SaaS Revolution Show is a weekly podcast that brings insights and tactics from leading SaaS entrepreneurs and operators across the world. Hosted by Alex Theuma, the show is brought to you by SaaStock. You can subscribe on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast
After he left Eloqua and before starting Influitive, Mark Organ tried hard not to go back to SaaS. The experience of seeing Eloqua, the company he had built with his two hands, go public without him as the CEO had been too painful. He didn’t want to inflict that sort of pain on himself once again.
So Mark had a few jobs, none of them lasting for long. He did a bit of consulting. Then he did a bit of investing. And joined a few boards. He even tried living in Asia for a while. None of that made Mark happy or content. He did, however, come out of the experience with a clearer understanding of himself. He was born to be a founder.
Mark started Influitive, and this time he was determined to do it right. Not merely survive each quarter, looking at numbers and neglecting people. Employees and board members were his priority together with the culture everyone fostered. So much so that when he realised one of his board members, an investor, was not the right fit, he bought him out. Something unheard of in SaaS.
The start of Influitive was slow as they were introducing a completely new category but once it took off, it really took off. For awhile Influitive was one of the fastest growing SaaS companies in the world. There was a time their LTV to CAC ratio was 6 to 1. Everything was going stellar until it stopped. Just like that. Influitive hit the ceiling, which as it turns out is a common occurrence for many other MarTech SaaS companies.
With burn rate going through the roof and the ratio between LTV and CAC quickly worsening, Mark had to make many drastic changes. Cost and staff reductions were the first ones. But it took more fundamental strategic changes like shifting which use cases sales approached as well as many product changes.
It was difficult for Mark not so much from an operational point of view but because it clashed with his identity as a visionary SaaS founder who merely wants to sell. But Mark, however, pressed on. And applied changes to the operating system that ended up cutting churn and burn by 70% while boosting growth and morale.
Many of the changes Mark Organ made came as ideas from conversations he had had at SaaStock17. To him, SaaStock is one of the best SaaS conferences because instead of chest bumps it offers honest conversations between founders. It is also an excellent place for a global company such as Influitive to find international customers which he did last year.
To see him speak, have similar valuable conversations in a friendly and fun environment and meet new potential customers join us in Dublin, 15th to the 17th of October. And if you are a startup, we have just launched the application for our Global Pitch Competition. Apply before September 16th.
