The Revenue Equation

Frederik Jakobsen
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Hosted by Frederik Jakobsen, Co-Founder of Danish Lead Co. The Revenue Equation sits down with CEOs and growth leaders to break down the strategies, challenges, and repeatable playbooks behind building predictable revenue in B2B.

  1. 2d ago

    Selling Software For Hardware That Doesn't Exist Yet | The Revenue Equation #14

    Teemu Uotila is selling simulation software for a machine that is not fast enough to run it yet. Enterprises are still buying, and here is how he gets them over the line. In this episode of The Revenue Equation, Frederik Jakobsen (founder of Danish Lead Co, danishleadco.io) sits down with Teemu Uotila, Chief Operating Officer at Quanscient, the Tampere-based deep-tech company behind Quanscient Allsolve, a cloud multiphysics simulation platform. Quanscient runs two businesses at once: classical physics simulation for engineers designing speakers, radars, lasers and sensors, and quantum algorithms for computational fluid dynamics that only fully land once the hardware catches up around 2028 to 2030. Two products, two completely different sales motions, one company. What you'll take away: - How do you break into an enterprise whose incumbent tool has been embedded for 20 years? Find the one case their tools cannot solve - Why start-ups and scale-ups close faster: no legacy tooling means no burden of history - Why the internal champion, not the budget holder, decides whether a deep-tech deal survives - The two sales motions running side by side: proving value on one product, fear of missing out on the other - Why speaking slots pull real buyers while a conference booth mostly pulls tire kickers - How to size a vertical before you enter it, and why focus is the hardest problem when everyone could be a customer - The buyer cannot see the ROI before they buy, so what actually closes that gap - Why testing one commercial aeroplane costs $50 to $100 million, and what quantum computing does to that number If this one lands for you, subscribe to The Revenue Equation and follow Frederik Jakobsen on LinkedIn. More episodes and resources at danishleadco.io. GUEST: Teemu Uotila, Chief Operating Officer at Quanscient (quanscient.com) HOST: Frederik Jakobsen, founder of Danish Lead Co (danishleadco.io) CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Meet Teemu Uotila, COO of Quanscient 01:07 - What Quanscient does, and why every design needs simulation 03:21 - How you run and sell quantum before the hardware is ready 04:47 - What a quantum computer actually looks like, and how you access one 06:07 - The chicken and egg between hardware and software 07:10 - Four founders to forty people 08:34 - The two things holding a deep-tech start-up back 09:57 - Breaking into enterprise: find the case their tools cannot solve 11:17 - Internal champions vs selling top down 13:11 - Where the pipeline comes from: webinars, IEEE and conferences 15:08 - Why speaking slots beat booths 17:37 - The ICP problem when everyone could be a customer 22:20 - Sizing a vertical before you enter it 24:26 - Proving ROI when the buyer cannot see it yet 25:38 - How the team splits between quantum and classical physics 27:42 - Why quantum will play out the way AI did 32:06 - How do you know quantum will even work? 35:17 - Where to find Teemu KEYWORDS: Frederik Jakobsen, Danish Lead Co, Teemu Uotila, Quanscient, Quanscient Allsolve, multiphysics simulation, quantum computing, computational fluid dynamics, deep tech go to market, enterprise sales, selling to engineers, internal champion, ICP, B2B outbound, lead generation, customer acquisition, The Revenue Equation podcast

    Selling Software For Hardware That Doesn't Exist Yet | The Revenue Equation #14

  2. 2d ago

    Why 40 Years In One Industry Became The Biggest Risk | The Revenue Equation #13

    What happens when a company spends 40 years becoming the best in one industry, and then that industry starts to wobble? In this episode of The Revenue Equation, Frederik Jakobsen, founder of Danish Lead Co, sits down with Dr. Thomas Däubler, CEO of MCD Elektronik, the German test and automation company whose systems now run in more than 60 countries, from southern Patagonia to northern China. After 40 years of founder-led growth built almost entirely on automotive, Thomas took over with close to zero automotive background, and that outsider view is exactly what surfaced the risk nobody inside the business could see. We get into how you grow a company without throwing away what already works: - Why 40 years of expertise in one sector quietly turns into concentration risk - How an incoming CEO spots what a founder living inside the industry cannot - The diversification move that keeps the technology and only changes the industry - Using Chamber of Commerce foreign offices to research and open entirely new regions - Why the same test technology has to be sold completely differently to medical buyers - How buying decisions moved from headquarters down to individual manufacturing plants If you are running outbound, opening a new vertical, or trying to grow a business that already has a strong niche, this one is worth your time. Subscribe for more conversations on how B2B companies actually create demand and close it, and find more from Frederik Jakobsen at danishleadco.io. GUEST: Dr. Thomas Däubler, CEO of MCD Elektronik GmbH (mcd-elektronik.com) HOST: Frederik Jakobsen, founder of Danish Lead Co (danishleadco.io) CHAPTERS: 00:00, Meet Dr. Thomas Däubler and MCD Elektronik 03:20, Taking over a 40-year founder-led company 14:57, Why depending on one industry became the risk 17:25, Breaking into new industries without pivoting 25:17, Why buying decisions moved from HQ down to the plant 36:29, The next 12 months and the MENA region KEYWORDS: Thomas Däubler, MCD Elektronik, Frederik Jakobsen, Danish Lead Co, The Revenue Equation, B2B growth strategy, market diversification, founder succession, CEO transition, international expansion, industrial test systems, automotive suppliers

