GaaS For SaaS

Last year our US business grew 13%, while our international markets grew 7X faster ?? That’s why we were able to hit $40M in annual revenue in 2024. But it almost never happened… A few months ago, I shared a $12M mistake I made at Obvi - waiting too long to expand beyond the US. I initially saw international as a "we'll get to it eventually" revenue stream, but the numbers don't lie—like I said, our international markets grew at nearly 7 times the rate of our domestic business. ?? Looking at Q4 alone: ???? Canada: $2.45M in total sales, up 40% YoY ???? Australia: $1.63M in total sales, up 69% YoY ???? UK: $1.31M in total sales, up 45% YoY I recently sat down with Darwish Gani and the OpenBorder team, and they confirmed this isn't just an Obvi thing—most of the top brands they work with are seeing international markets outpace domestic ones. ?? In fact, their data shows their top brands saw 5x the growth in markets outside of the US in Q4 of 2024. That’s why this year we're doubling down on international in ways we hadn't even considered before: ? Expanding into new channels – launching on Amazon and TikTok Shop in our top international markets? ? Onsite CRO for international shoppers – shipping price testing by region, delivery promises for fast shipping regions, and localized upsell flows to boost AOV? ? Better post-purchase experience – leveraging OpenBorder's upcoming Gorgias integration to streamline international customer support Our partnership with OpenBorder isn't just moving our products beyond our borders. They help us think strategically about global growth, market by market, channel by channel. So if you're still thinking international is a "someday" strategy, don't wait months and lose millions like I did. The opportunity isn't just theoretical.? It's showing up in our P&L RIGHT NOW and will take our brand to a new level in 2025.

One small change we made in Q4 just showed up in our metrics review. I say “small”, but the impact stopped our entire planning meeting. “That can’t be right, can it?” Like most DTC brands, we're constantly optimizing our tech stack. A few months ago, we decided to switch our onsite popup management to a new tool called Alia. We didn't have big expectations. I've seen dozens of popup tools and most of them do the same thing. But we implemented it at the end of the year to see if it could move the needle. Then I saw December's numbers → - 45,000+ popup views - 24.6% email signup rate (nearly 1 in 4 visitors) - Almost 10% conversion on those signups - $97k in directly attributed revenue Had to do a double-take. So here's the benefit of testing stuff and not being satisfied with the status quo. Sometimes you try something thinking it's just another A/B test, then months later the data shows you it was actually a pivotal decision. Quick backstory: I met the founder Shaan Arora at an event last year. We got talking about conversion optimization (you know how founders are - we can't help ourselves). He mentioned what they were building at Alia. Like every CEO, I get pitched tools constantly. A lot of them I reject, because they don’t fit or we don’t need them. But we try to test things that might move the needle. And I really liked what Shaan had to say about his vision for Alia. Glad he convinced me. This crushed our previous popup, so now we’re thinking of all sorts of ways to lean in and leverage it moving forward. This is what fascinates me about building - your biggest wins sometimes come from the places you least expect. While everyone's chasing the next big innovation, sometimes it's the small optimizations - those “why not, let’s try it” moments - that compound into real impact. One of those moments that reminds me why we're so obsessive about testing and measuring everything. Never assume you know where your next breakthrough will come from.

?? Black Friday and Cyber Monday aren’t just about the sale — they’re prime opportunities to bring new customers into your loyalty program. Here’s how to stand out: 1?? Offer exclusive perks for loyalty members, like early access or member-only bundles. Make them feel part of something special. 2?? Double down on points or rewards for purchases during the event. Could you offer more to those that subscribe & save? 3?? Personalize follow-ups with a “welcome” offer or bonus for signing up. This is a great spot to promote your membership program, too. These are just some quick tips I'm seeing in my conversations with merchants. If you're looking for more, I highly suggest following Ronak Shah, Ashvin Melwani, and Ankit Patel as they will likely drop a wealth of knowledge all throughout the holiday season!?

Tomorrow is one of the first days I am pretty anxious about...here's why: . We have Sahil Bloom coming on the Chew On This Pod!!! - I've been following Sahil Bloom and his content for years now, and his insights have genuinely shaped the way I think—not only about business but also about personal growth, life, and the power of storytelling. His ability to distill complex topics into actionable takeaways is remarkable. Whether it’s his sharp takes on finance, life lessons, or deep dives into the nuances of entrepreneurship, Sahil has influenced me in ways I couldn’t have imagined when I first came across his content. - Tomorrow’s conversation will be a deep dive into the journey of a man who has built not just a following, but a movement—helping entrepreneurs, creators, and everyday people unlock their potential. We’ll discuss everything from scaling businesses to navigating life’s complexities and how Sahil continues to provide value through every project he touches. For myself, Ashvin and Ankit, this is more than just an interview—it’s a moment to connect with someone whose words have motivated us to push harder, think bigger, and strive for more. If you’re as big a fan of Sahil as I am, you won’t want to miss this one. - We will use some questions from our network and call you out specifically, so if you were meeting Sahil tomorrow, what's one question you have for him? Drop it in the comments below! ??

You have to take a moment and stop to think about how far some things have come. . We started Chew On This Podcast because?Ankit,?Ashvin, and I wanted to share everything we were learning and the mistakes we made building Obvi. . Today, we just hosted?Rob Schutz, founder of?Ro, a multi-billion dollar brand that has paved the way for many others in the health and pharma space. . It's unreal to think about the privilege we have had in bringing on founders and operators who have built multi-billion dollar brands and sharing their insights with our network. Excited to keep growing Chew On This as we approach Season 5!

4 Roles we're hiring for at Chew On This and GaaS For SaaS 1) Sales / Account Executive - Target OTE: $250K 2) Killer B2B Marketer who wants to build & market some of our new products from the ground up Starting Base: $120K 3) Influencer Manager -Starting Base $80K 4) Exceptional Copywriter/Content Lead with b2b experience DM me or comment on a good fit!

SaaS tools not utilizing webinars are missing out on a HUGE opportunity to educate others on their value props… Here’s 3 reasons why webinars are a necessity in your marketing efforts ?? 1?? Buyer’s Intent + Education We’ve seen that those who join the webinar are coming in for 2 reasons ?They’re interested in the topic to be discussed (your company’s niche) ?They’re interested in your company So off the bat you have an audience of potential buyers… Potential buyers = those who’re interested, but need more info on why you're the tool to use That’s why webinars come in handy – the perfect platform to educate attendees on your USPs. THAT is the biggest struggle point for SaaS tools in their marketing efforts – educating. So here you can get your messaging in order, establish yourselves as authorities or thought leaders in the vertical, relay your value props directly to potential buyers, and conduct a Q&A to get any doubts out of the way. A “1:1”, informal sales demo, if you will. 2?? Content Content Content All webinars are recorded – so that means you’ll have clips and content for social proof. Social proof is a huge player for both CPG and SaaS companies because it helps people understand what you have to offer from a user. So having DTC ecom thought leaders giving testimonials on why they use your tool, how it’s been beneficial, and talking about their real life results… You’ve locked in social proof and content for your website, for sales pitches, for social media, etc. 3?? Special offer ?? If you have a new service coming out, a new initiative you want to advertise, or you just want to get the word out about your tool… Whatever the case may be – the perfect way to do this is in a webinar. Why? Because you get to showcase special offers just to those attendees, incentivizing them to sign up. Making customers feel special and giving them first access before your offer goes public has been a huge reason for a boost in sign ups. Attached is a clip of a webinar we've recently done showcasing social proof + educating others on their tool + positioning themselves as thought leaders Shoplift featured Ashvin Melwani in their webinar - co-founder & CMO of a $60M CPG brand + thought leader in the ecom space If you’re interested in trying out a webinar for your SaaS tool – DM me At GaaS For SaaS we take care of everything – promo, set up, execution All we need from you is what you want to talk about and a representative of the company to present.

Happy Sunday – these are my favorite content days Get to sit down and really go into my brain and write my day away. So here’s a tactical guide to what you can do TODAY to start your own content creation journey and create content that you wish you had 1-3 years ago. ?? Choose a communication medium you feel comfortable with Are you good at being on camera? Are you good at writing? Are you good at talking? Choose that. Choose the platform that matches whatever you figured out above Video ?? Youtube, TikTok, IG, FB, Twitter (X…), Linkedin Audio ?? Podcast (Spotify, Apple Music, etc) and all of the above – just with image overlay, instead of your face Text ?? Twitter, Email, Newsletter, Linkedin, FB, Reddit Now – what are we going to talk about? Grab a notepad, a pen, and your calendar – ask yourself the following: What do I wish someone had told me when I started my journey? ??Write it down What topics am I naturally curious about? ??Write it down What have I learned recently (like in the last 12 weeks?) ??Write it down You should have more than enough topics to get you started So now it’s time to start writing. Don’t think. Just write. Write it in the tone that you speak, write it bullets, write in short paragraphs Whatever comes out, just get it on paper. Post it out into the world, get feedback (both from comments and from post performance), and continue to iterate. That’s how you’ll get better and eventually gain traction. ————— We’re helping founders get started with their content at GaaS For SaaS DM me if you need help with any of the above

You know the saying “When you assume, you make an ass out of you and me”? Well we did that when first expanding into retail – so listen up to avoid these 4 mistakes 1?? Online success = Retail Success We assumed that our community & reputation online would also apply to the retail audience So we made the mistake of selling our products at the same online price But in retail – we were brand new. Our competitors were selling at a more affordable price + had their audience and reputation set ??You’re entering a new customer pool - treat your brand like it just launched for the 1st time + price yourself low compared to your competitors while still being profitable. 2?? Our flavors > unflavored norm The reason we even started Obvi was because of this gap in the market No fun flavors & no fun packaging But in this case – our packaging wasn’t enough to make new customers understand the value in our product & no way to showcase the results our products give you. People don't like change – so when seeing a new brand with new flavors, people decided to stick with what they knew. ?? Be different, but don't scare people away. Match your competitors to a certain extent to gain trust, but make a better product to win the race. 3?? Marketing retail on our website For us, this cannibalized sales. We learned that if you tell people who you've acquired online to go offline and shop – they listen & don’t come back. ?? Don’t drive your worthy customers who’re buying consistently online away by plastering your retail expansion on your website. 4?? Our products are great & will perform Some did, but others didn't & Walmart discontinued them Thankfully, Walmart is very rewarding & giving us the opportunity to do better. ?? Launch small, but launch strong. Be prepared to have some products flop & double down on what works. Listen… Launching in retail is NOT going to go as planned – one of my fellow panelists from yesterday that I discussed this with had their own issues when starting out in retail. Alexandra E. Vailas said when DYPER first went into Walmart, people didn't know what they sold. They thought they were selling bamboo diapers… like literal hard bamboo diapers… So they saw they had to translate their message in a better way through their packaging & rebranded. ?? Test your packaging out on strangers before launching into retail. Make sure it properly explains what you’re selling & why. Friendly reminder: Big brands ? Perfection You have to make mistakes in order to grow – so remember, big brands make mistakes too like my other panelist, Lindsay Marra from Love Wellness. They're refreshing the brand + struggling in working with the right brokers & fulfillment centers Yes, this $50M brand also has to maneuver unnecessary fees & chargebacks. ?? “When you assume, you make an ass out of you and me” – read it as your brand talking to you. You will make mistakes along the way, but never let it be from an assumption.

If you saw my last post on what you need to get in check to have a well-oiled finance machine Then it's time we get into the second BIGGEST blindspot in brands’ financial management. 2. Sloppy Cash Flow Management This goes hand in hand with my previous post on knowing your true margins – you need to know exactly how much cash you have on hand and what your monthly burn rate is. We see a lot of brands shoot themselves in the foot by just hoping the money will be there when they need it. Sometimes they get lucky – but most of the time it won't. You need to have a systemized cash flow management process. We’ll dive further into this in our webinar on June 14th with our tried and true fintech tool, Parker. Sign up here to secure your spot. https://lnkd.in/e8G-2PuR