James Kaikis currently serves as the Head of Go-To-Market and Chief Solutions Officer at TestBox, an innovative company revolutionizing the way buyers interact with product demos. Before his tenure at TestBox, James co-founded the PreSales Collective with Yuji Higashi. Under their leadership, the community became a pivotal resource in the presales domain until its successful acquisition in November 2021. James also has a rich history in solution-oriented leadership roles at prominent companies including Salesforce and Showpad.
Discussed in this Episode:
- The power of presales in driving revenue growth and customer success
- Strategies for scaling a community-based business from zero to millions
- The future of B2B software demos and how TestBox is leading the charge
- Lessons learned from a successful startup exit in just 18 months
- Insights on go-to-market strategy, product-led growth, and customer-centricity
Highlights:
6:05 - Bootstrapping a community-based business to multi-million dollar revenue.
8:35 - Secrets behind PreSales Collective's rapid growth and successful exit.
11:05 - Transitioning from founder to Chief Solutions Officer at TestBox.
13:35 - The future of B2B software demos and TestBox's innovative approach.
18:35 - The untapped potential of presales in driving revenue growth.
21:05 - Balancing product-led growth with customer-centricity.
23:35 - Lessons learned from building, scaling, and exiting a successful startup.
28:35 - The importance of aligning presales, sales, and customer success.
31:05 - James' vision for the future of presales and B2B software demos.
33:35 - Advice for entrepreneurs and revenue leaders looking to drive growth.
45:05 - One thing revenue leaders believe to be true that James thinks is bull$***.
48:09 - One thing that is working for James in go-to-market right now.
Guest Speaker Links (James Kaikis):
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jameskaikis/
Host Speaker Links (Scott Barker):
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ssbarker/
Newsletter: thegtmnewsletter.substack.com/
Sponsors:
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The GTM Podcast
The GTM Podcast is a weekly podcast featuring interviews with the top 1% GTM executives, VCs, and founders. Conversations reveal the unshared details behind how they have grown companies, and the go-to-market strategies responsible for shaping that growth.
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