Yann de Parscau

Why SanFran as city is unique + Europe can’t compete ? 300 000 millionaires & 80 Billionaires Even without capital raising, the probability of good knowledge transfer about how to build substantial (software) businesses seems to be working better on an order magnitude in that city, than in Europe as a whole

2

The findings of this Sifted survey make VCs seem they're copying consultant memes when advising the portfolio: cut costs! improve revenue! = more profits! 🙈 💸 84% of respondents said they were under more pressure to prioritize profitability or revenue vs a year ago; 66% of respondents were told to cut costs. 🤝 Nearly 44% of respondents said that their relationship with their VCs has gotten worse in the last 12 months, while 27% said it had gotten much worse 👎 When asked how helpful VCs had been with things like GTM strategy, customer contacts, and marketing on a scale of 1 (least helpful) to 5 (most helpful), nearly 44% rated them a 1. Read more 👇 https://lnkd.in/eyRtBh4E

42

20 commentaires

🚀 Product Intuitiveness: The Ultimate SaaS Revenue Operations Hack ?! 🚀 💬 feedback during a Sales Demo: “You worked on intuitiveness and simplicity, it's cool! It's been only 30sec since we started talking, and I've already understood clearly what you are talking about…” Lucie from Yousign This is a huge win for our 3-month-old venture! 🥳 Our focus on user-friendly design is paying off. Are we on tracks to democratize Voice AI usage with our platform? Absolutely! ❓But why is this feedback so significant? ⬇️ In the world of SaaS, product intuitiveness isn't just a nice-to-have—it's a game changer: 📣 Marketing: Generate effortless converting content adapted to your Go-To-Market. 🤝 Sales: Impactful demos, faster trust-building and competition killer. Driving Sales Efficiency 🚀. 🌟 Customer Success: Enhanced self-service reduces pressure on CSM teams and accelerates onboarding for both new customers and hires. 🛠️ Tech: Streamlined maintenance and documentation due to an intuitive UI/UX. 💵 Finance: Lower churn and reduced CSM ratios boost growth margins 📈 But...how to nail product intuitiveness? 🧱 Long-term: Track Sales Velocity, Churn Rate, and Product Usage. 🏃‍♂️ Quick Wins: Sales demo feedbacks, customer reviews, competition benchmark. 👤 Focus & Celebrate Wins! Build an internal culture that emphasizes positive feedback on intuitiveness. Aren’t all SaaS on a mission over user friction? Any tips on your side? Let’s go 🚀 PS: Forrester reports that every $1 spent fixing a problem in design saves $5 during development and $30 post-release. #Product #UI #SaaS #Demo #VoiceAI #RevOps #CX

32

7 commentaires

I’M LAUNCHING A SAAS TOOL 😱! It has been 12 months in the works, but now we are finally ready to launch officially. In the past, I’ve built a community, a podcast, and a chrome extension. All those things have led me to this point. But let me tell you what we’ve built and the story behind it. During the summer of 2023, I got to a tipping point of frustration. I had been working for thousands of hours in the LinkedIn Ads platform, and it was almost impossible to prove ROI from it. Because most people don’t click on ads. And unless you have tons of direct conversions, it’s hard to show how your ads are impacting the pipeline. I reached out to one of my close friends (Adam Hartsner 🤩) who also happens to be a great programmer and asked if he could build this thing I had in my brain? Fibbler was born. Fibbler allows you to see all companies that have viewed your ads, filter by specific campaigns, export all data into a CSV, view a timeline for each company, and match impressions with CRM data to uncover influenced pipeline and revenue. P.S. If you want to uncover influenced deals from LinkedIn Ads and sync impression data to HubSpot or Salesforce, try it for free at https://www.fibbler.co/.

