What happens when your most passionate users turn against you? For PLG SaaS platform Coalesce, a mountain of user feedback became a source of frustration, not innovation. The product roadmap was a battleground, and the community felt ignored.

In this episode, Alex sits down with Maya Chen, Head of Community at Coalesce, to unpack the messy reality of building in public. Maya shares the raw story of the feature launch that almost broke their community's trust and the steps she took to move from a chaotic “suggestion box” to a powerful customer governance engine.

We explore:

• The danger of the 'feedback graveyard' and why most SaaS forums fail.
• The metrics that prove governance isn't just 'nice-to-have'—it's a retention machine.
• How Coalesce navigated internal resistance to give customers real power over the roadmap.
• A deep dive into VORA's Engagement Spectrum and how to level up your own customer participation.

This is a must-listen for any product manager, community leader, or founder in the SaaS world who wants to stop guessing what users want and start building WITH them.

Ready to close your own governance gap? Find out how at voiceofthenewera.com.

What if your customers could guarantee your next product is a bestseller before you even make it? In the high-stakes world of DTC food, one failed launch can sink a brand. This week, Alex sits down with Isabella Rossi, the Founder & CEO of Solari Provisions, a disruptive plant-based pantry brand.

Isabella shares the brutally honest story of a painful early product failure and how it forced her to abandon traditional market research. She reveals the exact process her team used to put real product decisions into the hands of their customers, leading to a 62% participation rate and a new product that outsold internal projections by 2.4x.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• The specific financial metrics that prove the ROI of customer governance (higher retention, AOV, and LTV).
• How to frame a customer vote to get maximum engagement and actionable data.
• The Four Pillars of Co-Creation (Access, Agency, Accountability, Attribution) and how they turn passive buyers into brand co-owners.
• How to translate engagement metrics into a business case that gets your CFO excited.

This isn’t about surveys or social media polls. This is about building a brand WITH your customers, not just FOR them. If you’re tired of guessing what your market wants, this episode is your new playbook.

To learn more about the frameworks discussed and start your own governance journey, visit VORA at voiceofthenewera.com.

What happens when a sustainable fashion brand stops asking for feedback and starts asking for decisions? In our debut episode, Alex sits down with Anya Sharma, the Founder and CEO of Aethelred Wovens, a direct-to-consumer brand built on natural dyes and radical transparency.

Anya shares her journey from the frustrating dead-end of Instagram polls and surveys—what she calls 'governance theater'—to launching her first real customer vote. We get into the nitty-gritty of designing that crucial first vote, the fear of losing control, and the shocking results: a 37% engagement rate, 2.4x sales lift on co-created products, and a 23-point jump in 12-month retention for participating customers.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why most brands are stuck in 'Level 2' of the Engagement Spectrum and how to break free.
• The Four Pillars of Co-Creation (Access, Agency, Accountability, Attribution) that separate real governance from suggestion boxes.
• How to translate engagement metrics into a business case your CFO will actually understand.
• The practical steps to launching your first customer vote without derailing your product roadmap.

If you’re tired of talking AT your customers and ready to start governing WITH them, this episode is your blueprint. Ready to build your own governance program? Discover the tools and frameworks at voiceofthenewera.com.