- Publisher |
- Corey Haines & Chris Spags
- Media Type |
- audio
- Podknife tags |
- Business,
- Entrepreneurship,
- Management & Marketing,
- Personal Journals,
- SaaS,
- Startups
- Categories Via RSS |
- Business,
- Entrepreneurship,
- Marketing
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Submit ReviewCorey and Chris are bringing the podcast to an end. They discuss why, where things are at today, and what to look out for in the future.
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Corey shares some learnings on startup taxes. Chris shares how the recent growth of the Jetboost team is going and what he’s learning from that. They also discuss SaaS team account architecture, user onboarding email sequences, churn trends in 2023, and of course, they have to talk about ChatGPT.
Notable mentions:
- Andrew from FlowPhantom
- Pieter Levels tweet on Google fumbling AI
- Derrick’s blog: Ship Small, Ship Fast
- research.github.io/seanet/musiclm/examples/">MusicLM
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Corey and Chris talk about their goals, themes, and big projects for the new year.
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Corey and Chris look back on the past year’s highlights, lowlights, and learnings.
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Corey is working on co-marketing campaigns for SwipeWell. Chris is back from Webflow Conf and shares everything that happened at the event! They also discuss some of the unique aspects of the Calm Fund SEAL agreement.
Notable mentions:
- Webflow Conf Announcements
- Webflow Apps
- Reilly Chase’s tweet
- Tyler Tringas’s tweet
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Corey recaps the SaaS Marketing Summit and State of SaaS Marketing report. Chris is wrapping up his final prep before Webflow Conf next week. They also talk about AI, newsletter sponsorships, and SwipeWell mobile apps.
Notable mentions:
- Webflow Conf Agenda
- Corey’s AI generated profile pictures
- SaaS Marketing Summit recording
- State of SaaS Marketing 2022 Report
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Corey hits a big newsletter subscriber milestone. Chris gets back from vacation and officially launches the Jetboost blog. They also talk about playing the waiting game with SEO, Webflow Conf, and SwipeWell’s public roadmap.
Notable mentions:
- SwipeWell Public Roadmap
- SaaS Marketing Summit on October 12th
- Jetboost Blog
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Corey and Chris answer listener questions live on the podcast to celebrate the 2-year anniversary of publishing. They cover how they spend their time, favorite tools, what success looks like, the highs and lows of the journey, and more.
Notable mentions:
- Grain
- Mailman
- ZipMessage
- Manifest Destiny blog post
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey integrates a new newsletter growth tool for Swipe Files and ships a new landing page for SwipeWell. Chris is still celebrating recent wins while pondering the future of Jetboost. They also talk about Chrome web store SEO, “Two Way Write Ups,” and product evolution.
Next week is a Q&A episode to celebrate the 2-year anniversary of the podcast. AMA!
Notable mentions:
- SwipeWell Chrome Store listing
- State of SaaS Marketing Survey
- Tweet about Jetboost benefits
- Two Way Write Ups
- Great Bootstrapped Web episode
- SparkLoop Partner Network
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Corey prepares to roll out waitlist invites for SwipeWell. Chris shares what he learned while setting Jetboost up to hire full-time employees instead of contractors. They also discuss Google’s upcoming search update, programmatic SEO, and useful SEO tools.
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Corey launches a programmatic content experiment on Product Hunt and starts planning the Swipe Files Summit. Chris moved to Chicago and made two new hires! They also talk about a new SaaS project and Webflow Conf.
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Corey builds a mobile app MVP using the no-code tool Adalo. Chris is continuing to push out small UX updates for Jetboost while preparing for his big move across the country. They also talk about new onboarding flows for SwipeWell and Swipe Files.
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Corey celebrates getting the first SwipeWell customers. Chris ships a helpful update to Jetboost and brainstorms some content ideas. They also discuss product analytics and being a power user of your own app.
