Shows
Product Market FitEp63: Apple VisionPro & the Future of Consumer Social — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | AI | technology | growth)
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🕒 Timestamps:
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Guest Contact Info:
https://www.friendlyapps.co
https://twitter.com/michaelsayman
https://www.linkedin.com/in/sayman
Sponsor:
This podcast is brought to you by grwth.co. Grwth offers fractional CMOs, paired with best-in-class digital marketing execution to support early-stage startup success. With a focus on seed and series A companies, Grwth has helped a number of SaaS, digital health, and e-commerce startups build their go-to-market function and scale up.
To learn more and book a free consultation, go to grwth.co...2024-03-2256 min
Product Market FitEp62: AI for Lawyers; Acquired for $650M — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | AI | technology | growth)Jake Heller, the founder and CEO of Casetext, brings his expertise in AI and law to the forefront in this episode of 'Product Market Fit'. With an eye for innovation and a deep understanding of the legal landscape, Jake has led Casetext to become a pioneering force in the industry. His insights into the intersection of technology and law offer invaluable perspectives for entrepreneurs, professionals, and anyone interested in the future of AI-driven solutions.
Join host Mosheh Poltorak in an insightful conversation with Jake Heller, the visionary behind Casetext, an AI startup that's reshaping the legal domain. F...2024-02-2849 min
Product Market FitEp61: FinTech, B2B2C, and leading through turbulent times — Market Fit podcast (startups | technology | growth)Join host Mosheh Poltorak in a conversation with Laurel Taylor, the visionary CEO behind Candidly, a fintech platform revolutionizing student debt solutions.
In this episode, Taylor shares Candidly's journey from its inception to serving thousands of employers, offering invaluable insights into startup growth, technology integration, and the importance of company culture.
Key Takeaways:
Innovative Solutions: Candidly's fintech platform offers practical solutions to the student debt crisis, saving borrowers substantial loan repayments.
Importance of Company Culture: Taylor emphasizes the crucial role of creating an effective company culture in fostering growth and success.
AI Integration: Learn ho...2024-02-0843 min
Product Market FitEp60: Is D2C dead? Plus offshoring, leadership, and more — Market Fit podcast (startups | technology | growth)In this insightful episode of "Product Market Fit," we step into the dynamic world of e-commerce and scaling businesses with our esteemed guest, Yoni Kozminski.
Yoni, an entrepreneurial powerhouse, shares his expertise in building and growing successful e-commerce brands in today's competitive landscape. His journey from digital marketing to e-commerce has led him to focus on offshoring, process improvement, and venture capital investment in the e-commerce sector.
With his unique approach to business growth and scaling, Yoni offers invaluable insights for anyone looking to thrive in the digital marketplace.
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🕒 Timestamps:
(01:32) - Introduction to Yoni Kozminski
...2024-02-0247 min
Product Market FitPreview: Midstage Startup Momentum podcast — w/ Mosheh Poltorak: Product Market Fit As a Journey, Not a DestinationI recently had the pleasure of being interviewed by Roland Sibelink on the Midstage Startup Momentum podcast.
I was glad to turn the mic around and answer questions such as:
What does product-market fit actually look like for startups?
Why product-market-fit is an ongoing journey rather than a destination.
How product-market fit is different for B2B and B2C.
Why product marketing is a critical part of early startup success.
The importance of founders understanding their organic growth.
The ideal timeline and situation for...2024-01-2822 min
Product Market FitEP59: AI Regulation, European Tech, and PLG — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | growth)Welcome to another exciting episode of Product Market Fit, where we delve into the fascinating world of AI and workflow automation with our esteemed guests, Pascal, Jakob, and Raphael. In this episode, we explore the cutting-edge advancements in AI technology and how it's transforming the way we work and interact with digital tools.
Chapters:
(01:36) Highs/lows (and buffalos) for 2023
(07:20) Is the AI hype cycle slowing down?
(11:23) Will OpenAI live up to its valuation?
(12:50) e/acc vs. deceleration debate and the risks of regulation
(18:55) What does the death...2024-01-241h 00
Midstage Startup Momentum#086 Grwth.co’s Founder Mosheh Poltorak: Product Market Fit As a Journey, Not a DestinationThere is a point for all startups when it becomes necessary to ask for outside help. Sometimes that means hiring a fractional CMO to help get the go-to-market machine working. For startups in that position, there are consultants like Grwth.co available to help. Led by experienced founder Mosheh Poltorak, Grwth.co can provide fractional CMO services for startups while also having a plan to hand the reins to an in-house hire when the startup is ready.
Mosheh recently joined startup coach Roland Siebelink on the Midstage Startup Momentum Podcast to discuss Grwth.co and share insight f...2024-01-1322 min
Product Market FitEp58: e/acc, the Gundo, and turning deserts into forests — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | technology | growth)Happy New Year!
We're kicking off 2024 with a bang! Augustus Doricko is the youngest founder I've interviewed and perhaps the most ambitious. His company, Rainmaker, is looking to use cloud-seeding technology to revitalize the American West and, in his words, extend the Great Plains into Nevada and Arizona.
We talked about e/acc and why hard tech is the answer to the growing sense of doomism. And what's happening in "the Gundo" (El Segundo, CA).
I love his optimism and ambition and enjoyed our wide-ranging conversation.
Guest Contact...2024-01-0345 min
Product Market FitEp 57: Annual Review and Planning for 2024 — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | leadership)I have a very topical episode for you today all about annual review and planning. My guest today is Jason Shen, three-time founder, turned executive coach and resilience expert.
Jason has a wonderful video on YouTube that walks you through a reflection and planning exercise perfect for this time of year. Jason and I discuss the framework and provide relevant context for founders and entrepreneurs.
