BUILD with Blake Bartlett

Cliff has a secret learning strategy: recruit the best people in the world at a skill to personally train you. It’s easier than you think. They’re just a DM away. Check out this quick pro tip and try it out yourself!Key Takeaways:[00:34] Rule 25 —How to find the best people in the world at a skillMentioned in this episode:Sign up for OpenView's weekly newsletterCliff Weitzman, Founder & CEO of SpeechifyCliff's YouTube video, 28 Lessons for Turning 28SpeechifySubscribe toBlake Bartlett on YouTube.Podcast produced byOpenView.View ourblogfor more context/inspiration.OpenView on LinkedinOpenView on TwitterOpenView on InstagramOpenView on Facebook

Cliff is the Founder CEO of Speechify. He’s also a “full-time” YouTuber, with an awesome channel that features startup advice, life hacks, and self-improvement philosophy. He explains the why and how behind his personal brand strategy on YouTube, and we dive deep into one of my favorite videos of his, “28 Rules for Turning 28.”Key Takeaways:[02:45] Meet Cliff, CEO of Speechify, and his YouTube channel[06:31] Connecting with an audience, and thinking "will this be interesting to someone?"[08:15] 28 Rules for Turning 28[12:27] Rule #10: Lead with Love[15:55] Rule #22: Speed is critical[21:36] How to begin writing your own rules for your ageMentioned in this episode:Sign up for OpenView's weekly newsletterCliff Weitzman, Founder & CEO of SpeechifyCliff's YouTube video, 28 Lessons for Turning 28SpeechifySubscribe toBlake Bartlett on YouTube.Podcast produced byOpenView.View ourblogfor more context/inspiration.OpenView on LinkedinOpenView on TwitterOpenView on InstagramOpenView on Facebook

Adding a top-down sales motion is a make-or-break moment for PLG companies. If it’s done right, it can make you the next big thing in your category. If it’s not done right, it can break your team and ultimately compromise your position in the market. The answer? All-in commitment from the founders and key leaders. Enterprise PLG is a team sport!Key Takeaways:[00:06] The most common mistakes John sees PLG founder make when adding sales to a bottom-up or self-service motion [02:15] The hidden subtext to be helpfulMentioned in this episode:Sign up for OpenView's weekly newsletterJohn Eitel, Former Global Vice President of Sales & Success at CanvaCanvaSubscribe toBlake Bartlett on YouTube.Podcast produced byOpenView.View ourblogfor more context/inspiration.OpenView on LinkedinOpenView on TwitterOpenView on InstagramOpenView on Facebook

John built the global sales team at Canva, which allowed the company to expand further into the enterprise. He walks us through everything a PLG founder needs to know about adding a top-down motion to a bottom-up, product-led foundation. When should PLG companies do this? Why is it necessary? What is the strategy? And how do you do it IRL?Key Takeaways: [4:35] Repeatability in enterprise customers and understanding where these deals stall out[8:01] Stall points in enterprise spending and getting purchase approval[10:30] Embracing a top-down motion for PLG companies[14:17] Combining bottom-up and top-down to scale business using customer success stories[17:24] Communicating to executives the story of what software adoption saves[20:24] A broader context and story of how the platform improves customer lives[22:47] How the data component can make or break sales efforts[27:40] Where is adoption happening and using data to determine who gets involved[30:10] How to get the entire company ...

A product professional’s role changes dramatically over time as a company and product scales, and as the individual develops additional skills and experiences. Annie says you need to “product manage” your own career as a PM in this highly dynamic environment.Calendly is an OpenView portfolio company. For a full portfolio list please visitov.vcKey Takeaways:[0:13] What it's like for Annie to product manage her career as a PMMentioned in this episode:Sign up for OpenView's weekly newsletterAnnie Pearl, Chief Product Officer at CalendlyCalendlySubscribe toBlake Bartlett on YouTube.Podcast produced byOpenView.View ourblogfor more context/inspiration.OpenView on LinkedinOpenView on TwitterOpenView on InstagramOpenView on Facebook

