The hottest SaaS Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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How to reduce CAC Payback Period for your SaaS

Market Curve • 0 implied HN points • 31 Aug 23
💼 Business SaaS Customer Acquisition Revenue Marketing Customer Retention
  1. The CAC payback period is the time it takes for your user to pay back their acquisition cost.
  2. A shorter payback period leads to faster company growth; aim for 5-7 months.
  3. To reduce CAC payback period: test new acquisition channels, define revenue clearly, incentivize upfront payments, experiment with pricing models, focus on organic acquisition, and increase expansion revenue.

6 frameworks to keep in mind to experience the first signs of PMF

Market Curve • 0 implied HN points • 20 Nov 23
💼 Business Startups Entrepreneurship Product Management Marketing SaaS
  1. Pre-PMF has key characteristics like users paying for the product and reacting to downtime.
  2. In the early stages, focus on shipping fast, prioritizing ruthlessly, and getting feedback from users.
  3. Building a community, talking to users daily, and regular product releases are essential for early startup success.

SaaS roast #1 - Dopt

Market Curve • 0 implied HN points • 15 Nov 23
💼 Business SaaS Marketing Growth Strategy
  1. Landing page should have clear value proposition and concise messaging for target audience
  2. Product UX can be improved by including guides, walkthroughs, and clearer calls-to-action to help users navigate
  3. Focus on optimizing growth efforts for user acquisition and engagement, and consider refining activation metrics to enhance user experience

Seurat and the Opportunity in Vertical AI

Digital Native • 0 implied HN points • 07 Feb 24
🕹 Technology AI SaaS Startups Market Size
  1. Great products and founders can expand markets by addressing unique pain points and offering innovative solutions.
  2. Vertical SaaS companies follow a playbook of starting with a key pain point solution and then expanding their product suite for increased customer lifetime value.
  3. Vertical AI applications are emerging with a focus on industry-specific expertise and unique insights, leading to a new wave of innovation.

Incident Management: Monitoring

Certo Modo • 0 implied HN points • 10 Apr 23
🕹 Technology Monitoring Metrics Data Sources SaaS
  1. Monitoring is a crucial aspect of incident management to detect issues quickly and efficiently.
  2. Top-level metrics like Service Level Indicators (SLIs) and operational metrics provide valuable insights into system health.
  3. Data for monitoring can come from time series data, logs, and traces, and visualization tools like Grafana help in analyzing and interpreting this data effectively.

We're going to charge for our product

Eddie's startup voyage • 0 implied HN points • 17 Jun 22
💼 Business Startup Entrepreneurship SaaS Product Development Marketing
  1. The company is transitioning to charging for its product to focus on customer needs and accelerate learning.
  2. They realized the need to move past perfectionism and the 'one more feature' mindset to progress.
  3. Charging for the product is seen as a step towards establishing a business, understanding customer preferences, and improving product-market fit.

More interesting things in robotics this week

Robots & Startups • 0 implied HN points • 31 Jul 21
🕹 Technology Robotics Insurtech Biotechnology SaaS Artificial Intelligence
  1. Flock Ltd. secured $17m in Series A funding for providing intelligent insurance to drone operators and commercial motor fleets.
  2. Strateos, a biotechnology company, raised an undisclosed amount in Series B funding to offer robotic solutions for biology labs.
  3. Cyberdontics, a San Francisco developer, received $4m in seed funding for its work in...

Coming soon

CRO Corner • 0 implied HN points • 30 Jul 24
💼 Business SaaS Sales Revenue Marketing B2B
  1. The CRO Corner newsletter focuses on helping businesses grow their revenue.
  2. It covers topics related to SaaS, B2B sales, and strategies for success.
  3. Subscribing to the newsletter can provide valuable insights and tips for business growth.

Part 2: How to get your first 1000 customers

The Road to 1 Million ARR • 0 implied HN points • 20 Jun 24
💼 Business Entrepreneurship Marketing Sales Growth SaaS
  1. Bootstrapped businesses have to be smart about growth. Without VC funding, you can’t spend money on advertising but this can make you resourceful.
  2. SEO is a strong, long-term growth strategy. It might take time to see results, but once your content is out there, it can keep attracting users for a long time.
  3. Focus on creating quality content that answers questions in your niche. This helps you connect with the right audience and converts visitors into customers.

How we priced our AI SaaS product (and the mistakes we avoided)

CommandBlogue • 0 implied HN points • 28 May 24
💼 Business SaaS Pricing Revenue AI Strategy
  1. Pricing needs to maximize revenue while keeping cash flow stable. Companies should seek to charge what customers are willing to pay without running out of money.
  2. There are different pricing models to consider for AI products. Usage-based or subscription models can create various incentives for both the customer and the company.
  3. Understanding how customers derive value from a product is crucial. The pricing model should support delivering that value easily, making it convenient for customers to use the service without worrying about costs.

Get your users into the habit of upgrading

CommandBlogue • 0 implied HN points • 21 Mar 24
💼 Business Marketing User Experience Product Design SaaS Consumer behavior
  1. Make it easy for users to take actions like signing up or upgrading. The simpler it is, the more likely they are to do it.
  2. Using a consistent button for similar actions helps users form good habits. They will associate that button with success and keep using it.
  3. Be careful with what you make easy to do. Some actions, like deleting data, should have extra steps to prevent mistakes.