Jason and I also talk about resilience, pivots, and zombie startups, topics from his recently published book, The Path to Pivot.
I couldn’t think of a more fit...2023-12-2839 min
Product Market FitReplay: "Obviously Awesome," Product Positioning w/ April Dunford — Product Market Fit podcastJoin me as I speak with April Dunford, the world's foremost expert in positioning for technology companies and the author of Obviously Awesome.
Together, we explore the fascinating world of positioning and answer key questions like: What's the relationship between positioning, messaging, and go-to-market strategies? How does it tie into product market fit? And why should you prioritize it before lead generation? We also discuss signals of weak positioning, successful repositioning stories, and tips for early-stage founders.
Tune in to learn about the three styles of positioning and way more.
...2023-12-1358 min
Product Market FitEp 56: Raised $900M after 1st startup sold for $100M (aka Problem Hunting) — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)My guest today is Brian Long, Co-founder of Attentive, the mobile messaging platform that has raised almost $900M and powers the vast majority of ecommerce companies. Brian previously co-founded TapCommerce which sold to Twitter for $100M; and he recently published, Problem Hunting: The Tech Startup Textbook.
I absolutely loved my conversation with Brian as he shared his perspective on product market fit, how they found it at Attentive, and lessons learned across both companies. We dive into trends in ecommerce and mobile commerce; and get really tactical about early-stage B2B sales and growth tactics.
!! A...2023-12-0650 min
Product Market FitEp55 (solo): How to Choose a Co-Founder — Product Market Fit podcast (#startups #tech #AI #growth)I’ve got a special solo episode for you today with a big announcement as well: I’m thrilled to tell you that I’m going all-in on building a startup in the real estate sector.
In this episode, I'll share the questions I used when interviewing my co-founder and I'll cover the top 5 practical items you must be aligned on with your co-founder(s).
(00:00) Introduction
(01:11) The importance of choosing the right co-founder(s)
(02:23) How to assess a potential co-founder
(06:23) The top 5 practical consider...2023-11-2908 min
Product Market FitEp54 (Special): Israel — from startup nation to scale-up nation; w/ Hillel Fuld — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | growth | content)In this special episode of the Product Market Fit Podcast, host Moshe Poltorak interviews Hillel Fuld, a leading voice in the Israeli tech community. Despite the current situation in Israel, Hillel shares his insights on the tech ecosystem, content marketing for startups, and common mistakes made by early-stage founders. The conversation highlights the importance of content as the foundation for effective marketing and provides valuable resources to support relief efforts in Israel. Don't miss this episode filled with expert advice and actionable tips for startup growth.
Hillel also unravels the intricacies of data-driven growth s...2023-11-2218 min
Product Market FitEp 53: Ecommerce and the Future of AI; w/ Ben Parr, Journalist, Investor, & Co-Founder of Octane AI — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)What happens when artificial intelligence becomes the new normal for e-commerce? We reveal how AI is shaping the future of the retail world with Ben Parr, journalist, investor, and co-founder of Octane AI. Ben lends his expertise in AI and e-commerce, and shares his insights from the recent TED AI event in San Francisco, providing a fascinating look into the developments in the field. We touch upon Octane AI's revolutionary tools that are taking e-commerce to the next level, and Ben even gives us some tips and tricks on securing PR for startups.
This episode isn't just...2023-11-1546 min
Product Market FitEp52: How this startup became the #2 fastest growing company in America — Product Market Fit podcast (#startups #growth)Ready to revolutionize the way you view business and entrepreneurship? Join us in our enlightening chat with Howard Bornstein, the president of CharterUp. Howard's transition from investor to operator provides a distinctive vantage point and he generously shares his unique insights with us. He dissects his three-question framework for evaluating startups, explains his rule of 30, and unveils how CharterUp, a transportation logistics platform, differentiates itself from household names like Uber and Lyft.
A highlight of our conversation with Howard is his emphasis on product-market fit. He explains what it looks like from an investor's perspective, and how...2023-11-0854 min
Product Market FitEp51: Premature Scaling and Other Mistakes Startup Founders Often Make — Product Market Fit podcast (#startups #growth)Join us as we navigate the thrilling journey of startup growth with Roland Siebelink, founder and CEO of Midstage Institute. In this insightful conversation, Roland and I dissect the stages of a tech startup and how founders can successfully transition from startup to scale-up. With the wealth of knowledge Roland accumulated from being instrumental in the growth of three unicorn companies, he generously shares invaluable insights on the importance of offering value to customers, fostering an abundance mindset, and building a robust team to reach your product-market-fit goal.
We further explore the challenges and rewards of transitioning...2023-11-0145 min
Product Market FitEp50 🥳: Raised $53M to Bring Tech to Residential Construction; w/ Jenny He, Founder & CEO @ Ergeon — Product Market Fit podcast (#startups #tech #AI #growth)Welcome to episode 50 of the Product Market Fit podcast, a show about startups, technology, and growth, for early-stage founders and operators.
My guest today is Jenny He, Co-Founder and CEO of Ergeon. The company raised a whopping $53M to finance its mission of transforming the residential construction industry. Fun fact, her co-founder Odysseas Tsatalos co-founded UpWork and Intacct.
This interview lines up very well with last week’s episode with the founder of smart-AC, as we dive further into how to build and sell software for industries that are slow to adopt new technologies. Jenny also...2023-10-2546 min
Product Market FitEp49: IoT, Pivots, and Enterprise Partnerships; w/ Josh Teekell, Founder & CEO, SmartAC — Product Market Fit podcast (#startups #tech #AI #growth)My guest today is Josh Teekell, Founder and CEO of SmartAC. The company recently raised a $22M Series B and is set on transforming the HVAC and plumbing industries.
