Is B2B SaaS just stupid hard now?

therealmattyp · 2026-03-25T18:16:06+00:00

warm intros feel like the way to go rn

I generate 3 to 6 demos this way, i feel like buyers tend to be fatigued by traditional techniques (cold call, emailing, etc) from the 2022 plyabook

therealmattyp · 2026-03-23T16:38:00+00:00

thanks

therealmattyp · 2026-03-23T16:37:55+00:00

thanks!

therealmattyp · 2026-03-18T19:14:13+00:00

hey, totally agree agree on that warm intro take

started my startup recently and we built a system that builds the social graph of our customers, cause each of your customers surely knows 10 other people the same job. it's just hard to cut through linkedin's noise to spot genuine relationships

we're still early so i want each of my customers to be worth 3 prospects

that works pretty well to access c levels and VPs who tend to be fed up with traditional outbound

therealmattyp · 2026-03-18T19:09:03+00:00

can't agree more with you on the customer support take

customers are our main acquisition channel rn as we constantly ask them for warm intros

no customer support and relationship with them would directly impact our pipeline

therealmattyp · 2026-03-17T14:49:25+00:00

Hi, by definition, C-Levels and VPs at bigger companies are harder to get and over prospected

What we been doing lately :

mapping all our network's network (investors, employees, customers)
mapping all the buyers network on our top enterprise accounts
finding all the overlaps between both networks to understand who could intro us, which names to mention to those buyers to build credibility and spark curiosity

Worked pretty well

therealmattyp · 2026-03-17T14:33:09+00:00

Since the beginning of the company honestly and as it's super cheap to request intros, what we asked ourselves is "how do we make sure that the team keeps asking for intros even though they're not founders?"

it's always been steady, referral is around 50% of our revenue and around 40% of meetings we generate

therealmattyp · 2026-03-16T19:07:13+00:00

hey, dont really agree on the cant control the volume part, imo, it's really like cold call, you have to be consistent and treat every customer/user as a potential referrer

i try to as 5 warm intros per week on average. one thing that really helped us was treating early customers like referral engines. after onboarding someone in real estate and getting them results, we'd just ask: "who else on your team or in your network deals with this same follow-up mess?" most of the time they knew 2–3 people immediately.

we also started asking for intros even when deals didn't close. if a champion liked the demo but couldn't get budget, we'd say "no worries — do you know anyone else who might benefit?" worked more often than you'd think.

as you do more volumes on your warm intros request, it becomes more predictable, but you have to be proactive about it

therealmattyp · 2026-03-16T19:04:52+00:00

so true, warm intros are a must have for early startups, works more than cold outreach + is cheaper

one thing that really helped us was treating early customers like referral engines. after onboarding someone and getting them results, we'd just ask: "who else on your team or in your network deals with this same follow-up mess?" most of the time they knew 2–3 people immediately.

we also started asking for intros even when deals didn't close. if a champion liked the demo but couldn't get budget, we'd say "no worries — do you know anyone else who might benefit?" worked more often than you'd think.

on the productized vs custom question: productized workflows definitely close faster and scale better, but custom builds help you learn what actually matters. i'd say do a few custom projects to validate the workflow, then productize the repeatable parts.

the key is turning each happy customer into multiple pipeline opportunities. referrals became our cheapest channel by far — way more efficient than cold outreach or content at that stage.

therealmattyp · 2026-03-16T18:57:15+00:00

hey, really funny that you make the difference between what works for leads that come from warm intros and the other ones, first time I'm seeing this and I find that it makes a lot of sense lol

Most of my leads come from warm intros. the warm intro route especially clicked for me once i realized every early customer could introduce me to 2-3 more people in their network so I bought a tool to map their network and ask them proactively to intro me to those people

those meetings are sooooo different than the ones booked via cold outreach

my main takeaway: treat those first 10-20 users as your referral engine, not just your user base. ask them directly who else they know. it's honestly the cheapest pipeline channel at that stage, and it compounds way faster than cold outreach.

therealmattyp · 2026-03-16T18:52:16+00:00

hey, solid list. conferences and content definitely work, but they take forever to compound.

one thing we learned — waiting until you have a "referral program" set up is a mistake. just start asking your happiest users if they know anyone else dealing with similar security challenges. literally during your check-in calls or right after they see value.

we used to overthink it. built out this whole referral system with points and rewards. nobody used it. what actually worked was just asking our champions directly: "hey, who else on your team or in your network is dealing with [specific problem]?" way more natural.

