Crafting Winning GTM Channel Strategies with Ed Macnair, CEO and co-founder of Censornet

Welcome to another episode of Behind Startup Lines, the podcast exploring thriving startups' commercial dynamics. In this episode, we are joined by Ed Macnair, the innovative force behind Censornet, a pioneering cyber security platform tailored for small to medium-sized businesses.

Ed's captivating journey began with his early days as a door-to-door salesman, evolving through his tenure in sales and business development at Cannon, among other leading corporations. This extensive corporate experience laid the foundation for his first entrepreneurial venture, starting with a small and culminating in a successful merger.

Now leading Censornet, Ed and his team are applying their corporate expertise to scale a new business. Our discussion today focuses on the pivotal role of channel sales, the key principles for forging strong commercial partnerships, and the crucial elements of an effective go-to-market strategy.

We also delve into how the Pod model I developed influenced Ed's approach to building his go-to-market team. This episode is packed with great insights for those seeking practical advice on commercial strategy.

(02:12) Introduction to Censornet and their work with SMB customers.

(03:30) Ed's experience in the military and how it prepared him for entrepreneurship.

(05:20) Learning about resilience as a door-to-door salesman before joining Canon.

(07:59) Making the transition from working in large corporations to joining a start-up.

(09.24) From management buyout to founding his first company and realising the potential of an underserved customer segment.

(12:12) How a conversation with a Salesforce mentor led to the founding of Ed's first business.

(15:35) The importance of researching your idea with potential customers and not putting too much weight on the analysts' view.

(17:45) Tips on finding your technical partner, building the first product and pivoting quickly.

(22:10) The value of having a clear GTM plan early on and being acquired quickly.

(25:37) The value of building a channel strategy as a route to market and building meaningful channel partnerships.

(34:30) How Censornet organises its GTM team and the application of my POD model.

(37:10) How AI streamlines GTM and influences the businesses' tech stack.

(40:00) Ed's advice to other start-up founders and the value of mentors and advisers.

(41:55) What Ed would do differently next time around to go faster, earlier.

For more information:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/philipguest/

Website: https://www.revcelerate.com/

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/PhilGuesty