Startups For the Rest of Us

Latest Episodes:

Episode 716 | Positioning Against Incumbents, Changing Your H1, How Tech Stack Affects Valuation, and More Listener Questions Jun 04, 2024

Show notes

In episode 716, join Rob Walling for another solo adventure where he answers listener questions. He shares how he would position against incumbents, when to change an H1, and how choosing a tech stack affects your business valuation. Rob also weighs whether to skip a “Step 1” or “Step 2” business and start directly with a standalone SaaS in the Stair Step Method of Bootstrapping.

Episode Sponsor:

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You can ramp up an entire product team fast, in your timezone, and at rates 75% cheaper than a comparable US-based team. And with DevSquad, you pay month to month with no long-term contracts.

Get the committed, responsive development team that your business deserves.

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Topics we cover:

4:07 – How directly should I position my product against incumbents?
8:25 – Making and testing changes to your H1
12:22 – Identifying and qualifying niches based on traffic
18:07 – Should I skip a “Step 1” or “Step 2” business to start a SaaS?
20:16 – How a tech stack affects valuations
27:29 – Differentiating between B2B and B2C

Links from the Show:

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 to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify | Google

Episode 715 | Best Uses of the Internet, a Book about Selling Your Company, and a Circus Show May 28, 2024

Show notes

In episode 715, Rob Walling is joined by Dr. Sherry Walling to discuss a variety of topics. They chat about two recent and meaningful interactions made possible by the Internet, the motivations behind organizing and performing a circus show, and they chat about upcoming launches on the horizon – new books and courses for SaaS founders.

Episode Sponsor:

We have been partnering with Lemon.io for several years, and they’ve proven to be a great choice when it comes to hiring for a highly skilled developer to work on your project.

Here are five reasons why you should consider working with Lemon.io.

The time from your request to getting a candidate is just 48 hours.
Developers have previously worked with tech giants such as Apple, Google, Netflix, Airbnb, Intel, and LEGO.
They only provide senior devs, with an average of 7 years' experience.
Their talent pool covers more than 300 dev languages & frameworks.
Your hire comes with a zero-risk, replacement guarantee.

Customers of Lemon.io typically stick around for at least a year, proving they know how to gain your trust by delivering consistent results.

Quit wasting time searching for a solid developer at a great price. Get in touch with Lemon.io.

As a bonus for our podcast listeners, you’ll get a 15% discount on your first four weeks of working with a developer at lemon.io/startups. That’s lemon.io/startups

Topics we cover:

4:00 – Examples of thoughtful, nuanced Internet interactions
8:12 – Impacting people you otherwise couldn’t online
15:12 – Dr. Sherry Walling’s circus show motivation
21:53 – The psychology of business exits
25:27 – Commonalities across founders considering exits
31:11 – Speaking to the whole lifecycle of a SaaS business

Links from the Show:

Apply for MicroConf Masterminds before June 12th 2024
Sherry Walling (@sherrywalling) | X
Sherry Walling (@dr.sherrywalling) | Instagram
TinySeed
Discretion Capital
Before The Exit by Dan Andrews
Episode 532 | The Art of Selling Your Business with John Warrillow
The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Keeping Your Sh*t Together by Sherry Walling, PhD and Rob Walling
Enter your email at Robwalling.com
Sign up for the Zen Founder newsletter

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 to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify | Google

Episode 714 | TRM not TAM, Acquiring a Competitor, and Finding a Developer Co-founder (A Rob Solo Adventure) May 21, 2024

Show notes

In episode 714, join Rob Walling for another solo adventure where he answers listener questions. He talks about what to expect when acquiring a competitor and how he might integrate their business. Rob also covers navigating HIPAA compliance as a bootstrapper, how to find a developer co-founder, and he explores the concept of Total Reachable Market (TRM).

Episode Sponsor:

Is your outsourced development team dropping the ball?

DevSquad provides an entire development team packed with top talent from Latin America.

You can ramp up an entire product team fast, in your timezone, and at rates 75% cheaper than a comparable US-based team. And with DevSquad, you pay month to month with no long-term contracts.

Get the committed, responsive development team that your business deserves.

