Michael Amtmann

𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵: 1. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲:   - Apollo.io / Sales Navigator is the king of B2B data sources.   - Ocean.io is the best platform for lookalike targeting.   - Crunchbase is the best platform for SaaS & fundraising companies.   - BuiltWith is a cool option for technology lookups.   (𝗜𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆, 𝘄𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 40+ 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀; 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗽 4.) 2. 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀: - Verifying the lead source is as important as scraping the lead database.   - LeadMagic shows its magic when used for email verification. - If you use BounceBan (Verify risky emails without sending messages) for your catchall verification, Your emails don't bounce.   (𝗜𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆, 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 2 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.) 3. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗘𝗻𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁:   - Prospeo extracts contacts from LinkedIn & finds their email addresses.   - Waterfall enrichment: Better contact & Clay is the one-stop solution for your data enrichment. 4. 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀:   - Vector finds your website visitors and provides their LinkedIn URLs for free!   - RB2B finds your website visitors and provides their LinkedIn URLs with email addresses (worth investing in). 5. 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆:   - Create your email infrastructure using a combination of Google & Outlook (50% - 50%).   (In our agency, we diversify: Google 40%, Outlook 30%, Private infrastructure 20%.) 6. 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘀:   - 𝗘𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹: Use Smartlead / Instantly—they are the best players in the market. Both have pros & cons.      - Want to find website visitors? Use Instantly.ai.    - Want to play with API? Use Smartlead.    - But don’t go for other providers—words from my experience.   - 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗱𝗜𝗻: HeyReach is the best platform for LinkedIn outreach. It’s a cloud-based platform, so don’t worry—LinkedIn can’t ban your account.   - 𝗠𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵: lemlist / La Growth Machine let you run and manage emails and LinkedIn outreach from one place. LaGrowth has the added advantage of Twitter & Calls. 7. 𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘀: - 𝗖𝗥𝗠: Use Breakcold to manage all your leads from one place, with email and LinkedIn integration. - 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹: Take notes from your sales calls using Attention—it will save you a lot of time. Which tool is your favorite, and why?

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43 Kommentare

𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵: 1. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲: - Apollo.io / Sales Navigator is the king of B2B data sources. - Ocean.io is the best platform for lookalike targeting. - Crunchbase is the best platform for SaaS & fundraising companies. - BuiltWith is a cool option for technology lookups. (𝗜𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆, 𝘄𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 40+ 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀; 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗽 4.) 2. 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀: - Verifying the lead source is as important as scraping the lead database. - LeadMagic shows its magic when used for email verification. - If you use BounceBan (Verify risky emails without sending messages) for your catchall verification, Your emails don't bounce. (𝗜𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆, 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 2 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.) 3. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗘𝗻𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: - Prospeo extracts contacts from LinkedIn & finds their email addresses. - Waterfall enrichment: BetterContact & Clay is the one-stop solution for your data enrichment. 4. 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀: - Vector finds your website visitors and provides their LinkedIn URLs for free! - RB2B finds your website visitors and provides their LinkedIn URLs with email addresses (worth investing in). 5. 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: - Create your email infrastructure using a combination of Google & Outlook (50% - 50%). (In our agency, we diversify: Google 40%, Outlook 30%, Private infrastructure 20%.) 6. 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘀: - 𝗘𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹: Use Smartlead / Instantly.ai / Saleshandy—they are the best players in the market. Both have pros & cons. - Want to find website visitors? Use Instantly.ai. - Want to play with API? Use Smartlead. - Don't want to pay for client access - Saleshandy - 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗱𝗜𝗻: HeyReach is the best platform for LinkedIn outreach. It’s a cloud-based platform, so don’t worry—LinkedIn can’t ban your account. - 𝗠𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵: lemlist / La Growth Machine let you run and manage emails and LinkedIn outreach from one place. La Growth has the added advantage of Twitter & Calls. 7. 𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘀: - 𝗖𝗥𝗠: Use Breakcold to manage all your leads from one place, with email and LinkedIn integration. - 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹: Take notes from your sales calls using Attention—it will save you a lot of time. 𝗪𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝘆?

