Startups For the Rest of Us

We're joined in this episode by the founding team of Scatterspoke, John Samuelson and Colleen Johnson. What started as a lark to learn new technology has now turned into a successful business with more than $12k MRR. In this episode, we learn how they turned a side project into a successful fulltime business. The topics we cover [02:09] The launch story behind Scatterspoke [10:02] Shifting to enterprise customers [16:17] The toll of working fulltime while trying to bootstrap Scatterspoke [18:01] Hiring out for development [26:00] Free plan and raising prices Links from the show Scatterspoke | Twitter Scatterspoke | Website Colleen Johnson | Twitter

Brian & Scottie Elliott are the husband & wife co-founders of Gather, an interior design project management app. Today we're going to dive into the stress that comes with entrepreneurship and how it shows up in their personal lives. Moving up from one customer segment to another is hard. Each customer segment is like an Island with a body of water between them. They're crossing that body of water from servicing one and two-person teams to serving larger architecture firms with 20 person teams. We hear how they are managing this difficult and stressful moment both as co-founders and as married partners. The topics we cover [01:40] Leveraging testimonials when moving upmarket It's an approach you should explore as early as possible when trying to move into a new segment of the market One of the reasons why trials are kind of a little bit lower this month is because some of the traffic that we've been getting is probably more geared towards the residential side and they're seeing this new messaging

Matt Wensing returns for his third appearance on the podcast. He is the founder of Summit and was in TinySeed Batch 1. We dive into Matt's decision-making process for re-writing the entire codebase. We talk about choosing the right features to build, talking to your customers, starting with a blank slate vs templates, and much more. The topics we cover [06:48] How to handle customers that are not engaging [11:35] Figuring out the right features to build [19:24] Making the decision to re-write the codebase [31:27] The value of forecasting [33:18] Designing a sparse SaaS homepage Links from the show Out of Beta Things You Should Never Do, Part I Episode 450 | Founder Hotseat: Matt Wensing of SimSaaS on Making Consistent, Needle-Moving Progress Episode 491 | Hard Lessons Learned, Reaching High-Touch Prospects, Finding Advisors, and More Listener Questions Episode 489 | 15 Years to a SaaS Exit (Plus Why Forecasting is Crucial) Summit | Twitter Summit | Website Matt

Brian & Scottie Elliott are the husband & wife co-founders of Gather, an interior design project management app. Today, Rob chats with Brian & Scottie about their new hires, setting ambitious revenue goals, and managing stress and anxiety as entrepreneurs. The topics we cover [01:01] Update on hiring, new sales, and more Hired a VA Hired an industry expert to help with marketing/copywriting Scottie & Brian now focused on documenting the processes Had their first "team plan" subscription One thing you'll notice as an entrepreneur is that when you start to expand your team beyond just the founders, new hires, propel you to get more organized, creating standard operating procedures like Brian & Scottie are now doing is a big step towards cementing the continuity and value of the business. [03:18] Attending the TinySeed retreat and setting ambitious revenue goals Brian and Scottie attended their first in-person retreat for their TinySeed batch Setting batch goals are less of

Rob is joined by Anthony Eden from DNSimple as they answer your listener questions. They cover topics ranging from tax liabilities with contractors, getting feedback on a prototype, and finding a technical cofounder. If you have questions about starting or scaling a SaaS that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for the next episode. We’d love to hear from you! The topics we cover [01:26] Tax liabilities and managing international contractors [10:45] Starting when stair stepping isn't feasible [16:38] Getting better at sales as a solo founder [24:00] Finding a sales/marketing cofounder [30:28] Getting feedback on a prototype, finding the right developer co-founder, and protecting your startup idea [40:11] Considering a technical cofounder vs hiring a developer Links from the show Episode 509 | Revisiting the Six Stages of SaaS Growth with DNSimple Intellectual Property Agreement W-8BEN Episode 498 | Selling During a Pandemic with Steli Efti The