Visit DevSquad.com/startups and get 10% off the first three months of your engagement.

Topics we cover:

3:45 – How to navigate acquiring a competitor
6:34 – How to transition the newly acquired customers into your product
9:58 – HIPAA compliance for a bootstrapped MVP
13:07 – Total Addressable Market (TAM) vs. Total Reachable Market (TRM)
19:01 – How do I find a developer co-founder?
28:03 – Can I find data on SaaS app store spending?

Links from the Show:

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 to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify | Google

Episode 713 | Our Top 5 Takeaways from MicroConf US 2024 (with Arvid Kahl) May 14, 2024

Show notes

In episode 713, Rob Walling is joined by Arvid Kahl to share their experience from MicroConf US 2024 in Atlanta. They each discuss their top 5 moments, ranging from Dr. Sherry Walling’s talk on motivation to Ben Chestnut’s chat with Rob onstage. They agree that there’s nothing quite like being in the room with everyone and soaking in all the interactions outside of the official talks.

If you missed the event and had some MicroConf FOMO, make sure to sign up for our email list to be notified when the tickets for our next event go on sale.!

Click here to watch Rob’s Fireside Chat with Ben Chestnut!

Episode Sponsor:

We have been partnering with Lemon.io for several years, and they’ve proven to be a great choice when it comes to hiring for a highly skilled developer to work on your project.

Here are five reasons why you should consider working with Lemon.io.

The time from your request to getting a candidate is just 48 hours.
Developers have previously worked with tech giants such as Apple, Google, Netflix, Airbnb, Intel, and LEGO.
They only provide senior devs, with an average of 7 years' experience.
Their talent pool covers more than 300 dev languages & frameworks.
Your hire comes with a zero-risk, replacement guarantee.

Customers of Lemon.io typically stick around for at least a year, proving they know how to gain your trust by delivering consistent results.

Quit wasting time searching for a solid developer at a great price. Get in touch with Lemon.io.

As a bonus for our podcast listeners, you’ll get a 15% discount on your first four weeks of working with a developer at lemon.io/startups. That’s lemon.io/startups

Topics we cover:

1:05 – Key takeaways from MicroConf 2024
3:45 – Dr. Sherry Walling’s talk on motivation
7:02 – Stephen Steer’s sales scripts talk
9:25 – Live valuation of a business by Quiet Light Brokerage
12:23 – Micro excursions that allow founders to connect with one another
14:09 – The hallway track outside of the venue
15:53 – ”Nothing beats being in a room”
19:22 – Lack of hierarchy among founders
22:38 – Lianna Patch’s copywriting swipe file
23:50 – Ben Chestnut is just like one of us
29:50 – Don’t get stuck with MicroConf FOMO

Links from the Show:

MicroConf Europe | Dubrovnik - October 6 - 8, 2024
MicroConf US 2025 Waiting List
Arvid Kahl (@arvidkahl) | X
The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Keeping Your Sh*t Together by Sherry Walling, PhD and Rob Walling
Sherry Walling (@sherrywalling) | X
Superpower Storytelling: A Tactical Guide to Telling the Stories You Need to Lead, Sell and Inspire by Stephen Steers
Quiet Light
Lianna Patch (@punchlinecopy) | X
Watch Ben and Rob’s Fireside Chat at MicroConf Atlanta
The Bootstrapped Founder
Zero to Sold by Arvid Kahl
Podscan

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 to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify | Google

Episode 712 | Revisiting Burnout + Updates on My Progress in 2024 (A Rob Solo Adventure) May 07, 2024

Show notes

In episode 712, join Rob Walling for another solo adventure. He starts by revisiting past predictions and provides an update on how he successfully staved off full burnout. Rob then gives updates on this podcast, the progress of TinySeed and MicroConf, and teases two new books that he’s working on.

Episode Sponsor:

Is your outsourced development team dropping the ball?

DevSquad provides an entire development team packed with top talent from Latin America.

You can ramp up an entire product team fast, in your timezone, and at rates 75% cheaper than a comparable US-based team. And with DevSquad, you pay month to month with no long-term contracts.

Get the committed, responsive development team that your business deserves.