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𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗦𝗰𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵: 1. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲: - Apollo.io / Sales Navigator is the king of B2B data sources. - Ocean.io is the best platform for lookalike targeting. - Crunchbase is the best platform for SaaS & fundraising companies. - BuiltWith is a cool option for technology lookups. (𝗜𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆, 𝘄𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 40+ 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀; 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗽 4.) 2. 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀: - Verifying the lead source is as important as scraping the lead database. - LeadMagic shows its magic when used for email verification. - If you use BounceBan (Verify risky emails without sending messages) for your catchall verification, Your emails don't bounce. (𝗜𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆, 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 2 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻.) 3. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗘𝗻𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: - Prospeo extracts contacts from LinkedIn & finds their email addresses. - Waterfall enrichment: BetterContact & Clay is the one-stop solution for your data enrichment. 4. 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀: - Vector finds your website visitors and provides their LinkedIn URLs for free! - RB2B finds your website visitors and provides their LinkedIn URLs with email addresses (worth investing in). 5. 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: - Create your email infrastructure using a combination of Google & Outlook (50% - 50%). (In our agency, we diversify: Google 40%, Outlook 30%, Private infrastructure 20%.) 6. 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘀: - 𝗘𝗺𝗮𝗶𝗹: Use Smartlead / Instantly.ai—they are the best players in the market. Both have pros & cons. - Want to find website visitors? Use Instantly.ai. - Want to play with API? Use Smartlead. - But don’t go for other providers—words from my experience. - 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗱𝗜𝗻: HeyReach is the best platform for LinkedIn outreach. It’s a cloud-based platform, so don’t worry—LinkedIn can’t ban your account. - 𝗠𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵: lemlist / La Growth Machine let you run and manage emails and LinkedIn outreach from one place. LaGrowth has the added advantage of Twitter & Calls. 7. 𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗗𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘀: - 𝗖𝗥𝗠: Use Breakcold to manage all your leads from one place, with email and LinkedIn integration. - 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗹: Take notes from your sales calls using Attention—it will save you a lot of time. Which tool is your favorite, and why?

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No big launch, no massive ad spend—just millions of users. How? By surprise. Command AI (fka CommandBar) is one of my favorite startup stories. They went from 0 to 25 million end users - within months 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 🚀 ... all without a traditional go-to-market strategy. My 5 key learnings👇 1. Focus on solving one real problem - Their product started by solving one clear pain point for a single customer. - That focus led to a solution that resonated with millions. - It’s easy to get distracted, but simplicity wins. 2. Build for your customers, not just the market - CommandAI didn’t have a master plan to reach millions. - Instead, they got close to our users, listened, and adapted quickly. - When you build alongside your customers, growth follows. 3. Let word-of-mouth do the heavy lifting - CommandAI didn’t invest in big marketing campaigns. - But their users became advocates, spreading the word organically. - If your product truly solves a problem, people will share it. 4. Sometimes, speed beats perfection - CommandAI didn’t wait for the product to be perfect before launching. - By moving fast, they learned and iterated faster than competitors. - Progress over perfection is key, especially in the early stages. 5. Embrace the unexpected - The explosive growth was never part of the plan. - By staying agile, they rode the wave instead of fighting it. - You can’t predict everything—be ready to pivot. Want to know more about how they stumbled into success? Check it out on YouTube: 👉 www. youtube. com @enzoavigo (remove spaces) Special thanks to Command AI & James Evans for sharing his journey!

