20 min listen
EP 357: He Quit His Job, Lost His Life Savings, Then Hit it Big With SaaS Business
EP 357: He Quit His Job, Lost His Life Savings, Then Hit it Big With SaaS Business
ratings:
Length:
25 minutes
Released:
Jul 16, 2016
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
Hank Leber, founder and CEO of Vytamin. Vytamin is a marketing technology software that provides an end-to-end marketing solution. The business made $460,000 the first year and is excelling in its industry. Hank will share his insights from failing with his first business to succeeding with the next. He is a great example of an entrepreneur who has persevered to create a service that works. Famous 5: Favorite Business Book? – The Lean Startup What CEO do you follow? —Jason Lemkin Favorite online tool? — Google Apps Do you get 8 hours of sleep?— No way If you could let your 20 year old self know one thing, what would it be? — Cheat a little Time Stamped Show Notes: 01:28 – Nathan introduces Hank Leber, founder and CEO of Vytamin 01:55 – Hank worked with Travelocity before Vytamin 02:16 – Vytamin is marketing technology software for an end-to-end marketing solution 02:47 – The service starts at $1000/month 03:24 – Vytamin is a SAS company 03:54 – Hank’s first business was founded at the beginning of 2015, because Hank wanted to move to greater things beyond his original goals 05:14 – You can get out of the corporate world, but it is a leap of faith 06:45 – Hank quickly exhausted his life savings with his first startup, Gonnabe, and the company failed 09:14 – His cofounders found outlets at other successful companies. 09:52 – Hank then took a year in the agency world to make back the money he lost and get on his feet again. 11:05 – First year revenue for Vytamin was $460,000 11:30 – They now have 85 paying customers, with $102,000/month coming in. 12:41 – Gross churn is about 4% per month, but at first it was over 20%. 13:48 – Their goal is 4% annual churn 14:49 – They don’t have to spend on marketing because they use their own software. There is no real inside sales team. 16:08 – There are nine on the team now, with $650,000 revenue last year. 18:26 – Monthly headcount is about $10k 18:53 – Revenue is 18% 19:30 – Hank does the Famous Five 3 Key Points: Even if a business idea fails, use your new knowledge to continue seeking a concept that works. Starting a business will require savings or funding as well as a big leap into the unknown. Give appropriate value to your employees and they will work harder and stick around. Resources Mentioned: Host Gator – The site Nathan uses to buy his domain names and hosting for cheapest price possible. Freshbooks - The site Nathan uses to manage his invoices and accounts. Leadpages – The drag and drop tool Nathan uses to quickly create his webinar landing pages which convert at 35%+ Audible – Nathan uses Audible when he's driving from Austin to San Antonio (1.5 hour drive) to listen to audio books. Show Notes provided by Mallard Creatives
Released:
Jul 16, 2016
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
Aweber Shares Revenue Numbers, Customer Count, Future: Nathan Latka brings you top entrepreneurs daily inspired by Tim Ferriss, Pat Flynn, John Dumas, Entrepreneur on Fire, Chalene Johnson, NPR, HBR, the StartUp podcast, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, APM Marketplace, Mixergy, Seth Godin, #AskGaryVe by SaaS Interviews with CEOs, Startups, Founders