Andy Priest

As we move deeper into 2024, tracking the right metrics is critical for scaling a SaaS business. This insightful guide outlines the top metrics to watch and includes valuable benchmarks to keep you on track. Whether you’re focused on ARR, CAC, or CLTV, understanding where your company stands is key to driving sustainable growth. Check out the article for a comprehensive look into the latest SaaS trends and metrics! #SaaS #BusinessGrowth #Metrics

11

Catch up on Adam Robinson's journey on The Force & Friction Podcast as he discusses scaling a SaaS company from $20M towards $50M ARR. Watch the full episode here: https://bit.ly/3YzjaBH "It’s a game of different rules at each stage". #ForceAndFrictionPodcast #RevOpsLife #GTM #SaaS #B2BGrowth #EntrepreneurJourney #ScalingUp

4

Amplitude Announces Third Quarter 2024 Financial Results: - Third quarter revenue was $75.2M, up 6% year-over-year - ARR was $298M, up $8M from the end of the second quarter - We now have almost 3,500 paying customers, with 567 of those representing more than $100k or more per year Q3 was all about winning the enterprise. We are starting customer conversations differently, reaching key decision-makers, and demonstrating fast value in ways we weren’t before. The result is a higher-quality book of business, with better attach rates, longer contracts, and bigger expansions (we had multiple expansions exceeding 7 figures in Q3). Consolidation is another big theme that's been playing out for several quarters. It’s clear that our customers are looking for an all-in-one platform, and they are finding that in Amplitude. And we've continued to make our platform better. In Q3, we launched Amplitude Made Easy, our completely redesigned platform experience that takes the difficulty out of analytics. We also deepened our partnership with our friends at HubSpot, launched Web Experimentation, and acquired Command AI (fka CommandBar). To our Ampliteers, partners, and customers—we couldn’t do it without you! Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

156

6 Comments

I love this so much. Each of these is extremely insightful but 1 and 2 are extremely important mindsets to be aware of and account for. 1. It’s human nature to overestimate risk and underestimate opportunity. 2. Entrepreneurs would be well advised to try and bias against that piece of human nature. The risks are probably not as big as you perceive and the opportunities may be bigger than you perceive. #build #takerisk #addvalue #leavealegacy

10

4 Comments

Sophocles, the esteemed Greek tragedian, once stated, "Rather fail with honor than succeed by fraud." These words embody a profound philosophy that highlights the importance of integrity. To fail with honor means to uphold one's principles, acting ethically even when faced with adversity. It signifies a commitment to truth and justice, demonstrating a strong character that refuses to compromise values for personal gain. Conversely, succeeding by fraud entails achieving goals through deceit and dishonesty. This path, though it may lead to temporary victories, ultimately lacks true accomplishment and fulfillment. Sophocles' words remind us that the means of achieving success are as important as the success itself. True success is measured by our character and the positive impact we have on the world. Historical and literary figures like Odysseus and Mahatma Gandhi exemplify this philosophy, showing that integrity leads to lasting achievements. In our own lives, we should embrace this guiding principle. Strive for success grounded in integrity, for it builds a foundation for meaningful accomplishments. By choosing honor, we remain true to ourselves and inspire others to follow a righteous path. Heed Sophocles' timeless wisdom: in failing with honor, we transcend the fleeting allure of fraudulent success and become beacons of integrity.

2

How do you set your deal priorities? Sales leaders are pretty good at this. But they can do better. The Efficient Frontier For Sales shows you where to focus so you maximize sales for the risk you are willing to accept. On average deal portfolios on the Efficient Frontier produce 58% more in-quarter sales than prioritizations based on stage, deal-size, forecast category, or deal-scores. Want to see how this works? DM me for that case study. #salesmanagement #salesleadership #salesenablement #salesoperations #revops #revenueoperations #salesops #analytics #datascience #forecasting #sales