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Market size slide often misses the mark due to a standardized approach by pitch coaching. This template mandates the inclusion of TAM, SAM, and SOM in three bubbles. You can find such templates all over the internet. 👀 Everywhere I found that entrepreneur claims “Our global TAM is $X B, but we are going to start in a certain part where our SAM is $Y B. And we project that our SOM is $Z B” It’s clear why entrepreneurs try to pump up their market size. They’ve been told that VC only interested in unicorns, and so they assume that the best way to become a unicorn is to go for the largest market. The thinking is that it's easier to get 2% of a very large market than it is to get 20% of a smaller market. So, they search for market data that allow them to claim that their TAM is $56B, or $256B, or even better, $2.5T. When this slide appears, most investors chuckle. Investors generally don’t give any credence to the market size. We may still ask founders how big their target market is, but the point is to see 'how founders think about segmentation, not to rate the startup based on how big they think.' 💡 Savvy investors prefer startups go after a market that doesn't yet exist. Better to create the market than try to unseat established competitors. Rather than claiming that you can disrupt a existing market, what’s more relevant and compelling is how you answer questions such as: 👇 1. Who are your target customers? 2. How will you reach them? 3. How many can you reach? 4. How will you convert them? 5. How many can you convert? 6. How will you onboard them? 7. How much will that cost? 8. What is a customer worth? 9. How many customers will you acquire this year,Next year,The year after? Most investors want to see market opportunity, not market size. They need to see that you understand more about your approach of reaching & onboard customers. Founders should build a bottom-up model that demonstrates how you will build a big, profitable, customer by customer business. Don’t suggest that your focus is on acquiring market share in a large market. 🙆‍♀️ We’ve heard several pitch on wearable technologies for dogs. They claim - there are 90M dogs in the US alone — at $9.95 a month subscription, that’s a $10B market! But truth is It doesn’t matter if there are only 20M or 200M dogs. What matters is how many dog owners the entrepreneur can convince, one by one, to sign up for this service. Define your target precisely, like "urban professionals, 25-35, earning $80,000+, active Instagram users, and dog owners." Entrepreneur should stop pitching the typical market-size slide. Instead, they should show investors that they understand the market opportunity customer by customer.💡 Check out my free newsletter for more insights: https://lnkd.in/dKZQKHg2 . #startups #funding #fundraising #founders #investors #VC #angelinvestors #founder #fund #money #runway #marketsize #market #entrepreneurship #entrepreneur #customers

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$1.7B: the valuation of Zuora, a profitable public SaaS company with $415M in ARR because, 4.25x multiple Also, $1.7B: a run-of-the-mill Series B valuation in Generative AI (revenue optional) because, vibes (I know, I know, low growth at Zuora, but still)

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The SaaS industry is still growing. But much more slowly. Last month I shared an Aleph statistic. Over the last 3 years we have invested in 17 companies. Only 1 out 17 was a classic horizontal SaaS company. SaaS was the single best business model of the last cycle (2008-2021), but the category has since entered a maturity stage (see graph below). This new report from the wonderful software team at Avenir clearly illustrates it. Growth rates for the combined SaaS industry are quickly declining as we are entering the later stages of maturity. In other words, there’s already an established software company in most sectors - and there’s very little room for entirely new software categories. At Aleph we still believe there’s an opportunity to build successful SaaS companies, but new entrants would have to carve out market share in existing industries and displace existing vendors. Vertical software is one area where lesser competition makes it more attractive, but entrepreneurs in crowded horizontal markets would have to work harder than ever before. Another key takeaway from the report - there are only 72 publicly traded companies (with market cap > $5Bn) with a combined market cap of $5.8Tr. However, 56% of this value is attributed to Microsoft alone, followed by a very long tail of lesser performing companies. Moreover, only 2 of the largest 11 companies were funded after the year 2000 (ServiceNow, CrowdStrike). If you are building or investing in SaaS, you should definitely read the full report by Jared Sleeper, Hannah Bao and David Prilutsky (link in the first comment).