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Corey launches CopywritingPrompts.com and experiments with programmatic SEO for SwipeWell. Chris is getting back in the groove, talking to customers, exploring partnerships, and working on new features for Jetboost. They also provide an update on Default Alive Ventures and discuss the opportunity cost of buying a SaaS.
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Corey works on a new side project as marketing for SwipeWell. Chris ships an important update to handle subscription changes and works on turning content briefs into articles. They also introduce Default Alive Ventures and talk about SaaS acquisition multiples based on ARR vs SDE.
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Corey and Chris were about to close on a deal to acquire a micro SaaS business together until it suddenly fell apart. Listen in to hear what happened and what they’d do differently next time.
Know a SaaS business we might want to acquire? →
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Corey experiments with a $500 MRR Challenge to gain new members. Chris has had to put work on the backburner for a bit while overcoming some challenges at home. They also talk about Elon buying Twitter, NFT launches, and meetups.
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Corey onboards the first SwipeWell users on calls and publishes some new blog posts. Chris is only working half-time right now but managed to ship a key stability update for Jetboost. They also how sleep affects productivity and a new indie hacker podcast, Framework Friends.
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Corey builds a waitlist for SwipeWell and shares the outline for Founding Marketing. Chris gives a short update on how paternity leave is going. They also talk about the woes of tax season, meeting online friends in person, and the discipline to focus on what you work on.
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Corey announces a new SaaS project. Chris makes a marketing hire and shares some product updates. They also talk about platform risk, outcome oriented communities, and hiring outside of your area of expertise.
Notable mentions:
- Bootstrapping an outcome oriented community
- The Elephant in the room: The myth of exponential hypergrowth
- Jason Cohen talk: Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise (#2 on the page)
- SwipeWell (Corey’s new SaaS project)
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey is focused on newsletter content and gives an update on the Swipe Files Job Board. Thanks to a situation with a competitor, Chris’ fire has been re-lit. They also talk about competition and celebrating customer wins.
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Corey explores a new cohort-based course partnership and reveals a book concept. Chris is working on major product improvements for Jetboost and a brand new booster. They also talk about community engagement and pricing dynamics.
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Corey reacquires Hey Marketers and rebrands it to the Swipe Files Job Board. Chris shares his current struggles with productivity and setting direction for Jetboost. They also talk about burnout, launching on Product Hunt, and Alexis Ohanian’s approach to customer support.
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Corey finishes Marketing Like A Media Company and prepares for launch. Chris is getting ready to roll out the Jetboost affiliate program in January. They also talk about goal-setting, 2022 plans, and recording biweekly moving forward.
Notable mentions:
- Corey’s holiday side project: How To Beat Your Friends At Poker
- Ruben Gamez tweet on marketing
- Sahil Bloom’s thread on goal setting
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey and Chris chat about the last year — highlights, wins, losses, learnings, and everything in between.
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Corey and Chris bring on Brian Casel to talk about growing ZipMessage, what he'd do differently today if he was starting from scratch, and recent experiments including freemium.
Notable mentions:
- @CasJam on Twitter
- ZipMessage
- Bootstrapped Web
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey gets another premium sponsor commitment and shares Black Friday results. Chris recaps No-Code Conf and has an epiphany when it comes to testing software. They also discuss code rewrites, throwing away your MVP, and of course, end with Corey's Crypto Corner.
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Corey records the first module for Marketing Like A Media Company and gets airdropped free crypto. Chris contemplates expanding the customer support team. They also talk about the new Calm Fund scout program, Black Friday / Cyber Monday preparation, and free competitors.
Notable mentions:
- ENS
- Report "@swipefiles" for impersonation to help Corey
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey feels the pressure to create new course content and pitch premium sponsorships before the holidays. Chris launches a new search feature and Webflow template along with it. They also talk about YNAB's pricing update snafu, emailing Seth Godin, and a tweet by Jon Yongfook about SaaS marketing.