2

California Governor Gavin Newsom just vetoed the “AI Kill Switch Bill” (SB 1047). Some say it’s a win for innovation, others warn it opens Pandora’s box. Both are right. On one side, letting AI develop without strangling it in red tape accelerates progress—especially for open-source projects. On the other, unchecked AI poses real risks: bias, harmful outputs, regulatory breaches, and eroding public trust. So how do we approach this? 1. Understand the stakes – Overregulation could kill innovation. No regulation? We risk AI running unchecked and causing real damage. 2. Consider the long-term – Strangling AI early on stunts progress. But ignoring the risks could lead to outcomes we can’t undo. 3. Balance innovation with accountability – We need guardrails that evolve with the tech, not blanket bans or free-for-alls. Here’s the reality no one is talking about: Any regulation without personal accountability is just noise. Fines don’t matter to companies with deep pockets and big ambitions. They’ll pay the cost and keep going. In fact, it creates an even bigger moat for the giants. If the only stakes are fines, there’s always someone with enough capital and enough motivation to push the limits—and go bigger than anyone ever imagined. The bigger the penalties, the bigger the incentive to play recklessly at scale. If we’re serious about preventing AI from spiraling out of control, we need regulations that hold people, not just companies, accountable. What’s your take? Let’s discuss.

14

3 Comments

Amplitude Announces Second Quarter 2024 Financial Results: - Second quarter revenue of $73.3 million, up 8% year over year - Annual Recurring Revenue of $290 million, up 8% year over year - Number of customers representing $100,000 or more of ARR in Q2 grew to 547, an increase of 10% year over year This quarter was all about meeting our customers where they are. In Q2 we took our Snowflake Native offering GA, doubled down on our open ecosystem, and unveiled a self-serve portal that makes it easier than ever to integrate with Amplitude. To our customers, partners, and Ampliteers, thank you! Your trust, partnership, and hard work is invaluable! #PLG #ProductLedGrowth #DigitalAnalytics #ProductAnalytics #Retention #Acquisition #Monetization

129

5 Comments

Attempting to enrich data on your own can turn into a terrifying ordeal, quickly evolving into a resource-depleting, time-consuming beast that terrorizes your Ops team. 🧟‍♀️ Discover why managing enrichment with multiple vendors is incredibly challenging 👉 https://gag.gl/GiQb7D However, with our help, transforming those raw leads into valuable assets is as simple as a couple of clicks, effectively exorcising your data demons for once and all. 🎃 This Halloween, don't let your data spook you – we've got the ultimate solution. Purely enchanting outcomes, no gimmicks involved. #DataOps #DataEnrichment #Ops

2

#NACDA2024 Advice: If you have "Athletic Director" in your title, ignore any topic that doesn't align with the following... - New Revenue from Existing Assets: The key here is "existing." Across all leagues, we're seeing (1) the use of LLMs to drive low-risk, high-yield campaigns and (2) content monetization as the low-hanging fruit in this space. This year, you're not adding toys to the garage - you're figuring out how to run the best possible garage sale. - Personalization: Stakeholder trust and perception of clarity with departments are historically low. Learn everything you can about improving specific touchpoints with Athletes, Sponsors, Donors, and Fans. Then do it. That's it. That's the list.

1

NewsGrump: I was going to post something serious about The Atlantic's article by Joseph Stieglitz and the dawning realization that markets don't always get the right answer (!) and maybe I'll still do that. But right now I want to say how much I am loving the snark served up by the Wonkette! So, some highlights: -- Why are there TWO Dakotas? Seems excessive. -- Why does Kristi Noem have a fully articulated Trump defense, but an abortion policy from 1890? -- Does Kevin McCarthy really believe that Clinton did not concede the 2016 election to Trump? This falls into the category of not being able to understand why a soldier would serve their country or a businessman would pay taxes -- a lack of basic self-awareness and maturity to understand anything but self-dealing. -- And Biden should not interfere with the justice system, but definitely should come out and say that the trial against Trump is wrong. What? And finally, some candor from Republican congressman Tony Gonzales on CNN: GONZALES: Look, the House is a rough and rowdy place, but Mike Johnson is going to be just fine. I served 20 years in the military. It's my absolute honor to be in Congress, but I serve with some real scumbags. ‘Nuff Said.

