The Undefeated Underdogs James Evans - How CommandBar is using AI to help brands master user assistance!
👉🏼 About the Guest:
James Evans (Princeton alumni, ex-Bain) is the co-founder and CEO of CommandBar, a user assistance platform that makes your software product easier to use. In 3.5yrs, CommandBar is a 7-figure ARR SaaS business, with over 20 million end-users across hundreds of customers like Hashicorp, Freshworks, and Hubspot and has grown to a team of 40 people and raised $24 million.
👉🏼 About the Host:
Sharath is a founder, creator, and community builder. He is also a serial maker who built and shipped 15+ projects using no-code tools. His SaaS product Shoutout generated $30k ARR, which was sold to a UK-based product studio. Prev, Sharath worked for world-changing startups like Product Hunt and On Deck, where he helped build and nurture communities. He also grew his audience on Twitter from 200 to 22,000 using give-first principles and creating high-value content. Currently, he is building a SaaS product called GuestLab, and runs another podcast series called YC Founder Stories alongside hosting this one.
👉🏼 Sponsor Corner:
Shoutout to Acquire.com for being the first sponsor of The Undefeated Underdogs podcast! They’re the best online marketplace to buy/sell startups and I know many founders who have sold their businesses there. If you're looking to wind down your business and cash in some of your founder chips, check them out - https://try.acquire.com/sharath/
👉🏼 Description:
Listen in as Sharath and James discuss the No-PM Policy, why popups suck, the secrets of a first-time founder, and more!
👉🏼 Timestamps:
- 00:00: Episode Highlight
- 01:05: Shoutout to Acquire.com
- 03:34: Introduction to James Evans – Founder of CommandBar and hater of popups!
- 04:58: Why are popups so irritating?
- 08:32: What are ways of grabbing a customer's attention?
- 14:14: How most startups should be capturing customers
- 19:30: CommandBar's newest product...or not
- 26:45: Finding inspiration for your brand
- 29:58: James' No-PM Policy
- 34:04: Making UX better
- 38:49:The hardest parts of building
- 42:48: Applying to Y Combinator
- 46:00: How the best founders design products
- 49:57: Under shared secrets from a first-time founder
- 52:41: What is the secret of sales?
- 55:35: The dangers you'll see in sales
- 57:39: The best type of content strategy for startups
- 1:02:11: Where CommandBar is going next and how AI is revolutionizing the way we work
- 1:07:08: What drives James as a founder?
- 1:10:25: Outro and closing thoughts
👉🏼 Resources:
- Big Desk Energy: https://www.bigdeskenergy.com/
- Have your product acquired: https://try.acquire.com/sharath/
👉🏼 Where to find James:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/dazzeloid?
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-evans-7086b3126/
- CommandBar Website: https://www.commandbar.com/
👉🏼 Where to find Sharath:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/5harath
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@5harath
- Website: https://5harath.com/
- Newsletter: https://5harath.substack.com/