    Why 40 Years In One Industry Became The Biggest Risk | The Revenue Equation #13

  3. 6d ago

    How We Source 100 Acquisition Deals A Day With AI | The Revenue Equation #12

    Trisha Gulati and her team at MergeWorks source 100 acquisition targets a day, score every one of them, and book the call before a human ever touches the deal.In this episode of The Revenue Equation, Frederik Jakobsen (founder of Danish Lead Co, danishleadco.io) sits down with Trisha Gulati, co-founder and machine learning engineer at MergeWorks, an AI-first M&A advisory and acquisition firm. Trisha came out of software engineering, closed her own first deal in January 2025, and now builds the back-end systems that let a small team run deal flow at a scale that used to need a private equity firm behind it. What you'll take away: - How MergeWorks sources roughly 100 deals a day and scores each one before a human reads it - Which acquisition triggers actually convert, and why marketplaces beat any clever list - Why sales and marketing is the highest-leverage fix in 80 to 90% of businesses they look at - How AEO, the AI-search version of SEO, is quietly reshaping HVAC and home services - The operating-partner model behind roll-ups: find one expert business that is not selling - What makes a boomer-owned business unsellable, and the 90-day roadmap that fixes it - Why data and memory, not clever prompts, are the real AI advantage in acquisitions - Where AI voice genuinely works today, and where it will cost you the relationship If this one lands for you, subscribe to The Revenue Equation and follow Frederik Jakobsen on LinkedIn. More episodes and resources at danishleadco.io. GUEST: Trisha Gulati, co-founder and machine learning engineer at MergeWorks HOST: Frederik Jakobsen, founder of Danish Lead Co (danishleadco.io) CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Meet Trisha Gulati, co-founder of MergeWorks 00:53 - From software engineering to closing her first acquisition 03:34 - Sourcing 100 deals a day with automated agents 05:05 - The triggers that actually work (marketplaces, alerts, inbound) 06:58 - How to spot a business that is ready to scale 08:45 - Seller conversations vs relationship building 10:46 - Filtering out the businesses that cannot be sold 12:40 - Making an owner-dependent business sellable in two to three years 13:28 - Why sales and marketing is almost always the highest-leverage fix 14:48 - The medspa exception: new verticals instead of more leads 17:05 - The operating-partner model and how roll-ups get built 18:14 - HVAC, boomer succession, and the AEO opportunity 20:41 - Voice cloning, call centres, and where AI still breaks trust 25:53 - Why data and memory are the real AI advantage 28:01 - Where to find Trisha and MergeWorks KEYWORDS: Frederik Jakobsen, Danish Lead Co, Trisha Gulati, MergeWorks, M&A, mergers and acquisitions, deal sourcing, AI deal flow, business acquisition, search fund, roll-ups, private equity, HVAC acquisitions, boomer succession, AEO, AI SEO, B2B outbound, lead generation, customer acquisition, The Revenue Equation podcast