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The Strengths and Challenges of Common SaaS Growth levers... Choosing the right growth framework can profoundly impact the trajectory of your SaaS business. Let’s examine some popular frameworks and discuss both their advantages and limitations: // A/B Testing: > Strengths: Enables data-driven decisions and improves user engagement through customized experiences. > Challenges: It can be resource-intensive, requires significant traffic for statistical significance, and may plateau incremental gains. // Viral Loops: > Strengths: Potentially explosive growth at low cost, expands reach organically. > Challenges: Relies heavily on the nature of the product; not all products are suitable for viral sharing. // Content Marketing: > Strengths: Builds brand trust and authority, educates potential customers and attracts those with high intent > Challenges: Long lead times for ROI, content saturation can dilute impact, requires consistent high-quality output. // User Onboarding: > Strengths: Increases retention by improving user satisfaction and product understanding. > Challenges: Complex to implement right, needs continuous refinement, upfront investment in resources. Effective growth strategies often blend these frameworks to leverage their strengths while mitigating their weaknesses. Tailoring to your specific market conditions and customer behaviors is key. 🤔 Which frameworks have you integrated, and what challenges have you faced? #SaaS #GrowthHacking #B2BSaaS #StartupGrowth #Entrepreneurship

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The Ultimate Cheat Sheet collection for SaaS leaders & Founders - by Vencha, Included #VC & Notion Capital Here you have 15 cheat sheets on marketing, sales, fundraising, pitch decks and more: 💵 How to price and package your software ? 🎢 The 5 prospect stages 🚀How fundable is your company? 💸 Leadership transitions at different stages of business growth 🎯 SaaS monetisation in 8 steps 🕹️ Identifying your market: TAM, SAM & SOM demystified 🛠️ How to skyrocket SaaS sales? ⚖️ The ICP Grid, goal setting and how to prioritize ? #Fintech #saas #CheatSheet #isaphr #isapone #isapsolutions #starthubagency #isapinvestments www.isap.group www.isap.one www.isap.hr www.isap.agency www.isap.investments iSAP Solutions ltd iSAP ONE iSAP.HR StartHub.Agency iSAP Group Investments ltd Tino Herold

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ChartMogul's latest report on the state of the SaaS industry just dropped! 🔥 Our Snr. Mgr of Insights Sofia Faustino totally crushed it this time!! 👏👏 The report includes Revenue Retention trends and benchmarks from analyzing over 2,500 SaaS businesses 🏙️ Link to the full report over on Sofia's post...and please like/share her post 🙏🙏🙏

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💡 What is the impact on revenue of 3rd Party Cookie deprecation and Google's Sandbox alternative? According to studies it can be up to 52% (so more than half). Better be prepared. Thank you, Nico, for sharing this valuable insight. #cookies #advertising #digitaladvertising #adtech #privacy #gdpr

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The Startup Pricing Guide By Bessemer Venture Partner A Must-Read Guide for Founders to Understand the Ways to Monetize Their Products and Services. It guide contain: 1. Where to Start? 2. Companies Wait on Pricing, But Why? 2. Why Does This Matter? 3. How Does the Role of Pricing Change? 4. The Startup Pricing Journey Stage 2: Finding the Right Revenue Model Stage 3: Segmentation of the Customer Base Stage 4: Drive Upsell & Cross-Sell Stage 5: Optimizing Price Pricing is often an afterthought for tech startups, with founders focused more on product development and user adoption. However, pricing is one of the most important decisions a company will make. Startups tend to take a "kick the can down the road" approach, delaying pricing decisions due to factors like an "adoption at all costs" mentality, lack of a multidisciplinary approach, and absence of data Bessemer Venture Partners' team shared a practical approach on how to find the best way to monetize your product/services and how to scale the business model, etc. You can read in attached pdf 👇 👉 Check out my free newsletter for more insights: https://lnkd.in/dKZQKHg2 . #startup #fundraising #venturecapital #funding #fundraising #founders #founderjourney #entrepreneurship #entrepreneur #founderstories #startuptips #sharktankindia #siliconvalley #startups #vc #vcfund #vcfunding #funding #startups #pmf #product #sequoiacapital #pricing #businessmodel

