On this episode of the Traction podcast, host Lloyed Lobo of Boast.AI features a fireside between Ryan Smith, Founder and Executive Chairman at Qualtrics, and Jason Lemkin, Founder at SaaStr from the in-person Traction Conf in San Francisco.

Ryan shares his journey from a bootstrapped startup to a multi-billion dollar company and the challenges and learnings along the way.

In this session, Ryan and Jason discuss:

1:01 - The Qualtrics founding story

7:14 - Stress of managing cashflow in the early days when the company was bootstrapped

9:35 - Zen learnings on capital efficiency

11:21 - How competition has changed and impacted growth

15:59 - The viral coefficient in B2B SaaS

26:25 - Challenging yourself to ask for higher prices when selling your product

34:29 - Learnings from hiring execs for a startup outside Silicon Valley

Learn more at https://tractionconf.io

Connect with Ryan Smith: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-smith-3417901/

Learn more about Qualtrics at https://www.qualtrics.com

Connect with Jason Lemkin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmlemkin/

Learn more about SaaStr at https://www.saastr.com/

This episode is brought to you by:

Each year the U.S. and Canadian governments provide more than $20 billion in R&D tax credits and innovation incentives to fund businesses. But the application process is cumbersome, prone to costly audits, and receiving the money can take as long as 16 months. Boast automates this process, enabling companies to get more money faster without the paperwork and audit risk. We don’t get paid until you do! Find out if you qualify today at https://Boast.AI.

Launch Academy is one of the top global tech hubs for international entrepreneurs and a designated organization for Canada's Startup Visa. Since 2012, Launch has worked with more than 6,000 entrepreneurs from over 100 countries, of which 300 have grown their startups to seed and Series A stage and raised over $2 billion in funding. To learn more about Launch's programs or the Canadian Startup Visa, visit https://LaunchAcademy.ca 

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