    How We Source 100 Acquisition Deals A Day With AI | The Revenue Equation #12

  4. Jun 2

    We Went Bankrupt Twice - What We Learned | The Revenue Equation #11

    Two bankruptcies. €70 million frozen over a weekend. Customer acquisition cost crashed from €1,200 to €15. And somehow, 30,000 client companies and 700,000 cardholders later, it works. In this episode of The Revenue Equation, Frederik Jakobsen (founder of Danish Lead Co, danishleadco.io) sits down with Patrick Loeffler, co-founder and CEO of Givve, a German B2B2E employee benefits platform. Patrick has been building Givve since 2010. They survived two bankruptcies and the Wirecard collapse to become one of Germany's leading prepaid Mastercard benefit platforms, adding 1,000 new cardholders every single day with a team of just 70 people. What you'll take away: - Why "don't be the loudest, be the deepest" is the rule that wins long-term B2B - How to lead through a crisis without distracting your specialists from the work that matters - The mouse study that explains why founder conviction predicts company survival - "Type 2 fun" and why the hard adventures build the strongest businesses - How Givve cut CAC from €1,200 to €15 with no silver bullets, just relentless tracking - The dashboard tipping point that changed Givve's culture forever - Why you should always ask for the maximum (and stop negotiating against yourself) If this conversation lands for you, subscribe to The Revenue Equation and follow Frederik Jakobsen on LinkedIn. More episodes and resources at danishleadco.io. GUEST: Patrick Loeffler, co-founder and CEO of Givve HOST: Frederik Jakobsen, founder of Danish Lead Co (danishleadco.io) CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Meet Patrick Loeffler, co-founder and CEO of Givve 01:10 - Two bankruptcies and why founders should share their failures 03:00 - What Givve actually does (B2B2E benefits, 700,000 cardholders) 09:00 - Don't be the loudest, be the deepest (the B2B thesis) 09:30 - The Wirecard nightmare: €70M frozen over one weekend 12:00 - How to lead through a crisis without distracting your team 13:30 - The mouse study and why conviction changes everything 16:00 - Type 2 fun and why the hard adventures build the best companies 25:30 - Givve's inbound-only acquisition model (no cold outreach) 28:30 - Cutting CAC from €1,200 to €15 over the journey 31:00 - The dashboard that changed Givve's culture forever 36:30 - Ask for the maximum and stop negotiating against yourself KEYWORDS: Frederik Jakobsen, Danish Lead Co, Patrick Loeffler, Givve, B2B2E, employee benefits, Germany, prepaid Mastercard, customer acquisition cost, CAC reduction, inbound marketing, B2B founder, startup bankruptcy survival, Wirecard collapse, crisis leadership, pricing strategy, B2B sales, The Revenue Equation podcast

    We Went Bankrupt Twice - What We Learned | The Revenue Equation #11

  5. May 28

    How To Sell Your Business For More (The 20% Rule) | The Revenue Equation #10

    Most founders sell their business for less than it's worth. Not because the business is bad, but because they prepared the wrong things. In this episode of The Revenue Equation, Frederik Jakobsen (founder of Danish Lead Co, danishleadco.io) sits down with David Tobin, founder of Tobin Leff, a US M&A advisory firm that has spent 16 years helping owners of professional services, technology, and marketing communications businesses sell. Before founding Tobin Leff, David built and sold two of his own marketing agencies over an 18 year career. So he's been on both sides of every conversation in this episode. What you'll take away: - The 20% EBITDA margin threshold that separates premium exits from average ones - Why your founder salary is hiding your real margins (and how buyers see through it) - Strategic vs financial buyers, and why that choice locks you in for 4 to 6 years - The founder dependency trap that kills exit valuations even for great businesses - Pricing combined with over-servicing as the single biggest margin killer - Why M&A is about people and relationships, not just the numbers on a spreadsheet If this conversation lands for you, subscribe to The Revenue Equation and follow Frederik Jakobsen on LinkedIn. More episodes and resources at danishleadco.io. GUEST: David Tobin, Founder of Tobin Leff (tobinleff.com) HOST: Frederik Jakobsen, founder of Danish Lead Co (danishleadco.io) CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Meet David Tobin, founder of Tobin Leff 02:00 - Why your "why" comes before anything else in a sale 12:00 - The step-by-step process when you decide to sell 15:30 - Strategic vs financial buyers, and why the choice matters 22:00 - What buyers really analyse: growth, margins, dependency 25:30 - The 20% EBITDA margin rule 28:30 - Why founder dependency kills exit valuations 32:00 - The salary trap most founders never adjust for 36:30 - The biggest mistake: pricing combined with over-servicing 45:00 - M&A is about the people, not the numbers 48:00 - How to reach David and Tobin Leff KEYWORDS: Frederik Jakobsen, Danish Lead Co, David Tobin, Tobin Leff, M&A advisory, mergers and acquisitions, exit planning, business valuation, EBITDA margins, sell your business, B2B founder exit, marketing agency exits, professional services M&A, founder dependency, strategic vs financial buyers, The Revenue Equation podcast

