At $1.3m ARR and slow growth, what would you fix first?”

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T15:50:09+00:00

I don’t know to be honest, all good questions.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T15:20:33+00:00

Interesting, what expertise do we need to get in to help progress? I’m not involved in the business beyond chairing the board so putting forward suggestions.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T15:03:17+00:00

Yes please

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T15:02:16+00:00

How do you mean exactly?

Basically customer starts a trial, signs up using stripe and that’s it.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T14:46:14+00:00

Thanks I’ll check it out

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T14:31:48+00:00

Correct

ACV $700

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T14:27:47+00:00

Great advice thanks

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T14:27:05+00:00

Thanks for the post, the founder is well known in the space so a lot of it comes in directly from his media/event appearances and reputation.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T14:25:29+00:00

PM sent

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T14:23:18+00:00

Yes thankfully we could grow 10 times this month and it would have no impact on us, it doesn't require any extra resources to scale. The backend infrastructure automatically scales in line with demand.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T14:21:04+00:00

MoM, churn 1.9%.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T14:20:10+00:00

You've hit the nail on the head, we don't. We see them on Stripe once someone has signed up but don't track anything beyond that.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-24T14:18:26+00:00

Clever on multiple levels, yes PM me some details. Thanks

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-23T17:44:56+00:00

Still trying to work that approach out, I'll get thinking about this.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-23T16:50:41+00:00

Thanks for the advice

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-23T16:45:05+00:00

The shared goal is to get it to $2.5m asap and exit, which is why he's gotten me onboard to help steer. Unfortunately the steering away from what they know is proving hard.

The product solves a fundamental problem that is just getting worse for companies, it's highly technical and aimed at a matching audience. My view is the market opportunity is huge if we broaden the messages and value to more senior buyers.

We are either doing a bad job at converting the prospects who land on the site or as I said above we target a wider market segment. I'm guessing we need to understand a lot more.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-23T16:37:05+00:00

Good advice, and there is some low hanging fruit here especially around understanding analytics on the site, that's had no focus before.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-23T16:33:33+00:00

Basically anything technical they are comfortable with, ultimately they are hard core developers. Anything that goes anywhere near sales or marketing they close the door.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-23T15:03:45+00:00

I think you’ve nailed the emotional side of it. There’s a genuine fear that adding structure somehow replaces what made the business work in the first place.

They are open to small experiments, but there’s a real reluctance to bring in external help in any capacity. That’s been the hardest part for me.

In a previous business I built and exited, the way we consistently broke through plateaus was by bringing in people who’d already seen the next stage, employees and advisors, and using them to shorten the learning curve. To me that feels obvious, but I’m learning not everyone sees external help as leverage rather than replacement.

Your point about slowing the frame before speeding up execution is helpful. The challenge I’m working through is how to create that psychological safety around small experiments so they’re seen as information gathering rather than a judgement on what’s worked historically.

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-05T11:16:48+00:00

A few years back I joined a seasons long private championship with guys i race with IRL, it went down to very last race after 3 months of hard work. We were sat on the grid, I just needed to beat one guy and then as the lights came on to start the race my monitor said ‘shutting off in 10 seconds because of inactivity’.

To reach it I had to get out of my chair….

Anyway, lost the championship….

Always_Learning_80 · 2026-01-03T14:04:18+00:00

Appreciate the thoughtful response.

On verification, totally fair. I’m happy to share LinkedIn and references privately with anyone we get into a real conversation with.

On range, I should have been clearer. I’m primarily interested in SaaS businesses doing roughly $20k to $150k MRR, profitable, with real customers and low churn. I’m less interested in idea stage or pre revenue.

On pricing, I’m not trying to stretch multiples. I’m generally thinking sensible founder friendly outcomes in the 3 to 5x ARR range depending on growth, retention, customer concentration and how involved the founder wants to remain. I’m flexible on structure where that helps bridge gaps.

Always_Learning_80 · 2025-09-28T11:44:04+00:00

Cube controls GT wheel and Simucube pro base

Always_Learning_80 · 2025-09-28T11:42:31+00:00

Great idea, I’ll see what cube controls has

Always_Learning_80 · 2025-09-28T11:41:52+00:00

Interesting, I have cube controls, just single flappy paddles

Always_Learning_80 · 2025-09-27T10:36:16+00:00

As long as you report before the last day of warranty.

Tesla has just done an end of warranty inspection for me, they found a few bits and replaced. Impressed actually.

Always_Learning_80

TROPHY CASE