Notable mentions:
- Jetboost Search Highlighting
- New FAQ cloneable
- Jetboost's new changelog
- Jon Yongfook's tweet
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey hosts the first Swipe Files Office Hours session. Chris turns off MRR notifications as he works to make Jetboost more of a calm company. They also talk about "skeuomorphism", digital information paradigms, and the merits of keeping a changelog.
Notable mentions:
- Startups For The Rest Of Us #572
- Andrew Wilkinson on the My First Million podcast
- PageFlows.com
- Chris Dixon and Naval Ravikant — The Wonders of Web3, How to Pick the Right Hill to Climb, Finding the Right Amount of Crypto Regulation, Friends with Benefits, and the Untapped Potential of NFTs (#542)
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Corey notices low new member signups for Swipe Files and thinks about how to introduce ways to give people a taste of the membership. Chris deals with some of the not-so-fun realities of running a business. They also talk about platform risk and playing the part of an independent recruiter.
Notable mentions:
- Apply to the Swipe Files Talent Collective
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey shares how the membership pricing has resulted in the best month to date. Chris realizes Jetboost has been lacking direction and puts together a roadmap with the team. They also talk about the grind to default alive, strategies when making pricing changes, and dopamine's effect on our ability to work.
Notable mentions:
- Pat Walls tweet about startup journey
- Andrew Wilkinson's tweet
- Andrew Huberman on dopamine
- Bubble update post
- corey-gmail-com.ck.page/posts/important-updates-to-swipe-files">Swipe Files pricing update email
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey finally follows the "charge more" advice and rolls out a pricing update for Swipe Files. Chris celebrates the latest Jetboost demo reaching the front page of the Webflow Showcase. They also discuss hiring lawyers and other professional services, giving raises to employees, and how scary DNS is.
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Corey works on a new membership landing page and plans on rolling out pricing updates. Chris officially releases Jetboost's Dynamic Sorting Booster and a new free Webflow template along with it. They also talk about Webflow's No-Code Conf and managing email list unsubscribes with Smart Subscriber.
Notable mentions:
- Jetboost Dynamic Sorting
- Free Jetboost template for Webflow
- Smart Subscriber
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey gets ready to ship the Tiny Marketing Ideas newsletter and record his talk for Ad World. Chris rants about chargebacks and other frustrations with operating a SaaS business. They also reminisce about recording the podcast for a year and how things have changed since the first episode.
Notable mentions:
- 1 year anniversary of Default Alive
- Tiny Marketing Ideas
- Ad World Conference
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey is heads-down creating newsletter content and begins niching down to SaaS marketing. Chris and the Jetboost team kick off September on a shipping spree. They also talk about energy ebbs and flows and Intuit acquiring Mailchimp for $12B.
Notable mentions:
- Axios: Intuit Acquires Mailchimp for $12B
- How I Built This: Mailchimp
- CELSIUS energy drink
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey explores niching down to focus on SaaS marketing and increasing pricing for Swipe Files. Chris shares how Jetboost is growing up. They also talk about MicroAcquires financing partnerships to make acquisitions more accessible.
Notable mentions:
- Jetboost's big update
- 1,000 True Fans? Try 100
- Bootstrappers.com
- Andrew Gazdecki's tweet about acquisition financing through MicroAcquire
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey makes progress on the Swipe Files "evergreen newsletter" content and considers a way to drip out course content instead of dropping all at once. Chris is taking a break from marketing and working to wrap up a few product updates. They also talk about the first Indie Hackers of San Diego meetup since covid, the advantage of shipping small and shipping fast, and why it's ok to not have a singular, dominant growth channel.
Notable mentions:
- Jetboost Dynamic Sorting Early Access
- Meeps.app
- MegaMaker Podcast
- Michele Hansen's book, Deploy Empathy
- San Diego Indie Hackers group
- Corey's tweet about not having a single, dominant growth channel
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey publishes a blog post about his public goals and his time offline at a summer camp. Chris is finding more balance between work and his personal life. They also talk about meeting SavvyCal founder Derrick Reimer in person and the surprising benefits of scheduled team calls.