532

357 commentaires

The Startup Tech Stack 2024 by Ollie Forsyth Huge startup tech map packed with ressources to build ventures from the ground up👇 Row 1 👀 Product: Support in making products better Security / KYC: Customer onboarding and compliance Marketing: Website builders, data collecting and more Fintech / Insurance: Payment providers, expense management and insurance Row 2 🎯 Collaboration and project management tools HR: Employee onboarding and payroll Fundraising: Cap table management and investor reporting Analytics: Product analytics Row 3 🚀 Customer Service: Customer support Cloud: Cloud providers Sales: Closing deals faster Employee Benefits: Giving your team great benefits Brand: Design platforms Row 4 🏁 Productivity: Tools to save you time Data: Data & analytics CRM: Customer relationship management tools Automations: Automations for your startup Legal: Sign docs quickly 🛎 What to do next 1. Tag a founder who might find this useful 2. Tag a company that you are missing #letsbuild #venturebuilding #startup #techstack #prototyping #mvp

57

14 commentaires

If you’re in SaaS, you must know Adam Robinson. They just went from $2m ARR 6 weeks after reached $1m. Why am I reposting this? Simply because he gives a huge credit to the fact that he had a significant pricing problem. I would say it was even a value packaging problem. His value package and pricing were rather simple. But they were really bad. He fixed a few elements and 🚀🚀🚀. As simple as that. Small details can make huge differences. However I think they can do even better but he claims himself that he his stubborn so not sure he will listen to me 😅 #pricing #saas #b2b

16

Best tools for startup and scaleup CFOs - French tools only 🇫🇷 Whether you're launching your company or scaling your finance stack, we've got you covered. This list is not exhaustive, and we also want to share our feedback after nearly 2 years of using these tools at Hyperline. --- 🏦 Banking: Qonto / Memo Bank → We use both! Qonto handles our daily operations, while Memo Bank manages our term deposits (DAT in French). 🥸 Accounting: Pennylane → We've chosen Pennylane as the go-to accounting solution (and our accounting partner loves it too!). Bonus: seamless integration with Hyperline to collect all invoices. 💳 Spend management: Spendesk → A must-have as your team scales. Bonus: your team will love their autonomy with own card! (Lucas Bédout, as former VP of Engineering, insisted we include them in the list...🤪) 💸 Billing and invoicing: Hyperline → We love using our own product daily. The best solution on the market for managing finance operations from quote to cash (I'm not biased at all 😇). 💼 Procurement: Pivot / Payflows → If you're looking for a procurement solution, that's a good sign for your business. Simplify your life with next-gen procurement solutions! 🦸🏻‍♀️ People and Payroll: PayFit France / Lucca → We've been using PayFit since day one at Hyperline. I remember closing the first payroll with just myself 😂. Very user-friendly with excellent support, perfect for an admin novice like me. 💰 Cap table management: Equify → Your investors will appreciate a clear view of your latest round and future prospects. This was one of the first tools we implemented after our Seed round. --- I’m probably missing some tools. Please help me to complete this list in comment.

95

30 commentaires

SaaStock Dublin is three days away. Considering an exit in 2024? At my talk, I'll be answering questions I get every day like: - What are current SaaS multiples? - What metrics matter most? - What do buyers *actually* care about? Don't have a ticket to SaaStock? I have a few extra - reach out and I'll hook you up 😎 #SaaStock #Dublin #founders

30

9 commentaires

The 7 Biggest Mistakes Startups Must Avoid ! Building a startup? It’s exciting but full of challenges. Over the years, I’ve seen too many promising ventures stumble over the same mistakes. Here are 7 of the biggest—and how to avoid them: 1️⃣ Skipping Market Research Guessing what your customers want? Don’t. Use data and feedback to validate your ideas early. A clear understanding of your market is your foundation. 2️⃣ Scaling Too Soon You can’t scale chaos. Before focusing on growth, ensure your product solves a real problem and customers are sticking around. 3️⃣ Poor Financial Planning Running out of cash is the #1 reason startups fail. Know your numbers, and keep 12–18 months of runway. Build a resilient financial model. 4️⃣ Weak Team Dynamics The wrong team can sink a great idea. Build a diverse, skilled, and aligned team that works well together. 5️⃣ Neglecting Self-Evaluation You can’t fix what you don’t measure. Regularly assess your finances, strategy, market fit, and operational efficiency. Tools like www.INOMAX.tech can help startups stay on track and make better decisions. 6️⃣ Not Networking Your idea alone won’t open doors. Relationships with mentors, investors, and peers can make all the difference. Build your ecosystem! 7️⃣ Resisting Change If something isn’t working, don’t double down—pivot. Agility is key in the fast-moving startup world. #startups #inomax.tech #business #innovation #technology

