In this episode of the Grow Your B2B SaaS podcast, Joran interviews Ivana Todorovic, founder of AuthoredUp, a LinkedIn content creation and analytics tool. Ivana shares her journey from editing and blockchain roles to entrepreneurship. The conversation delves into founding and growing a SaaS company, covering challenges, strategies, and lessons learned.
Key Timecodes
(0:52) - Joran introduces Ivana Todorovic
(1:33) - When did AuthoredUp start?
(1:46) - Is it funded or bootstrapped?
(1:50) - ARR and customer numbers
(2:04) - Service vs. product revenue
(2:25) - Number of employees
(2:33) - Description of AuthoredUp
(3:33) - Ivana's goals for AuthoredUp
(3:58) - Product and customer focus as motivation
(5:02) - Origin of the idea for AuthoredUp
(7:20) - Early product validation and customer feedback
(8:21) - From 200 free users to 3,000 paying customers
(9:28) - How to Transition from free beta to paid subscription
(10:58) - Long development period and challenges
(13:01) - Financial and personal challenges during development
(15:24) - Rebuilding the product from scratch
(16:34) - Personal reflections on the challenges faced
(18:02) - The importance of having short-term goals
(19:15) - Learning from mistakes in previous startups
(20:36) - Positive customer feedback and its impact
(22:08) - Importance of community management and support
(26:35) - Insights on current acquisition channels
(35:41) - Leveraging AI and machine learning in the product
(37:14) - Advice for SaaS founders aiming for 10K MRR
(38:03) - Strategy for scaling towards 10 million ARR
