that you guys actually had at Spark. So we shamelessly borrowed a couple of those ideas and we’re really excited to see how we can bring that to life at Sko. RR: Amazing couple things there. One, thank you for taking the time to chat with us when you have SKO just around the corner. Appreciate that. And two, I will have to check back in with you because I would love to hear how that’s going. Last question for you to close this out. What is one piece of advice that you’d share for other leaders like yourself that are looking to close the gap between strategy and execution? BP: I think the biggest piece of advice would just be to get started. I think if we go back to the basics and we think in Inc. And you really think about where we need to take a transformation, a large organization like Sage, and you connect what they do every day into that strategy, it’s just to get started, right? I mean, there’s a thousand ways you can do things. Not all of them are gonna work out. But the longer you sit there and you look at it on paper, the longer it’s gonna take for you to have that impact. So when you get started and you get people excited and bought along on that journey of what you’re doing, magic can happen. RR: I think that’s perfect advice to close with. You know that don’t boil the ocean philosophy. Just get started. Something is better than nothing. Progress is better than planning on planning on planning. Perfect. Becky, thank you so much for joining us. It has been an absolute pleasure. BP: Thank you so much for having me. Can’t wait for the next one. RR: To our audience, thank you for listening to this episode of the Win-Win podcast. Be sure to tune in next time for our insights on how you can maximize enablement success with Highspot.

The Marketing AI Show
#175: AI Answers - AI for 10X Innovation, Rethinking GTM, Dangers of Progress at All Costs, Autonomous Marketing, How to Keep Up with AI, and Future of Web Traffic

The Marketing AI Show

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 23, 2025 40:31


Fresh from MAICON, where we spent time both teaching and learning, we also recorded a special edition of AI Answers just for you. In this episode, Mike Kaput joins Paul Roetzer live from the conference to tackle questions submitted by MAICON attendees. From hands-on use cases to the future of AI in marketing and business, our hosts dive into the biggest themes shaping AI adoption today. Show Notes: Access the show notes and show links here Timestamps: 00:00:00 — Intro 00:05:19 — Question #1: Is “AI-first” in marketing really just about efficiency and content or can it actually create new, unique customer experiences? 00:07:49 — Question #2: How should B2B companies rethink their GTM playbooks? 00:11:12 — Question #3: What are the consequences of the “progress at all costs” mindset the AI labs have?  00:16:42 — Question #4: How far away are we from “autonomous” marketing? 00:20:31 — Question #5: Which AI-powered marketing tactic has surprised you by under-delivering, and what lessons did you learn? 00:21:46 — Question #6: What's the most compelling early AI use case you've seen that helped leadership finally “get it,” i.e. enough to greenlight investment? 00:23:37 — Question #7: What's your best guess about the impact of the ability to purchase, checkout, and pay for goods right within ChatGPT on Direct-to-Consumer brands?  00:25:13 — Question #8: What's the one change that has shocked you the most about AI and what impact does it have for marketers today and tomorrow? 00:27:31 — Question #9: Are companies overinvesting in “secure” in-house AI builds when frontier models already have strong privacy and safety standards? 00:30:24 — Question #10: How do you see AI being used in the non-profit sector? 00:33:36 — Question #11:What is it going to take for education institutions to actually start integrating AI? 00:36:47 — Question #12: How does the average (or above average) marketer stay on top of everything happening in AI? 00:38:04 — Question #13: What signs tell you an organization is ready to move from isolated AI pilots to scaled adoption?   This episode is brought to you by Google Cloud:  Google Cloud is the new way to the cloud, providing AI, infrastructure, developer, data, security, and collaboration tools built for today and tomorrow. Google Cloud offers a powerful, fully integrated and optimized AI stack with its own planet-scale infrastructure, custom-built chips, generative AI models and development platform, as well as AI-powered applications, to help organizations transform. Customers in more than 200 countries and territories turn to Google Cloud as their trusted technology partner. Learn more about Google Cloud here: https://cloud.google.com/   Visit our website Receive our weekly newsletter Join our community: Slack LinkedIn Twitter Instagram Facebook Looking for content and resources? Register for a free webinar Come to our next Marketing AI Conference Enroll in our AI Academy 

The Official SaaStr Podcast: SaaS | Founders | Investors
SaaStr 825: The State of AI + Software: Where It's Going - Fast

The Official SaaStr Podcast: SaaS | Founders | Investors

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 22, 2025 49:17


In this comprehensive session, SaaStr CEO and Founder Jason Lemkin dives into the latest trends and developments in AI, particularly in the go-to-market (GTM) sector. The session outlines how innovative AI tools are transforming businesses, from AI SDRs and BDRs to forward-deployed engineers. Leaders in the industry are pushing the boundaries, showing higher growth rates and superior marketing efficiency. We also discuss the importance of hands-on deployment and training of AI tools to achieve success, and analyze the current and future impact of AI on B2B companies. Tune in for detailed insights and learn how to stay ahead in the rapidly evolving world of AI. --------------------- 

This episode is Sponsored in part by Salesforce:

 Connect data, automate busywork and empower teams like nobody's business with the one platform that grows with you, every step of the way. Learn how Salesforce works for Startups at salesforce.com/smb.   --------------------- This episode is Sponsored in part by Intercom:
 Fin is the #1 AI Agent for resolving complex queries like refunds, transaction disputes, and technical troubleshooting—all with speed and reliability. See how Fin can deliver the highest resolution rates and highest-quality customer experience at fin.ai/saastr.  --------------------- If you're serious about B2B and AI, you need to be in London this December.   SaaStr AI London is bringing together more than 2,000 leaders and founders for two days of practical advice on scaling into the new year.    We'll have speakers flying in from OpenAI, Wiz, Clay, Intercom, and all your favorite SaaS companies, including yours truly with Harry Stebbings for a live 20VC podcast. It'll be fun, and it's all in the heart of London.    Don't miss out: get your tickets with my exclusive discount by going to podcast.saastrlondon.com   ---------------------   Hey everybody, the biggest B2B + AI event of the year will be back - SaaStr AI in the SF Bay Area, aka the SaaStr Annual, will be back in May 2026.    With 68% VP-level and above, 36% CEOs and founders and a growing 25% AI-first professional, this is the very best of the best S-tier attendees and decision makers that come to SaaStr each year.     But here's the reality, folks: the longer you wait, the higher ticket prices can get. Early bird tickets are available now, but once they're gone, you'll pay hundreds more so don't wait.    Lock in your spot today by going to podcast.saastrannual.com to get my exclusive discount SaaStr AI SF 2026. We'll see you there.