27

4 commentaires

—> My Take on SaaS in 2025💙 : 1/ The market is overcrowded. By 2025, niche players will either be acquired or forced to pivot. We’ll see fewer tools, but the ones that survive will dominate their categories with deeper integrations and unmatched value. 2/ Automation and analytics will no longer be add-ons—they’ll be fundamental. SaaS solutions will need to offer smarter workflows, proactive insights, and seamless user experiences that solve problems before they arise. 3/ The subscription economy will mature. Companies will prioritize keeping their existing users over burning cash on ads. Continuous onboarding, usage-based pricing, and personalized experiences will define success. 4/ No-code tools will evolve into no-code ecosystems. Platforms won’t just help users build—they’ll empower communities to create and scale solutions without technical expertise. This shift will lower barriers for SMBs and fuel innovation. 5/ Security will become a deal-breaker. As SaaS becomes more critical to businesses, it will also become a bigger target. Investing in zero-trust frameworks and robust data protection will no longer be optional—it’ll be essential. 6/ The next wave of SaaS growth will come from emerging markets. These regions will demand leaner, cost-effective solutions tailored to their unique challenges. Expect new innovation hubs to emerge far from traditional tech centers. 7/ Customers are done with generic products. The winners in 2025 will be those who deeply understand their niche and deliver specialized solutions. SaaS will shift from broad horizontal scaling to focused vertical specialization. 8/ Confusing pricing tiers will die out. Businesses want clarity. Transparent, usage-based pricing models will align with customer success and build trust—key to long-term relationships. 9/ Businesses will move away from vanity metrics like user counts and focus on outcomes. Companies will ask, What measurable value does this software deliver? Providers will need to prove real ROI, not just flashy features. 10/ SaaS in 2025 will reward those who adapt, prioritize customer needs, and innovate relentlessly. It’s no longer just about building tools—it’s about creating value, ecosystems, and relationships that last. What’s the one topic you’d love to see me talk next? Let me know! 🔽 ************************************************ 📌 I’m the founder of Uptech Sol, a software powerhouse delivering innovative web and mobile solutions. 📌 Explore our website to see how we build scalable and impactful software solutions: https://lnkd.in/dBTXXm7q

23

1 commentaire

Just two thoughts: 1. As soon as you reach something, it becomes obvious how to get there (again). For example, if you've built a company with 1M ARR, you can be pretty confident you can repeat it. 2. Each new level is challenging because you have to learn. You could have built 3 companies with 1M ARR each, but getting from 1M to 3/5/10 is something you have not done, so it requires new knowledge gained either through learning or trying and failing. I personally feel that learning from other agency founders is a faster and less stressful way of learning than spending time & money on failures.

2

Big companies tend to over invest. Start-ups have the benefit of starvation. In order to succeed 0 to 1 at a big company, you need to create scarcity. I'm paraphrasing Tanguy Crusson here on Lenny's Newsletter Podcast (link in the comments) but the spirit of this comment is so true. Tanguy developed Jira Product Discovery internally at Atlassian and highlights so many of the challenges of innovating at big companies: - Big companies tend to want to use a playbook that worked in their first market into a new opportunity, but that often fails. There are new nuances to learn in new markets and humility is required to acknowledge this. - Chances are new products are going to fail. Big companies need to acknowledge this to avoid overinvesting until there is sufficient signal from the marketplace. - New products/businesses at big companies need to be judged differently in the early stages than the cash cows that got the company big in the first place. Zero to one needs room to stumble and learn and iterate to find a path to become cash cows themselves. - "Why now" is often the most important question to ask (and one I hear from my friends at Madrona Venture Labs as well). Why do we need to do this now? It's hard to get resources at a big company outside of the core. A new product/business needs an urgency in order to get the necessary attention to succeed. #startups #0to1 #entrepreneurship #productmanagement

