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MicroConf On Air

Author: Rob Walling

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Welcome to the MicroConf Podcast!

Every week, we feature the stories and strategies you need to level up your SaaS business. From the visionaries and makers who fuel sustainable, profitable software companies that don’t need to seek venture capital to make a meaningful impact in their lives.
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Knowing of which metrics to track, and which to ignore, is an essential part of growing your SaaS business. The ability to filter out good, actionable, data from the ever-present noise that just distracts you is what separates many successful businesses from the ones that never get off the ground. By creating a system of how you can collect, review, and take action on the data in your business you'll be able to take action with confidence that your business is going in the right direction. https://microconf.com #microconf #microconfeurope2019 MicroConf Europe 2019 Castos: Podcast hosting and analytics tool. https://castos.com Join the conversation → http://microconfconnect.com Twitter → https://twitter.com/MicroConf E-mail → support@microconf.com
microconf.comMicroConf 2015 There are 2 obstacles getting in the way of your visitors clicking your buttons: friction and anxiety. In this short presentation, see how both may be holding your CTR back - and what we've done to reduce friction and neutralize anxiety. (With data from A/B tests we ran in 2013 and 2014 on button copy.) Oh, and find out what the hell we mean by ""lizards thru doorways""... and how that little phrase can make all the difference for your button click-thrus. By Joanna Wiebe of Copy Hackers (copyhackers.com). Check out Joanna’s MicroConf speakers page for more talk’s ➡️ https://microconf.com/speakers/joanna-wiebe
Curious about TinySeed, MicroConf's accelerator and fund? The TinySeed accelerator team (Tracy Osborn, Rob Walling, and Einar Vollset) recorded this live webinar to answer questions about their third application round.   Jump to a question: 2:43 - Why is it called TinySeed? 8:52 - What are TinySeed's basic investment terms? 13:55 - Do we invest in non-US countries? 16:03 - Do we invest in B2B companies? 18:34 - Is there a requirement for the application process? 21:43 - What is your policy against repeat investment in the same space? 22:48 - How many months would you estimate the churn rate over for small business? 24:24 - I feel our evaluation now may be above the standard investment terms for TinySeed. Will there be any flexibility in terms?. 25:08 - What industries or companies did you see thriving this year due to COVID? 25:55 - We just started providing annual payments were people can pay in advance for a year — should we advertise those when calculating MRR in our application ? 26:55 - My SaaS isn't launched yet but it's making a $1000 or more in the MRR — am I right for the program? 27:36 - I believe you looking to fund to 20 to 25 companies, which is 2 times more than previous batches. How will you maintain the camaraderie and intimacy the with a bigger batch? 31:46 - We have a B2B SaaS system, we have 15000 active free users and 25 paying customers — 15000 looks better than 25, which one should I use for customers? 32:30 - Is Edu/Research Tech under your domain? 33:05 - Do you have a preferred formula for LTV? 35:04 - Can salary cap be adjusted with inflation overtime, or market changes? 36:16 - Is the investor dividend based on equity? 36:30 - If there are multiple founders, do you require all founders to be full time? 38:00 - What factors do you look at before onboarding a company? 40:25 - Is there an option to buy your shares out? 42:43 - Do you invest in S-Corps? 44:32 - What is the process and timeline after the application has been submitted? 46:19 - How do you approach the application if you had previously had a SaaS? 47:00 - What happens after the accelerator year? 50:18 - When is the next application process and when is the next batch? 51:16 - If you're recently launched, should I apply now (to be on the radar) or later? 52:12 - In your application, you ask the number of team size — is this the number of founders? 55:04 - How do you compute monthly churns, if only yearly churns are counted? 56:07 - Is growth more important than profitability? 57:25 - Apart from investing, what else can we get from TinySeed? 