I particularly enjoyed learning how Josh figured out their B2B2C business model, which is super relevant to any founder building a complex product where the end-user isn’t necessarily the one who is going to pay for it.
We also talked about hardware, pivots, IoT or the Internet of things and advisory boards. And stick around to the end for Josh’s hot-take on remote...2023-10-1845 min
Product Market FitSome thoughts from the heart 💔Praying for peace for all. ✌️
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Dear friends, it’s Mosheh here. In light of the devastation taking place in Israel, I couldn’t bring myself to release an episode as usual. Instead, please allow me to share a few thoughts from the heart.
We’ll be back next week with more fantastic interviews and hopefully better news.
**
I’m generally not very political and apologize in advance for going “out of my lane here,” but some things transcend business and force a change in the day-to-day. I’ll probably get...2023-10-1103 min
Product Market FitEp48: Living Life Uninterrupted; w/ Heath Wilson, Co-Founder, Aro — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)Chapters:
(00:00) Intro
(02:27) What is Aro and who is it for?
(05:30) Defining product-market fit and early-stage signals
(06:54) Choosing the hybrid path: navigating between hardware and software
(11:05) Navigating pricing strategies: balancing hardware and subscription models
(12:55) Growth channels for Aro: Leveraging Social Media and Podcasts
(14:32) Product development optimized for behavior change
(16:39) User Behavior Insights: the power of unplugging
(23:11) Exploring future growth strategies: expanding product Lines and strategic partnerships
(26:22) The challenges of international hardware expansion
(28:55) Aro's diverse funding strategies
(30:53...2023-10-0447 min
Product Market FitEp47: Lego-like Housing & Regulatory Capture; w/ Ritwik Pavan, Founder & CEO, Krava — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)
Chapters:
(00:00) Intro
(02:27) Krava's story
(03:11) The technology behind the K1
(05:39) Krava vision
(06:07) Market entry strategy (from a business perspective)
(08:30) Prefab housing, is it better?
(10:36) Needed automation for the prefab
(13:35) Customization vs Modular design
(14:54) The green economy
(17:16) Product market fit
(18:37) Market validation
(19:13) Founding story
(20:29) ADUs regulations
(23:19) Assessing product market fit
(25:03) Customer acquisition strategy
(29:03) Challenges ADUs face
(30:09) Competition & Collaboration
(31:21) Second time as a founder2023-09-2742 min
Product Market FitEp46: AI Teammates, Meetings, and Competition; w/ Artem Koren, Co-Founder & CPO, Sembly.ai — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)
AI is set to completely transform how we work. This company’s AI meeting assistant is at the forefront of this revolution.
Chapters:
(00:00) Intro
(00:00) Meetings suck because they're attended by humans and not AI.
(02:05) What is Sembly AI and who do they serve?
(04:41) The road to AI synergy: interconnected specialized models
(09:54) Decoding Sembly AI processes for meetings efficiency
(14:36) Navigating the competitive landscape and unique value proposition
(24:16) Sembly AI story: scaling up, achievements, and ambitions
(28:56) Lessons learned from selling to e...2023-09-2046 min
Product Market FitEp45: Dev Tools, Magic, and Founder Burnout; w/ Gregory Koberger, Founder & CEO, Readme.io — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)This interview covers a wide-ranging set of topics including:
marketing dev tools to engineers,
building delight & whimsy into your product,
how to develop the right company culture,
the extremely important but often overlooked topic of founder burnout and mental health,
and even escape rooms and sitcoms.
Chapters:
(01:59) What is ReadmMe?
(05:17) Finding inspiration to start ReadMe
(07:35) Key takeaways from selling developer tools
(19:09) Navigating priorities: balancing indirect benefits
(22:28) Fundraising from a new perspective
(27:39) Building the right culture: choosing the right people
(29:13) Pitfalls...2023-09-1353 min
Product Market FitEp44: Is Hyperlogistics the Future of Autonomous Delivery? w/ Canon Reeves, Co-Founder & CTO @ Pipedream Labs — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)This episode features an interview with Canon Reeves, CTO and co-founder of Pipedream Labs, a company revolutionizing hyperlogistics. They are building underground delivery robots that can send and receive items in single-digit minutes to a person's home.
Pipedream Labs is focused on the last mile of delivery, where traditional delivery methods struggle. Their system is ideal for small-scale deliveries and can eventually be integrated into new build communities or apartment complexes. The company has announced partnerships with Wendy's and the city of Atlanta to pilot their revolutionary technology.
We discuss the future of autonomous delivery...2023-09-0637 min
Product Market FitEP43: AI Mashup (Part 2): Navigating Marketing, Analytics, and Ethical Frontiers — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)
Part II is here and I've got to admit, putting together this episodes has been a real journey down the rabbit hole of AI insights.
In this episode, we explore the transformative impact of AI on marketing and technology. We discuss AI's influence on product and content marketing, its role in reshaping SEO strategies, and how Chat-GPT is changing search dynamics. We delve into the evolving digital advertising landscape, augmented analytics, and the ethical considerations surrounding AI. Tune in Now!
Chapters:
(00:00) Intro
(02:23) How will AI impact content marketing (D...2023-08-3042 min
Product Market FitEP42: AI Mashup (Part I): Navigating Competition, Investments, and the Impact of ChatGPT — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)Are you as excited about generative AI as I am?
My guests and I have covered generative AI extensively on the podcast. The applications of this technology are far-reaching and the speed of innovation is dizzying.
I've put together a special 2-part mashup of previous episodes on the topic. In this first installment, we dive deep into the foundational concepts, from exploring the power of transformers to unveiling the game-changing potential of ChatGPT. We also explore the competitive landscape of AI, giving you insights into the race among tech giants and startups, from the perspective o...2023-08-2342 min
Product Market FitEp41: Robots to Revolutionize the Construction Industry w/ Tessa Lau, Founder & CEO @ Dusty Robotics — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)Construction is a $10 trillion industry globally and this startup is poised to disrupt it.
