Ben Erez’s Post

Interviewed the founder of HighLevel, Shaun Clark! What an honour to have the SaaS CEO with 3 million users pilot the relaunch of my podcast interview series, The Jackson Show 🤣 HighLevel basically bootstrapped their way to 1200 employees, 3 million users, and over $500mil valuation... In this eye-opening session, I drilled Shaun about how the entire monetization works (cause I was really curious... are you not?!!) But more than that, we talked about: 👉⁠ ⁠The 5:30 AM secret that allows him to manage 1200 employees and still be omnipresent (hint: it's not about working 24/7) 👉⁠ ⁠How 2 spectacular failures in 6 months became the springboard for a SaaS giant now serving over 3 million users 👉 ⁠The counterintuitive monetization strategy that's helping agencies stack up clients without spending hours on custom work (and why traditional agency models are "terrible") 👉 ⁠Why hiring for culture fit became crucial as they scaled from 6 to 40+ product managers (and the costly mistake many fast-growing companies make) 👉⁠ ⁠The surprising reason this profitable company took outside investment despite not needing the money 👉 ⁠The unexpected cold call that changed everything and led to serving millions of small businesses (and why most founders would have ignored it) 👉⁠ ⁠His crazy $10 billion vision that aims to put $9 billion in agencies' pockets (and send some software vendors packing) Who wants the early release (when it's ready)? Comment "GHL" below! And who should I "drill" next about how they design their profit & monetization system? (cause I always find so much hidden insights in how others "design" their business & ecosystem) Tag them below!

On the latest solo episode of the Brilliantly Wrong Podcast, host Alex Stonehouse dives into three critical topics shaping the future of startup marketing: 1️⃣ Getting Comfortable Turning Things Off Why scaling back outdated or ineffective strategies is a sign of leadership, not failure, and how to focus on what truly matters for your team and business. 2️⃣ Mastering Experimentation Metrics The importance of tracking and learning from your experiments to foster innovation and make informed decisions as a marketing leader. 3️⃣ The Simplicity Paradox How B2B SaaS startups can balance backend complexity with the simplicity customers crave, and why emphasizing ease of use can drive higher value. 🎧 Listen now: https://lnkd.in/dPB5xkhs #marketingpodcast #b2b #saas #productmarketing #marketingstrategy #marketingplanning #salesstrategy #marketingstrategy #startup

Skills and behaviors that can be learned. You’re talking about product marketing, the skill, not product marketers, the people. Anyone can do it if they're willing to put in the work and investment, get the expertise, do the work.

Here's a powerful wrap 🎁 for Founders, featuring the co-creator of Jobs to be Done, one of Product Management's greatest of all time, the bestselling author of one of the world's top-selling books on OKRs, and more: 🎙️ Episode #1: Testing Ideas with David Bland, co-author of the legendary book "Testing Business Ideas" with Alexander Osterwalder Learn how to test your ideas fast, how to map your assumptions, the main risks you should address before building anything, how to sequence experiments, and more: https://lnkd.in/dpWmFBK9 🎙️ Episode #9: Unpacking Jobs to be Done (JTBD), with Bob Moesta - co-creator of the JTBD framework together with Clayton Christensen. Learn how to see the world through JTBD theory, approach competitive analysis and market sizing differently, how to structure user interviews, and more: https://lnkd.in/dtqbJEjg 🎙️ Episode #19: How to nail your Positioning, with the one and only April Dunford - author of the iconic bestselling book "Obviously Awesome". Learn how to find your ICP, why companies fail with positioning, how to translate your positioning into a killing Sales pitch, April's step-by-step process to nail product positioning, and more: https://lnkd.in/dX9ZcnCw 🎙️ Episode #5: How to escape the project trap with the 🐐 Marty Cagan, bestselling author of the books "Inspired", "Empowered", and "Transformed". Learn how successful tech companies have adopted the product operating model, and the principles they tend to subscribe to. 🎙️ Episode #22: Know when to use OKRs, and when not to - with Christina Wodtke, bestselling author of one of the most sold books on OKRs "Radical Focus". Learn the foundations and misconceptions about OKRs, outcome-based key results vs. output-based results, exploratory OKRs, prerequisites for successfully using OKR, and more: https://lnkd.in/dvi-7n9C 🎙️ Episode #27: Characteristics of great founding teams, thinking big, Pitching, and more - with Cecilie Skjong, Investment Manager at Skyfall Ventures Learn about the importance of drive and resilience when testing ideas and building products, how to craft a great pitch, the power of Founder-led Sales, and more: https://lnkd.in/dEvYc-p4 Happy holidays! You can subscribe for free here, so you don't miss out on future episodes: https://lnkd.in/d3gMfX-y

