SaaStr

DECEMBER 28, 2023

What’s your most recent disclosed investment? What’s your sweet spot for investing — check size, stage, type of deal? We invest across all stages — seed, early venture, and growth, with a primary focus on early-stage. Some of our most notable investments include Figma, Datadog, Discord, Adyen and Roblox.

Technical Review 190

Technical Review Software Review Payment Solutions Venture Capital 190

SaaStr

FEBRUARY 20, 2023

Underrated: How great of a business model SaaS is. To sustain those $1B+ valuations, startups often sold $100m+ of shares, as well as very large stakes in their startups. A $20m ARR startup growing 40% getting acquired for $100m ARR isn’t an amazing outcome for VCs. Ignored a bit was the cap table.

Acquisition 279

Acquisition Startup Business Model SaaS 279

Scytale

OCTOBER 17, 2023

Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the compliance requirements of running a startup? As a startup founder trying to build your new organization from the ground up there’s a ton to do – And one of the commitments is keeping security compliance regulations and industry standards, and all that red tape! You’re not alone.

compliance 59

compliance Systems Review Development Team Review Startup 59

SaaStr

JUNE 17, 2023

In the ever-evolving landscape of SaaS, Venture Capital, Bootstrapping, and Valuations – understanding market trends and investment patterns is critical. We’ll explain Jason’s take on the recent market fluctuations, highlighting major deals that shaped investment patterns and their effects on valuation trends.

Venture Capital 197

Venture Capital Scale Technical Review Software Review 197

Baremetrics

JUNE 30, 2021

You've got a brilliant SaaS startup idea. A startup financial model is the plan. In fact, we've already built the SaaS financial model you'll actually use — but let's take a look at why this is especially important for SaaS startups. 1 What Is a Startup Financial Model? Try Baremetrics free.

Startup 98

Startup Sales Hiring Sales Recruiting Deferred Revenue 98

Casey Accidental

NOVEMBER 13, 2019

Kevin Kwok and I have often discussed that growth at some scale equals an adjacent business model: Ecommerce businesses trend towards marketplaces over time e.g. Amazon. Why Changing Business Models and Customers is Always Hard. . #1 Saturated Growth in SAAS. Old habits die hard.

Marketplace as a Service 106

Marketplace as a Service Business Model Business Underperforming Technical Team 106

Casey Accidental

OCTOBER 20, 2020

This is part two of a three part series on sequencing business models. Casey’s first sequencing business models essay talked about the transition from a SaaS business model to marketplace business model, and why it’s so difficult. This essay is a collaboration with Gilad Horev. We’re not sure.

Marketplace as a Service 52

Marketplace as a Service Business Model SaaS Payments Payments 52

Baremetrics

MAY 7, 2019

There are more funding and financing options for startups today than there ever have been before. There’s also been an explosion in debate and transparency about navigating startup funding and financing. Let’s explore the funding and financing options for your startup. Funding Your Startup. Buffer spent $3.3

Finance 111

Finance Startup SaaS Payments Payment Methods 111

Casey Accidental

OCTOBER 27, 2020

This is part three of a three part series on sequencing business models. In part two of our Sequencing Business Models series , we talked about the different types of marketplaces and what needs to be built to be effective in each of them. For extension platforms, this can become a significant part of the business model.

Payments 55

Payments Business Model Payment Solutions SaaS Payments 55

Baremetrics

SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

The pre-revenue startup phase has a host of stresses that hopefully disappear as the company begins to earn revenue. Depending on the amount invested, it is possible that all members of the team are working full time jobs to support themselves and then doing that again to push their startup onto the market.

Payments 110

Payments Revenue Startup Development Team Review 110

Teamgate

DECEMBER 11, 2019

Startups – they can either be exciting, scary or both at the same time. The prospect of getting into business to address a pain point someone or another has experienced can be daunting, and thinking about how to keep your startup sustainable and profitable can also be a little frightening. Look Even Bigger with Premium .

Growth Hacking 89

Growth Hacking Startup Investment Innovation 89

SaaStr

NOVEMBER 25, 2022

They demonstrate spectacular growth and expansion while revolutionizing and disrupting industries with new business models. Atlassian’s Chief Revenue Officer, Cameron Deatsch, walks us through how Atlassian grew over the course of 20 years and became one of the most successful startups today. How Atlassian does business .