19

1 commentaire

Hubspot offers over 200 features (at least) ! 🤯 On top of that, only 30-50% of these are actually used. Hubspot is a good tool, we use it at Founder + Lightning, but it’s a tool that businesses in nearly every vertical use but mainly because there’s nothing better for their specific context. I did a post on this recently about the Klarna changes and it reminded me of the opportunity for: ↳ New startups to build industry/vertical specific tools (huge opp in CRM space)  ↳ Businesses to build their own tools in-house harnessing AI (which they can then sell also to other similar businesses) There are tons of bloated tools out there that could easily be replaced soon. What tools would you like made for your industry/context? #featurebloat #businessopportunity #businesstools

24

5 commentaires

According to Harvard Business School, around 65% of promising startups fail due to co-founder disagreements. And yet the general thinking - according to YC - is that it’s still more advisable to look for a co-founder than to go solo. So if the pressure of finding your ideal co-founding team wasn’t enough, it becomes even more daunting when you’re aware of the risks. And yet, I find it interesting that some of the most successful partnerships arise more or less serendipitously. Take Dropbox as an example: initially a solo venture, Drew Houston was advised by Paul Graham to find a co-founder if he was serious about YC. Through friends of friends, he met his co-founder, Arash Ferdowsi, spent a grand total of 2 hours talking in a coffee house, and in his words, “got married on the first date”. Against all odds, the two had an incredibly successful collaboration that lasted 13 years. Embracing serendipity whilst actively seeking out compatible partners seems like a contradiction - but it’s often the case that when it does work, it’s really something to see. 🍀 Check out Drew's story below! #cofounders #founderstories #ycombinator #startups #founders

73

7 commentaires

✨❓The most common question I get about AI SDR Agents is "Have you seen any that work?"❓ My answer is usually the same: 🔹 𝗬𝗲𝘀 🔹 There are 2 main use cases: 🔸 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱: Volume outreach where ICP / Messaging is well known and personalization is relevant to the value proposition 🔸 𝗜𝗻𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱: Speeding up responses to relatively simple inbound requests / intent signals to add value through personalization (e.g., You were looking at this page… here is some content that’s relevant), and setting up a meeting Yes... you can do a lot of this using existing technology and without AI SDRs, but there are 3 critical considerations: 🔸 Can you refocus people SDRs on more rewarding work? 🔸 AI technology will evolve so it’s good to get in early and learn... do you want to be playing catch up when the gap is bigger? 🔸 Can you improve the customer experience (faster, better content, better targeting, etc)? (This is the ultimate goal the most forward thinking CROs / CMOs are trying to solve) 🔹 The 3 big caveats of where implementations have been successful: 🔸 𝗚𝗧𝗠 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲: Successful programs are built on knowing your ICP and the associated value proposition / messaging - if you don't know it, you need to find it first because AI cannot find it for you 🔸 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹: It's critical to focus the AI SDRs on the tasks it can do and to have a manager to supervise it. This is critical at the beginning and will reduce over time - treat "hiring an AI SDR" the same as you would hiring a new SDR... it needs to be trained, given the right resources and supervised 🔸 𝗥𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘂𝘁: The solution needs to be rolled out in phases, starting with the low risk SDR activities, iterating to improve the process until you're happy with the results. Once you're happy, then extend the program to another part of the customer journey - constantly testing and iterating is key to success Finally... not all AI SDRs are created equal. You need to find the one that best suits your unique requirements, so shop around and test them out. Is there anything I've missed? #AISDR #AIAgent

4

so, they signed the contract.... congrats? it don't mean shit f'squat. here's what I mean: A ton of SaaS companies make their money on activations > a la, getting the customer to |use| the product vs > the customer signing a contract & being invoiced immediately A usage model is v customer friendly & If you have an addictive product, profitable |but| your onboarding process needs to be slick AF to make sure revenue isn't falling through the cracks. > Enter Arrows.to --> collaborative customer onboarding plans, with a delightfully seamless integration into Hubspot ^ if this sounds top of mind (which, when I talk with revenue leaders, it typically is) you should tune into Customer Convos this Wednesday @ 12pm EST / 9am PST I'll be talking with Arrow's CEO Daniel Zarick (DZ!!) and Pocketstop's Brian Nail > we'll talk Arrows shop > discuss onboarding plays to increase activations > and generally have a good time register here: https://lnkd.in/e4h4ii5f