Visit DevSquad.com/startups and get 10% off the first three months of your engagement.

Topics we cover:

1:21 – Revisiting past predictions and reporting back on burnout
2:45 – Revisiting predictions for SaaS bootstrappers in 2024
5:29 – Twitter changes hands in 2024?
6:29 – Reducing travel to quell burnout on the horizon
11:45 – State of Startups For the Rest of Us
14:40 – TinySeed invested in over 170+ companies
17:54 – First annual TinyFest
18:42 – TinySeed Tales Season 5
19:50 – The SaaS Playbook and my next two books

Links from the Show:

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 to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify | Google

Episode 711 | Finding Early Customers, Horizontal vs. Vertical, Prosumer SaaS, and More Listener Questions (with Ruben Gamez) Apr 30, 2024

Show notes

In episode 711, join Rob Walling and Ruben Gamez as they answer listener questions. They chat about finding early customers without an audience, how to approach horizontal vs. vertical product spinoffs, and some considerations for No Code development. They also discuss the challenges of serving prosumer SaaS, the importance of understanding customer segments for pricing strategies, and the dual funnel approach for catering to different customer tiers.

Episode Sponsor:

We have been partnering with Lemon.io for several years, and they’ve proven to be a great choice when it comes to hiring for a highly skilled developer to work on your project.

Here are five reasons why you should consider working with Lemon.io.

The time from your request to getting a candidate is just 48 hours.
Developers have previously worked with tech giants such as Apple, Google, Netflix, Airbnb, Intel, and LEGO.
They only provide senior devs, with an average of 7 years' experience.
Their talent pool covers more than 300 dev languages & frameworks.
Your hire comes with a zero-risk, replacement guarantee.

Customers of Lemon.io typically stick around for at least a year, proving they know how to gain your trust by delivering consistent results.

Quit wasting time searching for a solid developer at a great price. Get in touch with Lemon.io.

As a bonus for our podcast listeners, you’ll get a 15% discount on your first four weeks of working with a developer at lemon.io/startups. That’s lemon.io/startups

Topics we cover:

2:00 – Strategies for finding your first users when you don’t have an audience
10:42 – Positioning yourself to compete well against others
12:25 – Jumping into SEO before having a product
18:42 – Exporting No Code projects
24:15 – Choosing between a vertical or horizontal product spinoff
33:55 – Building a B2P, “business to prosumer” product
42:53 – How to make lower pricing tiers work outside of B2B

Links from the Show:

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 to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify | Google

Episode 710 | Is Coding Dead?, The "Right" Tech Stack, Funded Competition, and More Listener Questions Apr 23, 2024

Show notes

In episode 710, join Rob Walling for another solo adventure where he answers listener questions. He answers whether you need a burning passion to be successful in entrepreneurship, and how that relates to developing a product alongside a day job. Rob also discusses competing against VC-backed companies, learning to code in the age of AI, and how much risk lies in IP theft when building your SaaS.

Episode Sponsor:

Is your outsourced development team dropping the ball?

DevSquad provides an entire development team packed with top talent from Latin America.

You can ramp up an entire product team fast, in your timezone, and at rates 75% cheaper than a comparable US-based team. And with DevSquad, you pay month to month with no long-term contracts.

Get the committed, responsive development team that your business deserves.

Visit DevSquad.com/startups and get 10% off the first three months of your engagement.

Topics we cover:

3:00 – Reacting to needing a burning desire for entrepreneurship
5:20 – Maintaining a day job to enable space for entrepreneurial pursuits
8:52 – Balancing build speed vs. scalability with your tech stack
10:30 – The April Fools Episode
12:55 – Competing against VC-backed companies in a “hot” space
18:34 – Is learning to code dead?
27:33 – Risk in SaaS of IP theft

Links from the Show:

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 to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify | Google

Episode 709 | The 7 Greatest Investments of My Life Apr 16, 2024

Show notes

In episode 709, join Rob Walling for a solo adventure as he shares his story of growing his personal wealth over the past few decades. Selling companies was the major driver of wealth, but he also explores the role of cryptocurrency, running profitable companies, and angel investing. Rob emphasizes the power of entrepreneurship in achieving financial freedom, while acknowledging there are ways to do so while keeping risk relatively low.

