Is it time to sell, autopilot, or double down on your plateaued SaaS business?

In this episode, Rob Walling tackles listener questions and shares practical frameworks for what to do when your product hits a plateau, explains why “autopilot” often leads to decline, and outlines when founders should seriously consider SOC 2 compliance. Rob also talks about balancing a startup with a newborn, the real value of open source and IP, and the risks and rewards of building MVPs in exchange for equity.

Want to get your question answered? Drop it here.

Episode Sponsor:

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• (2:34) – What to do with a plateaued $500k B2C app
• (4:28) – Founder motivation, business longevity, and the myth of autopilot
• (13:15) – Should you offer MVP development in exchange for equity?
• (14:04) – Equity risks, upside, and how to protect yourself
• (18:00) – When SOC2 compliance actually matters for founders
• (21:08) – Balancing a new baby, a job, and SaaS ambitions
• (24:38) – Can open source IP help bootstrappers stand out?
• (25:25) – Why differentiation and marketing matter more than patents or code

• Discretion Capital – M&A Advisory for B2B SaaS with $2-25m ARR
• MicroConf - SaaS Community
• TinySeed - SaaS Institute

If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!

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Is hiring a sales and marketing co-founder the secret sauce for technical SaaS founders?

In this solo episode, Rob Walling tackles a fresh batch of listener questions, starting with one of the most common dilemmas for technical founders: should you hire a sales and marketing co-founder or go it alone?

He introduces his “Core Four” mental model, the essential skills every SaaS team needs early on, and shares insights on dealing with enterprise clients who keep moving the goalposts, handling a flood of non-ICP users, and a heartfelt message from a listener who just exited their startup.

Want to get your question answered? Drop it here.

Episode Sponsor:

Are you looking to hire world-class engineering talent without the headache?

You should check out today’s sponsor, G2i. They give you access to over 8,000 pre-vetted developers, no AI-generated resumes, no time wasters, just experienced engineers with at least five years of proven results.

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As a listener, you’ll get a 7-day free trial plus $1,500 off your first invoice when you mention this podcast.

Head over to https://www.g2i.co/microconf to get started.

• (3:11) – Should you find a co-founder for sales and marketing?
• (5:29) – What are the Core Four SaaS Skills?
• (11:41) – Can you succeed without mastering all four, or should you outsource?
• (16:39) – Why sales-led growth might outperform self-serve SaaS
• (21:48) – Dealing with big companies who change your contract terms
• (27:06) – What to do with thousands of unqualified signups

• Discretion Capital – M&A for B2B SaaS
• Exit Strategy by Sherry & Rob Walling
• MicroConf - SaaS Community
• TinySeed - SaaS Institute

If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify

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Can a small team really bootstrap to $8M ARR in a crowded SaaS market?

In this episode, Rob Walling chats with Philippe Lehoux about how he and his co-founders bootstrapped Missive, a collaborative email and team inbox tool. They deep dive into landing early customers, unique horizontal positioning, content-driven growth, enterprise sales, and how to compete with VC-backed competition.

Episode Sponsor:

Are you a non-technical founder with solid revenue and real traction, but your technology is holding you back? You should check out today's sponsor, Designli.

They specialize in helping founders like you who are stuck with messy code, unclear roadmaps, or a dev team that just doesn’t get it.

And for listeners of the pod, Designli is offering their Impact Week completely free. That’s a one-week, no-obligation audit where their team dives into your code, your design system, and your product roadmap to show you exactly what’s working, what’s broken, and what needs to happen next.

If it’s a fit, you can move on to SolutionLab, a three-week sprint where Designli takes over your codebase and architects a real roadmap for growth, led by a full-time, cross-functional team.

If your tech is the bottleneck to your next stage of growth, check them out at https://designli.co/fortherestofus.

• (2:05) – Missive’s $8M ARR journey and email pivot
• (6:02) – Early idea and first customers
• (11:16) – Unique positioning: horizontal vs. vertical
• (13:41) – How they prioritize features
• (15:39) – Why they stayed bootstrapped and decline funding
• (20:25) – Content strategy and “vs” pages
• (21:39) – Affiliate program driving 30% of growth
• (25:24) – Challenges and benefits of being horizontal
• (30:28) – Enterprise sales and pricing
• (32:06) – Scaling with SOC 2 compliance

• SaaS Institute
• MicroConf YouTube channel
• Missive
• Philippe Lehoux | LinkedIn
• Philippe Lehoux (@plehoux) | X

If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify