In this episode, Rob Walling and Maja Voje, author of Go to Market Strategist, dive into early customer profiles (ECPs) and why they matter more than ideal customer profiles (ICPs) early on. They explore practical, scrappy marketing tactics for B2B SaaS founders and share real-world advice on customer acquisition, community building, and staying authentic while growing.

Episode Sponsor:

This podcast is brought to you by Mercury. I've been banking with Mercury for years and whenever I set up a new account, I'm reminded why traditional banking feels stuck in the past.

When our previous bank faced solvency issues, we needed to spin up new accounts quickly that could handle millions in funds across multiple businesses. Mercury had us up and running almost immediately.

I manage half a dozen different Mercury accounts across a wide range of companies – from my personal, single-member LLC to MicroConf, our 7-figure global events and education platform, to TinySeed, our venture fund and accelerator. Mercury easily handles them all.

The interface is elegantly simple for daily banking, paying invoices, and sending and receiving international wires, yet powerful enough to handle the multi-step approval processes we needed to put in place when funding founders with large transfers.

Anytime founders ask me who they should set up their accounts with, I send them to mercury.com.

Mercury is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided through Choice Financial Group, Column N.A., and Evolve Bank & Trust; Members FDIC.

• (3:02) – What Go-to-Market actually means for bootstrapped founders
• (7:14) – Early Customer Profile (ECP) vs. Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
• (10:30) – Common mistakes founders make when choosing their ECP
• (13:48) – Real-world B2B SaaS examples of successful ECP launches
• (18:29) – Why GTM actions must come before GTM motions for scrappy startups
• (21:52) – Warm outreach and fishing in the right forums: practical tactics for early traction

• MicroConf Growth Retreat | London, UK - May 14-16, 2025
• Invest in TinySeed
• Maja Voje | LinkedIn
• GTM Strategist
• Go-To-Market Strategist: (Maja's book)

If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify

Listen to Episode 773

How do you position your SaaS for success?

In episode 772, Rob Walling talks with Anthony Pierri of Fletch about a proven approach to product positioning. They discuss key lessons from 400+ startups, focusing on workflows, competitive alternatives, and why narrowing your audience matters.

• (6:59) – What is positioning, really?
• (11:16) – Why your homepage matters more than your pitch deck
• (14:17) – Workflow-based segmentation vs. firmographics
• (17:39) – Positioning against competitive alternatives
• (31:13) – The #1 mistake founders make with positioning

• MicroConf Growth Retreat | London, UK - May 14-16, 2025
• Invest in TinySeed
• Get Access to Anthony’s MicroConf New Orleans Talk
• Anthony Pierri (@anthonypierri) | LinkedIn
• Anthony Pierri (@apierriPMM) | X
• Fletch

If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your question for an upcoming episode. We’d love to hear from you!

Subscribe & Review: iTunes | Spotify

Can SaaS companies survive the rise of AI Agents?

In episode 771, Rob Walling is joined by Craig Hewitt to answer listener questions. They discuss the changes that happen while transitioning from a small startup to a multi-million dollar SaaS, competing against larger competitors, and maintaining startup culture as teams grow. They also share thoughts on AI agents in the SaaS space and the relevance of patents for bootstrapped businesses.

This podcast is brought to you by Mercury. I've been banking with Mercury for years and whenever I set up a new account, I'm reminded why traditional banking feels stuck in the past.

When our previous bank faced solvency issues, we needed to spin up new accounts quickly that could handle millions in funds across multiple businesses. Mercury had us up and running almost immediately.

I manage half a dozen different Mercury accounts across a wide range of companies – from my personal, single-member LLC to MicroConf, our 7-figure global events and education platform, to TinySeed, our venture fund and accelerator. Mercury easily handles them all.

The interface is elegantly simple for daily banking, paying invoices, and sending and receiving international wires, yet powerful enough to handle the multi-step approval processes we needed to put in place when funding founders with large transfers.

Anytime founders ask me who they should set up their accounts with, I send them to mercury.com.

Mercury is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided through Choice Financial Group, Column N.A., and Evolve Bank & Trust; Members FDIC.

• (2:41) – Marketing and sales strategies while scaling
• (9:31) – Keeping the startup culture through growth
• (14:50) – Can SaaS survive autonomous agents?
• (21:03) – AI wrapper tools
• (25:15) – Patent strategy for startups
• (29:30) – Competing against VC-backed companies

• MicroConf Remote: Early-Stage SaaS Sales
• Invest in TinySeed
• Craig Hewitt (@TheCraigHewitt) | X
• Craig Hewitt (@craighewitt.com) | Bluesky
• Rouge Startups
• Castos
• Omar Zenhom
• Omar Zenhom’s MicroConf Talk
• AI Agents vs SaaS - Who Wins the Future of Software?
• Episode 542 | 10x in Two Years, Past $3M ARR with SquadCast

If you have questions about starting or scaling a software business that you’d like for us to cover, please submit your quest...