Unlearn
How to Clearly Position What You Do with Anthony Pierri

Unlearn

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 22, 2025 49:42


When it comes to product positioning, clarity isn't just a communication tool—it's a strategic advantage. In this episode, I sit down with Anthony Pierri, co-founder of FletchPMM, a product marketing consultancy that's helped over 400 B2B software startups discover and sharpen their positioning. We explore how founders can unlearn generic marketing advice, clarify their message, and activate their strategy through one often-overlooked asset: their homepage.Anthony brings practical frameworks, real-world stories, and a refreshing candor to a space that's often muddled with jargon. This is a must-listen for any founder, PMM, or GTM leader tired of being misunderstood—and ready to focus.FletchPMM is a product marketing consultancy that helps B2B tech startups nail their positioning and bring it to life through a purpose-built homepage. Alongside co-founder Rob Kaminski, he's helped more than 400 companies craft focused, champion-centered messaging that converts.Key TakeawaysClarity wins: Positioning isn't about vision—it's about specificity, segmentation, and telling your champion's story.Unlearn the fluff: Ditch the vague benefits and generic promises. Customers need to know what you do and how it helps them.Focus = traction: Trying to be everything to everyone dilutes your impact. Specialization creates memorability and repeatability.Your homepage is your positioning: It's the one asset every stakeholder sees—customers, investors, your team. Make it count.Position for the champion, not the budget holder: Focus your messaging on the person closest to the problem—not the executive who cuts the check.Additional InsightsPositioning is pattern recognition: Anthony shares how lessons from church leadership and freelancing helped him recognize early signs of positioning misalignment—even before he had the language for it.Inbound scale comes from consistency, not creativity: With over 500 companies served, Fletch's success has come from delivering one service, the same way, every time—not by chasing new ideas or tactics.Founders often confuse luck with repeatability: Anthony reveals how many early startup wins come from personal networks—and how this masks the real need for scalable positioning and segment focus.Mispositioning starts with the homepage: Anthony critiques vague, benefits-only messaging like “Make Yes Work”—demonstrating how the lack of a clear product reference point derails understanding and action.Repositioning is an organizational act: Referencing Klaviyo and Meta, Anthony shows how homepage messaging isn't just about marketing—it forces internal alignment by making strategic bets visible to every team member.Episode Highlights00:00 – Episode RecapAnthony Pierri shares how a seemingly minor contradiction in a church's mission statement became his first exposure to a positioning problem—planting the seed for a career built around clarity.01:30 – Guest Introduction: Anthony PierriBarry introduces Anthony, co-founder of FletchPMM, a consultancy that's helped 400+ B2B software startups craft focused, conversion-driving homepages.05:09 – The Real Cost of Doing EverythingWhy trying to serve every persona or use case is the quickest way to stall traction—and how narrowing your focus builds momentum.07:14 – Specialization is a Strategic AdvantageAnthony explains how one service, delivered one way, to one segment unlocked a scalable, inbound engine for Fletch.11:42 – Sales...

Irish Tech News Audio Articles
Bronto Raises $14M Seed Round and Introduces the World's Most Powerful Log Data Platform - Built for the AI Era

Irish Tech News Audio Articles

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 22, 2025 4:35


Bronto, a proprietary log data platform company, has announced it has raised $14 million in seed funding led by Cercano Management - alongside Heavybit and Conviction Capital - to re-invent logging from end to end. Bronto enables mid-market and enterprise customers to fully leverage an AI native logging platform while also lowering their existing egregious logging costs with traditional observability solution providers. Bronto's AI native logging platform removes the toil experienced by users of existing platforms and opens up valuable new use cases combining AI and logging domain specific expertise. It means companies do not have to discriminate between hot and historic log data and get real value from all of their logs rather than tradeoffs between data volume and cost. Founded by serial entrepreneurs Noel Ruane (co-founder Voysis, acquired by Apple in 2020) and Trevor Parsons (co-founder LogEntries, acquired by Rapid7 in 2015), Bronto addresses a critical infrastructure bottleneck as companies deploy AI at scale. "The shift to AI represents the biggest transformation in computing infrastructure requirements ever, but even pre-AI, logging solutions have not kept pace", commented Bronto Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Noel Ruane. Organisations continue to be forced into painful tradeoffs: pay astronomical bills for 'just-adequate' retention, or delete critical data needed for debugging, security, and compliance. And now, in an agentic world - where intelligence meets data - maintaining all of your log data has never been more critical for companies to leverage and reap the real benefits of AI. "Our goal is to be the world's number 1 logging platform for all users and use cases", continued Bronto Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Noel Ruane. "And with Cercano and Heavybit, we believe we have selected the perfect combination of breath and depth in our first capital partners to help us achieve that goal." "Logging is fundamentally broken, unfit for the volume of data the AI-era has brought, and Bronto fixes that," said Trevor Parsons, Co-Founder and Co-CEO. "Our team has a combined 150+ years of experience building and operating proprietary log-engines and platforms at global scale in both private, venture-backed and public companies. I don't believe you could handpick a better group of engineers than our team at Bronto. Both Noel and I couldn't be more excited to lead this incredible team." Speaking on the announcement Lauren Glatter, Cercano Management Venture Capital said "We believe Bronto is well-positioned to build a category-defining company in the logging and observability market. We're thrilled to support Noel and Trevor's vision and to partner with team-Bronto through our lead investment." As a developer tools and infrastructure-focused investor and a former founder and operator in both private and public observability companies, well-known industry expert Joseph Ruscio said:"I've seen countless attempts to modernize log management, and they all fall short in some way - whether efficiency, scale, or usability. What Bronto has created is revolutionary and represents a true disruption in this space. Everyone at Heavybit is incredibly excited to partner with such an experienced pair of entrepreneurs already executing at this level". Bronto is using the proceeds of this raise to build a world-leading GTM function as it continues to expand its already world-leading engineering function. Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland with a presence on both coasts of the US, Bronto is a people-first, location second hirer. See more stories here. More about Irish Tech News Irish Tech News are Ireland's No. 1 Online Tech Publication and often Ireland's No.1 Tech Podcast too. You can find hundreds of fantastic previous episodes and subscribe using whatever platform you like via our Anchor.fm page here: https://anchor.fm/irish-tech-news If you'd like to be featured in an upcoming Podcast email us at Simon@IrishTechNews.ie now to discuss. Irish Tech News have...