For the first time on the Product Market Fit podcast, I delve into the world of hardware with Tessa Lau, Founder & CEO of Dusty Robotics.
In this episode, we discuss Tessa’s transition from a software and AI background to the world of robotics. Join us as we explore how robotics are catalyzing a revolution in the construction industry.
While hardware poses unique challenges, as compared to software startups, many of the lessons th...2023-08-1652 min
Product Market FitEp40: How Turo, AirBnB and uShip manage risk; w/ Matheus Riolfi, Founder & CEO @ Tint — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)Join me as I sit down with Matheus Riolfi, the CEO and co-founder of Tint, and previous director of global expansion at Turo (the car-sharing marketplace). Together, we discuss how Tint is revolutionizing the Insurtech industry and reshaping the landscape of embedded insurance. From its inception to its current standing, we uncover the strategies, insights, and key takeaways from Tint’s exceptional growth journey. We also explore data-driven risk-based insurance and the transformative potential of Insurtech in today's dynamic business landscape.
Chapters
(00:00) Intro
(01:00) What is Tint and who do they se...2023-08-0946 min
Product Market FitEp39: The Role of AI in Creative Strategy; w/ Asaf Yanai, Founder & CEO @ Alison.ai — Product Market Fit podcast (startups | tech | AI | growth)In this episode, host Mosheh interviews Asaf Yanai fonuder & CEO of Allison.ai, a creative analysis technology company that uses AI models to extract insights and provide recommendations for visual creatives such as videos, images, banners, and more. They aim to break the mold of viewing videos as a black box and instead help companies understand the components that make a video successful. Their AI engine is able to extract 25,000 elements from a video to analyze and predict what works for advertisers.
Additional topics include:
- The future of marketing teams in the age of...2023-08-0254 min
Product Market FitEp38: Be Analytics-Led not Data-Driven; w/ Mark Stouse Founder & CEO @ Proof Analytics — Product Market Fit podcast
There is a huge difference between being data-driven, which honestly is like saying, I make all my decisions based on the past, and being analytics led, which is, saying, I make my decision based on how things are actually operating now in a cause-and-effect relationship.
In this episode, I sit down with Mark Stouse Founder & CEO of Proof Analytics. Mark shares his experience on the importance of data-driven decision-making in B2B marketing, his thoughts on the limitations of AI, and the importance of human intuition in data analysis.
Chapters:
(00:00) Intro
2023-07-2650 min
Product Market FitEp37: Venture Studios & Conscious Leadership; w/ Jesse Pujji Founder & CEO @ GatewayX — Product Market Fit podcastPMF Podcast listeners' survey: https://rebrand.ly/zo6kxgy
If you aren’t familiar with Jesse Pujji, he co-founded Ampush, building it into one of the largest facebook marketing agencies. That company was acquired last year by Tinuity. Jesse also started GatewayX, a venture studio based in St Louis which has spun up a number of companies including GrowthAssistant, Unbloat and Kahani.
Jesse shares his experience across those companies and we dive into the business model of a venture studio. We also talk about Meta’s recently released Threads app, conscious leadership and the importance of coach...2023-07-1945 min
Product Market FitEp36: Fintech, Crypto & Marketplaces; w/ Chris Dean, Founder & CEO @ Treasury Prime — Product Market Fit podcastPMF Podcast listeners' survey: https://rebrand.ly/zo6kxgy
The topic of this episode is Fintech and how Treasury Prime is changing the banking system in the US.
Selling 3 startups before Chris shares practical advice for founders on building good relationships with partners and investors, working lifestyle, scaling their business, and whether money buys happiness.
I absolutely love this conversation with Chris and hope you enjoy it too.
Topics covered include:
Fintech businesses.
Crypto and Blockchain.
The recent banking crisis.
Growth strategies for marketplaces fundraising.
2023-07-1249 min
Product Market FitEp35: How Generative AI Changes Everything; w/ Tom Taulli, Author & Founder — Product Market Fit podcastThe topic of this episode is Tom’s most recent book, generative ai, how Chat GPT and Other AI Tools will Revolutionize Business.
Tom shares practical advice for how the average company should be approaching AI adoption. And finally, he provides some of his lessons learned as a repeat founder having exited multiple companies in the past.
I'm very bullish on the future of AI and really enjoy this conversation.
Topics covered include:
The search words between Google and Bing.
The future of foundational LLMs or large language models.
Some fascinating innovations be...2023-07-0547 min
Product Market FitEp34: Education as a Superpower; w/ Ted Blosser co-founder & CEO @ WorkRamp — Product Market Fit podcastIn the immortal words of Andy Grove, “Training is one of the highest leverage activities a manager can perform.”
WorkRamp is the learning cloud for leading B2B companies such as Box, Lattice, Loom, and Intercom. The company has raised almost $70M across multiple rounds from top VCs and angels including Jack Altman, Elad Gil, Initialized Capital, Y-Combinator, and Susa Ventures to name a few.
I absolutely loved this conversation with WorkRamp’s founder and CEO, Ted Blosser, and have no doubt that you will walk away with a ton of actionable ideas.
Topics co...2023-06-2851 min
Product Market FitEp33: Disrupting the $1.5 Trillion Insurance Industry; w/ Hadi Radwan co-founder @ Asteya — Product Market Fit podcastHere I speak with Hadi Radwan, Serial Entrepreneur and co-founder at Asteya, a startup on a mission to make income insurance accessible to all.