One avoidable mistake for SaaS sales

Router by Dmitry Pimenov • 0 implied HN points • 02 Mar 23
💼 Business SaaS Sales APIs Startups Marketing
  1. Many startups struggle to gain traction because organizations prefer software that works well with their existing tools. Selling a standalone solution is often not enough.
  2. Bundled software solutions, like GSuite and Microsoft 365, attract users because they offer convenience and integration, even if some products aren't the best in their category.
  3. Startups can improve their chances by using Web APIs to connect with larger platforms or by creating their own APIs. This helps them integrate into existing workflows and keeps users engaged.

Join the Good Better Best subscriber chat

Good Better Best • 0 implied HN points • 07 Nov 24
💼 Business SaaS Pricing Community Chat Research
  1. There is a new subscriber chat for people who follow the Good Better Best publication. It's a place to discuss SaaS pricing and share ideas.
  2. To join the chat, you need to download the Substack app and turn on notifications. This way, you won't miss any updates or questions.
  3. Once you're in the app, find the chat icon, and you can start participating in conversations right away. It's easy and a great way to connect with others.

#36 Navattic's PLG funnel with Natalie Marcotullio

Organic SaaS Growth • 0 implied HN points • 12 Nov 24
💼 Business SaaS Marketing Growth Sales Operations
  1. Navattic creates interactive product demos that help marketing and sales teams showcase their products. This gives potential customers a hands-on experience before they decide to buy.
  2. Word of mouth is their best-performing channel. People love sharing tools that are free to try, and this has helped increase their referrals since launching a freemium plan.
  3. When hiring a marketer, it's crucial to know what role you really need. Understanding your specific marketing goals can help you find the right person for your team.

MKT1 Newsletter - Active Discounts on Tools & Agencies for Marketers

MKT1 Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 29 Nov 24
💼 Business Marketing E-commerce Discounts SaaS Entrepreneurship
  1. Paid subscribers can access exclusive discounts on various products and services. It's a good way to save money while getting useful tools.
  2. Different software tools are available for marketers, like Fiverr Pro and Riverside.fm, each offering unique features and discounts. These can help with tasks like recording podcasts or managing marketing projects.
  3. Subscribers can reach out if they want to list their own discounts or sponsor the newsletter. This creates a community where everyone can benefit from shared resources.

Why Look Around?

ciamweekly • 0 implied HN points • 23 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Software Engineering SaaS Security Authentication
  1. Cost issues can lead teams to look for new CIAM solutions, especially if a vendor raises prices or causes delays in other features.
  2. Availability problems with a vendor, like outages, can make companies reconsider their choice for CIAM, especially after multiple incidents.
  3. Sometimes teams seek new features or capabilities that their current CIAM solution doesn't offer, prompting a search for alternatives.

FortuneGPT: When AI Reads Your Future (and Your Slack Messages)

Phoenix Substack • 0 implied HN points • 25 Feb 25
🕹 Technology AI SaaS Software Data Analytics
  1. FortuneGPT mixes tarot reading with AI to predict your future based on your data and habits. It's like having a digital fortune teller who uses real information to give you insights.
  2. The app learns from each reading, becoming better at understanding your worries over time. It can adjust its advice based on your mood and past decisions.
  3. FortuneGPT offers a free version and multiple paid plans that upsell deeper insights and predictions. It's designed to keep users engaged and curious, almost like a subscription service for mystical insights.

#39 Free Tiers: A Backward Strategy

Organic SaaS Growth • 0 implied HN points • 20 Feb 25
💼 Business SaaS Marketing Startups Growth Entrepreneurship
  1. Free tiers can be more harmful than helpful for many SaaS companies. They often attract users who don’t convert to paying customers, which can drain resources.
  2. Instead of launching with a free tier, focus on getting a small group of paying users early on. This allows for valuable feedback and steady income.
  3. Only consider adding a free tier after establishing a solid product and user base. At that point, it can help expand your market without overwhelming your resources.

Issue #5: B2B SaaS Founder, Paying the Hidden AI Tax?

OSS.fund Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 17 Apr 25
💼 Business SaaS AI Marketing Finance Strategy
  1. Adding AI features to a SaaS product can lead to increased costs without improving sales, which is seen as the 'AI Tax'.
  2. Companies need to clarify the value of their AI features and ensure that pricing matches this value to encourage growth.
  3. It's essential to track how AI features are used and their associated costs to manage margins effectively and prevent losses.

Hyperscalers Are Quietly Taking Over Enterprise Tech Spend

OSS.fund Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 06 Mar 25
💼 Business Cloud Computing AI Technology SaaS
  1. Big tech companies like AWS, Microsoft, and Google are changing how businesses buy tech. They're not just providing cloud services anymore; they're also influencing what tools and services companies use.
  2. Smaller IT and SaaS companies are now reliant on these big tech firms to reach customers. This means they might lose direct contact with their customers and end up paying high commissions to sell on these platforms.
  3. To stay competitive, companies must avoid relying too much on one tech giant. Diversifying their services and creating unique offerings can help them survive and thrive in this new landscape.