4

Pretty sure that is already in progress.

2

I'm no fan of Industry Conferences - the full effort required to make the juice worth the squeeze rarely occurs...TechCrunch Disrupt is an exception to my rule. I shared the staged with 3 absolute professionals within the Space Industry discussing insights related to early-stage companies supporting the dual markets of Government and Commercial. Here are a few takeaways: 1) We have an obligation to engage government at the policy level 2) Market focus is critical to our growth and to returning value to our investors 3) Tech innovation is assumed while GTM talent is required Aria Alamalhodaei expertly moderated our panel which along wth me, included Debra Emmons (The Aerospace Corporation) and True Anomaly CEO, Even Rogers. We missed having Space Workforce For Tomorrow chief (and Slingshot Aerospace co-founder) Melanie Stricklan on the stage to share in the discussion. Watch the full panel here https://lnkd.in/gZTg-Jem #TechCrunchDisrupt #Space #Defense #CommercialSpace #VC

32

1 Comment

Adapting to the FCC’s new 1-to-1 consent rule is like upgrading from a rowboat to a yacht. Yes, it’s a bigger investment, but it’ll steer you clear of financial storms and keep you cruising smoothly. Lead gen folks, compliance isn’t a hassle—it’s a ticket to better ROI! https://hubs.la/Q02xnty80 #LeadGeneration #FCC #Compliance #AnuraBlog

17

When building a SaaS / software company that raises investor money, it is really hard to know what the complexion of your company needs to be as you progress down the business lifecycle. I had a conversation recently with Trevor Halstead about the particularly difficult time we had raising our Series B round. The company was growing like a weed, but that was not good enough, we simply were not ready, for many months. So why were we not ready? We were not ready because the business was missing a few key maturity elements. No one coached us on this, we had to learn this lesson the hard way. If we had known what to prepare, well ahead of time, we would not have come within weeks of missing payroll for 100+ employees. The maturity elements I am referring to are vast, but they include things such as accounting maturity, data systems stability (don't make changes close to a fund raise), funnel maturity, Board of Directors process and several more. Building a quickly growing business is hard. Great execution of many things matter in the process, but getting the timing right with those things, is equally as crucial. I'd be happy to have this conversation with my fellow founders, just message me. Best of luck!

25

"PE Growth HEADWIND”: PE Portco Sales Slumping? Avoid KNEE-JERK & Costly Reactions Only Addressing The Symptoms I often see this costly mistake with PE-backed, lower-middle market businesses. Typically, the business experiences a sales slump midway through the PE hold period, and a mild PANIC spreads from the PE owners/board to the executive team. Then I hear these common suggestions - sound familiar? “Just fire the VP of Sales (or CMO)!” “Double the size of the sales team & we will double sales!” “TRIPLE the leads & we will see a huge revenue increase!” “Just hire salespeople with more sales experience.” “Fire the SDRs and hire a cheaper, outsourced lead-gen team.” “Let's double down on paid search!” "Time to replace our website.” "Let’s quickly introduce AI tools to our sales process!”   While some of these suggestions might be warranted, most are knee-jerk reactions focused on symptoms that, if executed immediately, could lead to negative organic revenue, EBITDA & exit value results. In many cases, PE revenue leaders are biased toward either sales or marketing (e.g., led by the VP of Sales or the CMO) and focus on one or the other – but not both. THIS IS A MISTAKE. Revenue needs to be viewed as an interconnected system, and both sides should be recalibrated. Don't jump to conclusions! Many factors could be causing the slump: ·     Targeting the wrong markets? ·     Poor definition of your ideal customer? ·     Lead generation emphasizing quantity vs. quality leads? ·     Lack of a defined sales process? ·     Ineffective or untrained sales team? ·     New competition with similar messaging? ·     Lack of relevant content along the buyer journey? ·     Unaddressed negative reviews viewed by most buyers? ·     Product/service issues hurting your reputation? ·     Sales incentives to close bad-fit customers who later churn? ·     Maybe all of the above? BIG POINT: sales slumps are rarely attributable to just sales or to just marketing gaps. It’s almost always a combination of issues with a COMPOUNDING negative impact.   So, when I am brought in to address a slow-growth PE portco in either an advisory or an executive capacity, I typically recommend PE revenue teams start their analysis at a high level with 3 GTM buckets and then work down to isolate & fix the root causes: ↳ First, is this a market targeting/aiming issue (wrong market/customer)? ↳ Next, is this a qualified lead generation issue (marketing mix/channels)? ↳ Finally, is this a sales/expansion execution issue (sales process/training)? ↳ Or maybe a combination of all three?   When sales begin to sink, RESIST the temptation to call your favorite marketing agency or sales consultant immediately! Neither may address the full issue, including fixable challenges on both sides of the revenue equation. What are you doing TODAY to enhance your portco’s exit value by addressing & fixing the root causes of sales slumps vs. costly, one-off symptom band-aids?

