Bootstrapped to $15M ARR: How Flipsnack Scaled Digital Publishing with SEO & $200K ACVs
In this episode, Gabriel Ciordas, founder and CEO of Flipsnack, explains how he grew a bootstrapped digital publishing platform to $15 M ARR and 28,000 customers by leveraging a deep SEO strategy, a self‑serve onboarding flow, and high‑ACV enterprise contracts up to $200 K. He shares insights on converting 160,000+ monthly SEO clicks, using a template library as a traffic engine, balancing freemium and paid tiers, and transitioning from product‑led growth to a sales‑led model while keeping the team lean. Ciordas also discusses the role of non‑dilutive debt financing, international expansion, and the impact of AI and accessibility on the product roadmap.
36 | 2026 Software M&A Outlook: Valuations, Buyers, and What’s Changed
In this episode, Vista Point Advisors’ managing directors Mike Lyon and Jeff Koons dissect the 2025 software M&A landscape and project key shifts for 2026, focusing on buyer behavior, deal structures, and valuation trends—especially in vertical SaaS. They highlight that strategic...
202. Kate Sygrove, Director of CS & Support, Mouseflow - Speak CFO: How CS Leaders Earn an Equal Seat at the Table
In this episode, Kate Sygrove, Director of Customer Success at Mouseflow, outlines how CS leaders can earn a seat at the executive table by "speaking the language of the CFO," translating customer sentiment into predictive revenue models and combining hard...
How He Scaled a Niche SaaS to $14M/Year With No Funding
Scott Davis, President and Co‑Founder of Volie, explains how his bootstrapped BDC communication SaaS grew from four dealership clients in 2017 to $14 million in annual revenue, serving 2,000 rooftops across 300 store groups while keeping a 16% profit margin and...
From $500K to $1.5M ARR: Bootstrapping VR SaaS for Trade Skills
In this episode Sabari Nair, CEO of Skillveri, details how his VR‑based vocational training platform grew from $500K to $1.5M ARR by bundling a $4K‑per‑year SaaS subscription with optional hardware add‑ons and leveraging a reseller‑led go‑to‑market strategy. He explains the...
Founder Uses Genius Playbook to Hit $1M Revenue with No Employees
In this episode, Andrew Fennell, founder of Standout CV, shares how he turned a freelance CV service into a bootstrapped SaaS that now attracts 18 million organic visitors, generates $30K MRR and over $1 million in lifetime revenue—all without venture funding. He...
Episode 812 | The 2025 State of TinySeed
Rob Walling reviews TinySeed’s progress at the end of 2025, highlighting that the accelerator has invested in over 210 B2B SaaS companies, raised just under $60 million across three funds, and returned capital from its first fund. He notes emerging trends...
The Present and Future of AI in Sales and GTM A Deep Dive with Jason Lemkin and Kyle Norton, CRO at Owner
Jason Lemkin and Owner CRO Kyle Norton discuss how AI agents now outperform average AEs and SDRs, reshaping GTM team structures. They stress that CROs/CMOs must personally train at least one agent within 30 days, choose one or two vendor...
Bootstrapping Through War to $6M ARR: A SaaS Founder Story
Vlad Malanin, a surgeon‑turned AI scientist, details how SpeedSize grew from $400K to $6M ARR by leveraging AI‑driven media compression, a usage‑based enterprise pricing model, and a partnership‑first go‑to‑market strategy with AWS and IBM. He explains the land‑and‑expand sales motion...
How to Build Your PM Second Brain with ChatGPT
In this episode, Amir Klein from monday.com walks listeners through a practical system for creating a PM "second brain" using ChatGPT, emphasizing that AI should amplify rather than replace a product manager's work. He explains how to define a clear...
We Deployed 20+ AI Agents and Replaced Our Entire Human SDR Team. Here's What Actually Works. (Video + Pod)
In this episode the hosts detail how they replaced their human SDR team with over 20 AI agents, sending 60,000+ hyper‑personalized emails, booking 130+ meetings and generating 15% of SaaStr AI London ticket revenue by targeting low‑priority and ghosted leads....
SaaS as an Orchestra | How to Conduct CX, Content & AI Into One Seamless Journey
In this episode, Arman Eshraghi, founder and CEO of Qrvey, argues that SaaS founders should target smaller, high‑pain markets rather than chasing larger TAMs, and explains how embedded analytics and AI tailored for multi‑tenant SaaS can outshine generic dashboards. He...
