Startup to Last

Topics:LACRM had a great growth month in August, mostly because of expansion revenue.JD, Rick's business partner, is doing a great job.Rick is oscillating between investing in more resources and staying focused.Rick gives an update on his recent local marketing blitz.Tyler is rethinking the customer onboarding flow.LACRM is shifting around their marketing priorities.Rick shares some wisdom from Jason Lempkin.Rick is learning how it's hard to not have authority.Tyler talks about hollow abstraction by mostly just parroting what's said in this video.We talk about "Zucking" (please don't look it up on Urban Dictionary, we're not talking about that kind of Zucking).

Topics this episode:Summer is ending at LACRM and things are going back to normal.Rick attended a company offsite last week, and now he's behind.LegUp Health is planning a local marketing blitz.Tyler gives an update on pay transparency at LACRM.Tyler has been doing some cold outreach to try to find API partners.There's a new VP at Lucid.Tyler talks about how this episode of Default Alive has an interesting take on no-code.Tyler and Rick talk about how it seems like it's getting harder to build a SaaS business, largely inspired by this episode of Out of Beta.

Topics in this episode:LACRM got DDoSed *again*Rick went to some networking eventsTyler is ending his newsletterRick gives a chamber of commerce updateLegUp Health is seeing early success with an incentive offerWe discuss handling an employee who leaves for an extended period and whether the goal should be to have no single points of failureRick talks about how intentional assumptions can combat fearTyler gives an LACRM product-led growth update

Topics in this episode:Less Annoying CRM hit $3.5 million ARR.Rick and LegUp Health have signed up for several in-person networking events as well as a number of chambers of commerce.LACRM had a new CRM Coach start.Tyler reflects on why his updates haven't been interesting recently, and what that might mean about how he'd feel running a bigger company.Rick got a new client who followed the ideal customer journey. Feels good.Rick is considering working with an SEO contractor.We discuss how to pick a digital marketing agency, and whether it even makes sense to do so.In this episode, we discuss DemandMaven and JH Scherck.

Topics this week:Tyler thinks he's finally fixed his audio setup.Rick and Tyler are both having good sales months. Rick actually knows why!We discuss what indicators a SaaS company might look at to tell whether a recession is impacting their business.Rick is getting weekly updates from JD in a new format that is working well.Rick went to a fancy-pants senator's house to schmooze with the big wigs and now he wants to meet more powerful people so that they can laugh at us common folk.Tyler talks about the possibility of LACRM expanding into services.Rick is building a list of people he might want to hire/work with one day.Rick's CPA ghosted him. CPAs are the worst.We discuss health urgency.

Topics from this episode:Rick has learned more about how to be a good business partner.Rick is prioritizing effectiveness over efficiency.Tyler asks about how best to track marketing ROI.Tyler has an idea for a platform play at LACRM.Another company in LegUp Health's space has been aquired.Tyler gives an argument against delegation.Rick revisits the importance of buffer.Tyler recommends listening to this episode of the IndieHackers podcast.

Topics from this episode:Rick is working on updating and simplify LegUp Health's messaging.LegUp Health is testing out purchasing leads.Rick talks about the next step of his SEO work.Tyler has been listening to customer interviews and learned some things about pricing and features with LACRM.Tyler isn't listening to as many business podcasts.We discuss the blog post: We Need A Middle Class For Startups

Topics this weekThe possibility of a recession and how it might impact businesses like ours.LegUp Health just had a competitor acquired.Less Annoying CRM was DDoSed again.Tyler discusses some traction channels he's been considering.Rick asks about virtuous vs. vicious cycles.We discuss the merits of a multi-product business vs a single-product business.

Topics in this episode:Tyler bought tickets to attend Founder Summit.Tyler is rethinking his investment strategy.A competitor of LegUp Health is going out of business.Tyler is working on renewing LACRM's office lease.LegUp Health is struggling to scale their outreach, so they're going back to basics.LACRM's new design is coming along.LACRM is making pay more transparent internally.Rick wants LegUp to be in the discussion when people talk about health insurance in Utah.We discuss how to provide mentorship to employees if no one at your company has expertise in the area they need help with.We discuss what future marketing channels might be similar to what SEO was in the early 2000's.

Topics this week:A new employee started at LACRMTyler is getting ready for lots of internsRick has been struggling to form healthy habitsRick gives an update on his business partner's work/life balanceTyler finished his cycle of meeting/presentation/1:1s that he does every six monthsTyler asks Rick about how to define mission, vision, and valuesRick describes a new marketing funnel he foundLegUp Health's vision is supported by a recent regulation change