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𝐓𝐨𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐬𝐨𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐛𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐥𝐲. The SEED framework is your roadmap to evaluate SEED/A funding readiness: 𝐒 - Strong Market Fit Do you have the market foundation to support growth? Top founders use these indicators:   1. Validated Value Proposition ↳ Look for customer testimonials, high conversion rates, repeat business, or industry recognition as key indicators.   2. Meeting Revenue & Growth Goals ↳ Consistently hitting or exceeding goals signals a strong foundation.   3. Understanding Customer Choice ↳ Understanding your unique edge is vital for customer loyalty and differentiation.   4. Proactive Feedback Collection ↳ If it’s continuous and structured, you’re positioned for growth. 5. Customer Retention Rate ↳ You’re likely delivering strong value. If it’s below 50%, revisit customer satisfaction and product fit. 𝐄 - Effective Scaling Strategy Can your operations handle rapid growth?   6. Comprehensive Scaling Plan ↳ The strongest plans include specific roadmaps for market entry, customer acquisition, and operations.   7. Operational Capacity ↳ If your operations can adapt with minimal adjustments, you’re scaling-ready. If not, it’s a red flag.   8. Market Expansion Research ↳ Top founders go beyond informal observations and invest in data-driven market analysis.   9. Technology & Automation for Scalability ↳ Leveraging tech boosts efficiency and positions you for smoother growth.   10. Confidence in Replicating Success ↳ Rate your confidence (1-5) in replicating success in new markets. If you’re at a 4 or 5, you’re more likely to scale sustainably.   𝐄 - Economics & Financials Does your financial planning support your growth ambitions?   11. Detailed Financial Planning ↳ Monthly updates allow for rapid adjustments, while annual updates might leave you behind.   12. Resource Management for Maximum ROI ↳ Efficient resource use is essential to support sustainable growth.   13. Financial Runway ↳ Over 12 months gives you a solid cushion.   14. Investor Communication ↳ Monthly, detailed updates build trust and keep investors aligned with your growth goals.   15. Future Funding Strategy ↳ A comprehensive plan for funding milestones sets you up to scale. 𝐃 - Dedicated Team Can your team support the challenges of scaling?   16. Key Team Skills ↳ Teams with diverse expertise navigate scaling challenges with confidence.   17. Role Clarity ↳ Defined roles prevent overlap and create accountability.   18. Talent Attraction & Retention ↳ Competitive packages, growth opportunities, and culture are essential for sustaining team strength.   19. Leadership Readiness ↳ Rate your leadership’s readiness (1-5) to handle growth.   20. Engagement with Mentors ↳ Ongoing mentorship strengthens leadership capabilities and prepares your team for the future. ♻️ Repost and follow Leon Eisen, PhD for daily fundraising, entrepreneurship and VC insights. 

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My saas.wtf newsletter just cracked the 2,500 subscriber mark. 🎉 These were the 5 most popular articles: 1️⃣ My Go-To SaaS Benchmark Reports: https://lnkd.in/eVwEqJPj 2️⃣ SaaS Valuation Myths: https://lnkd.in/e2sA_Bgn 3️⃣ Time to hit $1M ARR: https://lnkd.in/emmyt-Hy 4️⃣ Micro M&A for SaaS Startups: https://lnkd.in/e5sCK2mB 5️⃣ Cohort Analysis using AI: https://lnkd.in/ebAxhdma I hope you enjoyed the others too. 🙂 On to the next 2500 subs! #saas #startups #founders #kpi #analysis #valuation #ai #benchmarks #pricing #newsletter

