Product Thinking

Episode 159: Fueling Product-Led Growth with Leah Tharin, Interim Chief Product and Growth Officer, GotPhoto

Feb 21, 2024

Leah Tharin, Interim Chief Product and Growth Officer at GotPhoto, discusses the importance of aligning sales and product teams, leveraging data-driven strategies for growth, and fueling product-led growth through customer success. She shares insights on deciding between product-led and sales-led growth strategies, the evolving dynamics of interactive demos, and optimizing sales through product-led growth.

57:11

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Episode guests

Leah Tharin

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Quick takeaways

Companies should choose between product-led growth (PLG) and sales-led growth (SLG) based on their market position and customer needs.

Data-driven sales optimization requires collaboration between the Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) and the Chief Product Officer (CPO) to align incentives and drive sales effectiveness.

Growth teams play a critical role in aligning marketing, product, and sales efforts to optimize the customer journey and drive business growth.

Deep dives

The Value of Product-Led Growth

Product-led growth (PLG) is a valuable approach for companies, especially in commoditized markets with multiple competitors. PLG focuses on showing value to potential customers instead of just talking about it. By offering freemium versions, trials, or interactive demos, companies can allow users to experience the product firsthand before committing to a purchase. PLG is particularly effective for companies with a high volume of customers with low individual value, as it allows testing and onboarding without the need for direct sales involvement. However, it's important to align goals and incentives between product and sales teams to avoid ineffective practices.

Incentives Drive Behavior

01:22

Balancing leads and sales capacity

01:26

Embrace Uncomfortable Narrowness for Business Success

01:41

Introduction

2min

Navigating the Challenge of Product Discovery with Co-Founders

2min

Alignment and Communication in Product Discovery

5min

Exploring the Dynamics of Product-Led Growth

8min

Evolution of Interactive Demos and Customer-Centric Sales

16min

Exploring Angel Investing, Sales Challenges, and Customer Connections in Enterprise Selling Businesses

3min

Optimizing Sales through Product-Led Growth

21min

In this episode of the Product Thinking podcast, host Melissa Perri is joined by Leah Tharin, Interim Chief Product and Growth Officer, GotPhoto. Join them as they explore the different types of growth strategies and when to use them, as well as the importance of aligning sales and product teams. Leah also talks about the power of data-driven strategies in bridging sales and product teams and how aligning with customer success fuels product-led growth.

Leah is a well-known figure in the B2B and product-led growth sectors, guiding organizations to align their growth, product, marketing, and sales efforts, whether scaling up or down. She focuses on practical, operational strategies rather than theoretical concepts with her clients. Also, Leah serves as an advisor to Notion Capital, NorthOne, and Paddle and hosts the "PRODUCTEA with Leah" podcast.

You’ll hear them talk about:

[03:47] - Deciding between product-led growth (PLG) and sales-led growth (SLG) is essential for companies at any stage. For startups, leveraging PLG by offering a freemium version can be key to gaining traction in a crowded market. However, the ease of launching new products today means more competition, making it harder to stand out. Mature companies must assess their market position — opting for PLG in commoditized markets to attract a broad customer base without the need for direct sales interaction. Contrarily, in a market where personalized value and differentiation are vital, a sales-led strategy might still be necessary. While adapting to PLG can be challenging for traditionally sales-driven organizations, it's often crucial to remain competitive.
[22:54] - To foster a product-led growth strategy while motivating sales teams effectively, focus on aligning sales incentives with customer expansion and success. Rather than rewarding salespeople solely on initial deals, offer bonuses for growing accounts and contributing to customer success activities. This will benefit the sales team by focusing their efforts on warm leads and reducing time spent on cold outreach. Moreover, it will ensure that sales strategies are aligned with delivering real value to customers. By combining insights from both sales demographics and customer behavior analytics, organizations can identify and engage with genuinely interested prospects, leading to more meaningful conversations and, ultimately, more successful expansions.
[32:28] - Embracing a PLG strategy involves more than just offering free trials or premium versions; it's about leveraging detailed product usage data to drive sales and improve product development. A successful approach involves bridging the gap between sales and product teams, ensuring they work collaboratively to use insights from customer engagement to refine product offerings and enhance the sales process. Sales teams can use this data to better qualify leads and personalize their strategies while product teams can use feedback to build better solutions. This symbiosis requires executive leadership, especially from Chief Revenue Officers (CROs) and Chief Product Officers (CPOs), to foster a culture of data-driven decision-making and collaboration.
[45:13] - Facing the wild tech landscape of 2024, with challenges like massive layoffs and tighter financial conditions, companies seek ways to navigate these rough waters. Leah highlights a crucial survival strategy: adopting a vertical organization. This approach could be the life jacket businesses need during the storm. By focusing on specific customer segments, companies can improve their value proposition and charge more per customer, counteracting the pressures of commoditization and increased competition. Embracing verticalization allows for more efficient use of resources and opens up new roads for growth by targeting underserved or unique market niches.

Episode Resources:

Leah Tharin’s Website
Leah Tharin on LinkedIn
Leah Tharin on Twitter
Bedfables Website
Growth & Product Blog
ProducTea with Leah Substack
PRODUCTEA with Leah Podcast

If you enjoyed this episode, please visit:

Previous guests include: Shruti Patel of US Bank, Steve Wilson of Contrast Security, Bethany Lyons of KAWA Analytics, Tanya Johnson Chief Product Officer at Auror, Tom Eisenmann of Harvard Business School, Stephanie Leue of Doodle, Jason Fried of 37signals, Hubert Palan of Productboard, Blake Samic of Stripe and Uber, Quincy Hunte of Amazon Web Services

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Product Thinking

Episode 159: Fueling Product-Led Growth with Leah Tharin, Interim Chief Product and Growth Officer, GotPhoto

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

The Value of Product-Led Growth

The Role of Data-Driven Sales

The Role and Importance of Growth Teams

Incentivizing Salespeople in Product-Led Growth

The Rise of Verticalization in SaaS

Incentives Drive Behavior

Balancing leads and sales capacity

Embrace Uncomfortable Narrowness for Business Success

Get the Snipd
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AI-powered
podcast player

Discover
highlights

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Product Thinking

Episode 159: Fueling Product-Led Growth with Leah Tharin, Interim Chief Product and Growth Officer, GotPhoto

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

The Value of Product-Led Growth

The Role of Data-Driven Sales

The Role and Importance of Growth Teams

Incentivizing Salespeople in Product-Led Growth

The Rise of Verticalization in SaaS

Incentives Drive Behavior

Balancing leads and sales capacity

Embrace Uncomfortable Narrowness for Business Success

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