Category Visionaries
How Calico educates buyers on agentic AI systems when no budget line exists | Kathleen Chan

Category Visionaries

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 21, 2025 18:18


Calico is building an agentic AI system for apparel sourcing and production—automating the "messy middle" of manufacturing that has operated on emails, Excel, and WhatsApp for decades. As a founder who previously built and exited apparel brands, Kathleen Chan experienced the pain firsthand: opening a Shopify store takes minutes, but actually producing inventory requires staying up until 2am managing factory communications. In this episode, she shares how Calico is creating a new category during the 2025 tariff crisis, when sourcing directors are rewriting playbooks that haven't changed in 50 years. Topics Discussed: How Calico functions as an AI co-pilot for sourcing directors and production managers Creating a category when no budget line exists for agentic AI systems Leveraging the 2025 tariff environment as an adoption catalyst Why six months of paid acquisition produced high signups but zero quality customers Sequencing GTM tactics from unscalable one-to-ones to conferences to content Building authenticity in a market saturated with AI slop and generic LinkedIn content Hiring early evangelists who maintain conviction through the startup zigzag GTM Lessons For B2B Founders: Match GTM motion to how your market transacts, not what scales: Calico tested paid acquisition for six months before realizing relationship-building converted better despite being unscalable. In apparel manufacturing, decades-long supplier relationships can't turn on and off overnight—the buying motion reflects this reality. Kathleen's approach: early-stage requires one-to-one dinners and networking to answer nuanced questions; mid-stage shifts to conferences for broader reach; late-stage deploys LinkedIn content once the market understands your category. The sequencing matters because each stage builds on the previous one's trust foundation. Brutally audit customer quality, not conversion metrics: Calico's paid acquisition drove signups and "conversions by marketing sense," creating a false signal of product-market fit. After six months, the math revealed these customers cost more to acquire than those from relationship channels and had lower quality. Kathleen's lesson: vanity metrics provide a "weird little dopamine hit" that masks broken unit economics. For B2B founders in complex sales cycles, track cost-per-quality-customer, not cost-per-signup. Use macro disruption to collapse sales cycles: The 2025 tariff crisis created an "impossible challenge" for Calico's ICP—sourcing directors forced to rewrite playbooks built over decades while tariffs changed via tweet. Rather than fighting the chaos, Calico positioned itself as the solution to this specific moment, anchoring customer conversations on tariff-driven urgency. This transformed education from abstract ("here's what agentic AI can do") to concrete ("here's how we solve your tariff problem today"). B2B founders should identify trigger events that make the status quo untenable. Create category clarity by defining what you're not: In a market where "AI could mean things to many different people," Calico differentiated by explicitly stating what their system cannot do. Kathleen prioritized "dispelling the notions of what we are and what we aren't" over overselling capabilities. This matters because sophisticated buyers—especially in industries with low tech adoption—need to understand boundaries before they'll trust promises. The tactic builds credibility in noisy markets where everyone claims AI magic. Hire evangelists who outlast founder doubt: Calico's most impactful GTM decision was bringing on early team members who could evangelize value through the inevitable "zigzaggy" early stage—when "it's exciting one day and the worst day ever the next." These people interface directly with customers regardless of whether the founder is having doubts or frustrations. Kathleen's insight: in B2B relationship-driven sales, your early GTM hires' conviction directly determines whether customers stick through product evolution. Hire for authentic belief, not just skills. Deprioritize content in high-noise environments: Calico deliberately delays LinkedIn content until later stages because "folks are a little bit more muted to all the LinkedIn content coming at them." With AI making content easier than ever to create, Kathleen sees audiences questioning whether to take it seriously and whether AI-generated content has less value than human-generated. Her approach: authenticity trumps quantity. For B2B founders, this means investing in formats that can't be easily faked (video, in-person) before scaling written content. // 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

The Revenue Formula
How to Hire Salespeople in 2025

The Revenue Formula

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 21, 2025 47:42


Most companies still hire salespeople wrong in 2025.They rely on resumes, gut feeling, and vague interviews instead of testing real skills. In this episode, Raul and Toni explain why that approach fails and how to replace it with a system that actually works.They break down a practical process to identify what you really need, define the skills that matter, and test candidates in realistic scenarios. No fluff, no guesswork, just a repeatable way to hire people who can actually sell.This episode is brought to you by ZoomInfo, the Go-To-Market Intelligence Platform. ZoomInfo gives you high-quality B2B data and sales intelligence on in-market buyers across companies of all sizes, powered by AI-driven automation with integrated outreach tools to help your GTM teams build pipeline and close deals faster. Check them out at zoominfo.com/revenue-formula Want to work with us? Learn more: revformula.io(00:00) - Introduction (01:41) - Hiring is Broken (07:09) - Basics of Effective Hiring (12:35) - The Myth of the Perfect Candidate (14:20) - Understand your Needs and Context (16:56) - Time Pressure in Hiring (22:02) - The Three Step Solution (29:10) - Assessing Candidates: Interpretation (30:16) - Assessing Candidates: Talking (31:21) - Assessing Candidates: Showing (32:53) - Assessing Candidates: Doing (36:53) - Iterating on the Process (39:57) - Roleplaying in Sales Hiring (43:33) - Hiring Sales Leaders (46:00) - Final Thoughts and Takeaways