Brian & Scottie Elliott are the husband & wife co-founders of Gather, an interior design project management app. On this episode, Rob chats with Brian & Scottie about taking their product upmarket, focusing on customer success, hiring consultants and contractors, and more! The topics we cover [01:43] Check in on how this week has been going Setting things in motion with some new hires MRR now growing off the chain but feeling good about accomplishments Shifting focus from growing while also building out process MRR growth is not everything [04:50] Scottie talks about hiring Looking at three potential hires right now: lead gen, VA, and an industry expert Consultant vs contractor. A contract shows up and performs a task, a consultant is an expert in the industry Moving from task-based hires to project-based hires With Tinyseed funding now have the opportunity to do more hiring [08:59] New business processes Scottie was initially doing customer support Now realizing needing

Producer Xander Castro has been working on MicroConf since 2014 and is a long-time listener of the show, but this is his first time on the podcast. On this episode, we take an inside look at MicroConf Remote from a few weeks ago and discuss what worked well, what we'll do differently next time and the difficulties of translating events from in-person to remote. The topics we cover [03:26] Turning to virtual events [07:38] Stats & production technicalities for MicroConf Remote [17:12] What worked well: pricing, timezones, and programming [30:27] Things we learned from our first MicroConf Remote Links from the show MicroConf Remote Xander Castro | Twitter If you enjoyed this episode, let us know by clicking the link and sharing what you learned. Click here to share your number one takeaway from the episode. If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you'd like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We'd love t

Welcome to Season 2 of TinySeed Tales, where we follow the founders of one SaaS startup week by week through their struggles, victories, and failures. On the first episode of this series, Rob introduces us to Brian & Scottie Elliott from Gather, an interior design project management app. Show Notes 1:30 Meet the Co-Founders of Gather, Brian Elliott, and Scottie Elliott Brian and Scottie have been working on Gather since late 2014 Scottie has 20+ years in the interior design industry Brian was looking for software to build and continued to hear Scottie's frustrations with current software in the interior design industry 6:02 Gather's current Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) and why Brian & Scottie decided to join TinySeed MRR is $5,600 with 8% growth They were compelled by the three components of TinySeed (funding, mentorship, community) As opposed to mastermind groups, everyone in TinySeed is serious about their business They hadn't considered angel funding -- never felt like the

On today's episode of Startups For The Rest of Us, Rob Walling (@robwalling) talks with David Newell (@davidsnewell), a Senior Advisor at Quiet Light Brokerage, about the dos and dont's of SaaS valuations. The topics we cover 4:12 Running your business as if it were a sellable asset 5:15 Quiet Light deal count and other stats 8:53 SaaS valuations today and how SDE valuations work 17:50 How revenue valuations work 21:19 David Newell shares stories of dos and donts of valuations 29:52 What do the best buyers do? Links from the show ProfitWell ChartMogul Baremetrics Quiet Light Summit Resources for Buying and Selling Online Businesses How can I support the podcast? If you enjoyed this episode, let us know by clicking the link and sharing what you learned. Click here to share your number one takeaway from the episode. If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you'd like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upco

Join us for a Rob Solo Adventure version of Startups for The Rest of Us as Rob Walling talks about the power of optionality.  He explores the importance of having different paths and avoiding backing yourself into a corner and being constrained when making important life decisions. The topics we cover 1:27 The story of Gary Gygax and Tactical Studies Rules (TSR) 6:56 The Entrepreneurmobile 13:00 How to keep your options open 17:33 DotNetInvoice and fake reduction of options Links from the show Tactical Studies Rules Gary Gygax Factoring The Entrepreneurmobile Episode 510 | The Story of Startups.com Episode 496 | The Press Covers Exceptions, Don’t Compare Yourself to Slack or Zoom How can I support the podcast? If you enjoyed this episode, let us know by clicking the link and sharing what you learned. Click here to share your number one takeaway from the episode. If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you'd like for us to c

Show Notes On today's episode, Rob chats with Mike Ritchie about how they got their first paying customer in 30 days of launch, listening to your customers, and doing a massive pricing revamp. SeekWell is looking for a freelance SEO marketer to help grow the top of their funnel. If you have experience in analytics and B2B SaaS marketing, please email Mike at mike@seekwell.io The topics we cover 2:35 How Mike Ritchie and his co-founder, Thabo Fisher of Seekwell discovered the need for their product 5:57 Deciding to not go down the venture capital path 8:08 Seekwell's typical customer profile 10:01 Getting the first paying customer within 30 days 14:26 Rewriting Seekwell's codebase and doubling down on what customer's love. 16:40 Applying for TinySeed 20:03 Raising prices and adjusting Seekwell's value metric 25:53 Examples of creative use cases for Seekwell 29:02 Since Seekwell launched, have there been any low points? Links from the show Seekwell Seekwell on Twi