We are hosting Lars Lofgren, CEO of Quick Sprout, to answer listener questions about SaaS, growth, and more. What is a good content marketing routine for a solo startup founder?Considering aspects such as: publish on own site vs guest writing for popular publications in the niche, ratio of educational/promotional flavour, or any other tips that come to mind- Kasra from FeedbackOnSite.co How much time does it usually take to start ranking for keywords you target? How do you ensure that eventually happens? - Tony w/ Cloud Forecast MicroConf Connect ➡️ http://microconfconnect.com Twitter ➡️  https://twitter.com/MicroConf E-mail ➡️ support@microconf.com   MicroConf 2020 Headline Partners Stripe https://stripe.com Twitter ➡️ https://twitter.com/Stripe   Hey https://hey.com @heyhey   Automatically Generated Transcript:  We're live. Welcome to today's episode of MicroComp on air as always. I am your host, Rob walling. As every Wednesday at 1:00 PM, Eastern 10:00 AM Pacific, we live stream for about 30 minutes and we cover topics related to building and growing ambitious SAS startups that bring us freedom and purpose and allow us to value and maintain healthy relationships. We believe that showing up every day and shipping that next feature, next piece of marketing copy or closing your next sale is a way to build a sustainable company. So thanks again for joining me today. It's been a couple of weeks last week was Thanksgiving in the U S. And so we, I gave producer Zander the day off. And of course, it doesn't make sense for me to get on here and try to do it without the expert to lineage of, of producers, Andrew and his production. So tryptofan attic. I think it's, to crypto fanatic, do we have a typo in my lower third for those listening on the podcast? Welcome every Thursday morning, we air these episodes on, the MicroComp podcast. You can head to microcuff podcast.com or search for microcuff in any pod catcher. And you can. Here are these here? These, these episodes producers, Andrew says, Tiffin is the chemical in Turkey makes you sleepy. That's right. So I'm a tryptofan addict because things and all that. thanks. Thanks for that. Producer Zander got a great show too. I'm super excited to bring on a first time guest to MicroComp on air, but not a first time guest to the microcosm world. Mr. Lars Lofgren is a many time MicroComp speaker. He's also a tiny seed mentor and all around good guy. He is the CEO of QuickSprout, which you can check out@quicksprout.com. He's a former director of growth at, I will teach you to be rich, where he worked with Ramit Sethi, and he ran growth for Kissmetrics and Lara's specialty is, has been content marketing and SEO for years and years. And he's one of the OJI. Content SEO people that I heard about back in the day, if you recall, Kissmetrics blog was the leading blog. It was the example everyone looked to in our space in terms of a blog that was driving a lot of traffic, a lot of engagement. And just something that we, I think a lot of us tried to model our own content strategies. That, and Laura's was the, essentially the man behind that, that effort. And so with that, I'm going to welcome mr. Lars Lofgren to the show. How's it going, sir? Hey, Rob, it's good to be here. Yeah, thanks, man. Good to chat with you again, Lars and I have known each other for years. I don't know. What do we think we met 2012, 2013, something like that? Yeah. One of the really or micro cops in Vegas when I was actually living in Vegas, which i...
Plateaus are the death of SaaS; unless you know how to spot and beat them. In this talk from MicroConf New Orleans in 2025, Rob Walling shares real data from 192 startups and reveals how to break through the 7 SaaS growth plateaus- including leaky funnels, high churn, lack of leads, and losing product-market fit.   Links from the Pod MicroConf US 2026 Tickets are on sale! MicroConf Remote Tickets are on Sale | November 5, 2025 Watch this video on YouTube Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube Channel  
In this episode, Rob reveals why selling to consumers (rather than businesses) is so freaking hard. He shares the only B2C SaaS strategy he would ever bet on, after starting 6 companies, investing in 224 SaaS startups, and writing 5 books on building life-changing businesses.   Links from the Pod Watch this video on YouTube Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube Channel MicroConf Mastermind Applications are Open MicroConf Connect Castos Startups For the Rest of Us Podcast
Rob read the comments. Every last one of them. 225+ and some were wild. He’s here to break it down, clear the air, and set the story straight. Watch the video that caused all this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rXXRdB3TJI&t=2s   Links from the Pod MicroConf Masterminds Watch this video on YouTube Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube Channel TinySeed Portfolio Rob's Books Startups For the Rest of Us Podcast
Every founder dreams of building the next big SaaS success. But what separates the ideas that just sound good from the ones that truly take off? In this video, Rob Walling shares his personal checklist for the perfect SaaS idea. The more boxes you can check, the higher your chances of success.   Links from the episode: Tinyseed Applications open soon! The SaaS Launchpad Watch this video on YouTube Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube Channel
If you're an early-stage founder or just dreaming about launching your own startup, you want to maximize your odds of success. But here’s the thing: not all ideas are created equal. Some are so tempting, so popular, that you'll see them everywhere—but they're actually traps that have burned more founders than can be counted.   In this episode, Rob Walling walks through seven startup ideas he’d never build.   Links from the Pod Get the Free SaaS Launchpad module Watch this video on YouTube Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube Channel    