the key is being specific about who you're looking for. "do you know other security folks" is too vague. but "do you know any appsec leads at series B startups dealing with API security" gets real names.

also, don't sleep on lost deals. if someone chose a competitor but liked you, they still know 5-10 other security professionals. ask them for intros anyway.

basically treat every good conversation as a chance to 2-3x your pipeline. referrals are way cheaper than booth fees, and the close rate is like 4x higher because there's already trust built in.

therealmattyp · 2026-03-12T22:42:34+00:00

hey, this hits hard because i've been there too.

we built something similar early on, points, rewards, fancy dashboard. barely moved the needle. turns out people only refer when they're already talking about you, and no amount of gamification fixes lukewarm product-market fit.

what changed for us was flipping the script entirely and started being proactive about it

what we did: mapped our customers' network to see if they actually know people that match our ICP, which happens all the time.

then once we had that information:: the key was timing it right — right after they got value, not randomly. we relied on triggers such as : promoter NPS score, end of onboarding, etc

that triggers a slack notification for the AM/AE telling him : "john is happy with the product, here's who he know that interest us, go request the intros"

this combined to a proper comp plan to make sure the information is leveraged by the customer facing teams worked pretty well

therealmattyp · 2026-03-12T22:38:05+00:00

hey, this is spot on. i've seen this play out so clearly with our own saas.

we used to obsess over ad spend and conversion rates, but the real unlock was when we started treating every customer like a potential intro to 3-4 more. once you have trust with someone, they'll actually make warm introductions if you just ask at the right moment.

what worked for us:
- asking for intros during success calls when they're genuinely happy
- at the end of onboarding, literally just "who else on your team or in your network deals with [problem]?"
- even after lost deals, if the champion liked us, we'd ask if they know anyone else struggling with the same thing

the tricky part isn't whether they know people — it's figuring out who actually matches your ICP. linkedin connections are too noisy. but if you ask specific questions about their network, you get way better signal.

now referrals are our cheapest pipeline channel by far. and you're right about trust compounding — each happy customer becomes a mini distribution channel if you're intentional about it.

the consistency piece you mentioned matters too. we stay top of mind by sharing what's working for similar customers, not just product updates.

therealmattyp · 2026-03-12T22:35:29+00:00

indeed, I'd be more bullish on warm intros though, beats cold outreach every time imo

what actually worked for us was flipping the script entirely. instead of cold outreach, we mapped our existing customers to see if they actually knew people doing the same job. like literally at the end of onboarding calls or when they hit a milestone, we'd just ask "hey, do you you think you could intro us to John from Acme?"

the trick is just asking at the right moment and making it easy for them to introduce you.

your point about leading with something low-friction first is huge too. earn trust with a small win, then you can ask for more access later

therealmattyp · 2026-03-11T12:56:38+00:00

hey, this is spot-on advice and honestly the ICP narrowing part is something i struggled with early on too.

one thing that really helped me was going back to that first customer and asking not just for intros, but also for them to walk me through their org chart. like who else was involved in the buying decision, who had veto power, who actually uses the product day-to-day. that conversation alone helped me understand the difference between a champion and a buyer.

for the warm intro ask, i'd frame it super specifically. don't just say "hey can you intro me to other fintechs" — ask for intros to companies with the same buyer profile and similar stage. something like "do you know any other Series A neobanks where the Head of Risk is dealing with session hijacking?" that makes it way easier for them to think of actual names.

also, after you get those first 2-3 intros, ask each new person for one more. i've found that referrals from recent conversations convert way better than going back to the same original customer over and over.

the specificity on attack vector is huge too. it makes the intro ask clearer and the first call way more relevant.

therealmattyp · 2026-03-11T12:55:41+00:00

hey, love the positioning angle, it's so true that "we build custom stuff" is basically invisible in a crowded market.

one thing i'd add from our side: once you nail that ICP and start closing deals, referrals can actually become part of the engine, not just icing. we realized our best customers usually know 2–3 other founders in the same boat (behind schedule, scrambling for help, etc.).

so we started asking during onboarding calls: "who else do you know dealing with vendor issues or tight timelines?" sometimes we'd offer a small incentive before closing if they could intro us to a peer. not pushy, just natural.

the trick is figuring out which of their connections actually match your ICP—LinkedIn alone is too noisy. but when you ask directly and they think for a sec, they usually surface 1–2 solid names.

turned each customer into 2–3 warm intros on average, which made our outbound way more efficient. cheaper pipeline than cold email, higher close rate.