How to Spot a 1% Startup Early
In this episode Lenny Rachitsky breaks down the three rare traits that super‑spotters use to identify "1%" startups early, such as ludicrous ambition, subtle signals of founder greatness, and product‑level clues. He illustrates these signals with examples from companies like...
No, Inbound Isn't Dead. The GTM Playbook Isn't Broken. But Your Moats Are Shrinking to Months.
Jason Lemkin debunks the hype that inbound and traditional GTM playbooks are dead, showing that classic tactics still work but must be paired with modern AI tools to capture soaring demand. He highlights how top AI startups are run by...
“PMs Who Use AI Will Replace Those Who Don’t”: Google’s AI Product Lead on the New PM Toolkit | Marily Nika
In this episode, Google AI Product Lead Marily Nika demonstrates a full AI‑driven product management workflow using a smart‑fridge concept, from Reddit‑sourced user research with Perplexity to PRD generation via custom GPTs, interactive prototyping with v0, and stakeholder‑ready video mockups...
The Future of AI-Powered Sales with Vercel COO, Jeanne DeWitt
In this episode, Lenny Rachitsky talks with Vercel COO Jeanne DeWitt about how AI is reshaping go‑to‑market (GTM) strategy, emphasizing the growing importance of GTM engineering and data‑driven segmentation. Jeanne shares practical advice on building sales organizations that earn the...
These 4 AI Automations Will Make You $1M (With Zero Employees)
In this episode of The Martell Method, Dan Martell outlines four AI-driven automations that can generate a million dollars in revenue without hiring staff, emphasizing real‑world tools and playbooks he uses across his portfolio. He expands on how AI is...
Bootstrapped to $82M: How Callum Mckeefery Built Reviews.io From His Kitchen Table
In this episode, bootstrapped founder Callum McKeefery details how he and his wife grew Reviews.io to $12 M ARR and sold it for $82 M without outside funding, emphasizing a SEO‑driven viral loop, high revenue per employee, and a non‑equity compensation model...
Episode 808 | A $500k "Step 1" Business, When to Consider SOC2, and More Listener Questions
Rob Walling answers listener questions, offering a framework for handling a plateaued $500k SaaS business and warning that putting a company on "autopilot" often leads to decline. He explains when founders should invest in SOC 2 compliance, the pros and cons...
A Guide to Difficult Conversations, Building High-Trust Teams, and Designing a Life You Love | Rachel Lockett
In this episode, executive coach Rachel Lockett shares practical frameworks for leadership, including when to coach versus direct, the GROW model for self‑solution, and strategies to make difficult conversations smoother. She discusses avoiding burnout by designing energizing careers, nurturing healthy...
Ep. 181 - How Fast-Growing SaaS Companies Are Modernizing Their Revenue Stack
In this episode, Mark Walker, CEO of Nue.io, explains how legacy CPQ and billing systems are failing fast‑growing SaaS and AI companies, prompting a shift to unified, flexible revenue infrastructures that can handle complex, consumption‑based and bank‑billed models. He highlights...
How Ads, AI, and Intent Signals Drive B2B SaaS Revenue with Srikrishna Swaminathan #235
In this episode, Sri Swaminathan explains how B2B SaaS marketers can map the buyer journey, use AI to automate attribution, and harness intent data while respecting privacy to drive measurable revenue. He introduces the concept of GTM engineering and the need...
He Used AI to Generate $6m Revenue at Dreamstories by Selling Childrens Books
In this episode, Ricardo, founder of DreamStories.ai, explains how he built an AI‑driven personalized children’s‑book studio that has generated over $3 M in sales and acquired more than 100,000 paying customers using profit‑positive Facebook ads. He details his acquisition strategy—keeping customer...
Slack Founder: Mental Models for Building Products People Love Ft. Stewart Butterfield
In this episode, Stewart Butterfield shares the mental models that guided Slack’s rise, including utility curves for prioritizing impact, the “owner’s delusion” for fostering deep product empathy, and hyper‑realistic work‑like activities to keep teams focused. He emphasizes simplicity (“don’t make me...
“Farm-to-Table Software”: How I Built a Thanksgiving Party Hub Using Lovable for Managing Invites, Dishes, Shared Recipes, and Photos
In this episode, Claire Vo walks listeners through building a Thanksgiving party hub with Lovable, covering everything from guest invites to shared recipes and photo galleries. She demonstrates how to enhance AI‑generated designs using Google Font pairings, Tailwind, and custom...
