Vaios Gkitsas’ Post

We're in an era where companies that market themselves as high-growth startups, have laid off more employees in the last 12 months than they have signed new business. The era of capital-intensive unprofitable SaaS is shifting. A major problem I've witnessed is instead of building features customers are begging to pay for, companies are actually spending big on marketing the features they want to build to their investors and customers. The hope is that by the time the product has fallen flat, they've already raised another round and can move on to the next one. Now that investment has dried up, the pivot-raise-pivot playbook is extremely difficult. Businesses beholden to investment, rather than customers are always going to be blowing in the wind (in my opinion). Hopefully we enter a post-debt era where the free market once again decides which companies grow. Either that or I'll see y'all in the next bubble to let the good times roll once again.

The SaaS business model - not what it used to be The software as a service (SaaS) business model has been one of the most popular and successful models for tech startups in the past decade. SaaS companies offer cloud-based software solutions to customers via subscription plans, which generate recurring revenue, lower costs, and increase scalability. However, not all SaaS startups succeed in the competitive and dynamic market. In fact, many SaaS startups struggled in 2023 due to their reliance on external investors and the declining interest of those during the year. One of the most prominent examples of SaaS startup failure is Pitch, a presentation software company that raised over $50 million in funding but it is now facing a 2/3 staff layoff. Pitch's founder and CEO, Christian Reber, announced his departure from the company in a LinkedIn post, where he shared his personal journey and the reasons behind Pitch's demise. He cited the COVID-19 pandemic, the market saturation, the product-market fit, and the investor pressure as some of the factors that contributed to Pitch's downfall. Pitch will continue operations according to the now former CEO but with a focus on organic growth and sales rather than attracting new investors. This is a useful reminder of the challenges and opportunities for tech startups in 2024, and the lessons learned from Pitch's failure. What do you think of the SaaS business model and the SaaS industry? Do you agree or disagree with the post? Please share your thoughts and opinions in the comments below. #SaaS #SoftwareDevelopment #SoftwareEngineering #SoftwareCompanies #SoftwareSolutions #SoftwareTrends #HristovDevelopment

Declining startup valuations didn't surprise us. 📉 Two, three years back, we saw a surge of record-breaking investments. Now, the pressure has shifted from growth to profitability. i.e. (Cutting Costs, Less Hiring, More Efficiency) So, can you still get hired in this environment? Yes. But there are key questions you MUST ask – which I share in this quick video. 👇 #JoiningAStartup #TechJobs #TechStartup Video by GrowthMatch

Imagine pouring $32,000 into a broken product, losing 1.5 years of development, and missing out on $2.5 million in potential revenue. That's the harsh reality one of Asia’s fastest-growing startups faced. They trusted the wrong partner for their technology platform, and it almost cost them everything. Here's what went wrong: ❌ Traditional outsourcing: Constant team changes, no dedicated expertise, and exposure to IP risks. ❌ Founders lacked tech knowledge: Difficulty catching crucial mistakes and controlling development costs. ❌ Missing a long-term plan: Rework, delays, and limited scalability. How we helped them turn things around: ✅ Provided a dedicated team: CTO & 5 engineers, ensuring continuity, expertise, and ownership. ✅ Scaled their vision: Expanded from 1 to 5 geographical markets, with global leadership potential. ✅ 20x revenue boost: Optimized the product for efficiency and scalability, allowing them to serve more customers with the same resources. ✅ Clear roadmap: Defined tech vision, product roadmap, and prioritization for future growth. The outcome? They went from feeling lost and confused to running smoothly and growing rapidly, with the potential to take their business global. This is the power of choosing the right partner. We don't just build products, we build partnerships for success. Want to avoid similar pitfalls? Let's chat about how we can help you achieve your startup dreams. #StartupStruggles #TechPartnerTroubles #AvoidingOutsourcingPitfalls #SuccessThroughPartnerships #TechRescueStories

Startup Failures In 2011, I joined a startup that was backed by over $59M in VC investments. Many VCs considered it their "dinosaur," the company with the potential to carry the entire fund. Despite having one of the most incredible teams I’ve ever worked with, we didn't achieve the outcome we had hoped for. What went wrong? 1. Scaling Before Product-Market Fit: We expanded too quickly without ensuring a solid product-market fit. The foundation wasn’t strong enough to support rapid growth. 2. Being Too Demanding on the User: Our product required a strong power user to succeed. If the client didn’t have an exceptional person in that role, or if that person left, the product's success would falter. This ties back to the lack of a solid product-market fit. 3. Raised Too Much Money, Let It Go to Our Heads: We raised a substantial amount of money lost some of our fanatical focus. 4. Lost Our Culture in a Fancy Office: In 2013, we worked in an old brownstone office where the floors creaked and space was scarce. We were a tight-knit team, working closely and winning or losing deals together. Moving to a fancy new office spread us out and diluted our culture. What was once a immersive team spirit became a slogan painted on the wall. 5. Failed to Leverage Integrations: Our product wasn’t sticky enough because we didn’t integrate well with other tools. Tracking ROI required a lot of manual labor, which could have been automated. 6. Couldn't Keep Up with Evolving Tech: AI advancements could have significantly improved our product, but we weren’t there technically. We failed to evolve with technology. 7. Not Mobile-Friendly: Our product wasn’t mobile-first in an increasingly mobile world. Users spend 6-13 hours on their phones daily, much more than on computers. We missed a crucial engagement channel. 8. Nice-to-Have, Not a Must-Have: Ultimately, our product was a nice-to-have rather than a must-have. We never crossed the threshold to become indispensable, which is crucial in today’s market. This is where I learned that a strong Customer Success team can be a bandaid for churn and retain customers for an extra year or two, but ultimately the product needs to deliver impact. #highgrowth #startup #customersuccess