Notable mentions:
- Manifest Destiny blog post
- Startup Funding Options For SaaS blog post
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey shares what he's learned from doing 25 personalized landing page teardowns for clients. Chris announces Dynamic Sorting for Jetboost (coming soon!) and describes the journey he took to get there. They also discuss positioning service businesses vs SaaS products, building a personal brand vs company brand, and a clever marketing hack for free products.
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Corey is off this week, so Chris is joined by Derrick Reimer, founder of SavvyCal. They chat about building and scaling SaaS products, making early hires, onboarding developers, and indulge in a bit of tech stack discussion.
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Corey trades notes with another community manager and creates a timeline for course updates. Chris wrestles over how to handle an extremely large potential customer. They also talk about shipping speed, Twitter threads, and building a more calm company.
Notable mentions:
- Email Chris about the future of Jetboost: chris@jetboost.io
- Max Haining of 100 Days of No Code
- Justin Jackson's Product People podcast
- Typefully
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey deals with some dog issues and offers landing page audits. Chris makes a key new hire and is excited to push Jetboost forward faster. They also talk about founder archetypes, handling chaos in the early days, and how to get big customers to let you use their logo.
Notable mentions:
- Corey's landing page audit offer
- There Are Four Types Of Founders…Which One Are You?
- April Dunford's tweet about using customer logos
- Potion
- Noah Bragg
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey writes his first angel checks and talks about how high the bar is these days for content creation. Chris puts work on the back burner for a week to resolve some personal issues. They also talk about what they do for fun and the dynamics of being an investor with an audience.
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Corey struggles with his own community activity and gives an update on a cohort-based course. Chris successfully ships a major Jetboost update and levels up his Google Analytics skills. They also discuss bootstrapper funding and not feeling all that motivated for work as Covid restrictions end and summer begins.
Notable mentions:
- Jetboost now 2-3x faster!
- SureSwift Capital
- Collab Capital
- Justin Jackson interviews Jason Calacanis (2013): Part 1, Part 2
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey contemplates spending longer, focused time on big projects instead of juggling multiple projects at once. Chris feels like he's currently floundering a bit while jumping from one thing to the next. They also talk about competition, angel investing, and Berkshire Hathaway.
Notable mentions:
- MegaMaker podcast
- Acquired podcast
- Patrick Campbell tweeting that Corey is "underrated"
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey shares the (candidly disappointing) results of opening enrollment for Swipe Files courses. Chris has a mostly heads down week while working on a big infrastructure update. They also talk about some potential pivots for Swipe Files and paying for SaaS products.
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Corey reaches a Twitter following milestone and opens up enrollment for his courses. Chris celebrates a milestone and ramps up hiring for Jetboost. They also discuss burnout, launching on Product Hunt, and hiring VAs.
Notable mentions:
- Mental Models For Marketing
- Refactoring Growth
- https://share.swipefiles.com
- Squared Away
- Missive
- Help Doc Hero
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey tests the waters with a "marketing bootcamp" cohort-based course and begins onboarding a virtual assistant. Chris has a surprisingly calm week. They also answer a listener question about how to evaluate new product ideas.
Notable mentions:
- Marketing Bootcamp cohort-based course
- ORB Framework
- Content Remix
- questions-for-teasing-out-market-opportunities.html">10 Questions for Teasing Out Market Opportunities
- 30x500
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey accidentally starts a Twitter growth challenge with 100+ people. Chris ships off the Modkit update and has to send a difficult email to customers. They also talk about the hedonic treadmill of revenue growth and the myth of passive income.
Ask us a question on Zip Message →
Notable mentions:
- ZipMessage
- Be the first to join the waitlist for Corey's Marketing Bootcamp
- Modkit for Webflow update
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey celebrates a year since launching Swipe Files and getting renewal revenue for the first time. Chris shares some struggles he's been facing as Jetboost continues to evolve. They also talk about Basecamp's recent changes regarding company policies and practices.