Scale 206

Scale Scaling Marketplace as a Service Entrepreneurship 206

Tom Tunguz

APRIL 29, 2017

Instead of raising an equity round, a startup might choose to borrow money - and for good reason. The chart above shows the amount of venture debt borrowed by US technology startups. Late stage startups. The venture debt trend spans industry and business model. Venture debt is an attractive financial product.

Startup 108

Startup Finance Business Model Trends 108

Stax

APRIL 18, 2024

While they operate under different business models, ISVs and SaaS share similarities in software development, cross-platform accessibility, and industry reach. ISVs and SaaS providers differ in software distribution, licensing models, hosting responsibilities, support options, upgrade and maintenance procedures, and scalability.

Outsourcing Services 88

Outsourcing Services SaaS Payments Payment Services Payment Methods 88

SaaStr

SEPTEMBER 9, 2022

Not a bad thing per se, but it also put a lot of pressure on business models. Startups that just accepted compressed ROI on sales commissions ended up pretty stressed in 2022. In the end, lower gross margin startups can’t pay as much per deal as higher-margin ones. General competition for AEs drove OTEs up about 20%.

Scale 293

Scale Venture Capital Sales Hiring Sales 293

The Angel VC

MARCH 22, 2012

It's a simple plan for an early-stage SaaS startup with a low-touch sales model – a company which markets a SaaS solution via its website, offers a 30 day free trial, gets most of its trial users organically and through online marketing and converts them into paying customer with very little human interaction.

Startup 189

Startup SaaS Payments Payment Methods Payment Solutions 189

Tom Tunguz

JANUARY 14, 2016

2015 is the end of an era, the era of startup growth at any cost. ” This change in investor mentality is catalyzed by the increasing cost of startup capital. Starting in 2014, and perhaps even a bit before, startups have been able to raise capital at better terms than at any time since 2000. Crunchbase tallies $10.1B

Startup 100

Startup Metrics Transportation Marketplace as a Service 100

Chart Mogul

OCTOBER 3, 2019

The customer acquisition cost can help you create, measure, and improve a business model that will put your business on the path to profitability. You’re starting a new business. How about your business model ? Most businesses actually get zero distribution channels to work. Marketing? .

Acquisition 91

Acquisition Underperforming Technical Team Startup Customer Lifetime Value 91

Kellblog

JULY 18, 2019

So, you’re thinking of taking a job at a startup, but are nervous about the risk, perhaps having trouble telling one from another, and unsure about knowing what’s really important in startup success. Startups are about people. Their investments give them contractual rights (e.g., Great core/founding team.

Underperforming Technical Team 79

Underperforming Technical Team Startup Software Technical Cofounder 79

SaaStr

SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

The founders named their startup JFrog because a frog is agile and always leaping forward. However, since the adoption was so strong from users, the founders quickly realized that there was a big-time business opportunity with JFrog. Yet the strategy was not to have a conventional startup. JFrog offered 11.6

New CTO 197

New CTO CTO Benchmarks Consulting 197

SaaStr

APRIL 14, 2023

Many startups crash and burn when they hit the Series A crunch — that do-or-die time where many seem to lose their footing even if they’ve been successful up to that point. So if you’re trying to fit your business model into what SaaS looks like in the U.S. This business models assume the end user knows how to use it.

Development Team Review 203

Development Team Review Technical Review Underperforming Technical Team SMB 203

SaaSHolic

MAY 5, 2023

The speakers believe that the next 10 years will be better for the region, with opportunities for investment in various industries using technology to solve problems. Latin America has interesting characteristics that make it a viable place for investment, including a high level of internet penetration and social engagement.

Technical Review 90

Technical Review VP of Engineering Development Team Review Software Review 90

OpenView Labs

FEBRUARY 15, 2019

The startups that scale the best are the ones that will be the most successful. There are ways to tackle the plethora of scaling difficulties facing startups and they need to be given serious consideration. Automation is going to become the defining characteristic of 21st-century business. Use Automation.

Scale 64

Scale Scaling Startup Sales Hiring 64

Stax

FEBRUARY 21, 2024

And because of the digital nature of SaaS businesses and their subscription-based business models, the ability to collect data on how the company is performing is easier and faster than ever. It helps businesses understand the effectiveness of their customer acquisition and retention strategies.

SaaS Payments 88

SaaS Payments Payments Payment Services Stax 88

The Marketing & Growth Hacking Publication

AUGUST 11, 2020

In another article, I shared the secrets that startups need to differentiate their services with a good landing page. It starts by asking (and answering) these 5 questions in order to arrive at your startup key differentiator Who is my target market, audience or niche? Landing page lessons from 20 Nigerian startups.