Reserva de Maná
PUNTO DE LECTURA. Capítulo 34: ALMAS OSCURAS - Berserk contra Dark Souls, con Adrián Suárez (Nuevebits)

Reserva de Maná

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 21, 2025 28:13


¡Nuevo PUNTO DE LECTURA! Hoy charlamos con Adrián Suárez (@Nuevebits) sobre ‘ALMAS OSCURAS: Berserk contra Dark Souls', su nuevo libro editado por los amigos de GTM. Esperamos que os mole. Compra el libro aquí: https://www.gtm-store.com/?s=almas+oscuras&post_type=product

Go To Market Grit
How AI Transforms Video for 200K Creators | Victor Riparbelli on Synthesia

Go To Market Grit

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 20, 2025 68:17


What's product-market fit like when you give people the power to do what they never thought was possible?On this rerun of Grit from April 2024, Victor Riparbelli, co-founder and CEO of Synthesia, shares how his platform gave billions a new way to create video without cameras, and explores a future where video and audio replace text as the primary way to share knowledge and content.Guests: Victor Riparbelli, CEO and co-founder of Synthesia and Josh Coyne, Partner at Kleiner PerkinsConnect with Victor RiparbelliX: https://x.com/vriparbelliLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/victorriparbelli/​Connect with Josh CoyneX: https://x.com/josh_coyneLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuacoyne/​Connect with JoubinX: https://x.com/JoubinmirLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joubin-mirzadegan-66186854/Email: grit@kleinerperkins.com​Learn more about Kleiner Perkins:https://www.kleinerperkins.com/

Scale Your Sales Podcast
#296 Michelle Kim - Leading with Curiosity: Flexible Sales Strategy in the Age of AI

Scale Your Sales Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 20, 2025 29:52


In this weeks' Scale Your Sales Podcast episode, my guest is Michelle Kim.   She is a marketing leader with 20+ years scaling growth at FlutterFlow, Pantastic, Amplitude, and Okta (through IPO). She excel at building high-performance teams, driving demand, and shaping categories also to advisor for startups across stages. Board Member at Women in Revenue and leader at GTM Leader Society, fostering connection and thought leadership among executives.   In today's episode of Scale Your Sales podcast, Michelle shares her expertise in scaling organizations through rapid change and the evolving world of AI. She discusses why curiosity and strategic questioning are essential for modern leaders and how adaptability, customer focus, and seamless buyer experiences drive success. This insightful conversation offers practical guidance for leaders looking to inspire growth and thrive through change.   Welcome to Scale Your Sales Podcast, Michelle Kim.     Timestamps: 00:00 The Superpower of Good Questions 04:13 Custom Strategies Over Playbooks 06:45 Curiosity: Key to Success 10:16 Customer Understanding Drives Success 12:56 Informed Buyers Shape First Calls 18:32 Metrics-Driven Funnel Optimization 22:33 Change Brings Discomfort, Opportunity 24:26 Amplifying Teams and Outcomes 27:15 Ask Better Questions for Answers   https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellejeankim/ https://x.com/michellejeank     Janice B Gordon is the award-winning Customer Growth Expert and Scale Your Sales Framework founder. She is by LinkedIn Sales 15 Innovating Sales Influencers to Follow 2021, the Top 50 Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on Customer Experience Nov 2020 and 150 Women B2B Thought Leaders You Should Follow in 2021. Janice helps companies worldwide to reimagine revenue growth thought customer experience and sales.   Book Janice to speak virtually at your next event: https://janicebgordon.com   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/janice-b-gordon/   Twitter: https://twitter.com/JaniceBGordon   Scale Your Sales Podcast: https://scaleyoursales.co.uk/podcast   More on the blog: https://scaleyoursales.co.uk/blog   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/janicebgordon   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ScaleYourSales   And more! Visit our podcast website https://scaleyoursales.co.uk/podcast/ to watch or listen.

On The Brink
Episode #480: Kurt Uhlir

On The Brink

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2025 55:07


Kurt Uhlir, often called “The King of Scaling Companies,” is a globally recognized CMO, GTM architect, and growth operator who's helped drive more than 60 acquisitions and exits, supported an $880 million IPO, and led multiple companies through hypergrowth.A true builder at heart, Kurt has designed and scaled go-to-market systems that have fueled massive revenue expansion and operational efficiency across B2B SaaS, consumer tech, martech, and real estate industries.He's held leadership roles in organizations ranging from startups to billion-dollar enterprises, operating across six continents. His innovations have influenced technologies now used by millions at companies like Apple, Meta, Microsoft, and Garmin. Over his career, Kurt has advised founders, private-equity CEOs, and even the President of the United States.As an inventor, he holds more than 20 patents and is credited with pioneering several modern marketing categories—including social media management, influencer marketing, location-based targeting, and enterprise SEO at scale.Today, Kurt serves as Chief Marketing Officer at ez Home Search, a rapidly growing real estate platform transforming how consumers find and evaluate homes—with privacy, performance, and user empowerment at the forefront.A passionate advocate for servant leadership, Kurt teaches that great leaders don't control—they serve. His philosophy centers on removing barriers, empowering high performers, and creating environments where people and companies can thrive.