22

4 Comments

Matthew Thornton and I just wrapped up a successful deployment of a new Rapta station for a customer in Connecticut. It's been an amazing couple of days seeing our technology in action. 🔧 Rapta accelerates the creation of manufacturing work instructions by automating the generation of guided video tutorials that anyone can understand. Key challenges we're addressing: ➡️ Rapid creation and maintenance of video work instructions with full change management ➡️ Universal comprehension of instructions, boosting productivity for line workers, especially non-native English speakers. ➡️ Quick knowledge sharing and standardized training for all line workers. ➡️ Rapid ROI across a variety of electro-mechanical assembly tasks. The results? Our customers report 🥇 5x faster new worker training and lower assembly errors with Rapta as video work instructions & AI guidance provide actionable instruction that error proofs manufacturing. Thanks to Rapta, Inc. video work instructions and AI guidance, we're providing actionable, error-proofing solutions that are transforming manufacturing efficiency in the USA! Proud to be part of a team making such a significant impact in the industry! 💪 #Manufacturing #AI #WorkInstructions #ProductivityBoost #IndustryInnovation

31

4 Comments

I'm a regular listener of Vox Media's Today, Explained. I started Friday's episode and enjoyed hearing a familiar voice, Alexander DiLeonardo, talking about the in-office culture at Citadel Securities. He raises a point about companies being intentional, i.e., "...that leaves a ton of room for organizations to choose the kind of environment that they provide and be very clear in the sort of the social contract..." There isn't a one-size-fits-all answer for balancing in-office and remote work for knowledge workers. Leaders have to determine how to reinforce the culture and environment they want to see in their organizations and employees have to assess whether that is a contract they are willing to sign. I look forward to discussing the episode, "The office vs. everyone else." #futureofwork #officeculture #hybrid

33

1 Comment

Gong's GTM teams love DealHub! We're geeking out over how Gong, the Revenue Intelligence leaders, are using DealHub.io to, well, rock their sales world! Their Deal Desk, RevOps, and Sales teams are all raving about the platform. Here's why DealHub is a hit at Gong: * Less Busywork, More High Fives: DealHub slashed manual work by 50%, freeing up time for what matters – closing those deals. * Crystal Clear Visibility: Say goodbye to pipeline mysteries! Everyone at Gong has a bird's eye view of the sales process. * Faster Sales Cycles: DealHub helped Gong accelerate their deal cycles, meaning quicker wins and happier customers. * Teamwork Makes the Dream Work: Collaboration is key! DealHub fosters seamless communication between all of Gong's awesome teams. Curious how DealHub can boost your RevOps magic? Check out the full story! https://okt.to/WeHlgw #RevOpsLife #SalesTeamWins #DealHubLove #CustomerSpotlight

28

2 Comments