BOLD advice from an proven founder (3 things you won't read in a textbook) 1. "If your team isn't experimenting and making mistakes, you're not going to scale." The risk-taking and rapid testing that is fundamental in the early stages of growth only happens when testing, trialing and innovating is encouraged (and made safe) by the leaders. Without that culture you will not grow to the next phase. 2. "It's often the company's fault, not the individual's, when hires don't work out." When it goes wrong or when they're good, but they're not elite. Whose fault is that? It's the companies, it's the hiring manager, it's the leaders. It's not the person that they've hired. Most failure is avoidable with the right hiring, support and tools. 3. "Hiring a Head of Sales too early can be a mistake." Startups should focus on building a sales development team first rather than hiring a Head of Sales, because typically most 1-3M ARR businesses have a pipeline problem. They're still making mistakes around their ICP and what they need more than anything is pipeline. A typical Head of Sales doesn't love the job of researching and prospecting like great SDRs do. Do you resonate with these nuggets from tech CEO Adam Baker from this week's WMYT podcast? Adam speaks from the experience of building 3x b2b software businesses from scratch, exiting two, and scaling revenues to 20M ARR. I'm signing up for that class! 👀 Like to gain more real world wisdom? 📌 Episode is launching at 12:30 UT on 1st August. 🎧 Listen where you get your podcasts. Tick Talent - Proudly sponsoring the What Makes You Tick: Tech Leaders Career Stories podcast 🎙

I suppose simple frameworks work best. I often need some support for spontaneous speaking or pitching - I picked up one from the Think Fast, Talk Smart podcast. here it is: 🌟 "What if you could...? So that... For example..." Here’s how it breaks down: What if you could...: Start with a bold possibility that your product, service, or idea opens up. This isn't just about what it does, but the opportunity it creates. So that...: Link that possibility to a tangible outcome. How does this opportunity improve lives or businesses? Be specific about the benefits. For example...: Ground your pitch in a real-world application. A specific example or a short story that illustrates your point makes it relatable and concrete. There’s even more to that...: Hint at additional benefits or features to pique interest and add depth to your pitch. This keeps the conversation going and opens up paths for further discussion. 🔍 Example Pitch: "What if you could automate your customer support processes, so that you can dedicate 90% of your time to developing user-centered solutions? For example, imagine your team redirecting the hours usually spent on routine queries to enhancing product design and customer experience. There's even more to that; our automation tools not only respond to common inquiries but also gather insights from each interaction, helping you continuously improve and innovate based on real user feedback." 💡 This framework not only helps clarify and streamline your pitch but also ensures it's impactful. Have you tried this approach yet? Would love to hear how it’s transformed your pitches! #Pitching #Marketing #Startups #BusinessStrategy #Innovation #ThinkFastTalkSmart

Recently, Anna Beckmann (a former Headspace colleague and CS revenue maestro) and I were talking about the lessons we both learned in the early days of Headspace’s move from a D2C-only to B2B company. BIG LESSON LEARNED? That leap is really difficult BIGGER LESSON? Early traction (aka - early customers) doesn't = product market fit or guaranteed growth. This podcast (https://lnkd.in/gZhTr7ND) with Mark Roberge (a legend and worth following if you don’t already) and Dini M., the former CRO of Lattice who helped them grow to 🎈 BILLIONS 🎈 is an insightful example of how that transition is done really well. Dini does a fantastic job of modeling what an early sales leader should do in seat. SOME TAKEAWAYS: 🔎 FOCUS. Dini helped Lattice move on from the classic startup quagmire of having too many potential distribution motions (PLG, and sales-led) and ICPs (SMB and enterprise). 🌱 GROW FROM WHERE YOU ARE. They knew the classic PLG wasn’t going to work long-term but they didn’t drop it and go straight to Enterprise. They protected the base protecting their competitive positioning while they crawled up market to find their ICP. 🤸♀️ FLEXIBILITY. Dini came from a traditional ROI-based sales approach but she learned quickly that did not work with the HR persona (I’ll 2nd that). So, she listened, checked her ego, and changed their approach. 🎯 IF IT MATTERS TO THE BUYER, IT SHOULD MATTER TO YOU. Last and probably most importantly, she spent time with their Buyer persona to understand the Buyer’s problem journey. She literally went and shadowed HR folks for a day, not to talk about Lattice but understand what matters to them, because that in business my friends is what matters. Hope you enjoy!