34 | Assembling Your Software M&A Dream Team
In this 16‑minute episode, Managing Directors Mike Lyon and Mike Greco explain why software founders must assemble a dedicated M&A dream team—including legal, financial, tax, and operational advisors—early in the sale or fundraising process. They highlight how each specialist adds...
Episode 807 | The "Core Four" SaaS Skills and Knowing When You Should Find a Co-Founder (A Rob Solo Adventure)
Rob Walling answers listener questions about whether technical SaaS founders should bring on a sales‑and‑marketing co‑founder, introducing his "Core Four" model of essential early‑stage SaaS skills. He explains how to prioritize or outsource these skills, argues that sales‑led growth can...
201. Jeppe Schytte-Hansen, CEO, Omnidocs - Why 1+1 = 1.8 in M&A (Until It Suddenly Becomes 3)
In the episode, Omnidocs CEO Jeppe Schytte‑Hansen explains how his company turned a profitable SaaS business into a buy‑and‑build platform, detailing a 14‑point M&A framework, the inevitable slowdown after acquisitions, and the "integration foxtrot" of alternating fast and slow phases....
Lemlist Revenue Hits $40M: CEO Charles Breaks Down $25M Claap Acquisition Deal
In this episode, Lemlist CEO Charles Tenot reveals that the company has surpassed $40 million in revenue and outlines a strategic plan to reach $100 million by 2028. He breaks down the $25 million acquisition of Claap, explaining how the deal was financed...
The First $100,000,000 ARR at Datadog: How Founder CEO Olivier Pomel Built a Customer-Centric Observability Giant
In this episode, Datadog founder‑CEO Olivier Pomel recounts how the company reached its first $100 million ARR by obsessively prioritizing genuine customer insight over sales or engineering shortcuts. He explains why closed alphas and annual contracts stifle learning, why enterprise SaaS...
E298 | Why LLM Agents Are Now Your VIP Visitors and How to Optimize for Them
In this episode, Kevin White of Scrunch AI explains how AI‑driven answer engines like ChatGPT are turning large language model agents into a primary audience, prompting marketers to optimize their sites for LLM discovery. He outlines Scrunch’s approach to making...
How to Scale Your Business (Full Course)
In this 51‑minute masterclass, Dan Martell outlines his six‑phase framework for scaling a business, emphasizing time‑buyback, predictable growth engines, and leadership systems that turn chaos into an empire. He shares actionable tactics—from leveraging AI tools and zero‑code profit models to...
200. Fabian Q. Veit, CEO, Make - 15× Revenue, 7× Team, 100K+ Paying Users: Inside Make.com’s Hypergrowth!
In this episode, CEO Fabian Veit discusses scaling Make.com from a modest team to a hypergrowth SaaS with 15× revenue, 400 employees, and over 100,000 paying users, highlighting the shift from enterprise‑sales‑led models to a product‑led growth approach powered by...
Ecosystem Is the Next Big Growth Channel
In this episode, Emily Kramer explains how the AI‑driven market has eroded traditional growth tactics and why companies now prioritize ecosystem strategies—leveraging partners, creators, communities, and integrations that already command audience trust. She defines the ecosystem flywheel, outlines its six...
Episode 806 | Bootstrapping Missive to $8M ARR Over 10 Years
Rob Walling talks with Missive co‑founder Philippe Lehoux about how a small, bootstrapped team grew the collaborative email platform to $8 M ARR, covering the early idea, landing first customers, and the decision to stay independent of VC funding. They explore...
How This CEO Turned 25,000 Hours of Sales Calls Into a Self-Learning Go-to-Market Engine | Matt Britton (Suzy)
In this episode, Suzy CEO Matt Britton explains how he transformed 25,000 hours of sales call data into a self‑learning go‑to‑market engine using trigger‑based Zapier automations, LLM‑generated summaries, sentiment scores, and keyword extraction. He demonstrates practical techniques for quantifying sentiment...
"Sell the Alpha, Not the Feature": The Enterprise Sales Playbook for $1M to $10M ARR | Jen Abel
In this episode, Jen Abel—GM of Enterprise at State Affairs and co‑founder of the Jellyfish consultancy—shares the playbook for scaling a SaaS business from $1M to $10M ARR by focusing on "selling the alpha" rather than individual features. She debunks...
EP297 | How Freemius Aligns Pricing With Growth to Reduce Graduation Churn
In this episode, Vova Feldman, CEO and co‑founder of Freemius, explains how the platform evolved from a WordPress‑centric tool into a full‑service, self‑serve solution for indie SaaS and desktop software makers, handling payments, licensing, taxes, and compliance. He highlights the...
