Startup Hypeman: The GOAT to Market Show

If you're a CPG or retail brand, you know by default the importance of brand.It's what people buy into as much as the product itself.There's a reason why you choose to pay more for a Nike shirt when you could reasonably buy the same shirt without the logo.Brand is a promise.It's a value system. It's a marker of trust for your community and customers that signals an understanding and expectation of the product experience.In the software world, brand tends to get pushed to the side.It doesn't matter as long as the product is good.But if you want to worry less about competition, have more control over pricing, and get customers to move with you when you make pivots, your best served making brand-led decisions.Sarah Sitz knows exactly what this looks like, having spent time as employee #14 at Foxtrot helping grow the company from Series A to C and launching their private-label brand, and now as Cofounder of brand GTM agency The Squeeze.She steps to the mic in this week's episode to share how to invest wisely in your brand, position yourself for growth, and the difference between an influencer and influential strategy.Find Sarah online:LinkedInFind The Squeeze onlineWebsiteInstagramSarah is also hopping into our member community, GOAT to Market Club, for an Ask Me Anything this week. Got Q's you want to ask Sarah personally? Join for free today! This episode is brought to you by our friends at ActiveCampaign, the GOATs of marketing automation. EVERY kind of business needs a newsletter. After 10 years using Mailchimp, Startup Hypeman is now a proud ActiveCampaign user, and from setup to 'send', every newsletter we've published has been a 10x easier experience since switching. Tons of integrations, automations made simple, and actually supportive customer support (not an annoying chatbot). Get your FREE 2-week trial here!(affiliate link)This episode is also brought to you by our friends at AKAVA, the GOATs of software development. I've seen too many startups get screwed over by offshore or budget dev shops. Those groups are order takers and do the bare minimum, which often means software with gaping holes, or being forced to pay hidden 'release fees' to claim ownership of your code. Then there's Akava, who actually builds strategically for scale from day 1, helps you make product decisions, and gives you full ownership of your code by default. Want to become the GOAT to Market? Partner with the GOATs of software dev. Get GOATed at akava.io. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I think we can all agree AI is seemingly everywhere.But what does that actually mean for a startup?Enjoy this special episode, a replay of my interview with Techstars Managing Director Tricia Martinez-Saab live from the Startup Grind Chicago AI Showcase in November 2023.Tricia leads the AI and deep-tech verticals at Techstars and shares her perspective on the good and bad of AI's permeation, how to approach integrating AI into your product, the ethics behind an AI-powered future, and how she makes investment decisions for AI startups at Techstars.Find Tricia online:LinkedInFind Techstars online:WebsiteTricia is also hopping into our member community, GOAT to Market Club, for an Ask Me Anything this week. Got Q's you want to ask Tricia personally? Join for free today! This episode is brought to you by our friends at ActiveCampaign, the GOATs of marketing automation. EVERY kind of business needs a newsletter. After 10 years using Mailchimp, Startup Hypeman is now a proud ActiveCampaign user, and from setup to 'send', every newsletter we've published has been a 10x easier experience since switching. Tons of integrations, automations made simple, and actually supportive customer support (not an annoying chatbot).Get your FREE 2-week trial here! (affiliate link)This episode is also brought to you by our friends at AKAVA, the GOATs of software development. I've seen too many startups get screwed over by offshore or budget dev shops. Those groups are order takers and do the bare minimum, which often means software with gaping holes, or being forced to pay hidden 'release fees' to claim ownership of your code. Then there's Akava, who actually builds strategically for scale from day 1, helps you make product decisions, and gives you full ownership of your code by default. Want to become the GOAT to Market? Partner with the GOATs of software dev. Get GOATed at akava.io. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We've officially dropped the first-ever startup hip-hop album, GOAT To Market! Season 2 of The GTM Show is a companion podcast on the making-of, where RajNATION gets interviewed by the album's Creative Director Pablo Gonzalez (founder of Be The Stage), for an exclusive behind-the-scenes listen.GOAT To Market is available now on all streaming platforms. Listen to the album in full then come here, or one track at a time and come here for each corresponding episode. However, you want to listen is the right way to listen.Want to chat with RajNATION directly about the music, or about anything you’re going through with your startup — whether that’s pitching, figuring out your go-to-market, or something else — you can do that and get access to additional GTM content if you join our online founder community, The GOAT To Market CLUB at startuphypeman.com/gtm-club.This episode was brought to you by our friends at Akava. Akava is THE software development partner to help you go from zero to 1. Startups like Stride Health, Haveno, Olive, Side, and more trust Akava from their first dollar all the way to their billion-dollar valuation, and they're ready to help YOU become the GOAT to Market. Learn more at akava.io. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ever say to yourself, "I want to invest in startups?". Even if you're a founder yourself, maybe you've had that moment of 'when I make it big, I'm gonna start investing in other founders'. Chris Deutsch wants to demystify the process for you. As founder of Lofty Angels, he's invested in over 150 founders, 80+ startups (75% by underrepresented founders), and experienced 5 exits. He's also started the Lofty Syndicate which acts as a vehicle to invest in rounds alongside Lofty Angels, and an educational platform to help more people become angel investors. He steps to the mic to share HOW to become an angel investor. He even shares how his college degree directly impacts him every day in an unexpected and comical fashion.We had so much to cover that we couldn't fit it all into one episode, so this conversation is part 1, and our next episode will be part 2.NOTE: This episode is for educational and entertainment purposes and is NOT meant to serve as financial advice.Find Chris online:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cdeutsch/Twitter: https://twitter.com/chris_deutschFind Lofty Ventures online:Website: https://loftyventures.com/Chris is also hopping into our member community, GOAT to Market Club, for an Ask Me Anything the entire week of this episode's launch date. Got Q's you want to ask Chris personally? Join for free today!This episode was brought to you by our friends at Akava. Akava is THE software development partner to help you go from zero to 1. Startups like Stride Health, Haveno, Olive, Side, and more trust Akava from their first dollar all the way to their billion-dollar valuation, and they're ready to help YOU become the GOAT to Market. Learn more at akava.io. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I'm a firm believer that the majority if not all, problems that exist are ultimately a communication problem.And as your company scales, how you communicate sets the precedent for your leadership style.Aviva Rosman and her Cofounder Alex Niemczewski have scaled BallotReady to 100 employees with 300+ customers including names like Spotify, TikTok, Snapchat, and Levis.But they were on the verge of this never happening because they didn't have the right model to communicate with each other.Enter Conscious Leadership.Once they adopted this model of leadership and communication they were able to be 100% open and honest with one another, which allowed the company to grow.Aviva steps to the mic in this week's episode to share how both of their pent-up frustration led to a 3-hour conversation at a bar, which changed the face of their relationship for the better and paved the way for healthy company culture.Find Aviva online:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/avivarosman/Find Ballot Ready online:Website: https://www.ballotready.org/This episode is sponsored by Miquido - a full-service software development partner that supports companies in building their digital products. Learn more at miquido.com/hypeman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most people believe deals are won or lost at the proposal stage. But that's only true if you've done a poor job managing your sales process. In reality, deals are confirmed or revised at the proposal stage. This is something I fundamentally didn't understand when I was a rookie salesperson. Then I hired Joe Micallef, President of GrowUp Sales, as my first sales coach to teach me how it should be done. When he broke down the why, how, and what I was a brand new salesperson my close rates increased, and so did my deal sizes. Many of the startups I work with now are a lot like I was when I was a rookie. That's why I'm so excited to welcome Joe onto this week's podcast to share with you the makeup of a winning proposal.Find Joe online:https://www.linkedin.com/in/growupsales/Find Grow Up Sales online:https://growupsales.com/Plus hear the elevator pitch of Startup Hypeman portfolio client Avaana using the Que PASA Elevator Pitch Formula! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"We're really focused on revenue growth right now, so we're not as focused on core values."Believe it or not, that's actually what a lot of companies tell their employees.But what good are your core values if you only value them when it's convenient?Erin Diehl's business improv training company Improve It! is a graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10k Small Businesses program and has worked with the likes of Kellogg's, United, Pepsico, Groupon, Motorola, and more.They haven't come this far by tabling their values.In fact, they've done the exact opposite and built all of their KPIs around them.Erin steps to the mic and explains Improve It's process as well as how they've continued to live by their values even when a pandemic throws everything off.Find Erin online:Instagram: @keepinitrealdiehlLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/erindiehlFind Improve It! online:Instagram: @learntoimproveitwww.learntoimproveit.com Today's episode is brought to you by Sales Hacker. The world's smartest community of forward-thinking B2B professionals. Grab their latest expert-created articles, webinars, and podcast episodes at www.saleshacker.comPLUS -- hear from me and 40+ other leading sales professionals this summer in the Blissful Prospecting Think Outside The Script summer virtual tour! All talks are live and interactive, sign up at tour.blissfulprospecting.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Professional wrestler and podcaster Colt Cabana found a sense of belonging in his career and in his life. In this special bonus episode recorded in front of a live audience at Techweek Chicago, we sit down with Colt and discuss how he found his niche. We explore:+How to seize opportunities without asking for permission+Reaching a goal can be achieved through creative means; it is important to think outside the box+There are many paths to the same goal+There’s no curtain in anyone’s life+Use your authentic self but heighten it to maximize your potential+Don’t be afraid to create your own platform; if there is an audience, there is potential+Working by trial and error isn’t wrong, rather, it’s effective+Tweak as you see fit+Be discretionary and selective when you ask for feedback+Merging your interests to form one encompassing idea and project maximizes your strengths and enjoyment+Pigeonholing yourself maximizes risk and minimizes success+Diversify your projects to create contingency plans for yourself+Support is built through humility+Storytelling is integral to finding your niche; rather than telling people your story, invite people to come along the journey with you+Actively promote your brand to avoid indifference+Believing in longevity breeds complacencyFind Colt Online:The Art of Wrestling Podcast: https://soundcloud.com/coltcabanawww.coltcabana.comwww.prowrestlingtees.comLearn more about Techweek at www.techweek.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.