Sales 3.0: evolution of the software sales function
It’s widely accepted that SaaS has permanently changed software sales. Enterprise software sales once meant a large “boots on the ground” field sales team who knew how to wine and dine the right individuals and stakeholders. With the emergence of SaaS, the sales process became more transactional and less about relationships. With software products at […]
Customer success is important, but sometimes it’s just too late
In recent years we have seen a big focus on establishing customer success teams across the SaaS B2B industry. The goal is about both (initial) conversion and (subsequent) retention. Make sure your customer understands and is as successful as possible in using your product, and your conversion rate will go up and your churn will […]
A founder’s advice on hiring a VP of Sales
One of the best parts about having a strong portfolio filled with smart people is the wise advice that founders share with each other. In this case, one of V1’s portfolio companies has been looking to hire a VP of Sales and I asked Jon Zimmerman (@jpzimmerman), CEO of Front Desk, to share his experiences […]
Announcing Version One Fund II
On behalf of our team at Version One, I am incredibly excited to announce that we have just closed our second fund. Version One Fund II is $35M, slightly larger than our initial fund. In many ways, Version One Fund II is identical to Fund I. It’s the same investing team (myself in Vancouver and […]
Comparing Two SaaS Models: Hubspot and Moz
Rick Perreault of my portfolio company Unbounce recently called my attention to an interesting comparison between two SaaS models: Hubspot & Moz – A Tale of Two (Very Different) SaaS Business Models. At first glance, Hubspot and Moz are very similar companies: both are popular marketing platforms, use web-based subscription models, and primarily target the SMB […]