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The Startup Pricing Guide By Bessemer Venture Partner A Must-Read Guide for Founders to Understand the Ways to Monetize Their Products and Services. It includes: 1. Where to Start? 2. Companies Wait on Pricing, But Why? 2. Why Does This Matter? 3. How Does the Role of Pricing Change? 4. The Startup Pricing Journey Stage 2: Finding the Right Revenue Model Stage 3: Segmentation of the Customer Base Stage 4: Drive Upsell & Cross-Sell Stage 5: Optimizing Price Pricing is often an afterthought for tech startups, with founders focused more on product development and user adoption. However, pricing is one of the most important decisions a company will make. Startups tend to take a "kick the can down the road" approach, delaying pricing decisions due to factors like an "adoption at all costs" mentality, lack of a multidisciplinary approach, and absence of data Bessemer Venture Partners' team shared a practical approach on how to find the best way to monetize your product/services and how to scale the business model, etc. You can read in attached pdf 👇 👉 Check out my free newsletter for more insights: https://lnkd.in/dKZQKHg2 . #startup #fundraising #venturecapital #funding #fundraising #founders #founderjourney #entrepreneurship #entrepreneur #founderstories #startuptips #sharktankindia #siliconvalley #startups #vc #vcfund #vcfunding #funding #startups #pmf #product #sequoiacapital #pricing #businessmodel

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𝐔𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜: ‘𝐋𝐅𝐈’ 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐥-𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 We rely on metrics daily: 🌟 NPS, 💻 Churn Rate, 📈 CAGR, 💰 Burn Multiples, 📉 LTV, CAC, MRR, ARR, etc. These metrics guide us through business strategy and decision-making. Even books like “Measure What Matters” focus on OKRs/ goals, which I LOVE as a leader. But as I took a step back, I realized there was something missing. Amidst the flurry of KPIs, frameworks and analyses, one crucial area often goes unnoticed: our own well-being 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐌𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐥-𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 Imagine what would happen to a company if we didn’t measure performance or plot KPIs. It would likely fail, blindsided by unforeseen issues. "𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐝." – 𝑃𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝐷𝑟𝑢𝑐𝑘𝑒𝑟 If true, then why do we not apply the same logic and discipline to our personal well-being? I continue to see leaders, professionals, and entrepreneurs silently suffering. It’s scary. It’s sad. But it’s also a wake-up call. 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐋𝐅𝐈 🌞 Of course, you wouldn’t know what LFI means because I conjured this up, but hang with me… I did put some thought behind this 😎. I wanted to find a way to measure and monitor overall fulfillment and satisfaction in life, evaluating aspects like purpose, passion, joy, contribution, and alignment with core values. I call this the 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐅𝐮𝐥𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐱 (𝐋𝐅𝐈). The foundational rocks for my rubric include: • Time with Loved Ones: Cherish every moment with family and friends. Time is fleeting, and these moments are priceless. Aging parents? Toddlers time-traveling to graduates suddenly? • Personal Happiness and Satisfaction: Take stock of your emotional well-being. Are you truly happy and fulfilled? • Health and Wellness: Prioritize your health. Without it, nothing else matters. Even money can’t be the silver bullet. If Steve Jobs couldn’t do it, what are our odds? • Purpose and Passion: Are you excited about what you do or miserable? Are you working on something you are passionate about? Better to try and fail than live and regret never pursuing it 😡 So the next time you are overwhelmed or triggered by the typical “LFG” with a 🚀, I want you to pause and think about your #LFI 🌞. In a world where success is often measured by external achievements and the only constant seems to be layoffs, let’s not forget to measure what truly matters: our own well-being. Ready to measure and improve your LFI?  What's one rock you'd add to the list above? Please share your thoughts in the comments. With this in mind, I’m working on some exciting changes for my next act and will be sharing soon as I finesse my own rubric for my LFI! It involves a little dose of imagination, bonding with my kids, laughter, & a LOT of LFI 😀 #LifeFulfillmentIndex #CEO #WellBeing #LifeMetrics #Entrepreneurship #StartupSuccess #ZeeZeeAdventures