Want to know the real truth about SaaS? In this video I cover 5 critical SaaS fundamentals that can help you grow 7-figure businesses. There are harsh realities to building a SaaS, but knowing these principles can save you from beginner mistakes.   Links in the episode: MicroConf Connect Watch this video on YouTube  Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube channel The SaaS Launchpad The SaaS Playbook Start Small, Stay Small TinySeed    
Join Peldi Guilizzoni from the MicroConf stage in Dubrovnik, as he details his 7-step journey from maker to entrepreneur. Peldi is the CEO of Balsamiq, and his talk is loaded with tactics that will help you grow business beyond what you can achieve as a single maker. Links in the video: Watch this talk on YouTube Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube channel MicroConf Europe 2025, Istanbul Exit Strategy Finish Big Balsamiq
Don't leave millions on the table when you sell – finding the right buyer is crucial for maximizing the value of your life's work. In this video, Rob Walling describes the 6 different types of business buyers and where you can find them.   Watch this video on YouTube   Links in the episode: Exit Strategy Book Discretion Capital Quiet Light Brokerage TinySeed Acquire.com Flippa    
Are AI Agents going to kill SaaS? In this video I explain why SaaS businesses are so resilient, even through times of great disruption. In fact, there are a few ways you can take advantage of the latest AI trends to grow your business stronger.   Links in the episode: Watch this episode on YouTube MicroConf Connect MicroConf’s Mastermind Matching Program
Venture Capital can be a great tool for explosive growth, but it's not a fit for all startups. In this video I explain the downsides of VC, and share how most companies should approach their growth and funding.   Watch this video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/uc85Kg70_Ng   Links in the video: MicroConf Europe Tickets are on Sale: https://microconf.com/europe TinySeed: https://tinyseed.com/ TinySeed Program: https://tinyseed.com/program TinySeed Memo: https://tinyseed.com/thesis Invest in TinySeed: https://tinyseed.com/invest
You need to be systematic and focused to find growth channels that actually move the needle as a bootstrapper. In this video, I'll cover some of the best, low cost SaaS marketing strategies that have worked in my businesses, and in the businesses I've invested in. Links in this episode: SaaS Launchpad: https://saaslaunchpad.co/ TinySeed Applications Open Through Feb 23rd: https://apply.tinyseed.com/ The SaaS Playbook: https://saasplaybook.com/ Invest in TinySeed: https://tinyseed.com/invest Start Marketing The Day You Start Coding: https://robwalling.com/books#coding
Incorrectly pricing your SaaS product is the easiest way to accidentally kill your business. I'll tell you how to fix your pricing, how founders fall into the trap of charging too little, and why charging more can catapult your business's growth.   Links in the episode: MicroConf Remote | May 21: https://microconf.com/remote Announcing a change in pricing and process: bit.ly/carthookpricing TinySeed Portfolio: https://tinyseed.com/portfolio The SaaS Playbook: https://saasplaybook.com/
Rob Walling shares 5 predictions for the SaaS and broader startup market in 2025. Some of these represent great opportunity, and others will be big hurdles. Let us know what big disruptions that you see coming that he might have missed!   Links from the Pod: MicroConf Remote MicroConf Growth Retreat Watch this video on YouTube TinySeed Portfolio Startups For the Rest of Us Episode 735 | The 8 Levels of SaaS Platform Risk (A Rob Solo Adventure) Linklo State of Independent SaaS 2024 Report Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube Channel
In this video, Rob reviews six SaaS ideas sourced from Reddit threads. These ideas are unlikely to be worth billions of dollars, but they could grow into your next profitable SaaS business and let you walk away from your day job.   Links from the Pod: MicroConf Connect Applications are closing Today April 9th MicroConf Growth Retreat Watch this video on YouTube The SaaS Launchpad Inventory Management for Custom Apparel Business Integrating Ticketing Systems Across Customers ERP for small manufacturing facility Client Portal for a Retail (in person) business Simple MAM (media asset management) Museum Cataloging App Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube Channel
Rob Walling speaks from the stage at MicroConf US 2023 to share how to hire your SaaS team. He covers job titles & incentives, hiring paths, and how to fire yourself - all with a focus on bootstrapped and mostly bootstrapped companies.   Episode Sponsor: As a founder, it’s easy to get caught up in the fun of building flashy new features. But failing to build a scalable architecture is a dangerous game.  When your infrastructure can't keep up, you lose customer trust, miss sales, and watch your churn rate soar. If you need a partner to tackle the hard work of building scalable architecture, you should reach out to our friends at Techstack. Techstack has been helping US founders build scalable products for over a decade. Visit tech-stack.com/community to claim one of 10 exclusive spots for MicroConf listeners. You'll get a free discovery session plus 10% off your first month. Head there now before these spots are gone!   Links from the Pod: Tickets for MC EU 2025 are on Sale Now MicroConf Masterminds Watch this video on YouTube Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube Channel
Incorrectly pricing your SaaS product is the easiest way to accidentally kill your business. I'll tell you how to fix your pricing, how founders fall into the trap of charging too little, and why charging more can catapult your business's growth.   Links from the Pod: Apply to MicroConf's Mastermind Matching Program before March 31st Invest in TinySeed Watch this video on YouTube Announcing a change in pricing and process TinySeed Portfolio The SaaS Playbook Subscribe to the MicroConf YouTube Channel
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