SaaS Interviews with CEOs
Founder Uses Genius Playbook to Hit $1M Revenue with No Employees
AI Summary
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 details his SEO‑first go‑to‑market strategy, the shift from one‑time payments to subscription models, low‑friction paid trials, and specific content and link‑building tactics that reduced churn and drove sustainable growth. Andrew also discusses the operational advantages of a lean team, the challenges of short‑term SaaS usage, and how he’s positioning the business for acquisition while advising other founders on organic growth.
Episode Description
In this episode, we sit down with Andrew Fennell, founder of Standout CV, to unpack how he built and scaled a resume-builder SaaS to over 18 million organic visitors, $30K MRR, and $1M+ in lifetime revenue — without venture funding.
Andrew walks through his SEO-first go-to-market strategy, pricing evolution, churn reduction, and the exact content and link-building tactics that helped him win in an ultra-competitive space. This episode is a masterclass in bootstrapped SaaS growth, monetization, and acquisition efficiency.
What You'll Learn
Founder Story
How a recruitment background led to a SaaS opportunity
Transitioning from services to scalable software
Bootstrapping vs. raising capital
Pricing & Revenue
Why one-time payments killed LTV
Switching to subscriptions to unlock recurring revenue
Using low-friction paid trials to boost conversion
GTM / Outbound
SEO as the core go-to-market motion
Why content beats ads in crowded markets
Building trust before monetization
SEO / AEO
Creating linkable assets journalists actually cite
Digital PR vs. guest posting
Programmatic SEO pitfalls and content pruning
Scaling & Operations
Reducing churn in naturally short-term SaaS use cases
Running a high-margin SaaS with a small team
Positioning a bootstrapped business for acquisition
Andrew started Standout CV as a freelance CV-writing service, evolved it into a content-driven traffic engine, and eventually built a subscription SaaS now generating consistent monthly revenue. Today, he's also advising other SaaS companies on SEO while exploring acquisition offers for the business.
Whether you're a bootstrapped SaaS founder, B2B operator, or investor evaluating SEO-driven businesses, this episode is a masterclass in organic acquisition, monetization, and building real leverage without venture capital.
Connect with Andrew:
Standout-CV.com
Connect with Nathan:
FounderPath.com
Show Notes
In this episode, we sit down with Andrew Fennell, founder of Standout CV, to unpack how he built and scaled a resume-builder SaaS to over 18 million organic visitors, $30K MRR, and $1M+ in lifetime revenue — without venture funding.
Andrew walks through his SEO-first go-to-market strategy, pricing evolution, churn reduction, and the exact content and link-building tactics that helped him win in an ultra-competitive space. This episode is a masterclass in bootstrapped SaaS growth, monetization, and acquisition efficiency.
_________________________________________________________________________________
What You'll Learn
Founder Story
-
How a recruitment background led to a SaaS opportunity
-
Transitioning from services to scalable software
-
Bootstrapping vs. raising capital
Pricing & Revenue
-
Why one-time payments killed LTV
-
Switching to subscriptions to unlock recurring revenue
-
Using low-friction paid trials to boost conversion
GTM / Outbound
-
SEO as the core go-to-market motion
-
Why content beats ads in crowded markets
-
Building trust before monetization
SEO / AEO
-
Creating linkable assets journalists actually cite
-
Digital PR vs. guest posting
-
Programmatic SEO pitfalls and content pruning
Scaling & Operations
-
Reducing churn in naturally short-term SaaS use cases
-
Running a high-margin SaaS with a small team
-
Positioning a bootstrapped business for acquisition
_________________________________________________________________________________
Andrew started Standout CV as a freelance CV-writing service, evolved it into a content-driven traffic engine, and eventually built a subscription SaaS now generating consistent monthly revenue. Today, he's also advising other SaaS companies on SEO while exploring acquisition offers for the business.
Whether you're a bootstrapped SaaS founder, B2B operator, or investor evaluating SEO-driven businesses, this episode is a masterclass in organic acquisition, monetization, and building real leverage without venture capital.
Connect with Andrew:
Connect with Nathan:
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