The SaaS Revolution Show
Voice AI that delivers: Synthflow AI's Hakob Astabatsyan on solving the last mile problem

The SaaS Revolution Show

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2025 21:09


Live from SaaStock Europe 2025, Alex Theuma speaks with Hakob Astabatsyan, Co-founder and CEO of Synthflow AI. Hakob shares how Synthflow grew 15x revenue in its first year and how it now powers millions of business calls every month. He explains what it takes to move beyond AI hype and solve the “last-mile problem”, delivering real, measurable value through end-to-end automation and RPA 2.0 (voice + task completion). They also discuss Synthflow's US-first GTM strategy and the rise of forward deployed engineers. Listen to learn: - How Synthflow AI scaled from 0→15x in a year. - What the “last mile” really means in AI. - The role of forward deployed engineers in customer success. - How RPA 2.0 makes AI agents truly useful. - Hakob's AI stack. - Why voice AI has crossed the cusp, and what comes next.       Check out the other ways SaaStock is helping SaaS founders move their business forward: 

Tank Talks
Why 95% of AI Projects Fail (And How to Be in the 5% That Succeed) with James Baskin of ZeroStone AI

Tank Talks

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 16, 2025 47:22


In this episode of Tank Talks, Matt Cohen is joined by James Baskin, Founder and CEO of ZeroStone AI, to explore how businesses can transition from AI experimentation to real-world impact. James, a three-time founder with multiple successful exits, shares his journey from engineering at the University of Toronto to building and selling telecom ventures alongside Globalive's Anthony Lacavera. He offers valuable insights into leadership, resilience, and overcoming imposter syndrome.Drawing from over 300 conversations with CEOs and AI leaders, James discusses why many companies are “AI-aware but not AI-ready.” He reveals how ZeroStone helps mid-market firms turn failed pilots into scalable, impactful AI systems. James also highlights the differences between generative and agentic AI, the dual transformation of technology and people, and the importance of fostering a culture of curiosity and continuous learning for long-term success. This episode offers practical advice for founders and executives navigating the AI revolution.A Quick Word from our Sponsor, FaskenAt Fasken, our clients don't wait for the future. They build it. As the first and largest dedicated emerging tech practice in Canada, our team is composed of founders, ex in-house counsel, developers and business advisors who have guided clients from startup, to scale-up, to exit. The trust of our clients has enabled us to consistently rank at the top of every major Canadian M&A, Capital Markets and Venture Capital league table. With deep industry knowledge and experience across all areas of emerging and high growth technology including ClimateTech, MedTech, Artificial Intelligence, Fintech, and AgTech we're your partners within the innovation ecosystem as you transform the landscape of what's possible.Tomorrow starts here. Own it with us.For more information, visit fasken.com/emergingtech and follow us on LinkedIn.The Founder's Journey & Imposter Syndrome (00:09:41)* “Scaling Your Everest”: the emotional toll of leadership* Facing imposter syndrome in boardrooms* Anthony Lacavera's hard advice: “You don't know what you're doing.”* How that painful truth became a turning pointFrom Go-To-Market to AI Strategy (00:16:00)* Consulting with Series A/B startups on GTM and sales* Transition to AI after dozens of founder conversations* Why most OKRs fail: objectives must tie directly to long-term strategy* Introducing a new framework rooted in “Seven Powers” by Hamilton HelmerBuilding ZeroStone AI (00:22:22)* Founding mission: help mid-market firms (>$50M revenue) unlock real AI value* Observing 300+ executive discussions on AI, awareness high, action low* Why cultural and digital transformations must happen together* Moving beyond “copilots” to autonomous, agentic AI systemsThe AI Leadership Gap (00:24:27)* Boards push for AI results, but internal teams lack clarity* “You need both a data transformation and a human capital transformation.”* The rise of self-selecting teams, who adapts, who opts out* Building cultures of learning, not fearWhy 95% of GenAI Pilots Fail (00:31:16)* Most projects don't touch core business processes* Generative AI ≠ Agentic AI: only the latter changes workflows* AI agents as “digital workers” vs. human productivity tools* How CEOs can start small, measure impact, and scale over three yearsOvercoming the Pilot Trap (00:36:30)* Scaling beyond sandboxes by fixing data architecture* The critical role of clean data lakes, enrichment, and governance* Why early-stage companies move faster than legacy enterprisesAbout James BaskinFounder & CEO of Zero Stone AIA three-time founder with successful exits, James is a seasoned expert in go-to-market strategy, OKRs, and sales leadership. Through ZeroStone AI, he is now guiding mid-market companies to unlock true, measurable value from agentic AI, moving beyond failed pilots to autonomous systems that transform businesses.Connect with James Baskin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesbaskin/Visit the ZeroStone AI Website: https://www.zerostone.ai/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

Kingscrowd Startup Investing Podcast
Cathy Minter, wisdom.io — AI Fall Detection & Aging-in-Place Done Right

Kingscrowd Startup Investing Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 16, 2025 28:44


Most older adults want to age in place, but families and caregivers can't be there 24/7. wisdom.io uses edge computing + radar + computer vision to detect falls and anomalies without wearables—keeping data inside the home and only sending alerts. CEO Cathy Minter shares:• Market reality & unmet needs in home care• Tech stack, privacy, and why edge > cloud for seniors• B2B2C go-to-market (home-care agencies, hospital discharge, 55+ communities)• Pricing, unit economics, and pilot accuracy targets• Samsung partnership: Wisdom on the Go (outside-home safety & gait insights)• Competition (Sensi.AI, SafelyYou) and empathy-led designChapters:00:00 Intro & the aging-in-place gap03:23 Founder story & market stats05:45 Product overview (edge hub, sensors)06:04 Privacy & on-device AI08:33 Hardware/installation Q&A10:08 Sensor fusion & smart-home vision11:25 GTM & channels14:02 Pricing model17:14 Home-care market size18:27 Pilot design & accuracy20:00 Competitors & differentiation23:10 Scale strategy & Samsung26:42 Closing & investor notes