Startup 59

Startup Marketplace as a Service Growth Hacking Communication 59

SaaStr

MAY 6, 2021

If you’re a company that has a 100% sales-driven business model, it makes sense to hire a big-deal revenue person. Just note, you’ll need a strong balance sheet and stable investments — it takes money to make money. And there are a lot of people that will aim for a CRO title at a startup but are mid-level sales execs.

Sales Hiring 217

Sales Hiring Sales Recruiting Interviewing Revenue 217

Tom Tunguz

JUNE 15, 2015

Today, many infrastructure software startups employ open source strategies to market their software and win dominant market share. In 2014, venture capitalists invested in 37 separate open-source financings. Open Source Software started the movement in the late 1990s. Open source is a disruptive distribution strategy.

Startup 100

Startup Finance Innovation Business Model 100

Andreessen Horowitz

APRIL 23, 2024

At a16z’s recent Connect/Fintech event, a16z Partner Alex Immerman sat down for a broad conversation with Immad Akhund , co-founder and CEO of banking startup Mercury , and René Lacerte, founder and CEO of financial services company BILL. We’re experimenting with it, but we haven’t made a massive investment.

Payments 75

Payments Forecasting Payment Services Payment Solutions 75

SaaStr

JUNE 5, 2020

Salesforce’s IPO is also seen as a test of a new business model that could shake up the software industry. The company is the poster child for subscription-based software, a model that’s gaining popularity among corporate buyers. As a result, founders with healthy SaaS businesses are hearing “no” more often.

Venture Capital 211

Venture Capital Technical Review SaaS Scale 211

SaaStr

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023

A Pivot From Growth At All Costs To Driving Profitability The Cloud model of recurring revenue, low marginal distribution costs, and strong net dollar retention dynamics is possibly one of the best and most resilient business models ever invented. There’s been a pivot from growth at all costs to driving profitability.

Cloud 225

Cloud Payments Software Review Payment Solutions 225

Tom Tunguz

AUGUST 3, 2014

As the earnings season has progressed , the tech sector is showing impressive signs of strength and predictability in the underlying companies’ business. Startups benefit from a booming public market for three reasons. Overall, business is go, go go for technology companies despite the blip earlier this year in the stock market.

Startup 100

Startup Trends AWS Marketing 100

SaaSHolic

NOVEMBER 15, 2023

In the startup world, “success” has long been measured by the ability to attract venture capital, secure large rounds of funding, and achieve high valuations. I’m not here to say fundraising is meaningless for startups nor that it’s a piece of cake to get done.

Venture Capital 52

Venture Capital Entrepreneurship Startup Business Model 52

Tom Tunguz

DECEMBER 2, 2012

Instead of reviewing the incumbent’s strategy, I’m going to flip these around to reverse engineer these defenses and build a startup’s playbook for disruption with examples from our portfolio. The tech-implementation barrier: Startups should leverage their nimbleness and focus to bring a better product to market faster.

Engineering 100

Engineering Startup Technical Review Marketing 100

Chart Mogul

OCTOBER 3, 2019

The customer acquisition cost can help you create, measure, and improve a business model that will put your business on the path to profitability. You’re starting a new business. How about your business model ? Most businesses actually get zero distribution channels to work. Oh yeah, that thing.

Acquisition 52

Acquisition Startup Underperforming Technical Team Customer Lifetime Value 52

OpenView Labs

MAY 2, 2019

Most B2B startups initially sell to other startups before going after more established companies. However, it’s important to realize right off the bat that selling to startups isn’t the same as selling to small businesses or enterprises. Spend time near other startup founders.

Startup 66

Startup Scale Technical Review Enterprise 66

Incredo

OCTOBER 23, 2019

Not all investors are equal : you should target the right ones who are interested in investing in SaaS and tend to fund in your geography & startup stage. A person who agrees to invest in a risky early-stage business with no final product and customers, is probably an angel. And startup accelerators too.

SaaS 154

SaaS Social Media Startup Scale 154

Tom Tunguz

APRIL 1, 2013

When I’m meeting a startup for the first time, my goal is to understand as much about the business and team as I can. Is the problem worth solving and if the startup succeeds, how valuable would it be? After a startup has left and I’m “doing diligence,” I want to test some of the assertions made by the company.

Startup 102

Startup Forecasting Benchmarks Finance 102