Top 3 Things for Early-Stage Startups Before Scaling: Product-Market Fit: Before scaling, ensure a strong product-market fit. Do your customers truly love your product/service? Does it solve a real problem in a way that resonates with them? Scaling without a solid foundation can lead to wasted resources. Foundation & Infrastructure: Can your current systems and processes handle increased demand? Focus on building a scalable infrastructure (technology, team structure, operations) before scaling rapidly. A shaky foundation can crumble under the weight of growth. Funding & Resources: Do you have the financial resources needed to support growth? Scaling requires additional investment in marketing, hiring, and potentially new technology. Analyze your financial runway and secure funding if necessary. #StartupGrowth #ScaleUp #ProductMarketFit #FoundationalScalability #EarlyStageFunding #StrategicGrowth #SustainableScaling #StartupSuccess #EntrepreneurLife #ScaleWithConfidence

Here’s the most common question I get from startup employees: I’m leaving my startup – should I exercise my options? 90% of the time, I say no. For most employees, the value of stock options in startups is a lie perpetuated by founders, CEOs, and investors: these options will make you some real money. More likely, they will be worthless OR they will cost you money. Sure - there are exceptions like DoorDash, Datadog, and Snowflake. But for the rest of us, there is less than a 10% chance your options will be worth millions. My quick rule of thumb → Unless the startup is later-stage with a layup to get to $100M in annual revenue, don’t do it. Startups with less than $100M revenue (typically Series C/D+) rarely exit. In thinking about whether to exercise options, we fear the worst: We leave the company, don’t exercise, and five years later we see Instagram posts by former co-workers buying new homes after the company IPO. Remember that when you exercise your options, you are now an investor in the company. So act like one. Don’t make the decision based on FOMO. Develop your conviction: Can you see $100 M in annual revenue, healthy margins, and continued growth for this company? Think like a late-stage investor - not someone who wants something to show for their time and effort.

Early-stage startups should prioritize product-market fit, ensuring their product meets a real need in the market Building a strong team with diverse skills and a shared vision is crucial and Efficient resource allocation and prudent financial management are key to sustaining operations Establishing a robust go-to-market strategy and acquiring initial customers is vital for traction Neeraj Parekh Prasanna Lohar Sashank Koundinya Ayushi Modi #GrowthPlum #Sales #Growth #Acceleration #StartupIndia #Community #Revenue #Vikraya

hey founders 👋 feeling overwhelmed by the magnitude of creating a GTM strategy? You're not alone. Even the best advice out there can be incredibly complex and often misaligned with the needs of startups and scaleups…. Indeed, according to Gartner, less than 75% of GTM strategies succeed due to misalignment and over-complication. But before you cry yourself into a dayjob, breathe… We have spent the last 3 years refining GTM blueprints specifically suited to early phase startup and scaleup businesses. In fact, the RAMMP IT UP 7 Day GTM Blueprint can even be used to validate early stage ideas, before you commit to eating ramen noodles for the next X years. Interested? Join the waitlist https://hubs.li/Q02K8xB60 Join a community of founders who are tired of traditional, overcomplicated GTM strategies and ready for marketing that makes sense. Our blueprint is straightforward and tailored for startups, ensuring you can execute effectively without getting lost in unproductive weeds. #GTMStrategy #StartupSuccess #MarketingSimplified #RAMMPItUp #JoinTheWaitlist

I believe that this is the best time to start a company and the time when the best companies emerge. When there are too many startups, artificially propped up by VC investment it enables non-sustainable ideas and business to float. I spoke with a founder, who I very much respect, a few weeks back. He told me how right after they raised $45M, they started to "dream big" without any constraints. They hired all sorts of aspirational roles, and high-level people - but they were not accountable to profitability. 6 months later he had to let go 75% of those hires. Now he is back to scaling, but with an eye towards sustainable growth and profitability. If the answer was capital, legacy solutions would always win. The answer is scrappiness, resilience, creativity. Smooth seas do not make great sailors. Failure rate of new ideas is a good thing, it leads to better ideas and new innovations. Also, if VC dollars get harder --- Corporate Deals and Partnerships become more valuable. The point of business is to do business. https://lnkd.in/eXBWmZpA