Category Visionaries
How TwelveLabs sells AI to federal agencies: Mission alignment over process optimization | Jae Lee

Category Visionaries

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 15, 2025 21:58


TwelveLabs is building purpose-built foundation models for video understanding, enabling enterprises to index, search, and analyze petabytes of video content at scale. Founded by three technical co-founders who met in South Korea's Cyber Command doing multimodal video understanding research, the company recognized early that video requires fundamentally different infrastructure than text or image AI. Now achieving 10x revenue growth and serving customers across media, entertainment, sports, advertising, and federal agencies, TwelveLabs is proving that category creation through extreme focus beats trend chasing. In this episode, Jae Lee shares how the company navigated early product decisions, built specialized GTM motions for established industries, and maintained technical conviction during years of building in relative obscurity. Topics Discussed: How military research in multimodal video understanding led to founding TwelveLabs in 2020  The technical thesis: why video deserves purpose-built foundation models and inference infrastructure  Targeting video-centric industries where ROI justifies early-stage pricing: media, entertainment, sports, advertising, and defense  Partnership-driven distribution strategy and AWS Bedrock integration results  Specialized sales approach: generalist leaders, vertical-specific AEs and solutions architects Maintaining extreme focus and avoiding hype cycles during the first three years of building  Federal GTM lessons: why In-Q-Tel partnership and authentic mission alignment matter more than process optimization  The discipline of saying no to large opportunities that don't fit ICP  Keeping hiring bars high when the entire team is underwater GTM Lessons For B2B Founders: Hire vertical specialists on the front lines, not just at the top: TwelveLabs structures its GTM team with generalist leaders (head of GTM and VP of Revenue) who can sell any technology, but vertical-specialized AEs, solutions architects, and deployment engineers. These front-line team members come directly from the four target industries and understand customer workflows, buying patterns, and integration points without ramp time. For founders entering mature markets with established tech stacks and complex procurement, this inverted model—generalist strategy, specialist execution—accelerates deal velocity because technical buyers immediately recognize domain fluency. Infrastructure plays require integration partnerships, not displacement: In established industries with layered technology stacks, positioning as foundational infrastructure demands partnership-first distribution. Jae explained their approach: integration with media-specific GSIs, media asset management platforms, and cloud providers ensures TwelveLabs fits into existing workflows rather than forcing wholesale replacement. This is particularly critical for selling into industries like media and entertainment where technology decisions involve multiple stakeholders across production, post-production, and distribution. The AWS Bedrock integration delivered 30,000+ enterprise agreements in seven weeks—a distribution velocity impossible through direct sales alone. Extreme focus on first-principles product development beats fast-follower tactics: While competitors built quick demos by wrapping existing models, TwelveLabs spent three years building proprietary video foundation models and indexing infrastructure from scratch. Jae was explicit about the cost: "It was painful journey in the first like two and a half, three years because folks are flying by." The payoff came from solving actual customer problems—indexing 2 million hours of content in two days, enabling semantic search at scale, building agent workflows for specific use cases—rather than impressive demos that couldn't handle production workloads. For technical founders, this validates staying committed to fundamental research even when market momentum favors surface-level innovation. Federal requires cultural alignment before GTM optimization: TwelveLabs' federal success stems from authentic mission alignment, not just process execution. With In-Q-Tel as an investor providing interface to agencies and founders with military backgrounds, the company established credibility through shared values rather than sales tactics. Jae was direct: "If you're kind of entering because, oh, federal market is big and you go in, you're going to get your butt kicked. So I think like you need to actually build your team in a way that's like passionate to work on this project." This matters because federal deals require sustained engagement through long sales cycles, security reviews, and deployment complexity—momentum that only comes from genuine conviction, not quota pressure. ICP discipline protects product focus and team morale: Saying no to large early opportunities that don't fit ICP is operationally painful but strategically essential. Jae acknowledged the difficulty: "Early on saying no to customers is hard... as a founder you want to grow your business and you know that's going to be good for the morale. But that's only true when the customers are actually their ideal customers." Wrong customers create three failure modes: they pull product roadmap toward one-off features, they consume disproportionate support resources, and they generate reference cases that attract more wrong-fit prospects. For early-stage infrastructure companies, every customer shapes your market position—choose deliberately. // 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

World of DaaS
Clay COO Varun Anand - why cutting-edge GTM teams are moving away from traditional CRMs

World of DaaS

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 14, 2025 46:35


Varun Anand is the co-founder and Head of Operations at Clay, a GTM platform that helps over 10,000 companies with data enrichment and sales outreach. Clay recently raised a $100M Series C funding at a $3.1B valuation.In this episode of World of DaaS, Varun and Auren discuss:The shift from seat-based to usage-based pricingWhy LinkedIn's data remains underutilizedHow AI agents are replacing traditional SDR workBuilding contributory data networks at scaleLooking for more tech, data and venture capital intel? Head to worldofdaas.com for our podcast, newsletter and events, and follow us on X @worldofdaas.You can find Auren Hoffman on X at @auren and Varun Anand on X at @vaanand.Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com)

Ground Up
175: Treat Your Community Like a Product (w/ Dave Gerhardt, ExitFive)

Ground Up

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 14, 2025 40:29


Databox is an easy-to-use Analytics Platform for growing businesses. We make it easy to centralize and view your entire company's marketing, sales, revenue, and product data in one place, so you always know how you're performing. Learn More About DataboxSubscribe to our newsletter for episode summaries, benchmark data, and moreDave Gerhardt built Exit Five by treating community like a product—not a side project.In this episode, he walks through how the Exit Five team runs community with the same rigor as a SaaS org: dedicated product roles, roadmaps, feedback loops, NPS, and sprint cycles. He also shares why most B2B companies shouldn't build a community, and what to focus on instead.We also dig into how to justify the ROI of brand and community work, why direct traffic is your best brand metric, and how AI is reshaping what lean GTM teams can do.In this episode, you'll learn:Why Exit Five runs its community like a product orgThe biggest mistakes B2B companies make when launching communitiesHow Drift's podcast helped drive $1M in pipeline – with no attribution modelDave's take on brand, content, and the new AI-powered marketerThe exact metrics Exit Five tracks to grow and retain members