👋 Corey here — I misunderstood when Chris said "a sauna" and thought he said "Asana" which might explain the dialogue 😅😂 Sorry for the confusion!
Notable mentions:
- ModKit for Webflow
- Sponstayneous
- Changes at Basecamp
- Basecamp's new etiquette regarding societal politics at work
- Geoff Roberts thoughts on Basecamp's changes
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey gets back from vacation and brainstorms the Swipe Files roadmap. With support becoming less of a concern, Chris shifts his focus toward marketing. They also talk about founder life as a parent, onboarding surveys, and how the internet is not real life.
Notable mentions:
- Peep Laja tweet on parenting
- Reform
- The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains
- Startup to Last podcast
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey thinks about putting some saved money to work for Swipe Files. Chris has a great week as Noah is off and running on Jetboost support. They also talk about Earnest Capital's upcoming crowdfunding campaign on Wefunder and the viability of a return.
Notable mentions:
- Noah Raskin
- Corey's tweet on Earnest crowdfunding
- Crowdfunding the future of Earnest Capital
- Sacra report on Earnest Capital
- LendingClub
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey gets his first newsletter sponsor and talks about the "ORB Framework" for marketing. Chris shares insights from his first quarterly advisory board meeting for Jetboost. They also discuss some strategies for growing a podcast and the pros and cons of acquiring a Shopify app.
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Corey launches the Tiny Marketing Ideas newsletter and invites the first beta users to Help A Creator. Chris unexpectedly lands his first support hire! They also talk about reaching your "enough" number and being able to step away from your business mentally.
Notable mentions:
- Brittleness - Jason Cohen
- The enough number - Tyler King
- Wil Reynolds - Living a Life of Enough.
- The Dao of DAOs - Not Boring by Packy
- Corey's podcast swap tweet
- Bootstrapped Web
- Bootstrapped.fm with Peldi of Balsamiq
- Tiny Marketing Ideas
- Help A Creator
- Swipe Files workshop series
- Corey on the Creative Elements podcast
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey launches a new workshop series for Swipe Files and invests in Gumroad. Chris progresses closer to his first support hire as he outlines the position requirements. They also talk about jealousy and comparing yourself to other indie hackers and founders.
Notable mentions:
- Swipe Files Events
- Bootstrapped Web
- Gumroad on Republic
- VEED.io on the Indie Hackers podcast
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey shares the numbers behind course sales, more on the Hey Marketers acquisition, and a Swipe Files revenue milestone. Chris gives thanks to Earnest Capital and sees how great delegating can be. They also talk about the acquisition of Makerpad and how SaaS companies will continue to integrate with media and communities.
Notable mentions:
- Zapier acquires Makerpad
- Swipe Files reaches $2,000 MRR
- Michele Hanson from the Software Social podcast
- Recipe Webflow cloneable from Jetboost
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey shares details on the Hey Marketers acquisition and opens enrollment for his two courses. Chris is eager to move forward after a challenging month and reveals who he hired to create Jetboost tutorial videos. They also talk about having a business vs personal bank account, Corey's Hiten Shah interview on Everything Is Marketing, and the nuances of Stripe payouts.
Notable mentions:
- Hey Marketers
- Rich Thornett
- Everything Is Marketing with Hiten Shah
- Compound Writing
- Don't set Stripe payouts to daily
- Pixel Geek Community
- Less Annoying CRM's help docs built in Webflow
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey scales back on consulting and workshops a new idea for a course. Chris has a rough week dealing with server issues, but managed to finally update the Jetboost website. They also discuss consulting vs working on your own products, why "product-market fit" isn't that useful of a term, and of course, clubhouse.
Notable mentions:
- Jetboost new pricing page
- Art of Product episode with Spencer Fry
- Clubhouse vs Podcasting on Clubhouse with Corey
- Everything Is Marketing: Rand Fishkin and April Dunford
- Product-Market Fit is a Broken Concept. There’s a Better Way. by Rand Fishkin
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey shares some numbers on the launch of Everything Is Marketing and attempts to make room for Deep Work. Chris thinks about hiring and his new schedule as a dad. They also talk about when to hire, when to take a business moonshot, and more baby analogies about business.