On today's episode, Rob chats Wil Schroter about the story behind Startups.com, the importance of output vs. hours, being specific about the kind of things you don't want to do in life, choosing venture capital, and much more. The topics we cover 2:43 How soon after first acquisition did Wil Schroter, CEO and founder of Startups.com, want to start the next thing? 5:42 Wil on building an incubator in the early days 8:55 History behind swapalease.com 11:22 On choosing if and when to take on venture funding and the origins for Startups.com 14:19 What is Startups.com and how much revenue does it generate? 19:41 Why Wil manages so many aspects of the business 23:41 The hardest part of building Startups.com 29:58 Wil's thought process on acquiring companies Links from the show Startups.com The Shocking Collapse of Zirtual and Maren Kate’s Next Act (plus How to Hire Well) | Episode 486 Swapalease.com Virtucon Ventures Clarity.FM Launchrock.com Zirtual.com How

Show Notes Today, we have a conversation between Rob and Anthony Eden from DNSimple as they revisit the six stages of SaaS growth starting with pre-launch and pre product-market fit to scaling and company building. Be sure to listen in until the end of the podcast as they talk about what lies beyond company building, the sixth stage of SaaS growth. The topics we cover 5:10 Stage 1 - Prelaunch 10:08 Stage 2: Pre Product-Market Fit 13:40 Stage 3: Product Market Fit 16:38 Stage 4: Escape Velocity 21:08 Stage 5: Scale 33:48 Stage 6: Company Building (and Beyond) 38:13 DNSimple and Acquisition Offers Links from the show MicroConf Remote MicroConf On Air: Connect Founder Spotlight with Anthony Eden Episode 35: When Co-Founders Fall Apart | Zen Founder Episode 499 | The (First) Six Stages of SaaS Growth – Part 1 | Startups for the Rest of Us Episode 499.5 | The (First) Six Stages of SaaS Growth – Part 2 | Startups for the Rest of Us How can I support the podcast?

Show Notes On today's episode, Rob is joined by Asia Orangio as they answer listener questions ranging from how to find the right marketing channel, how to build a brand for your business, as well as how to decide whether to start or join a startup. If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you'd like for us to cover, please submit your question for the next episode. We'd love to hear from you! The questions we cover 3:13 Mike Lollar - How to find the right marketing channel 10:47 Cole Hooey - Feedback on freemium pricing model for an HR app 16:18 Robert Brandl - Should I invest in branding? 26:25 Etan Efrati - Decision framework for choosing whether to start or join a startup Links from the show Asia Orangio | Twitter DemandMaven.io In Demand | Podcast How to Acquire Your First 100 Customers - Asia Matos | MicroConf Talk MicroConf On Air: How to Earn Your First 100 Customers | MicroCon On Air Moz Ahref WebsiteToolTester.com

Show Notes On today's episode, Rob chats with Damian Thompson, co-founder of LeadFuze. He's also the founder of VPSales. They talk about if and when to hire a sales team, the kinds of cold email outreach campaigns that are working well today, the sales stack, and much more. The topics we cover 5:43 Should a bootstrapper hire a Sales Development Rep (SDR)? 9:16 Assuming you understand your market, what kind of cold emails work today? 12:56 The formula to use for B2B cold email 14:37 Risks of bootstrappers hiring sales reps too quickly 17:19 Rule of thumb for hiring sales reps in 2020 21:29 Defining SDR (Sales Development Rep) and BDR (Business Development Rep) 24:47 What's the bare minimum for a sales stack 36:42 The real challenge with outbound sales Links from the show Leadfuze VPSales Five Whys Aircall Hubspot Pipedrive Prospect.io Mailshake Gong Chorus.ai How can I support the podcast? If you enjoyed this episode, let us know by click