Episode Sponsor:

We have been partnering with Lemon.io for several years, and they’ve proven to be a great choice when it comes to hiring for a highly skilled developer to work on your project.

Here are five reasons why you should consider working with Lemon.io.

The time from your request to getting a candidate is just 48 hours.
Developers have previously worked with tech giants such as Apple, Google, Netflix, Airbnb, Intel, and LEGO.
They only provide senior devs, with an average of 7 years' experience.
Their talent pool covers more than 300 dev languages & frameworks.
Your hire comes with a zero-risk, replacement guarantee.

Customers of Lemon.io typically stick around for at least a year, proving they know how to gain your trust by delivering consistent results.

Quit wasting time searching for a solid developer at a great price. Get in touch with Lemon.io.

As a bonus for our podcast listeners, you’ll get a 15% discount on your first four weeks of working with a developer at lemon.io/startups. That’s lemon.io/startups

Topics we cover:

2:50 – A lesson on how to build wealth
4:31 – Entrepreneurship was our biggest tool
6:37 – Building, acquiring, then selling companies
10:45 – Building slowly while staying risk-averse
13:27 – Investing in riskier assets like cryptocurrency
19:39 – Running profitable companies
20:56 – Angel investing, and WP Engine
23:44 – Traditional, salaried employment
24:53 – Typical investments: stocks, bonds, REITs
27:36 – Real estate investing

Links from the Show:

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 to hear from you! Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify | Google

Episode 708 | Outsourcing Marketing, Competitive Markets, and More Listener Questions (with Derrick Reimer) Apr 09, 2024

Show notes

In episode 708, Rob Walling and Derrick Reimer tackle listener questions about building development skills vs. business skills and strategies for entering competitive markets. They also chat about building on top of AI services, addressing the risks of platform dependency and the importance of managing infrastructure costs.

Episode Sponsor:

Is your outsourced development team dropping the ball?

DevSquad provides an entire development team packed with top talent from Latin America.

You can ramp up an entire product team fast, in your timezone, and at rates 75% cheaper than a comparable US-based team. And with DevSquad, you pay month to month with no long-term contracts.

Get the committed, responsive development team that your business deserves.

Visit DevSquad.com/startups and get 10% off the first three months of your engagement.

Topics we cover:

02:38 - Should you build technical skills or business skills?
11:41- Entering a competitive market
21:14 - Building a valuable analytics dashboard tool
29:29 - When should a solo founder hire for marketing roles?
36:29 - The rare skillset of a full-stack marketer
38:18 - Implications of building on openAI and scaling infrastructure costs

Episode 707 | Once.com, Open Source to FT Income, and More (Hot Take Tuesday) Apr 02, 2024

Show notes

In episode 707, Rob Walling, alongside guests Tracy Osborn and Einar Vollset, give their hot takes on some recent news in the world of SaaS. They discuss Once.com’s launch, liquidation preference nuances in startup buyouts, with moving from open source to full time income and more.

Episode Sponsor:

Find your perfect developer or a team at Lemon.io/startups

The competition for incredible engineers and developers has never been more fierce.Lemon.io helps you cut through the noise and find great talent through its network of engineers in Europe and Latin America.

They take care of the vetting, interviewing, and testing of candidates to make sure that you are working with someone who can hit the ground running.

When it comes to hiring, the time it takes to write your job description, list the position, review resumes, schedule interviews, and make an offer can take weeks, if not months. With Lemon.io, you can cut down on a lot of that time by tapping into their wide network of developers who can get started in as early as a week.

And for subscribers of Startups For the Rest of Us, you can get 15% off your first 4 week contract with a developer by visiting lemon.io/startups

Topics we cover:

2:18 - Once.com and the Implications of One-Time Software Sales
10:39 - Liquidation Preferences in Startup Acquisitions
21:59 - Turning an open source project into a business
24:32 - Book recommendations
30:30 - Is building a startup actually hard?
32:46 - Startups vs. lifestyle businesses

Links from the Show:

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 to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify | Google

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