Notable mentions:
- Everything Is Marketing
- Michele Hansen on Software Social
- Brian Casel - Bootstrapper’s formula for hiring your first employee
- Tettra
- Reilly Chase's 10 year plan
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey finally launches his new podcast Everything Is Marketing. Chris comes back from paternity leave and has an outage scare right before his son is born. They also talk about the lack of health insurance and mortgages for entrepreneurs, Corey's new no-code project, and plateau profitability.
Notable mentions:
- Matt Wensing's tweet on entrepreneur hostility
- Ryan Kulp's tweet on profitable plateau'd SaaS
- No Meetings, No Deadlines, No Full-Time Employees by Sahil Lavingia
- Why You Should Hire Agencies & Consultants (for everything you can) by Rand Fishkin
- Oscar Health's IPO
- Tyler Tringas's tweet on mortgages for entrepreneurs
- On Deck No-Code Fellowship
- Help A Creator
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Chris is still out on paternity leave, so Jane Portman is filling in as a guest host.
Corey prepares to launch his new podcast Everything Is Marketing. Jane talks about the new direction for Userlist in 2021 becoming a full-blown ESP. They also talk about early-stage SaaS growth, starting and growing a podcast, and the new Swipe Files book club.
Notable mentions:
- Swipe Files Book Club
- Better Done Than Perfect podcast
- UI Breakfast podcast
- Slow & Steady podcast
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey buys swipefiles.com and releases the trailer for his new podcast. Louis prepares for his hotseat workshop and begins creating new content for his podcast Everyone Hates Marketers. They also talk about what it means to be productive, earning and capitalizing on trust, and being self-critical.
Notable mentions:
- Corey buys swipefiles.COM
- Corey releases the trailer for his new podcast Everything Is Marketing
- Corey's theory about making a living online as a creator
- Louis' podcast Everyone Hates Marketers
- Louis' upcoming program Stand The F*ck Out
- Everything SubStack
- Tiago Forte's Praxis archive
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey gets to "rent-money" revenue with Swipe Files. Noah gets the first customer for his new SaaS called Potion. They also talk about how much marketing you should do early on, which segment of a market you should target first, and how to plan for irregular cash flow.
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Chris is out temporarily with the pending due date of his new baby, so Louis Nicholls is filling in as a guest host.
Corey talks about the aftermath of launching both Swipe Files and SavvyCal on Product Hunt. Louis talks about setting goals for SparkLoop now that they're a growing and profitable business. They also talk about hiring a content marketer, live vs self-serve online courses, and short-term vs long-term marketing.
Notable mentions:
- Art of Product podcast
- Swipe Files on Product Hunt
- SavvyCal on Product Hunt
- The SUP? Podcast
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey gets covid and gets hunted on Product Hunt. Chris sees some early success with Jetboost's bundled subscriptions and opens them up for everyone. They also talk about switching to annual billing for software, the differences in customer support expectations for different widgets, and having a high enough ARPU for a referral program.
Notable mentions:
- Swipe Files on Product Hunt
- Pages by Headlime
- Allen Walton shuts off phone support for SpyGuy
- Help Scout
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey and Chris review their progress in 2020 and look forward to what's next in 2021. They also discuss Mailbrew's approach to bootstrapping, the process of launching on Product Hunt, and the recent stir caused by the new owners of Baremetrics.
Notable mentions:
- Jetboost Early Access: Advanced Pagination and discounted bundles
- 6 months to make our company work - Mailbrew
- SaaS we happily pay for
- Baremetrics drama
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey launches a new weekly curated marketing digest and works on a public "1,000 true fans" experiment. Chris is racing to finish development on Jetboost's big upcoming release before the year-end. They also talk about trying to take time off for the holidays, delegating work, clean vs messy code, and Mailbrew's "public brews".