Shoot the Moon with Revenue Rocket
Grow, Buy, or Sell to Grow

Shoot the Moon with Revenue Rocket

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 14, 2025 42:18


In this episode, the team breaks down the decision every IT services leader wrestles with: Grow, Buy, or Grow to Sell. You'll hear where firms typically hit operational ceilings, why acquisitions amplify your go-to-market (for better or worse), and what it takes to be truly “ready to sell.” We cover the cash and capability requirements behind each path, common traps (buying to fix sales, serial deals without integration, ignoring working capital), and a simple framework to choose based on time horizon, risk tolerance, and valuation goals. Whether you're building toward a premium exit or debating your next add-on, you'll walk away with practical steps to drive multiple expansion now.Three paths, three realitiesGrow (organic): sharpen ICP, offers, pricing power, utilization, and pipeline discipline.Buy (inorganic): clear thesis, cultural fit, day-0/30/90 integration plan, and post-close GTM.Grow to sell: clean financials/QofE-ready, recurring mix, concentration reduction, leadership bench.Decision drivers: time horizon, leadership bandwidth, cost of capital, integration capacity, risk profile.Valuation levers: recurring revenue %, margin quality, growth durability (Rule of 40/45), customer concentration, integration track record.Common pitfalls: buying to “fix” sales, underestimating change management and working capital, skipping playbooks.Playbooks that travel: discovery→close process, delivery runbook, ICP x offer matrix, integration day-0/30/90, KPI cadence.Outcome framing: optionality done right = two good outcomes (keep growing or transact at a premium).Thinking about building, buying, or prepping for exit? Revenue Rocket has led hundreds of IT services transactions and integrations. If you're weighing the path (or want a sanity check on the math) let's talk: info@revenuerocket.com KEY TAKEAWAYSAcquisitions magnify GTM—they don't fix it.Operational maturity decides whether you stall at ceilings or scale past them.If premium exit is the goal, optimize recurring mix, margins, and concentration now.Model post-close working capital and integration costs, not just purchase price.“Grow to sell” is a discipline game: clean books, durable pipeline, and leadership redundancy. RELATED EPISODESQuestions to Ask before you Consider an M&A initiative. Listen now >>All Roads Lead to M&A. Listen now >>Episode 90: Selling in vs Selling Out. Listen now >>Episode XX: Rule of 45. Listen now >> Listen to Shoot the Moon on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.Buy, sell, or grow your tech-enabled services firm with Revenue Rocket.

Go To Market Grit
From Idea To Impact: How Gamma Is Redefining Presentations | Grant Lee

Go To Market Grit

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 13, 2025 70:04


Make your product irresistible, and everything else will follow.That's the philosophy of Grant Lee, co-founder and CEO of Gamma, an AI design platform with an 'anti-PowerPoint approach', used by over 50M people.This week on Grit, he also shares why enduring businesses aren't one person shows, and how their deliberate hiring process shapes and strengthens company culture.Connect with Grant LeeXLinkedInConnect with JoubinXLinkedInEmail: grit@kleinerperkins.comLearn more about Kleiner Perkins

State of Demand Gen
The Hidden Power of Rejection Data in GTM (with Steve Armenti)

State of Demand Gen

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 13, 2025 52:52


On this episode of GTM Live, Carolyn and Amber sit down with Steve Armenti, CEO & Founder of Twelfth Agency and former demand gen leader at Google.Steve shares his journey from corporate marketing to building a thriving agency, and dive into why most revenue teams miss the real story in their data, how to flip the script on pipeline analysis by studying rejection instead of just conversion, and the critical role of sales + marketing alignment in fixing the “pipeline black box.”You'll hear practical examples from Steve's experiences as an in-house demand gen leader and now running his ABX agency, insights into what's working for growth-stage SaaS companies right now, and a fresh perspective on building GTM systems that actually deliver results.If you're a CMO, CRO, or RevOps leader looking for new ways to diagnose what's holding back your pipeline, this episode is a must-listen.Key Topics Covered:Lessons from demand gen on identifying what works vs. what doesn'tABM → ABX: creating account-based experiences that align sales + marketingThe “messy middle” handoff between sales and marketing, and why it breaks most funnelsFlipping the script: studying disqualification rates instead of obsessing over MQL → SQL conversionPractical examples of diagnosing rejection data and what it revealedThe underestimated importance of data hygiene, UTMs, and ops rolesWhy improving what you already have often beats chasing new volume

The 20% Podcast with Tyler Meckes
269: From Pre-Seed To Series B: The Early-Stage Sales Playbook with Michelle Pietsch

The 20% Podcast with Tyler Meckes

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 13, 2025 44:22


This week's throwback guest is my former boss, Michelle Pietsch. Michelle is the Co-Founder of BeaconGTM, where they help companies from Pre-Seed to Series B build their GTM motions, and get their customers in a position to see successful growth. Michelle was the VP of Revenue at Dooly when she brought me on to build the Account Management function from the ground up, and there were so many incredible leadership lessons she taught me along the way which we get into in today's episode. On today's show, we also discussed:Giving Your Employees A Long Leash Coming With Solutions, Not Just ProblemsAlways Learning In The Early StageWhen To Hire BDRsSetting Expectations With Your Boss Starting Minot Light Much MorePlease enjoy this week's episode with Michelle Pietsch! ____________________________________________________________________________I am now in the early stages of writing my first book! In this book, I will be telling my story of getting into sales and the lessons I have learned so far, and intertwine stories, tips, and advice from the Top Sales Professionals In The World! As a first time author, I want to share these interviews with you all, and take you on this book writing journey with me! Like the show? Subscribe to the email: https://mailchi.mp/a71e58dacffb/welcome-to-the-20-podcast-communityI want your feedback!Reach out to 20percentpodcastquestions@gmail.com, or find me on LinkedIn.If you know anyone who would benefit from this show, share it along! If you know of anyone who would be great to interview, please drop me a line!Enjoy the show!