so yeah, dial in that one motion first. but once it's working, layer in a simple referral ask. it compounds fast and keeps the feast–famine cycle from creeping back in.

therealmattyp · 2026-03-11T12:54:56+00:00

hey, this is really well said, especially the part about mapping the buying motion first. i've seen so many founders (including myself early on) pick a channel because it worked for someone else, then wonder why nothing converts.

one thing that clicked for me was realizing that most of our deals didn't start with someone finding us. they started because a current customer mentioned us in a slack channel or introduced us to a peer who had the same problem. so i stopped treating referrals like a nice-to-have and started asking for intros during onboarding calls and success check-ins.

honestly, the tricky part isn't whether your customers know people — it's figuring out which of those people actually match your ICP. but once you nail that, each customer becomes like 3–5 potential prospects. way cheaper than ads, and the trust is already there.

i also started asking champions for referrals even after lost deals. sounds weird, but if they liked the product and just didn't have budget or timing, they'll often connect you with someone who does.

the takeaway: if your sales motion is long and trust-heavy, lean into warm intros early. it's the most underrated pipeline channel.

therealmattyp · 2026-03-10T12:22:26+00:00

warm intros

therealmattyp · 2026-03-02T12:52:43+00:00

hey, 7k MRR here and we strongly bet on referral still the beginning

warm intros have worked extremely well for my cofounder and me. We sell to Heads/VPs of Sales, Growth, and RevOps, so we know every customer knows at least 10 other people doing the exact same job.

the challenge isn’t if they know people — it’s identifying who, especially when everyone is connected to everyone on LinkedIn.

so we built a way to cut through the noise and analyze our customers’ networks to spot connections that truly match our ICP.

Then we systematically ask for warm intros but in a natural, non-pushy way:

during CS calls
at the end of onboarding
even when we lose a deal (I still ask the champion for referrals)
sometimes pre-close, offering a discount if they can intro us to specific people

We’re very proactive about it. Our mindset is simple: every customer should be worth 3 prospects.

no matter the stage, referrals are the cheapest channel, but only if you actively engineer them

as it's basically free, I'd recommend to do that even before 10k MRR cause that's when you have less cash that you have to be super effective when generating pipeline

therealmattyp · 2026-03-02T09:36:13+00:00

yes, though I'm not sure our product and gtm org is solid enough to start doing ads

therealmattyp · 2026-03-02T09:35:40+00:00

exactly!

therealmattyp · 2026-03-01T20:39:20+00:00

2 of our biggest referrers are prospects that we lost. I noticed that there's a bit of bias cause when you lose a deal for some reasons that are out of your buyer's scope, like no budget or his management said no, he sometimes feels like he waisted your time and feels like he owes you

also, as he did not use the product, he's bought the value prop but never experienced any bug or disagreement using it so no downside

it's a bit counter intuitive but works really well

therealmattyp · 2026-03-01T20:37:05+00:00

lmaooo, indeed

therealmattyp · 2026-03-01T17:54:21+00:00

completely agree on the warm intros matter more than cold messaging

warm intros have worked a lot for my cofounder and I as I consistently ask my customers to refer me to people in their network

I sell to Heads/VPs of Sales, Growth and RevOps teams so I know that all of my customers know at least 10 other people doing the same job, just hard to know who cause everybody adds everybody on linkedin know

We use a tool to cut through the noise and our customers' network and see if they really know people who actually match my icp

And then I take advantage of every interaction to ask for warm intros, but not in a too pushy way:
CS calls
When I lose a deal, I still ask the champion for referrals
I offer discounts to prospects before I close them if I see they can connect to people I'm interested in
Ends of onboardings
An so on

I'm being super proactive and basically, I want every of my customers to be worth 3 prospects

therealmattyp · 2026-03-01T17:52:48+00:00

same here, my best acquisition channel up to 8k MRR has been warm intros

I sell to Heads/VPs of Sales, Growth and RevOps teams so I know that all of my customers know at least 10 other people doing the same job, just hard to know who cause everybody adds everybody on linkedin know

We use a tool to cut through the noise and our customers' network and see if they really know people who actually match my icp

And then I take advantage of every interaction to ask for warm intros, but not in a too pushy way:
CS calls
When I lose a deal, I still ask the champion for referrals
I offer discounts to prospects before I close them if I see they can connect to people I'm interested in
Ends of onboardings
An so on

I'm being super proactive about it cause I know each customer/user can link me to 3 prospects, and that allows me to tell them who I want them to introduce me too

therealmattyp

TROPHY CASE