Notable mentions:
- Mailbrew
- Marketing Weekly
- Corey's appearance on the Growth Machine podcast
- 1,000 true fans WIP page
- Corey sold 10 landing page teardowns + audits
- Jane Wong Tweet: Tech industry shutting down for rest of 2020
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey considers a Swipe Files bundle that also includes his two courses. Chris debates a few different bundling options for Jetboost Boosters. They also talk about hobbies (or more accurately lack thereof), managing your psychology on down days, launching on Product Hunt (or not!), and documentation.
Notable mentions:
- Tiago Forte on "Progressive Summarization"
- Arvid Kahl on code documentation
- Nocodelytics by Sarwech Shar
- I have no hobbies
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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Corey reveals the numbers behind his course sales after opening enrollment and starts planning for 2021. Chris hires development help and starts preparing for paternity leave. They also talk about the reality of productivity and setting goals as an optimistic entrepreneur.
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Corey opens up enrollment for his two courses and makes some no-code breakthroughs for Swipe Files. Chris is heads down working on the fifth Booster for Jetboost and may have some additional dev help on the way. They also ramble about Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals for SaaS, rounding out 2020, and quieting the no-code haters.
Notable mentions:
- Recreate a signup flow like SubStack in Webflow
- Update numbers dynamically on a page with Integromat
- Thread of Black Friday SaaS deals
- Refactoring Growth
- Mental Models For Marketing
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Corey prepares for Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions and considers where to take Swipe Files in the new year. Chris is having success outsourcing, as he has a project reach the Webflow Front Page for the first time, and he announces a surprising new Jetboost customer. They also talk about how often to message your email list.
Notable mentions:
- Get notified of Refactoring Growth and Mental Models For Marketing
- https://technically.substack.com/
- Webflow Cloneable Job Board Template
- Hatch Framework for Webflow by Mackenzie Child
- https://www.passionsports.ca/
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Corey questions how to sell the Swipe Files membership and differentiate from other marketing digital products. Chris releases a heavily requested Jetboost feature and admits that he should have listened to his customers sooner. They also discuss the Baremetrics sale, QSBS, rant about Hacker News, and share their experiences with early employee stock options and profit-sharing.
Notable mentions:
- I sold Baremetrics
- I almost sold Baremetrics for $5m
- 5 things I learned failing to sell Baremetrics for $5m
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Corey confesses that he hasn't been shipping as much as he should trying to be a perfectionist and secures sponsors for his new podcast under Swipe Files. Chris confesses that the election was a major distraction for him, but thanks to Founder Summit was able to make progress on a new pricing model for Jetboost. They also talk about getting feedback for podcasts, finding fulfillment in the work you do, and some tips for growing your personal network.
Notable mentions:
- Corey Gwin: Reality is a shared agreement
- Startup To Last Podcast: Customer support vacation day
- Founder Summit Mastermind Sprint
- Airr Podcast App
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Corey starts consulting part-time with an early-stage startup and finds some clarity about why people purchase a Swipe Files membership. Chris is in a groove shipping updates to Jetboost and is now working on the number one feature request from the past year. They also talk about the process of capturing and prioritizing customer requests, new note-taking apps like Roam and Obsidian, and how to think about your personal vs company account on Twitter.
Notable mentions:
- Jetboost Update: Booster Import
- Groundbreaking month for Swipe Files
- SavvyCal
- RICE Prioritization Framework
- Corey's tweet on company vs personal Twitter
- Swipe Files' mission
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Corey realizes his emotions are directly tied to his revenue forecast, sets a roadmap, and commits to start working with a new consulting client. Chris has a breakthrough and solves a longstanding product issue. He also looks to learn more about people who aren't having success with Jetboost. Additionally, they discuss the pros and cons of live chat support and why you might aim to shrink your product's knowledge base rather than grow it.