On today's episode of Startups For The Rest Of Us, Rob catches up with guest Derrick Reimer as they discuss shutting down a slack competitor while building and preparing to launch a new calendar SaaS. They discuss topics like user research, defining and validating an idea, choosing a big market, viral loops, and more. The topics we cover with Derrick Reimer 2:49 Shutting down a Slack competitor 6:32 Building StaticKit to get something in the market 13:16 Developing the next idea 17:03 Validating the Mighty Cal idea 19:07 Potential dangers of going into a big competitive space 23:38 Choosing the specific customer/s to target for Mighty Cal 25:45 Built-in Viral loops Links from the show @derrickreimer | Twitter The Value vs. Stress of Twitter, Pros and Cons of Remote Work, and Digital Minimalism – A Discussion Show with Derrick Reimer | Episode 482 How Derrick Reimer is Validating His Ambitious Third SaaS Application | Episode 399 The Art of Product with Guests Derrick

Show Notes You've probably heard a lot about the #NoCode movement but may not know what it means, exactly. Today, we have the great pleasure of talking with someone who is knee-deep in the #NoCode movement. Helen Ryles has launched 42 projects over 10+ years and on this episode, she shares with us why she builds so many products, her process for choosing what to work on, and how she determines a good time to sell a #NoCode product. The topics we cover with Helen Ryles 6:11 Ryles on why she chose to launch so many products 9:04 The snowball effect for learning new skills 14:10 Advice for reluctant marketers 16:05 Keeping side-projects small on purpose 18:27 Deciding when to sell a business 21:41 A primer on the #NoCode movement Links from the show Helen Ryles | Twitter Side Project Review - 2020 - @HelenRyles | Google Sheets TinyHello NamesAce FeedbackFridays.com NoCodeo.com NoCodeo.com SideProjectors Borderline.biz Podwords NocodeExchange.com

This week we chat with Tracy Osborn (@tracymakes) as we discuss 15 of the top tools we use to run our businesses. As a followup to a previous, popular tweet, we thought we'd give an update on what tools we continue to use today, as well as share some of the new tools we have started to use. While tools are necessary for founders, it's important to find a good balance between good-enough and perfect when it comes to evaluating which tools to use. As Tracy says in the show, "It's a good lesson for founders because they often want to build something the 'right way' from the start. Many times there are tradeoffs and sometimes you have to use the tool that has constraints so that you can work faster. It might not be perfect, but it gets the job done." Are you using any of the tools we mention in the show or have a tool you think we should use? Let us know in the comments! The top 15 tools we cover 6:04 #1 Calendly vs YouCanBook.me 7:45 #2 Slack: how and why we use it 12:20 #3 How we use Notion for permane

This week Rob answers some great listener questions. We discuss the best way to validate a product idea, how to expand a product with traction internationally, advice on launching a restaurant product during COVID-19, and whether to start an affiliate program. If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you'd like us to cover, please submit your question for the next episode. We'd love to hear from you! The listener questions we cover 1:39 [Arturo Ceballos] What's the best way to validate an idea and pre-launch without an audience? 13:33 [Ger Apeldoorn] When a product has product-market fit and existing customers, how would you grow internationally? 20:31 [Davis] Do you have any experience running an affiliate program. I'm worried about people that sign up for affiliate would be people that would signup anyways? 26:40 [Jacob Warren] Should I launch a startup in the service/hospitality industry during COVID-19? 28:21 [Casey Collins] Following the Stairstep app

In his second appearance on the show (he first appeared on Episode 367), we chat with Benedikt Deicke from Userlist. Along with his co-founder, Jane Portman, they are building an easy to use customer messaging tool catered specifically towards SaaS companies. In this show, we talk about some of the challenges in building a product while working full-time, finding the ideal SaaS pricing model, their underwhelming Product Hunt launch, as well as their recent purchase of the Userlist.com domain name. Jane & Benedikt are also part of Tinyseed batch #2, and we explore Benedikt's experience so far in the program, and the lessons he's learned. What we discuss with Benedikt Deicke 1:37 The story & motivation behind helpfounders.com 4:30 Userlist and slow growth in the early days 5:30 Challenges with building a SaaS while not full-time 7:50 What has helped with recent Userlist growth 9:00 Navigating SaaS pricing 12:30 An underwhelming Product Hunt launch 15:30 Acquiring the userl