🚀 Your Values Drive Business Value: New Zero Limits Episode 🌟 Are you ready to unlock the potential of your business by embracing and operationalizing an abundance mindset? Today Steve and I challenge the traditional “business as a battle” or “zero sum game” scarcity mindset, and explore the transformative value accelerator of an abundance mindset and its profound impact on company culture and innovation. 🎙️ Listen Now and Subscribe so you never miss an episode… 🔑Key Takeaways🔑 💎Cultivate an Abundance Mindset: Learn how to create a ripple effect of success that resonates across your company to unleash potential and drive tangible growth. 💡Institutionalize Innovation: Talk is cheap; what counts is incorporating innovation into the very fabric of your company. Learn how to encourage risk-taking, embrace failures as lessons, and set up structures that support an innovative culture. 🌟Embrace Values in Hiring and Communication: Learn why aligning your values across all operations including recruitment, hiring, marketing and sales drives value growth. Learn the 10-step communication protocols to empower your team, encourage transparency, effective collaboration, and team ownership. 📈The Ripple Effect on Marketing and Sales: Why what lies within echoes outwards, and the importance of activated culture on your bottom line, plus a sneak preview into EP9 next week. This episode provides practical tips on how to actionably integrate them into the very fabric of your business to enhance your value proposition to customers and investors alike. 🎙️ Like what you’re hearing? Please rate and review on Apple and Spotify, share your takeaways and questions by joining the conversation on Podopolo, X, Instagram or TikTok. #valuedrivers #abundancemindset #innovation #collaboration #recruitment #operationalizing Listen here now or on Apple, Spotify, Podopolo and wherever else podcasts are found! Apple: https://lnkd.in/gA9qW95x Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gUy72kZD Podopolo: https://lnkd.in/gDfTC3xf Grab your headphones—and 🚀 Reach for Zero Limits! Every step of your business journey requires introspection, adaptability, and a clear-cut objective. Subscribe to Zero Limits Business Growth Secrets so you never miss these invaluable insights that could pivot your trajectory towards unprecedented growth. Here's to pushing beyond your limits, Steve, Melinda and The Zero Limits Team P.S. We'd love to hear your thoughts on the episode! 🎙️Please rate and review on Apple and Spotify, share your takeaways and questions by joining the conversation on Podopolo, X, Instagram or TikTok.

Decision-making is only half the battle 🥊. Here's what a CTO taught me about effective communication 💡. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of recording a podcast with a startup CTO, and he dropped a piece of wisdom that stuck with me. He believes in hiring 'drivers' 🚗 – people who take initiative, make decisions, and own their work (and its results!) 🚀 This mindset is how he builds teams focused on achieving business goals. But we delved deeper... Decision-making is crucial, but it's worthless without effective communication 🗣️. That's the phase often overlooked. Too often, decisions are made and communicated hastily, without proper feedback loops from teams, clients, and partners. The question is: Are we taking the time to ensure everyone's aligned in pursuit of shared goals? 🎯 This conversation was an absolute goldmine 💥, and it's just one of the reasons I'm loving the insights I gain from this podcasting journey🎙️. What about you? Do you build teams of 'drivers'? Share your thoughts in the comments! 👇 #decisionmaking #communication #teambuilding

For folks thinking about becoming a Product Manager, I want to share three resources that would be useful in the early days of PM: a book, a newsletter/podcast, and a network. - Marty Cagan's Inspired: A solid 101 crash course product discovery and delivery. Covers the wide toolbox for product management. - Lenny's Newsletter & Podcast: A newsletter and weekly podcast on more senior-level product and marketing topics. For early-stage startup products and marketing it's great. - Merit: Free 1:1 video mentorship platform for tech workers. Book a few sessions with folks who have the job you want and ask them for a day in the life, it will give you a richer perspective on the job. What were the resources you used to get into product management?