We begin by diving deep into the insurance industry, what the US market looks like, what income insurance is, and how it differs from life insurance.
We then discussed the B2B2C and D2C insurance business models and their pros and cons.
Hadi also reflects on his +10 years of experience that enabled him to start Asteya along with his co-founder and how they manage the business.
2023-06-2155 min
Product Market FitEp32: Maximize Performance with AI-Powered Ads; w/ Hikari Senju, Founder & CEO @ Omneky — Product Market FitHere I speak with Hikari Senju, Founder & CEO of Omneky, a startup that enables you to generate multiple versions of ads using AI to show the perfect ad for each customer.
Today's episode focuses on performance marketing and the impact AI has on personalization, privacy, and SEO.
Hikari also reflects on his experiences attending Harvard & MIT, where he became fascinated with AI models, and how this inspired him to build Omneky.
We wrapped up our conversation with a look at the evolving roles powered...2023-06-1447 min
Product Market FitEp31: Turn Product Data into Revenue; w/ Alexa Grabell, Co-Founder & CEO Pocus — Product Market Fit podcastIn this episode, I sit down with Alexa Grabell, the Co-founder and CEO of Pocus, a startup that helps PLG companies to turn product data into revenue.
This episode is a deep-dive into all things product-led sales with practical lessons for any founder considering layering in this motion to their growth strategy.
Alexa also shares her journey of starting Pocus, how she and her co-founder spent 5 months on customer discovery and how that helped them in raising Seed and Series A rounds with a total of USD $23M in funding.
Ch...2023-06-0748 min
Product Market FitEp30: Product, Platforms, & Poking the Bear; w/ April Underwood, former CPO @ Slack, and co-founder #ANGELS — Product Market Fit podcastJoin me as I speak with April Underwood, an early-stage investor with an impressive operating history at Slack, Google, and Twitter.
Together, we delve into the distinctive product development styles of these tech giants, unlocking valuable insights and lessons from visionary leaders like Stewart Butterfield and Dick Costolo.
Tune in to gain insights into emerging trends in product-led growth and sales, and discover investment strategies tailored for startups. Learn how to spot exceptional founders and navigate the ever-evolving technology landscape. Don't miss out on this insightful episode packed with practical advice and industry knowledge. Tune i...2023-05-3156 min
Product Market FitEp29: Turning Content Teams into Unstoppable Creators; w/ Danielle Dafni, Founder and CEO at Peech — Product Market Fit podcastDanielle Dafni is the founder & CEO of Peech, a generative AI video editing platforms that turns content teams into unstoppable creators.
Being a video editor inspired Danielle to start her venture. In today’s discussion, Danielle shares her journey to finding product market fit, product-led growth vs. product-led sales, content marketing in the age of generative AI, and her thoughts on competition.
Tune in for a dynamic and informative episode packed with actionable advice and valuable knowledge.
Chapters:
(00:00) Intro
(02:06) What is Peech?
(04:08) Peech's ICP
(06:45) Company st...2023-05-2458 min
Product Market FitEp28: The Coding VC; w/ Leo Polovets, General Partner @ Susa Ventures — Product Market Fit podcastIn this episode, we delve into the world of early-stage venture investment with Leo Polovets, a General Partner at Susa Ventures and former software engineer. Join us as we explore successful investment strategies in the rapidly evolving AI landscape and the transformative impact of AI on startups and society. Discover the essential entrepreneurial skills for different startup stages and how to avoid early-stage traps. Gain valuable insights from LinkedIn's early days working with Reid Hoffman and learn about the art of storytelling in investment presentations.
Tune in now for a dynamic and informative episode packed with actionable...2023-05-1748 min
Product Market FitEp27 (Special): What you need to know about GA4; w/ Danny Gavin (Optidge, Odeo Academy, and The Digital Marketing Mentor Podcast) — Product Market Fit podcastGA4, Google's latest analytics tool, is shaking up the industry. In this Sunday Special, I speak with Danny Gavin, founder of Optidge and the host of The Digital Marketing Mentor Podcast, to discuss everything you need to know about GA4.
We will discuss its replacement of Universal Analytics, the key differences between the two, and what it means for your data. We'll also share top-level recommendations for the transitioning phase and highlight common mistakes to watch out for in GA4 installation. Don't miss out on this informative and engaging episode!
Chapters:
...2023-05-1449 min
Product Market FitEp26: Nailing Product Positioning; w/ April Dunford, Consultant / Author of "Obviously Awesome" — Product Market Fit podcast
Join me as I speak with April Dunford, the world's foremost expert in positioning for technology companies and the author of Obviously Awesome.
Together, we explore the fascinating world of positioning and answer key questions like: What's the relationship between positioning, messaging, and go-to-market strategies? How does it tie into product market fit? And why should you prioritize it before lead generation? We also discuss signals of weak positioning, successful repositioning stories, and tips for early-stage founders. Tune in to learn about the three styles of positioning and way more.
...2023-05-1059 min
Product Market FitEp25: Winning With Offshore Talent; w/ Adriane Schwager, Founder & CEO GrowthAssistant — Product Market Fit podcastJoin me and Adriane Schwager, Founder and CEO at GrowthAssistant, in this exciting episode as we delve into the revolutionary benefits of offshore talent augmentation.
We discuss how entrepreneurs can leverage the power of delegation to scale their business and stretch their runway, and share key takeaways for leveraging offshore talent for maximum success.
Chapters:
(00:00) Intro
(02:29) What is GrowthAssistant?
(03:18) Choosing which offshore roles to support
(06:43) Adriane's background
(08:59) GrowthAssistant success stories
(12:30) The ideal customer profile for GrowthAssistant
(14:20) Building your b...2023-05-0341 min
Product Market FitEp24: The Tactical Guide to Product Launches; w/ Mary Sheehan (Adobe) — Product Market Fit podcastIn this episode, I speak with Mary Sheehan, author of the Product Launches book, host of the Women in Product Marketing podcast, and a renowned product marketing leader with an impressive track record at Adobe, Google, NextRoll, and others.