Notable mentions:
- Tyler Tringas: You are not your MRR
- Michael Aubry: The positive ROI of adding a chat widget
- Jetboost breakthrough
- Startup to Last
- Bootstrapped Web
- Software Social
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Corey shoots his shot with Seth Godin, opens up the Swipe Files community to the public, and commits to a new weekly schedule. Chris is having fun again as Jetboost reaches Default Alive, working with freelancers is paying off, and he's building some exciting new features. They also chat about code vs no-code, why you should use Webflow for your company's marketing site, and how to respectfully say no to requests and messages from internet friends.
Notable mentions:
- iPhone 12 website rebuilt in Webflow
- Tim Ferriss on why you don't want to be famous
- Goalsy
- Nocodelytics
- Essentialism
- The One Thing
- Hell Yeah or No
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Corey reflects on spending a week on vacation while moving the ball forward with the Swipe Files community, new podcast, and free trial tweaks. Chris launched the latest Jetboost add-on, Auto-Archiving for Webflow CMS Items, and after some initial investment upfront, began to experience the benefits of outsourcing work. They also talk about scheduling your week, preparing for the end of the year, and launching a community.
Notable mentions:
- Jetboost Update - Auto-Archive Webflow CMS Items
- Marc Andreessen - Scheduling your week
- Mackenzie Child - Flowmingo
- Tyler King - Less Annoying CRM
- Founder Summit
- Startup to Last
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Corey is off enjoying his vacation this week, so Chris is joined by a special guest, Michael Aubry, the founder of Story Creator!
Michael shares why he built Story Creator, some of the challenges along the way, how he thinks about content marketing, and he reveals some exciting product updates that he's working on.
Chris continues to harp on the benefits of monthly reviews as he looks back at a not-so-great September and discusses his plans for Q4 as he looks to finish the year strong.
They also discuss the ups and downs of running a business, staying motivated as a solo-founder, marketing a "main dish" vs a "side dish", living in San Diego, and the future of office work.
Notable mentions:
- Story Creator
- Follow Michael on Twitter
- Justin Jackson: Main Dish vs Side Dish
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Corey explores selling one of his side businesses while also ramping up coaching and contemplating how to best package Swipe Files. Chris reaches out to potential customers and discovers that he's on the right track, but is slowed down by date and time zone complexities. They also discuss the challenge of stepping back from their businesses while on vacation.
Notable mentions:
- Startup School 2014: How to Operate
- Hey Marketers for sale tweet
- Corey's wife's e-commerce store
- Art of Product
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Corey has a crazy first week on his own and contemplates how to create a calm "company of one." Chris forces himself out of the product development vacuum for his latest product and starts working on hiring out some engineering as marketing. They also talk about mental capacity as a knowledge worker, debate the incentives of public companies, and reducing information overload.
Notable mentions:
- Why you should send monthly advisor and investor updates by Tyler Tringas
- Amy Hoy's article about consulting vs product
- Swipe Files is annual only now
- Michele Hansen on being able to reject ICE as a customer
- Mailbrew
- Company of One
- It Doesn't Have To Be Crazy At Work
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Corey parts ways with Baremetrics and goes full-time as a creator. Chris celebrates his one year anniversary working on Jetboost and grapples with an increased support volume. They also talk about having a job vs a business, evergreen vs invitation membership models, and what it was like first starting out.
Notable mentions:
- Chris's one year anniversary tweet
- Corey's tweet announcement
- Making The Leap by Corey
- Startup To Last
- Build Your SaaS
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Corey and Chris introduce the concept of the show, what to expect, and what it means to be "default alive." Corey talks about how he switched his courses from evergreen to an open/close model and now trying to figure out how to make the Swipe Files membership more valuable. Chris talks about how he mostly did marketing in August and is now switching back to "product mode." They also discuss the pros and cons of transparency and how it's different between software and content businesses.
Notable mentions:
- Default Alive or Default Dead? by Paul Graham
- Bootstrapped Web
- Software Social
- More podcasts for bootstrappers
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