34

10 commentaires

Does being a great VC = being a great manager ? Basically no.  Because the two are very different things.  (It’s not me, Kyle Harrison is saying so!) What's important for a VC can be summed up like that : "The two most important things are (1) performance, and (2) teamwork. But if you don't have number 1 then nothing else matters." Being a good VC is making the right investments to have a solid track record. The currency in VC is getting credit for getting deals done. This leaves little room for investors to train newcomers (ie. Associates/Analysts) because you don’t get recognition from that. So being a good manager isn’t valued as much as being a good investor. But problem is, building a solid track record is very different from building a long lasting investment firm, which can only be done by training associates and so being a good manager. David Haber compare the way VC are working with the way Chicago Bulls won championships in 1991-92 meaning winning on the back of 1 or 2 players (1 or 2 good investors) So the structural incentive rewards only deals getting done leaving on the side building a team that knows how to work together. Everything outside track record could be considered pointless. And that’s why VC can’t be considered as an apprenticeship business. But the the positive thing is, a lot of smart VC (ex: Sequoia Capital (US) or Serena (FR)) already know that training new generations is equally important as having a great track record if you want to survive on the long run. So remember as a VC, find great deals but don’t forget to find a great Associate that can succeed you ;) PS: I’m not going to say it but I could: Automate as much as possible to have time for your Associate. Many thanks to Kyle for this interesting piece! Link in comments 👇

19

1 commentaire

Think You’re Ready to Scale? Don’t Ask Gilfoyle Scaling isn’t just about booking revenue or boosting your annual recurring revenue (ARR). Growth is the goal, of course, but scaling successfully demands the tech readiness, speed, and adaptability to keep up. For many companies, the real risk isn’t market competition. It’s a lack of dedicated tech leadership to guide the process. In fact, 70% of companies report that their biggest obstacle to scaling is leadership gaps in areas like tech and operations. This should be a wake-up call. Without dedicated tech leadership, revenue will plateau, infrastructure will strain, and tough questions from the board are almost inevitable. Consider BBVA, an international financial organization that invested in agile practices to handle the demands of growth. Facing tech bottlenecks and system slowdowns, BBVA’s Finance division implemented agile processes to streamline operations and support scaling. By 2019, 30,000 employees were using these practices daily, resulting in a 28% cut in management costs, a 25% drop in response times for information requests, and a 17% decrease in incident resolution times. This approach wasn’t only about growth. It built a tech foundation that could keep pace with the organization’s demands. CEOs can avoid being another Richard Hendricks. We’ve all seen “Silicon Valley syndrome,” where tech spirals out of control as companies try to keep up with demand. In real life, Myspace failed to tackle this issue head-on. As its user numbers exploded, Myspace’s infrastructure couldn’t handle the load. Slow load times, security issues, and poor user experiences opened the door for better-prepared competitors like Facebook to take over. This example shows that without a proactive tech strategy, scaling can leave infrastructure overwhelmed, customers disappointed, and growth opportunities lost. Shopify is a model of tech leadership meeting growth challenges head-on. By investing early in infrastructure and adaptable processes, Shopify scaled rapidly and maintained reliability as their user base grew. The company’s proactive approach to tech allowed it to meet demand and scale smoothly, keeping service quality high even as it grew. So, do you want to be the next Myspace or the next Shopify? Scaling without tech leadership isn’t just a challenge. It’s a costly mistake. Tech leadership isn’t only support. It’s the backbone of competitive growth. Is your tech strategy ready to meet your scaling goals? #ScalingStrategy #TechLeadership #GrowthMindset #AgileTransformation #BusinessExpansion #CompetitiveEdge #FractionalCTO

1