Built to Sell Radio Ep 523 15 x EBITDA for a Service Firm
10 snips
Dec 5, 2025 Ujwal Arkalgud, entrepreneur and founder of MotivBase, discusses his journey of transforming a services firm into a productized SaaS platform, ultimately selling for over 15x EBITDA. He shares insights on switching to unlimited support to boost customer engagement and the importance of on-call researchers for credibility. Ujwal also highlights innovative pricing strategies, the significance of a distinct brand philosophy, and lessons learned from a failed acquisition attempt. Post-sale, he reflects on personal freedom and his upcoming book, Invisible Rules, which explores hidden business expectations.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Bundle Unlimited Support With Subscriptions
- Sell a subscription with an unlimited support engine to force adoption and prove value.
- Use the support team to help customers sell internally and create upsell opportunities.
Decode Implicit Motivations With Anthropology
- Cultural anthropology reveals implicit reasons customers buy beyond stated rationales.
- Understanding language and implied meaning uncovers the real motivations behind trends.
They Killed The Cash Cow And Rebuilt
- They killed the profitable services business on Jan 1, 2019 and forced customers onto the SaaS product.
- Revenue fell from $3.5M to under $1M, then they rebuilt and scaled past $7M.