We take a deep dive into the world of product marketing, exploring the role of product marketing managers, the product launch process, and essential metrics for measuring success.
We also discuss common pitfalls and mistakes that startups encounter during the launch process and cost-effective ways to launch products.
Don't miss out on this informative...2023-04-2541 min
Product Market FitPreview: The Digital Marketing Mentor podcast (with Danny Gavin)This is a preview of an interview I did with my good friend Danny Gavin, on his podcast, the Digital Marketing Mentor. Danny and I know each other for almost 25 years; he's a really close friend and an absolutely gifted marketer. He runs an agency called Optidge and is a professor at the University of Houston, as well as runs an online digital marketing school called ODEO Academy.
It was nice to be on the other side of the mic. I talked to Danny about many interesting topics, including:
Mentorship
My journey into marketing
My current...2023-04-2316 min
The Digital Marketing Mentor014: Founding Startups, Fractional CMOs, and Facing ChatGPT with Mosheh PoltorakSend us a textMosheh has done marketing for many startup businesses over the years and has learned a lot from those experiences. He now runs a fractional CMO firm (don’t worry, we define what that means) and is pushing the use of ChatGPT and AI as powerful tools in the marketing world. In this episode, he also tells us his key tactic for a successful mentor relationship. Episode Highlights:Mosheh has worked for many startup companies over the years, from a virtual currency startup to a software and medical device co...2023-04-1955 min
Product Market FitEp23: Scaling to 1M Users Amid Fierce Competition; w/Yaniv Makover, Founder & CEO, Anyword — Product Market Fit podcastIn this episode, we sit with Yaniv Makover, the co-founder and CEO of Anyword, a leading generative AI content platform for performance marketers. We discuss the impact of generative AI on content creation, people's perspectives on AI-generated content, and whether AI poses a threat to jobs in the creative industry.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
02:20 What's Anyword and who do you serve?
03:48 The story behind the idea of Anyword
07:07 KIWI for Content optimization
08:20 Go-To-Market strategy
09:43 Why do customers love the product?
13:02 Differentiation and...2023-04-1944 min
Product Market FitEp22 Mashup: What is product market fit? How to gather feedback from customers? And launching on Product Hunt — Product Market Fit podcastSince I'm off celebrating Passover, instead of releasing a new interview today, I present to you a mashup of key insights from past episodes on several recurring topics, including:
Product market fit — what it is, how it's measured, and how you know if you have it.
Talking to customers and collecting user feedback.
How launching on Product Hunt has gone for several of the startups featured so far on the podcast.
If you're new to the pod, hopefully, this is a good entry point and encourages you to go back and listen to these fantastic interviews. But ev...2023-04-1244 min
Product Market FitEp21: From Idea to Prototype in Minutes; w/ Tony Beltramelli, founder & CEO Uizard — Product Market Fit podcastIn this episode, I sit down with Tony Beltramelli, the Co-founder and CEO of Uizard, a startup that is transforming the way websites and apps are designed using artificial intelligence. Tony shares his journey of starting Uizard, raising funds, and growing the company. We also dive deep into the state of AI technology and GPT-4.
It was a really fun conversation and relevant to anyone interested in AI and early-stage startups. Enjoy!
Timestamps:
(00:00) Intro
(03:54) The story behind the idea of Uizard
(06:08) The strategy behind Uizard's launches
(07:12) Thoughts on dealing with the rising c...2023-04-0542 min
Product Market FitEp20: Building With Intention; w/ Adam Nash, Founder & CEO Daffy (prev. Dropbox, LinkedIn, Wealthfront, etc.) — Product Market FitAdam Nash is a legend in the Silicon Valley product world and has held almost every possible role in the startup ecosystem, including: VP of Product and Growth at Dropbox and LinkedIn, CEO of Wealthfront, board member at Acorns and Shift, lecturer at Stanford, and investor in over 120 startups such as Figma, Gusto, and Opendoor, to name a few.
Most recently, Adam co-founded Daffy, a modern giving platform.
In this interview, we cover:
Adam’s journey from executive to founder and why he started Daffy;
The importance of being intentional with your...2023-03-2955 min
Product Market FitEp19 (Special): PR for Startups; w/ Lazer Cohen, Founder & CEO Concrete Media — Product Market FitLazer Cohen is the founder & CEO of Concrete Media, one of the top PR firms in Israel focused on tech startups.
In this special episode we get tactical on the mechanics of PR for startups. Topics covered include:
- Launches, funding announcements, and press releases
- Crafting a story
- How to approach pitching; and more
In our discussion, Lazer makes a compelling case for investing in PR at the early stages, and shares practical tips for founders or anyone responsible for early-stage startup growth.
Timestamps:2023-03-2636 min
Product Market FitEp18: Mastering Product Launches; w/ Derek Osgood, Founder & CEO, Ignition — Product Market FitDerek Osgood is the founder & CEO of Ignition and a seasoned Product Marketer. Ignition is “the platform for go-to-market” — a collaborative hub to plan, execute, and measure launches.
In today’s discussion Derek shares the keys to a successful launch; Ignition’s experience launching on Product Hunt and AppSumo; why Apple is so successful with their launches and much more; so tune in and get ready to master your next product launch.
As always, I love to hear from you so please leave a rating or review wherever you love to listen and/or contact me directly...2023-03-2244 min
Product Market FitEP17: How to gather customer feedback; w/ Pietro Saccomani, CEO, FeedBear — Product Market FitPietro Saccomani is the CEO of FeedBear (and founder of MixBloom and MobiLoud). FeedBear is a tool to collect and prioritize feedback from customers and internal teams.