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Navigating Seed-Stage Fundraising: Key Insights Understanding seed-stage fundraising is crucial for any startup founder. Here’s a concise look at the landscape, based on data from 1,271 priced seed rounds between April 2023 and March 2024. Top Players: - SaaS leads in deal volume, showing strong investor interest. - Healthtech and Fintech are also in the spotlight, with Healthtech now surpassing Fintech. High Valuation and Cash Raised: - HR startups stand out with the highest median pre-money valuation and cash raised. - Transport and Renewable Energy also show high valuations, indicating significant potential. AI’s Impact: - AI influences multiple sectors and would top every chart if tracked separately, highlighting its transformative potential. Benchmarks: - Median pre-money valuation: $13M. - Median cash raised: $3M. Industry Clusters: Analytics, SaaS, and Healthtech form significant clusters around median values. Biotech and Cybersecurity also perform strongly. Lagging Sectors: DTC Retail, Food, and Personal Products lag in both valuation and cash raised, potentially exploring alternative funding methods. Deeper Insights: -Industry Disparities: Significant variations exist, with Healthtech showing increased investor confidence. -AI’s Dominance: AI offers diverse investment opportunities across industries. Decline in Seed Volume: -Most sectors see reduced seed funding, except for AI. -Alternative Funding Strategies: Some founders are exploring revenue-based funding instead of traditional VC routes. Takeaway: Navigating the seed-stage funding landscape requires strategic understanding and adaptability. This evolving environment offers unique opportunities and challenges for both investors and founders. If you're on this journey, let’s connect. I’m here to help you navigate these complexities and improve your chances of securing funding. #startups #entrepreneurship #venturecapital #investing #finance #crossborder #inovexus #startup #VC #earlystage #angleinvestor

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The Secret to SaaS Growth: Systems Thinking and the Theory of Constraints (TOC) Systems Thinking: - Analyze interconnections within your SaaS funnel (inputs like site visitors or trial signups, and the ensuing conversion rates through to paid user) - Identify patterns and leverage points (a 10% relative improvement in any input or conversion rate will have the same impact; where can you create a 10% improvement with the lease effort or cost?) Theory of Constraints: - Focus on the weakest link. - Improve it to boost overall performance. Execution: - Establish performance benchmarks. - Target the biggest performance gaps for improvement. Transform your SaaS growth strategy with systems thinking and TOC. Check out our latest blog post for a comprehensive breakdown and perspective...

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Can you go from $1M ARR to $100M ARR in 7 to 10 years? Note: this isn’t just growth - this is the definition of Venture Scale growth 🚀 But here’s the catch: Growth at all costs is over So 2024 is all about (capital efficient) Venture Scale growth You could argue that 2023’s push to profitability was a bit of a pass on growth But the VC economic model doesn’t work on profitable low growth startups. So we’re left with Venture Scale but now just in a capital efficient way. Which I think is great for our industry. Because this means real PMF The exuberance of 2020/2021 was all about fake PMF. Everyone loves to say they have it, but very few can actually show it. Be one of those few 💪 Focus on finding a repeatable, scalable and capital efficient growth machine As a founder, that's your only North Star Once you do, if you scale to $100M in 7 years, then that’s the classic T2D3: → after you hit $1M ARR → you triple the next year to $3M ARR → triple the year after that to $9M ARR → then double, double, double and a bit more to $100M ARR But take a look at the first few years after $1M ARR ➡️ Because that's the real definition of Venture Scale The 3x of T2D3 means 200% year-over-year growth for 2 years straight So that's 10% month-over-month growth consistently for 24 months in a row That only happens with real PMF Now the fastest companies (the 1% of the 1%) are actually getting to $100M faster than 7 years... → Wiz and Deel did in just over a year → UiPath* and Slack did in about 2 years → Twilio did it in just under 4 years → Shopify and Carta were around 5 years Note, the clock here is only starting at $1M ARR... And it took UiPath 13 years to go from $0 to $1M ARR - then just 18 months from $1M to $100M 🤯 And not every company finds real PMF at $1M ARR. Sometimes it takes longer and that’s okay 👍 Remember, real PMF (ie truly finding a repeatable, scalable and capital efficient growth machine) is the only signal that you're ready to start scaling And until then, don't worry about $100M Focus on finding a truly repeatable, scalable and capital efficient growth machine first 🚀 -- ♻️ Repost to help a founder in your network Click 'visit my website' at the top of this post to register for my free Unlock your Series A session on how to navigate VC expectations in this market

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