Every PLG business will eventually have to build for the enterprise. Why? Bottom up adoption can indeed go “all the way up”...to the C-level of large organizations. But to get that 6- or 7-figure contract, you’ll need to beef up the product for the big leagues. Annie has gone through the journey at Glassdoor, and now at Calendly. She shares her playbook with us in today’s episode.Calendly is an OpenView portfolio company. For a full portfolio list please visitov.vcKey Takeaways:[2:10] What it looks like for PLG businesses to embrace enterprise[4:42] Three components that make adopting enterprise easier said than done[7:49] How to tackle the PLG plus enterprise transition in terms of people [17:00] Maintaining simplicity and the end user experience as a philosophical north star[19:51] Trades offs of embracing enterprise products from the PLG standpoint, and how to manage them[22:57] Building solutions for personas and horizontal platforms[28:06] Platforms and opting into layers of complexity[30:01] Foundational step number one to building towards enterpriseMentioned in this episode:Sign up for OpenView's weekly newsletterAnnie Pearl, Chief Product Officer at CalendlyCalendlySubscribe toBlake Bartlett on YouTube.Podcast produced byOpenView.View ourblogfor more context/inspiration.OpenView on LinkedinOpenView on TwitterOpenView on InstagramOpenView on Facebook

Founders often shoot themselves in the foot when it comes to running an M&A process. Andrew points out the most common mistakes he’s seen, and how to avoid them.Key Takeaways:[0:23] The Biggest Mistake Founders Make Selling Their BusinessMentioned in this episode:Sign up for OpenView's weekly newsletterAndrew Gazdecki, CEO of MicroAcquireMicroAcquireSubscribe toBlake Bartlett on YouTube.Podcast produced byOpenView.View ourblogfor more context/inspiration.OpenView on LinkedinOpenView on TwitterOpenView on InstagramOpenView on Facebook

There is a dearth of good advice on how to sell or exit your startup. Most people use outdated slogans like “companies are bought, not sold” but offer little practical advice to navigate a daunting M&A process. Andrew has sold two software companies previously, and now is building MicroAcquire, the founder-friendly marketplace for selling startups. He shares everything he knows about selling companies.Key Takeaways:[1:17] Andrew talks about Bizness Apps—his first company—and the experience of being a founder[3:01] What selling his first company was like for Andrew[4:09] Paths available to folks considering selling their startup outside huge IPOs and unicorn acquisitions[6:25] What does it take to sell the company?[8:35] The role of marketing in telling the story of your company for someone else to believe in and buy the company[10:39] Addressing myths about selling, and the reality that founders aren't trained to sell their businesses[16:03] Understanding why you want to sell, and setting it up for success[18:33] What is MicroAcquire, and how can startup founders leverage the service?Mentioned in this episode:Sign up for OpenView's weekly newsletterAndrew Gazdecki, CEO of MicroAcquireMicroAcquireSubscribe toBlake Bartlett on YouTube.Podcast produced byOpenView.View ourblogfor more context/inspiration.OpenView on LinkedinOpenView on TwitterOpenView on InstagramOpenView on Facebook

Services-based startups are often dismissed as unscalable “body shops.” But agencies and consultancies are often where product ideas hatch. Yaw reveals his pro tips for how to identify *which* product ideas are worth building as an agency.Key Takeaways:[0:08] Advice for an agency, consultancy, or freelance operation on knowing which idea to go after and buildMentioned in this episode:Sign up for OpenView's weekly newsletterYaw Aning, Cofounder and CEO of MalomoMalomoSubscribe toBlake Bartlett on YouTube.Podcast produced byOpenView.View ourblogfor more context/inspiration.OpenView on LinkedinOpenView on TwitterOpenView on InstagramOpenView on Facebook

Many SaaS startups are launched out of services companies. Yaw was running an agency building apps, and kept seeing a consistent pain point in his ecommerce clients’ workflows. So he built a SaaS product to address the need, and boom, his startup Malomo was born. This is a common founding story, but it’s often underappreciated as an entrepreneurial path. Hear Yaw’s story, and what other services founders can learn from his journey.Key Takeaways:[3:56] Best practices for building products that Yaw has learned as an agency founder and a SaaS founder[11:36] Yaw's path from building products for others to building something of his own[17:25] Validating a solution before building[20:36] A walled garden between Malomo's product and services teams[25:18] The role of services in a SaaS companyMentioned in this episode:Sign up for OpenView's weekly newsletterYaw Aning, Cofounder and CEO of MalomoMalomoSubscribe toBlake Bartlett on YouTube.Podcast produced byOpenView.View ourblogfor more context/inspiration.OpenView on LinkedinOpenView on TwitterOpenView on InstagramOpenView on Facebook