In our discussion, Pietro explains how to collect customer feedback and the ways in which companies often get it wrong. He also shares his insights on how to prioritize customer feedback and how to turn it into actionable insights for your team to act on.
Pietro talks about his experience purchasing the company on MicroAcquire, and his journey as a bootstrapped founder. Whether you're a founder, product manager, o...2023-03-1547 min
Product Market FitEP16: Predictive Marketing; w/ Ömer Artun, founder & CEO, AgilOne (acq. by Acquia) — Product Market FitAs our special guest this week, we have Ömer Artun, who founded AgileOne in 2006 and held the CEO role until he sold it to Acquia in 2019. Now he's pursuing his dream of running his own restaurant. Omer explains how to leverage customer data to anticipate their needs, preferences, and behaviors. During our conversation, he also gave us some insight into his experience building, scaling, and selling AgileOne. He emphasizes the importance of having “grit as startups don't fail because it's a bad idea or Startups only fail if the founder gives up”.
Timestamps:
(00:00) Intro
(03:20) Appeal...2023-03-0855 min
Product Market FitEp15: Enterprise deal-making, culture, and leadership; w/ Rasty Turek, founder & CEO Pex — Product Market Fit podcastAs Founder and CEO of Pex, the next VISA for Digital Rights, Rasty understands the business of UGC attribution.
During our conversation, we covered the early days of Pex, its current status, and how a combination of stubbornness, stupidity, and luck kept Pex growing. In this presentation, Rasty discusses how to sell your product or service independently as a startup founder and the significance of understanding the difference between a start-up company, a small business, and an enterprise business.
We talked about the 100-year-old copyright laws, the new AI generative content, and the ongoing lawsuits...2023-03-011h 05
Product Market FitEP14: AI and the Metaverse; w/ Alan Smithson, futurist, co-founder of MetaVRse — Product Market Fit podcastI sit down with futurist, inventor and founder, Alan Smithson, to explore the fascinating world of AI and the metaverse.
We talked about the metaverse and its associated technologies and how AI is changing the landscape for virtual reality and augmented reality. Alan shares his vision for the future across many vectors, and he provides practical guidance for founders and brands thinking about how to incorporate the metaverse into their strategies.
From blockchain to replicators in every home, Alan shares his insights on the next frontiers of technological advancement and their impact on the way w...2023-02-2248 min
Product Market FitEp13: Ethical Machines; w/ Reid Blackman, PhD, Author and Consultant — Product Market Fit podcastAdvancements in artificial intelligence have taken the world by storm recently, however, these new technologies also introduce ethical dilemmas for individuals, companies, and society as a whole.
In this episode I speak with Reid Blackman, Ph.D., a leading expert on AI ethics. Reid is the author of Ethical Machines, and the founder of Virtue Consultants. Prior to starting Virtue he was a professor of philosophy for over 10 years.
We dive into important and timely questions about the ethical implications of AI, including: privacy, bias, explainability, plagiarism, job-displacement and more. Reid also offers a practical fr...2023-02-1552 min
Product Market FitEP12: Finding your true fans; w/ Jakob Knutzen, founder & CEO Butter — Product Market Fit podcastAre you struggling to find the right target market for your startup? Don't make the mistake of trying to appeal to everyone, it's a recipe for disaster!
I had the privilege of interviewing Jakob Knutzen, founder and CEO of Butter. Jakob is a management consultant turned agency director, turned startup founder. He has a very thoughtful and intentional way of approaching product market fit for his startup.
Jakob shares his insights on Butter's targeted approach to finding their ICP (ideal customer profile), how to segment your market, how to use data to make informed decisions...2023-02-0847 min
Product Market FitEP11: Build. Sell. Repeat. w/ Sean Byrnes, founder & CEO Flurry (acquired by Yahoo), Outlier.ai (acquired by SoundCommerce) — Product Market Fit podcastSean founded Flurry in 2005 — building it into the most widely adopted analytics tool for mobile apps. He later went on to sell the company to Yahoo.
In 2015 he started Outlier.ai, a pioneering company in the field of Augmented Analytics. That company was acquired in 2022.
Sean has invested in hundreds of startups and has advised hundreds more. He has an immense wealth of knowledge and 1st-hand experience building, scaling, and exiting tech startups and he was kind enough to share those insights with us on this show.
Timestamps:
(0:00) Introduction
(1:50) Sean’s background
(4:05) Mistake...2023-02-0156 min
Product Market FitEP10: Google's AI backlash; w/ Alexander De Ridder, co-founder & CTO, INK — Product Market Fit podcastThe backlash is coming! 😱😱
In this episode we talk about the risks of AI content generation and what it means to do SEO in 2023. Alexander shares how he grew his company’s website traffic from 0 to 1 million monthly visitors in under 6 months; and lessons learned building and growing INK.
If you’re involved in content strategy or SEO in any way, or if you're curious about the effects of artificial intelligence on search, you’re definitely going to want to listen.
Timestamps:
(0:00) Introduction
(1:52) What is INK and how's it different from other generative A...2023-01-251h 12
Product Market FitEP9: Pivoting to success; w/ Sara Mauskopf, founder & CEO, Winnie — Product Market Fit podcastIf you follow Tech Twitter then you probably already know who Sara is. Before starting Winnie, Sara was Director of product at Postmates. She was an early employee at Twitter, and also worked at YouTube and Google.
In today’s conversation, Sara shares how her company initially struggled to find product market fit and her journey pivoting the product to success. We also dive into the nature of multi-sided marketplaces; launching new product lines, and how to choose a co-founder.