199. Pieter Boon, Co-Founder, ImpactPilot - From “Check-Ins” To Impact: How Google’s Playbook Is Transforming CS in B2B SaaS!
In the episode, Pieter Boon explains ImpactPilot’s Impact Driver Methodology, a framework inspired by Google’s post‑sales organization that shifts customer‑success metrics from activity‑based check‑ins to measurable outcomes such as ROI proof, API adoption, and multi‑year deals. He details how CS...
Episode 805 | Gatekeeping Vs. Paying Dues, Raw Material, and Surrounding Yourself with the Right People (A Rob Solo Adventure)
In this solo episode, Rob Walling examines how founders should navigate gatekeeping versus earning their place by paying dues, emphasizing the importance of self‑education and effort before seeking community help. He argues that raw, unpolished material—early ideas and skills—outweigh polished...
Ep. 180 - Your SaaS Buyer Doesn’t Need Convincing—They Need Confidence
In this episode, Brent Adamson—co‑author of *The Challenger Sale* and founder of A to B Insight—explains that most SaaS deals fail not because of competition but due to buyer indecision, and that sales teams must shift from teaching buyers what...
Episode 804 | Positioning, Inventing a Category, Marketing Globally, and More Listener Questions (A Rob Solo Adventure)
In this solo episode, Rob Walling tackles listener questions about product positioning, debating vertical, orthogonal, and horizontal strategies for bootstrapped SaaS founders, and examines whether AI now makes inventing a new category viable. He stresses evaluating how much a product...
198. Jakob Lilholm, Co-Founder & CEO, Formalize - The S-Curve Bet: How to Time Product #2 Before Product #1 Peaks?
In the episode, Jakob Lilholm, CEO of Formalize, explains how the company timed its transition from a single‑point whistleblowing tool to a multi‑product GRC platform by leveraging EU regulatory trends and an S‑curve model to launch product 2 before product 1 peaked....
How to 10X Your Business (Without Adding New Customers)
In this episode Dan Martell reveals how to dramatically increase a company’s valuation—up to ten‑fold—without acquiring new customers, focusing on the often‑overlooked metric that separates a $1M exit from a $10M exit. He shares mindset shifts, operational tweaks, and valuation‑boosting...
197. Rav Dhaliwal, Investor and Limited Partner, Crane - CS Meets Revenue: AI, Agents, and the New Customer Success
In the episode, early‑stage VC Rav Dhaliwal discusses how AI is transforming Customer Success, merging it with account management to become more revenue‑centric. He highlights practical AI use cases—telemetry‑driven churn prediction, voice sentiment analysis, and agentic next‑best‑action—while warning against treating...
Episode 803 | 8 Key Takeaways From MicroConf Europe 2025
Rob Walling and Laura Sprinkle recap MicroConf Europe 2025 in Istanbul, describing the friendly, diverse crowd and the value of off‑stage networking and excursions. They highlight standout sessions on AI, lifecycle marketing, affiliate programs, and scaling SaaS to $2M ARR,...
Ep. 179 - The Smart SaaS Funding Path No One Talks About
In this episode, Ken Lempit talks with Melanie Nabar, Vice President of Volition Capital, about growth‑equity financing as a middle‑ground alternative to traditional venture or private‑equity routes for B2B SaaS companies. Nabar explains how growth equity can provide capital for...
23 Things You Didn’t Know ChatGPT Could Do
In this 17‑minute episode, Dan Martell reveals 23 unconventional ways to leverage ChatGPT for massive time savings, productivity boosts, and full‑life automation, drawing on his experience building AI startups. He shares specific prompts, tool integrations, and workflow hacks that most...
196. Ines Lourenço, VP of Product Growth, Usercentrics. Growth = Product Distribution: How Usercentrics Hit €100M ARR with Activation-First Pods
In this episode, Inês Lourenço, VP of Product Growth at Usercentrics, explains how she scaled a 50‑person growth organization into cross‑functional pods that treat growth as product distribution, putting activation ahead of acquisition. She details the evolution from manual signal detection...
Episode 802 | Marketing Not Scaling, Where to Publish Content, and More Listener Questions (A Rob Solo Adventure)
In this solo episode, Rob Walling tackles listener questions about SaaS growth, explaining how to respond when marketing channels stop scaling and offering strategies for promoting a product still seeking product‑market fit. He advises founders to publish early‑stage content on...