Mostly Growth

Mostly Media

Mostly growth brings together go-to-market strategist Kyle Poyar and CFO CJ Gustafson who swap smart takes on growing revenue and running a company. From pricing and packaging to unit economics, AI trends, and the day-to-day realities of leadership, they share candid insights for CEOs, CFOs, and CROs who want to grow and operate at a high level. Serious topics tackled with a light touch for leaders who keep the trains on time.

  1. The Economics of Being an Independent Creator | Year in Review

    4 DAYS AGO

    The Economics of Being an Independent Creator | Year in Review

    In this year-end episode of Mostly Growth, CJ Gustafson, Kyle Poyar, and Ben Hillman reflect on what it actually takes to build a modern media business around newsletters and podcasts. They unpack CJ’s first year going full-time, comparing creative intuition versus metric-driven operating styles, and discuss what content truly drives growth. The conversation also covers distribution dynamics, the emotional reality of unsubscribes and burnout, and closes with a candid look at monetization, team building, and the tradeoffs between simplicity and scale. — SPONSORS: Pulley is the cap table management platform built for CFOs and finance leaders who need reliable, audit-ready data and intuitive workflows, without the hidden fees or unreliable support. Switch in as little as 5 days and get 25% off your first year: https://pulley.com/mostlymetrics Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That’s why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com — LINKS:  Mostly Metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/ Growth Unhinged: https://www.growthunhinged.com/ Kyle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-poyar/ Slacker Stuff: https://www.slackerstuff.com/ Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/slackerstuff/ https://www.growthunhinged.com/p/deep-research-for-gtm https://www.growthunhinged.com/p/2025-state-of-b2b-gtm-report https://www.mostlymetrics.com/p/presenting-the-state-of-the-agentic-financial-stack https://www.mostlymetrics.com/p/the-great-ai-arr-illusion https://www.mostlymetrics.com/p/presenting-the-2025-tech-stack-report https://www.mostlymetrics.com/p/download-the-annual-planning-bible https://www.growthunhinged.com/p/how-to-sell-annual-plans https://www.growthunhinged.com/p/get-recommended-by-chatgpt https://www.growthunhinged.com/p/gtm-vibecoding-ideas https://www.growthunhinged.com/p/how-to-use-ai-agents-for-marketing — RELATED EPISODES: We get roasted for swag and drop some GTM gold https://youtu.be/uubf_8al95w Do vanity plates bring serious business? https://youtu.be/Cm1rubFb-kg Pricing in the Real World: Babies, Bots, and Billing https://youtu.be/T1cjFSZR0k0 — TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 Preview and Intro 00:01:12 Sponsors — Pulley | Metronome 00:03:32 Action Figure Swag and Year-in-Review Setup 00:05:07 Going Full-Time and the First-Year Reality Check 00:06:44 Writing Schedules, Creative Work, and Time Optimization 00:08:36 Writing Speed, Craft, and the Myth That Time Equals Quality 00:10:11 Perfectionism vs. Throughput in Newsletter Writing 00:12:23 Creator Burnout, Motivation, and Engagement Anxiety 00:13:28 Playing the Long Game vs. Obsessing Over Metrics 00:15:02 Best Work of the Year and High-Leverage Content Bets 00:17:15 Big Research Reports as Career-Defining Projects 00:18:39 When Memes Outperform Deep Work 00:19:12 LinkedIn Algorithms vs. Content Quality 00:20:11 Writing for the Feed vs. Writing to Think 00:21:23 Optimizing LinkedIn Profiles for Credibility 00:23:07 Subscriber Growth, Audience Quality, and Churn Reality 00:26:40 Reports and Research as Growth Engines 00:27:57 Tactical “How-To” Content That Actually Converts 00:29:41 Tactical Value Beats Sounding Smart 00:30:00 Building a Team and Scaling Beyond a Solopreneur 00:31:25 Simplicity vs. Scale in Early Business Decisions 00:34:57 Avoiding Boredom and Shiny Object Syndrome 00:36:32 Balancing Writing, Consulting, and Energy 00:37:14 Making the Leap Financially as a Creator 00:38:21 Subscriptions vs. Advertising as the Real Business Model #MostlyGrowthPodcast #creatorEconomy #newsletterGrowth #solopreneurLife

    40 min
  2. Pricing in the Real World: Babies, Bots, and Billing

    6 DAYS AGO

    Pricing in the Real World: Babies, Bots, and Billing

    In this episode of Mostly Growth, CJ Gustafson, Kyle Poyar, and Ben Hillman go deep on pricing—how it’s discovered, negotiated, and perceived in the real world. The conversation spans Salesforce’s rapid-fire evolution of AI pricing models, unpacking the tradeoffs between consumption-based pricing, flat-rate enterprise licenses, and bundling AI to drive expansion and simplify buying decisions. The hosts also examine what Salesforce’s acquisition of Qualified signals for the AI SDR market, competition, and private equity, before zooming out to practical lessons on multi-year contracts, renewal dynamics, and when longer commitments actually pay off for buyers and sellers. Throughout, everyday analogies—from daycare costs to grocery store loss leaders and Instacart price variation—ground abstract pricing strategy in lived experience, making the case that pricing is less about theory and more about psychology, cash flow timing, and incentives. — SPONSORS: Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That’s why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com Pulley is the cap table management platform built for CFOs and finance leaders who need reliable, audit-ready data and intuitive workflows, without the hidden fees or unreliable support. Switch in as little as 5 days and get 25% off your first year: https://pulley.com/mostlymetrics — LINKS:  Mostly Metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/ Growth Unhinged: https://www.growthunhinged.com/ Kyle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-poyar/ Slacker Stuff: https://www.slackerstuff.com/ Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/slackerstuff/ https://www.forrester.com/blogs/ai-agents-become-economic-actors-salesforce-rewrites-the-rules-of-pricing/ https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/CRM/salesforce/revenue https://seekingalpha.com/news/4532724-salesforce-to-acquire-qualified https://www.mostlymetrics.com/p/your-guide-to-negotiating-multi-year-deals https://finance.yahoo.com/news/whole-foods-ceo-says-he-is-slashing-prices-on-private-label-food-to-battle-supermarkets-120042642.html https://www.fastcompany.com/91458229/want-the-same-milk-and-eggs-instacart-might-charge-you-more-than-your-neighbor https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ad_higXixRA — RELATED EPISODES: 5,762 Job Applications. Zero Offers. https://youtu.be/VgzzsmgJxi0 Escaping the AI Thirst Trap: Building Products That Actually Last | Des Traynor https://youtu.be/LLtMIoppG3Y Sloponomics: Surviving the AI Content Flood with Rudeness https://youtu.be/kOK8oJ-lhZM From SMB to Enterprise: The CFO Scaling Playbook With Andrew Casey | Mostly Classics https://youtu.be/kMuJ6gAuEpg Is a weekly martini ARR? | with Dave Kellogg https://youtu.be/Yb1lUQLJ6qw — TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 Preview and Intro 00:01:12 Sponsors — Metronome | Pulley 00:03:33 Newsletter Discount Experiment 00:04:52 The Real Cost of Daycare 00:07:14 Childcare Pricing Mechanics 00:09:01 Salesforce’s New AI Pricing 00:10:14 Agility vs. Confusion in Pricing 00:13:31 CFO Budgeting and Flat-Rate AI 00:17:31 Margins, Performance, and AI Usage 00:19:24 Salesforce Margins and AI M&A 00:20:02 Salesforce Acquires Qualified 00:22:33 M&A Implications for Martech 00:24:24 Bundling AI in Vertical SaaS 00:25:29 AI Tools Move to Bundles 00:27:48 Multi-Year Deal Strategy 00:28:56 Single-Year vs. Multi-Year Discounts 00:31:50 Avoiding Price Increases 00:32:45 Multi-Year Deal Adoption 00:34:27 Best Vendors for Multi-Year Deals 00:37:40 Grocery Pricing and Loss Leaders 00:43:48 Wrap Up #MostlyGrowth #SaaSPricing #EnterpriseAI #GoToMarket #CFOInsights

    44 min
  3. AirPods as ARR, Direct Mail’s Comeback, and Other Growth Predictions

    19 DEC

    AirPods as ARR, Direct Mail’s Comeback, and Other Growth Predictions

    In this episode of Mostly Growth, CJ Gustafson, Kyle Poyar, and Ben Hillman unpack a wide-ranging set of predictions and observations about where go-to-market strategy, AI, and pricing models are headed next. They discuss why what ChatGPT says about your product may become a core marketing KPI, the resurgence of direct mail and physical touchpoints in an AI-saturated world, and why “almost as good as a human” is a dangerous positioning for AI-driven products. The conversation also explores AI monetization paths through advertising, the risk of an AI infrastructure timing mismatch leading to a broader financial pullback, and what historical parallels like railroads and the Sears catalog can teach us about today’s buildout. The episode closes with real-world pricing lessons, from energy-as-a-service solar subscriptions to the surprisingly massive standalone economics of Apple’s AirPods, tying together how distribution, perception, and monetization shape durable growth. — SPONSORS: Pulley is the cap table management platform built for CFOs and finance leaders who need reliable, audit-ready data and intuitive workflows, without the hidden fees or unreliable support. Switch in as little as 5 days and get 25% off your first year: https://pulley.com/mostlymetrics Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That’s why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com — LINKS:  Mostly Metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/ Growth Unhinged: https://www.growthunhinged.com/ Kyle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-poyar/ Slacker Stuff: https://www.slackerstuff.com/ Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/slackerstuff/ — RELATED EPISODES: 996 Culture, Exploding AI Bills & SaaS Chaos https://youtu.be/qhrxDL0gsRo The Layer-Cake Playbook for Vertical SaaS Growth | with Roland Ligtenberg https://youtu.be/yPxWvhPISKo OpenAI’s Impossible Math: $500B or Bust? https://youtu.be/L6PLnvjcnpk From Birding Apps to Billion-Dollar Bundles: The Future of SaaS Growth https://youtu.be/mzITrIP70Ok Where Did All the Middle Managers Go? https://youtu.be/LvN7RzmApPU — TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 Preview and Intro 00:01:07 Sponsors — Pulley, Metronome 00:03:27 Welcome Back And Consumer Friction 00:04:56 Insurance Middlemen Frustrations 00:06:34 Explaining Newsletter Businesses 00:07:25 Family Perceptions Of Work 00:08:32 GTM And Growth Predictions 00:09:46 Trust And Objectivity In ChatGPT 00:11:28 ChatGPT As Marketing KPI 00:13:41 Direct Mail Marketing Comeback 00:15:23 Tech Buying Media Assets 00:17:19 Fake Subscribers And Email Lore 00:18:30 AI Quality Over Automation 00:21:38 AI Healthcare And Ad Models 00:24:07 Advertising Fuels AI Economics 00:25:07 AI Boom Versus Bust Timing 00:27:16 Infrastructure Before Killer Apps 00:29:48 Railroad Economics And Real Estate 00:30:13 Solar Subscriptions And Pricing 00:32:17 AirPods As Recurring Revenue 00:34:24 Show Outro And Credits #MostlyGrowthPodcast #GrowthMarketing #AITrends #GoToMarket #StartupStrategy

    35 min
  4. Escaping the AI Thirst Trap: Building Products That Actually Last | Des Traynor

    17 DEC

    Escaping the AI Thirst Trap: Building Products That Actually Last | Des Traynor

    In this episode of Mostly Growth, Kyle Poyar and CJ Gustafson sit down with Des Traynor, Co-Founder of Intercom, to unpack how building, marketing, and scaling software has changed over the past decade—and what still matters. Des reflects on the early days of SaaS, why attention and distribution have become the hardest problems in modern growth, and how AI has intensified both competition and hype. The conversation dives into founder-led sales, why customer love and real product value beat narrative-driven marketing, and what weak retention metrics reveal about many AI-native startups. Des also shares Intercom’s thinking on outcome-based pricing, brand investment, and why reality ultimately “bats last” in software, offering a grounded perspective on what it takes to build durable companies in an increasingly noisy market. — SPONSORS: Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That’s why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com Pulley is the cap table management platform built for CFOs and finance leaders who need reliable, audit-ready data and intuitive workflows, without the hidden fees or unreliable support. Switch in as little as 5 days and get 25% off your first year: https://pulley.com/mostlymetrics — LINKS:  Intercom: https://www.intercom.com/ Des on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/destraynor/ Mostly Metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/ Growth Unhinged: https://www.growthunhinged.com/ Kyle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-poyar/ Slacker Stuff: https://www.slackerstuff.com/ Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/slackerstuff/ — RELATED EPISODES: Mall Santas, Chicken Fingers, and the Case for Keeping It Simple https://youtu.be/tgHuqVQgvQw — TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 Preview and Intro 00:01:15 Sponsors — Metronome | Pulley 00:03:35 Introducing Des Traynor 00:04:18 Early SaaS Nostalgia 00:05:45 Why Distribution Got Hard 00:07:12 Going Niche in Modern GTM 00:08:50 Founder-Led Sales & AI Rebrands 00:10:44 Product vs Narrative 00:12:08 AI Retention Reality 00:14:44 Churn Hiding Growth 00:16:00 Easy Come, Easy Churn 00:17:56 What Makes AI Companies Great 00:19:58 Standing Out With Real Proof 00:21:46 Customer-Led Marketing Wins 00:23:08 When to Invest in Brand 00:25:13 Why CMOs Don’t Last 00:27:03 Turning Happy Customers Into Growth 00:30:09 Pricing AI: Outcomes vs Cost-Plus 00:31:57 Limits of Outcome-Based Pricing 00:32:56 What 20% Margins Mean for SaaS 00:34:31 Leaving Money on the Table 00:36:50 Pricing as a Marketing Choice 00:38:03 Business Blunders & NDAs 00:40:03 Why Ideas Aren’t the Moat 00:41:22 Fake Scarcity & Angel Bait 00:42:55 Stuff We Tried This Week 00:43:44 Happy Customers as Marketing 00:44:12 Vibe Coding Gets Scary Fast 00:45:25 SaaS Moats vs DIY Tools #MostlyGrowthPodcast #AIStartups #SaaSPricing #FounderLedGrowth #B2BMarketing

    46 min
  5. Mall Santas, Chicken Fingers, and the Case for Keeping It Simple

    12 DEC

    Mall Santas, Chicken Fingers, and the Case for Keeping It Simple

    In this episode of Mostly Growth, CJ Gustafson and Kyle Poyar explore the hidden mechanics behind focus, competition, and value creation across both consumer culture and B2B SaaS. They unpack why point-solution companies like Untuckit and Raising Cane’s can outperform diversified rivals, examine how competition actually strengthens category demand, and break down the gray zone of mid-market venture exits where founder incentives and investor expectations diverge. The conversation ranges from private equity roll-ups to the realities of cold-calling returning as a top-performing growth channel, to pricing transparency, algorithmic price discrimination, and how everyday behaviors—from mall Santas to $12 club water—reflect deeper strategic forces. It’s a fast, practical look at how operators can stay focused, understand market pressure, and avoid chasing the wrong game. — SPONSORS: Pulley is the cap table management platform built for CFOs and finance leaders who need reliable, audit-ready data and intuitive workflows, without the hidden fees or unreliable support. Switch in as little as 5 days and get 25% off your first year: https://pulley.com/mostlymetrics Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That’s why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com — LINKS:  Mostly Metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/ Growth Unhinged: https://www.growthunhinged.com/ Kyle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-poyar/ Slacker Stuff: https://www.slackerstuff.com/ Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/slackerstuff/ — RELATED EPISODES: SaaS Founder or Pop Star? CJ Gets Schooled https://youtu.be/LMZq_DwVmkY The Layer-Cake Playbook for Vertical SaaS Growth | with Roland Ligtenberg https://youtu.be/yPxWvhPISKo The One Use Case for Venture Debt That Most Founders Never Think About https://youtu.be/XxH_Y9OH_i0 — TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 Preview and Intro 00:01:09 Sponsors – Pulley | Metronome 00:03:29 Mall Fashion & Nostalgia 00:05:17 The Modern Mall Santa Reinvented 00:06:19 Untuckit & the Platform vs. Point Solution Debate 00:07:58 The Power of Category Focus 00:09:23 Obsession, Craft, and the Raising Cane’s Lesson 00:10:13 Germany’s “Hidden Champions” 00:12:11 Competition: When to Care and When Not To 00:13:32 OpenAI, Gemini & the “Code Red” Mindset 00:15:01 Competition → Category Education 00:16:27 Pricing Pages as Competitive Battlegrounds 00:17:32 VC Deck Theater & Competitive Grids 00:18:21 Rise of B2B Newsletter Advertising 00:19:15 Awkward Exits: The Venture “Gray Zone” 00:21:13 Founder Life-Changing Exits vs. VC Math 00:22:31 Why Secondaries Exist (and When They Help) 00:24:25 Why $100–500M Is the Most Common SaaS Exit Range 00:25:41 Structural Misalignment in Venture Exits 00:26:47 How Much Secondary Is Too Much? 00:29:52 Business Blunders: Justin Bieber the PM 00:31:21 Voice Notes, Etiquette, and Chaos 00:32:50 Cold Calling Makes a Comeback 00:35:17 Catherine Jhung Still Cold Calls CFOs 00:37:11 Algorithm Pricing Labels & Data-Driven Pricing 00:40:38 Why Clubs Charge $12 for Water 00:42:27 Closing Credits #MostlyGrowthPodcast #mallstrategy #focuswins #businesssimplicity #growthoperators

    43 min
  6. Building AI-Native Software With No Rules | Christopher O’Donnell

    10 DEC

    Building AI-Native Software With No Rules | Christopher O’Donnell

    Christopher O’Donnell, Founder and CEO of Day.ai and former Chief Product Officer at HubSpot, joins CJ Gustafson and Kyle Poyar to explore what it takes to build an AI-native CRM from first principles in a moment when product development has “no rules.” He reflects on shifting from leading massive teams to coding daily, why CRM needs to return to serving CEOs rather than being trapped in operational bottlenecks, and how blending familiar interfaces with powerful AI assistants can reset user expectations. O’Donnell digs into market selection, product-market fit in rapidly evolving categories, agent-based pricing, and the cultural advantage of staying close to customers rather than the industry echo chamber, all while sharing candid stories about creativity, ecosystems, and the accelerating pace of AI-driven product craftsmanship. — SPONSORS: Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That’s why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com Pulley is the cap table management platform built for CFOs and finance leaders who need reliable, audit-ready data and intuitive workflows, without the hidden fees or unreliable support. Switch in as little as 5 days and get 25% off your first year: https://pulley.com/mostlymetrics — LINKS:  Day.ai: https://day.ai/ Christopher on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markitecht/ Mostly Metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/ Growth Unhinged: https://www.growthunhinged.com/ Kyle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-poyar/ Slacker Stuff: https://www.slackerstuff.com/ Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/slackerstuff/ — RELATED EPISODES: OpenAI’s Impossible Math: $500B or Bust? https://youtu.be/L6PLnvjcnpk The Product-Market Fit Treadmill | Brian Balfour Explains https://youtu.be/I5UqGlBOdoA — TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 Preview and Intro 00:01:10 Sponsors – Metronome | Pulley 00:03:31 Introducing Christopher O’Donnell 00:05:20 From Music to Software 00:07:10 Leaving HubSpot to Start Again 00:09:00 Inspiring Teams at Scale 00:10:50 What It Means to Build AI-Native 00:12:40 How Location Shapes Careers 00:14:30 Relearning in an AI-First Era 00:16:20 Shipping and Iterating With AI 00:18:10 The App as the Main Character 00:20:00 Using AI to Pressure-Test Decisions 00:21:50 Rethinking CRM Expectations 00:23:40 Choosing a Hybrid CRM Approach 00:25:30 Entering a Massive Market 00:27:20 PMF in the AI Era 00:29:10 The CRM Status Quo and Its Defenders 00:31:00 How CRM Lost Its Purpose 00:32:50 Rethinking Seat-Based Pricing 00:34:40 Why Credit Models Confuse Buyers 00:36:30 Flat-Rate Plans and Ecosystem Dynamics 00:38:20 Enterprises Sitting on AI Commits 00:40:10 Conference Room Dystopia 00:42:00 Getting Burned by Ecosystems 00:43:50 Trying Amazon’s Rufus 00:45:40 Suno and the Music-Tech Debate 00:46:28 Show Outro #MostlyGrowthPodcast #AInative #CRMinnovation #ProductLeadership #StartupFounders

    47 min
  7. From Birding Apps to Billion-Dollar Bundles: The Future of SaaS Growth

    5 DEC

    From Birding Apps to Billion-Dollar Bundles: The Future of SaaS Growth

    In this episode of Mostly Growth, CJ Gustafson and Kyle Poyar bounce between sharp SaaS insights and delightfully weird internet culture. They start with an unexpected dive into competitive bird-watching apps, then break down recent software mergers like Superhuman + Grammarly + Coda and what they signal about scaling, cross-sell strategy, and private equity mechanics. CJ and Kyle explore why PE portfolios are becoming powerful distribution channels for AI solutions, how niche data “signals” are outpacing generic ones in sales, and share hedge-fund-style tactics for uncovering proprietary business information. The conversation rounds out with “business blunders” — from Y-axis chart crimes to clickbait headlines — and a lively discussion on Spotify’s pricing power and how companies should (and absolutely should not) communicate price increases.  — SPONSORS: Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That’s why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com Pulley is the cap table management platform built for CFOs and finance leaders who need reliable, audit-ready data and intuitive workflows, without the hidden fees or unreliable support. Switch in as little as 5 days and get 25% off your first year: https://pulley.com/mostlymetrics — LINKS:  Mostly Metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/ Growth Unhinged: https://www.growthunhinged.com/ Kyle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-poyar/ Slacker Stuff: https://www.slackerstuff.com/ Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/slackerstuff/ — RELATED EPISODES: The Layer-Cake Playbook for Vertical SaaS Growth | with Roland Ligtenberg https://youtu.be/yPxWvhPISKo — TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 Preview and Intro 00:01:09 Sponsors – Pulley and Metronome 00:03:31 Birding, Big Year & AI Bird Apps 00:06:08 Software M&A Trends in SaaS 00:08:23 Superhuman–Grammarly–Coda Reverse Merger 00:10:00 How Larger Valuations Attract a New Investor Class 00:11:21 Streaming Wars & Platform Consolidation 00:12:46 Private Equity as a Distribution Channel for AI 00:14:14 How PE Firms Drive Multi-Company Expansion 00:15:22 AI for Efficiency: The PE CFO Playbook 00:17:10 When AI ROI Really Matters in PE 00:18:49 Signal-Based Selling: High-Intent Buyer Detection 00:20:41 Signal Fatigue & the Hunt for Better Data 00:22:16 Why Proprietary Signals Win 00:23:31 Creative (and Creepy) Data Tactics 00:25:35 Pinterest vs. Google: Aspirational vs. Actual Behavior 00:26:43 Blurring Work & Personal Signals in AI Tools 00:27:12 The Michael Jordan of Y-Axis Crimes 00:29:59 Notion Agents Billboard: “Let Them Cook” 00:31:57 Pricing in the Real World: Spotify 00:34:26 How to Communicate a Price Increase 00:35:06 Closing Credits #MostlyGrowthPodcast #PricingStrategy #AIGrowth #GoToMarket #PrivateEquity

    36 min
  8. The Layer-Cake Playbook for Vertical SaaS Growth | with Roland Ligtenberg

    3 DEC

    The Layer-Cake Playbook for Vertical SaaS Growth | with Roland Ligtenberg

    In this episode of Mostly Growth, CJ Gustafson and Kyle Poyar interview Roland Ligtenberg, Co-Founder and SVP of Growth & Innovation at Housecall Pro, to break down how vertical SaaS can scale in messy, offline markets. Roland shares how Housecall Pro grew from a $4-per-month scheduling tool into a platform with more than a dozen products, emphasizing the importance of sequencing “layer cake” monetization — building a solid core before adding new revenue streams. He walks through unconventional customer acquisition tactics like cold-calling trades businesses, Yeti giveaways, truck-wash offers, and word-of-mouth tracking, all rooted in one principle: speak to customers through the channels they already use. The conversation also hits pricing strategy, PLG vs. SLG balance, TAM turnover, and using AI to tailor messaging by segment, trade, and intent — with constant A/B testing to avoid generic “AI slop.” — SPONSORS: Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That’s why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com Pulley is the cap table management platform built for CFOs and finance leaders who need reliable, audit-ready data and intuitive workflows, without the hidden fees or unreliable support. Switch in as little as 5 days and get 25% off your first year: https://pulley.com/mostlymetrics — LINKS:  Mostly Metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/ Growth Unhinged: https://www.growthunhinged.com/ Kyle on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-poyar/ Housecall Pro: https://www.housecallpro.com/ Roland on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rolandal/ Slacker Stuff: https://www.slackerstuff.com/ Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/slackerstuff/ — RELATED EPISODES: Do vanity plates bring serious business? https://youtu.be/Cm1rubFb-kg — TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 Preview and Intro 00:01:37 Sponsors – Metronome, Pulley 00:03:57 Guest Introduction: Roland Ligtenberg 00:04:30 Poker Background 00:07:22 EDM and Hobbies 00:08:35 Layer Cake Strategy 00:09:19 Avoiding Too Many Layers Too Soon 00:10:13 Marketplace Pivot & Home Services Complexity 00:11:06 Early Fintech & Core Payment Rails 00:11:53 Source-of-Record Wedge 00:12:23 Serving 55+ Home Service Verticals 00:13:52 Pricing & Packaging Across Many Products 00:14:32 Core Plans and Add-On Structure 00:16:05 Balancing PLG and SLG 00:17:47 When to Begin Upsell Conversations 00:18:52 Sales, Onboarding & Success Motion 00:19:49 Matching Pain to the Right Solution 00:21:54 Finding the “Front Door” for Offline Trades 00:23:26 Gatekeepers & Communication Challenges 00:24:23 Unconventional Acquisition Tactics 00:26:27 Early Days Tactics for Traction 00:26:49 Cold Calling as First Principle 00:28:19 Improving LTV & Scaling Calling Ops 00:29:40 TAM Management & Value-Led Outreach 00:32:17 Word of Mouth as a Growth Driver 00:34:09 AI’s Role in Go-To-Market Personalization 00:38:04 AI Tools in the Growth Stack 00:40:18 Business Blunders Segment 00:43:20 Pricing in the Real World (Christmas Tree Story) 00:46:50 House Call Elf Holiday Marketing 00:46:58 Closing #MostlyGrowthPodcast #VerticalSaaS #GoToMarket #PricingStrategy #FintechMonetization

    47 min
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About

Mostly growth brings together go-to-market strategist Kyle Poyar and CFO CJ Gustafson who swap smart takes on growing revenue and running a company. From pricing and packaging to unit economics, AI trends, and the day-to-day realities of leadership, they share candid insights for CEOs, CFOs, and CROs who want to grow and operate at a high level. Serious topics tackled with a light touch for leaders who keep the trains on time.

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  • Creator
    Mostly Media
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    27
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Mostly Media
  • Show Website
    Mostly Growth

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