Sara has got really insightful and down-to-earth advice that I think you’ll find valuable.
2023-01-1848 min
Product Market FitBonus: A primer on Artificial Intelligence (AI); w/ Pascal Weinberger, founder & CEO, Bardeen.ai — Product Market Fit podcastWith the release of Chat-GPT, everybody is suddenly talking about AI.
How does Chat-GPT work? Is it truly a game-changer? What will happen to Google and the field of SEO?
In the previous episode (#7), I talked to Pascal Weinberger, CEO of Bardeen.ai, and we talked about Bardeen’s journey and the growth lessons he learned along the way. If you haven’t listened to that episode yet, you should definitely check it out.
When I was chatting with Pascal I took the opportunity to pick his brain about artificial intelligence and he was gen...2023-01-1536 min
Product Market FitEP7: Getting rid of copy/paste; w/ Pascal Weinberger, founder & CEO, Bardeen.ai — Product Market Fit podcastPascal Weinberger is the founder and CEO of Bardeen. I don’t throw the word genius around lightly but Pascal definitely ranks up there. I really enjoyed this thoughtful and honest interview and I think you will too!
In this episode, Pascal shares Bardeen’s growth story and we cover:
How they built a beta product and iterated with user feedback
His experience launching on Product Hunt
How to activate new users
And whether startups should be multi-platform or go all-in on a single one to start
We also touched on topics covered in previous epis...2023-01-1153 min
Product Market FitEp6: Product Market Fit 101; w/ Rajesh Nerlikar, co-founder Prodify — Product Market Fit podcastRajesh has worked with 50+ product teams and wrote the book Build What Matters — he knows a thing or two about building great products. In this episode, Rajesh covers:
- Why pricing is such a critical component of product-market fit (and signals you may be missing the mark on PMF)
- The Kano model for product development
- How to gain insights from speaking with customers and prospects
- What is vision-led product management?
- Hiring product managers and product leaders, and org designs for growth; and more.
I loved this interview and I...2023-01-0447 min
Product Market FitEp5: Making Healthcare Efficient & Humane; w/ Sara Well, founder & CEO, Dropstat — Product Market Fit podcastSara Well founded Dropstat with a mission to make healthcare more efficient and humane. Her passion and commitment to that mission are truly inspirational.
In this conversation, Sara discusses her journey from nursing to tech founder, how she came up with the idea for Dropstat, lessons learned while piloting with enterprise customers, and more.
Timestamps:(0:00) Introduction
(1:43) What is Dropstat?
(3:53) Coming up with the idea for Dropstat and how did COVID affect the business
(8:33) Selling to enterprise and the difficulty of behavior change
(14:01) Lessons learned on how to...2022-12-2846 min
Product Market FitEp4: The Power of Customer Storytelling; w/ Sam Shepler, founder & CEO, TestimonialHero — Product Market Fit podcastI’m excited to share my interview with Sam Shepler, founder and CEO of TestimonialHero. I got to work with Sam last year to support his company’s growth efforts and was impressed with Sam’s laser focus on the customer and his methodical way of thinking and executing. Because his business is a tech-enabled service but nearly all his customers are SaaS I thought he would have unique insights on the differences between the two. We also talk about the importance of video, customer storytelling, and finding the right acquisition channels for your business. I really enjoyed this conver...2022-12-2131 min
Product Market FitEp3: From Zero to $150 Million in under 18 Months! Omair Tariq, founder & CEO, Cart.com — Product Market Fit podcastCart.com’s early story has been nothing short of remarkable! The company was founded in the fall of 2020. And hit $150 million in annualized ARR with an 18 months. To date, the company has raised 400 million in debt and equity financing; and completed nearly a dozen acquisitions. They currently have a roster of over 6,000 brands on the platform. And at last count, a global team of 1400 employees.
In this conversation, Omair shares his experience navigating the Cart.com ship through this period of hypergrowth, leading with vision, and growing by acquisitions. We talk about the state of e-commerce an...2022-12-1441 min
Product Market FitEp2: What Is Product Led SEO? w/ Eli Schwartz (Coinbase, Zendesk, Gusto, etc.) — Product Market Fit PodcastEli Schwartz literally wrote the book on "Product-led SEO," a practice he has applied at leading B2B and B2C companies such as Coinbase, Zendesk, Gusto, MixPanel, Quora and many more.
In this conversation he shares practical advice on implementing this strategy along with examples from Zillow, Figma, Canva and others. We also talk about hiring for SEO in a startup and where SEO should live inside the org, as well as AI tools in SEO.
Sponsor:
This podcast is brought to you by grwth.co. Grwth offers fractional CMOs, paired with bes...2022-12-0729 min
Product Market FitEP1: Building product virality; w/ Raphael Allstadt, Founder & CEO, tl;dv — Product Market Fit PodcastWelcome to Product Market Fit, a podcast all about startup growth.
To kick things off we have Raphael Allstadt, founder and CEO of tl;dv, a tool for recording and transcribing meetings. In this episode, Rapha shares his experience launching on Product Hunt, building viral loops into a product to accelerate growth, experimenting with SaaS pricing and more.
Sponsor:
This podcast is brought to you by grwth.co. Grwth offers fractional CMOs, paired with best-in-class digital marketing execution to support early-stage startup success. With a focus on seed and series A companies, Grwth has...2022-11-3041 minProduct Market FitPodcast teaserComing soon!
Make sure to subscribe so you don't miss an episode. 2022-11-0600 min
State of Customer StorytellingMosheh Poltorak - Simplifying the Customer Marketing FunnelIn this episode of the State of Customer Storytelling podcast, the Founder of grwth.co, Mosheh Poltorak, joins to talk about what is needed when starting a customer marketing program.2022-06-2431 min