    How To Sell Your Business For More (The 20% Rule) | The Revenue Equation #10

  6. May 26

    Don't Be A Breadcrumb: The SaaS Category Trap | The Revenue Equation #9

    There are gorillas, chimpanzees, and breadcrumbs in every B2B market. Most SaaS founders end up as breadcrumbs without realising it. In this episode of The Revenue Equation, Frederik Jakobsen (founder of Danish Lead Co, danishleadco.io) sits down with Peter Hedström, CMO of Learnster, to unpack how Learnster went from zero to $5M ARR over eight years in one of the most crowded SaaS categories there is: learning management systems. Peter walks through the early enterprise wins, the three years they spent trying NOT to be called an LMS, the pivot that unlocked their growth, and how he thinks about inbound, outbound, and category positioning today. What you'll take away: - Why being 80% right for everyone is more dangerous than being 100% right for someone - The gorillas, chimpanzees, and breadcrumbs framework for SaaS positioning - How Learnster closed its first three enterprise customers without a marketing team - Why trying to escape your product category usually backfires (and what to do instead) - How to integrate inbound and outbound so they amplify each other instead of competing - What changes in the playbook when you go from growth mode to growth-and-profitability mode If this conversation lands for you, subscribe to The Revenue Equation and follow Frederik Jakobsen on LinkedIn. More episodes and resources at danishleadco.io. — GUEST: Peter Hedström, CMO at Learnster (learnster.com) HOST: Frederik Jakobsen, founder of Danish Lead Co (danishleadco.io) CHAPTERS: 00:00 — Meet Peter Hedström, CMO of Learnster 02:30 — Eight years in SaaS, what actually changed 05:30 — Why timing mattered and the user-friendliness gap in LMS 08:00 — Pandemic, war in Ukraine, recession: surviving the macro 13:50 — How Learnster landed its first three enterprise customers 19:00 — Gorillas, chimpanzees, and breadcrumbs: the positioning trap 24:00 — Marketing and sales evolution at Learnster 30:30 — Where the demand actually came from: SEO, SEM, review sites, SDRs 34:00 — Inbound vs outbound, and why you need both working together 39:50 — Different strategy per market: Sweden vs international 42:00 — The Revenue Equation KEYWORDS: Frederik Jakobsen, Danish Lead Co, Peter Hedström, Learnster, B2B SaaS, LMS, learning management system, SaaS positioning, demand capture, demand generation, inbound vs outbound, ICP, niche player, market leader, $5M ARR, The Revenue Equation podcast

    Don't Be A Breadcrumb: The SaaS Category Trap | The Revenue Equation #9

  7. Apr 21

    Why Most Cold Email Doesn’t Work Anymore | The Revenue Equation #8

    Margaret Sikora, CEO of Woodpecker, shares insights on the evolution of cold outreach, challenges of adapting to market changes, and the importance of healthy infrastructure. She discusses the integration of cold outreach with acquisition strategy, considerations for channel selection, and the importance of a multi-channel approach and strategy. Additionally, she explores the understanding of buyer types, sales cycles, micro-segmentation for conversion, and the use of intense signals in outreach. The conversation delves into the nuances of cold outreach, emphasizing the importance of understanding intent signals, relevance in outreach, performance of smaller campaigns, belief in cold outreach, and best practices in cold outreach. The discussion highlights the significance of constructing email angles, identifying pain points, and the necessity of email in B2B business. It also explores the relevance of marketing, competition, scalability, and the performance analysis of smaller campaigns. Additionally, it addresses the validation of offers through outreach and investment in cold outreach, along with insights on subject line and copy length, language, and the impact of speaking about oneself in cold emails. Takeaways Adapting to market changes is challenging, but healthy infrastructure is crucial for success.A multi-channel approach and strategy are essential for effective outreach, and understanding buyer types and sales cycles is key to successful conversion. Understanding the pain points of the target audience is crucial for effective outreach.Relevance and personalization are key to successful marketing and outreach. Chapters 00:00 The Evolution of Cold Outreach11:49 Adapting to Market Changes16:58 Multi-Channel Approach and Strategy25:49 Micro-Segmentation and Intense Signals32:28 Relevance in Outreach41:48 Best Practices in Cold Outreach

    Why Most Cold Email Doesn’t Work Anymore | The Revenue Equation #8

  8. Apr 17

    Where Smart Money Is Going Right Now | The Revenue Equation #7

    The conversation with Jonathan Charles Tyler from Vortex provided insights into the world of capital raising, energy, commodities, and the impact of technology on investment. It highlighted the differences between the US and European markets, the challenges of standing out in a competitive market, and the evolving landscape of renewable energy and storage solutions. The discussion also touched on the impact of geopolitics on investment flows and the rapid evolution of technology and its impact on investment opportunities. Takeaways Energy and commodities are key investment areasUS market is more open to raising capital than EuropeThe digital age has changed the way financial markets operate Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Vortex and Capital Raising05:03 Comparison of US and European Markets12:06 Challenges and Opportunities in the Energy Sector25:05 The Rapid Evolution of Technology and its Impact on Investment35:09 Challenges and Innovations in Renewable Energy and Storage Solutions42:18 Market Dynamics and Investment Opportunities in the US and Europe

    Where Smart Money Is Going Right Now | The Revenue Equation #7
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About

Hosted by Frederik Jakobsen, Co-Founder of Danish Lead Co. The Revenue Equation sits down with CEOs and growth leaders to break down the strategies, challenges, and repeatable playbooks behind building predictable revenue in B2B.

Information

  • Creator
    Frederik Jakobsen
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    14
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Frederik Jakobsen