Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career
An inside look at Figma’s unique GTM motion | Claire Butler (first GTM hire)
Episode guests
Podcast summary created with Snipd AI
Quick takeaways
- Establishing credibility with designers through technical content and design principles.
- Active listening and involvement of users in the product-building process.
- Connecting with users through existing channels and platforms.
- Emphasizing transparency, honesty, and trust in interactions with users.
Deep dives
Building Credibility
In the early days, Figma focused on establishing credibility with designers by showcasing technical features and deep content about design decisions. They wrote blog posts about the tool's technical feats and shared insights on design principles. Figma also had a designer advocate who engaged with users, addressed their feedback, and created content to build authenticity and credibility.
Building with Users
Figma actively listened to user feedback and involved users in the product-building process. They implemented Intercom to have direct chat conversations, where they even debunked bugs with users in real-time. Figma employed a customer obsession approach, focusing on building a strong relationship with users through transparent communication and support.
Channeling Channels
Figma recognized the importance of finding channels to connect with their users where they were already present, rather than expecting users to come to them. They used platforms like Hacker News and Designer News to share technical content and engage with designers. This allowed Figma to effectively reach their audience and facilitate ongoing relationships.
Transparency and Honesty
Figma emphasized transparency and honesty in their interactions with users. They were open about their product decisions, shared technical details, and addressed user concerns directly. By fostering trust and building strong relationships grounded in transparency, Figma was able to gain the loyalty and support of their users.
Building credibility and trust with users
In the early days, Figma focused on building credibility and trust with designers by providing a tool that met their needs. They leveraged Twitter as a platform to connect with and learn from the design community, promoting technical content and engaging in conversations to establish a presence. They also utilized influencers and sought feedback from users to continuously improve their product.
Helping users spread Figma within organizations
Figma recognized the importance of designer advocates in spreading the product within organizations. These advocates, who were technically proficient designers, played a crucial role in the sales process, providing deep product knowledge and building credibility with other designers. Figma also focused on design systems as a key driver for adoption, showcasing their platform's ability to streamline design workflows and improve collaboration. They worked closely with the design community, organized conferences, and emphasized helping champions of Figma grow in their careers.
Facilitating easy adoption and sharing
Figma made it easy for individual contributors to try the tool and share it within their organization by offering free accounts and removing early payment barriers. They transitioned to a model where unlimited collaboration was free, allowing easy sharing and collaboration within teams. This simplified the adoption process and enabled individual contributors to experience the value of Figma before committing to payment.
Maintaining relationships with champions
Figma recognized the importance of nurturing relationships with internal champions over time. They engaged with champions through ongoing communication, transparency, and authentic interaction. Figma also focused on supporting the growth and development of champions by providing platforms for them to share their expertise, such as conferences and social media promotion. By maintaining these relationships, Figma cultivated a strong network of advocates who continued to contribute to the success of the product.
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Claire Butler was Figma’s first GTM hire and their 10th employee. She led Figma’s early GTM strategy from stealth through monetization. She also helped the team through the journey to find product-market fit and built the team that drove Figma’s unique bottom-up growth motion. Eight years later, as Senior Director of Marketing, she continues to lead Figma’s bottom-up growth motion, along with community, events, social, advocacy, and Figma for education. In this episode, we discuss:
• An in-depth look at Figma’s bottom-up GTM motion
• Why you need to start with individual contributors (ICs) loving your product
• How to spread adoption within the organization
• How “designer advocates” have played a critical role in Figma’s growth
• The freemium strategy that drove massive growth for Figma
• How to leverage product champions
• When to leave stealth
• Early-stage metrics, and why they are often unreliable
• Advice for people looking to join a startup
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Find the full transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/an-inside-look-at-figmas-unique-bottom
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Where to find Claire Butler:
• Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/clairetbutler
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clairetbutler/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Claire’s background
(03:47) The huge branding decision that Claire made on day one at Figma
(07:45) The most stressful memory of early days at Figma
(09:55) Advice for people looking to join a startup
(12:55) What a bottom-up go-to-market motion is
(17:12) Figma’s unique approach to bottom-up GTM
(18:52) Figma’s launch out of stealth
(23:01) Signals vs. hard metrics in the early days
(24:50) How Figma won over Microsoft
(30:08) How to win over ICs
(32:00) How to establish credibility
(37:38) Customer obsession in action
(41:11) Why getting users to love your product is so vital
(44:01) How Figma used Twitter as its primary channel in the early days
(49:06) Transparency and authenticity
(49:52) GTM tactics at scale
(52:09) “Little big updates” at Figma
(54:16) Figma’s acquisition, and why it was one of the hardest days of Claire’s career
(57:10) Figma’s core values
(58:06) The Config conference
(1:00:21) Spreading your product within the organization
(1:02:09) The pricing tiers at Figma
(1:07:35) The role of designer advocates
(1:10:57) Design systems
(1:16:12) Leveraging internal champions
(1:17:53) Accelerating spread at scale
(1:19:14) What types of companies are a good fit for bottom-up GTM
(1:24:16) A summary of the bottom-up GTM model
(1:25:27) Lightning round
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Referenced:
• Dylan Field on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dylanfield/
• John Lilly on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnlilly/
• Ivan Zhao on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivanhzhao/
• Xamarin: https://dotnet.microsoft.com/en-us/apps/xamarin
• Josef Müller-Brockmann: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josef_M%C3%BCller-Brockmann
• Datadog: https://www.datadoghq.com/
• Coda: https://coda.io/
• Oren’s Hummus on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/orenshummus/
• Intercom: https://www.intercom.com/
• How Coda builds product: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-coda-builds-product
• Dylan Field on Twitter: https://twitter.com/zoink
• Dylan’s tweet: https://twitter.com/zoink/status/1566566649712431105
• Little Big Updates: https://www.figma.com/blog/little-big-updates-august-2022/
• Sho Kuwamoto on Twitter: https://twitter.com/skuwamoto
• Kris Rasmussen on Twitter: https://twitter.com/kris_rasmussen
• Config: https://config.figma.com/
• Tom Lowry on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomaslowry
• Atomic Design: https://atomicdesign.bradfrost.com/
• Figjam: https://www.figma.com/figjam/
• Dev Mode: https://www.figma.com/dev-mode/
• Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity: https://www.amazon.com/Radical-Candor-Revised-Kick-Ass-Humanity/dp/1250235375
• Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts: https://www.amazon.com/Dare-Lead-Brave-Conversations-Hearts/dp/0399592520
• 100 Foot Wave on HBO: https://www.hbo.com/100-foot-wave
• Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones: https://www.amazon.com/Atomic-Habits-James-Clear-audiobook/dp/B07RFSSYBH
• Noah Weiss on Lenny’s Podcast: https://www.lennyspodcast.com/the-10-traits-of-great-pms-how-ai-will-impact-your-product-and-slacks-product-development-process/
• How to create an exceptional coverage plan for your parental leave (Tamara Hinckley): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-create-an-exceptional-coverage
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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.
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Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.
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