UXpeditious: A UserZoom Podcast
Flipping the funnel starts with knowing your customers with Sangram Vajre

UXpeditious: A UserZoom Podcast

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 13, 2025 46:35


In this episode of Insights Unlocked, host Nathan Isaacs sits down with Sangram Vajre—co-founder of Terminus and GTM Partners, bestselling author, and pioneer of the Flip My Funnel movement—to explore how customer-first thinking reshapes business growth. Sangram recounts the moment of inspiration that led to flipping the traditional sales funnel on its head and how that napkin sketch evolved into a movement that transformed B2B marketing. Sangram also shares insights from his MOVE framework (Market, Operations, Velocity, Expansion), offering a fresh lens for diagnosing go-to-market (GTM) challenges at every stage of business growth. He dives into the rise of fractional leadership, the role of AI in driving customer insight and product innovation, and why focusing on Net Revenue Retention (NRR) may be the single best way to align teams around growth. Whether you're in marketing, product, UX, or customer experience, this episode will challenge how you think about pipeline, growth, and what it really means to put the customer first. What you'll learn in this episode:  The origin story behind Flip My Funnel and how it reshaped ABM and B2B marketing Why most marketing and sales funnels fail—and what to do instead The MOVE framework: a diagnostic tool for GTM strategy How Net Revenue Retention (NRR) is the ultimate measure of customer-centric growth The rise of fractional roles and what it means for the future of work How AI is changing the way we listen to and serve customers at scale Resources & Links: Sangram Vajre on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/sangramvajre/) GTM Partners (https://gtmpartners.com/) MOVE and other books (https://sangramvajre.com) GTM Mondays newsletter on Substack (https://gtmonday.substack.com/) Nathan Isaacs on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanisaacs/) Learn more about Insights Unlocked: https://www.usertesting.com/podcast

DGMG Radio
Beyond Copy: How To Use AI to Build GTM Systems That Scale

DGMG Radio

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 13, 2025 57:43


#290 AI Workflows | In this episode, Dave is joined by Dan Guenet, GTM Engineer at Compound Growth Marketing, and Eoin Clancy, Head of Growth at AirOps. Both guests are at the forefront of building AI workflows that make marketing more efficient and scalable, from content creation to sales enablement.Dave, Dan, and Eoin cover:How to use Clay, Zapier, and AirOps to build repeatable GTM systems that scale without burning bandwidthThe frameworks behind automating webinar production, sales transcript analysis, and content refreshes with AIWhy marketers need to bridge the gap between AI hype and real execution, and where to start with building practical workflowsTogether, they break down the exact tools, prompts, and processes they're using to turn AI from theory into impact across B2B marketing teams.Timestamps(00:00) - – Intro (02:08) - – The gap between AI hype and real execution (06:08) - – Dan's background and how GTM Engineering came to life (09:08) - – Building repeatable webinar systems with Clay (13:08) - – How to scale content and events without burning bandwidth (18:08) - – Eoin's content creation workflow using AirOps (23:08) - – Turning sales transcripts into actionable GTM insights (33:43) - – Using Zapier Agents to automate product marketing tasks (41:43) - – Refreshing SEO content with AI for better performance (49:43) - – Where AI fits in your team and how to start small Send guest pitches and ideas to hi@exitfive.comJoin the Exit Five Newsletter here: https://www.exitfive.com/newsletterCheck out the Exit Five job board: https://jobs.exitfive.com/Become an Exit Five member: https://community.exitfive.com/checkout/exit-five-membership***Today's episode is brought to you by Knak.Email (in my humble opinion) is the still the greatest marketing channel of all-time.It's the only way you can truly “own” your audience.But when it comes to building the emails - if you've ever tried building an email in an enterprise marketing automation platform, you know how painful it can be. Templates are too rigid, editing code can break things and the whole process just takes forever. That's why we love Knak here at Exit Five. Knak a no-code email platform that makes it easy to create on-brand, high-performing emails - without the bottlenecks.Frustrated by clunky email builders? You need Knak.Tired of ‘hoping' the email you sent looks good across all devices? Just test in Knak first.Big team making it hard to collaborate and get approvals? Definitely Knak.And the best part? Everything takes a fraction of the time.See Knak in action at knak.com/exit-five. Or just let them know you heard about Knak on Exit Five.***Thanks to my friends at hatch.fm for producing this episode and handling all of the Exit Five podcast production.They give you unlimited podcast editing and strategy for your B2B podcast.Get unlimited podcast editing and on-demand strategy for one low monthly cost. Just upload your episode, and they take care of the rest.Visit hatch.fm to learn more

Techmeme Ride Home
(BNS) How Snowflake Wrote The GTM Playbook

Techmeme Ride Home

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 4, 2025 53:02


Make It Snow is Snowflake's go-to-market playbook, told by longtime CRO Chris Degnan and CMO Denise Persson. The central idea: sales and marketing must operate as “one brain in two bodies.” The takeaways are practical and candid: embed with customers sooner than feels comfortable, pick a clear foil, design programs you can rerun, centralize data so sales and marketing act from one truth, and treat culture as GTM infrastructure. If you're a founder, CRO, CMO, or operator trying to go from zero to billions without losing the plot, Make It Snow is a field manual for aligning people, narrative, and pipeline at every stage. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices