WhoBuilt

After PMF: People, Customers, Sales

Oct 24, 2018· 55 min· 26K views·Watch on YouTube
#Growth & Distribution#Organizational Design#Hiring & Talent#Product Discovery#Product-Market Fit#Pricing & Monetization

Speaker

Mathilde CollinCEO at Front

Mathilde Collin, CEO of Front, discusses building the company after product-market fit at Y Combinator’s Startup School, in conversation with a host.

Build culture through clarity and focus

Collin says transparency helps employees see how their work connects to company goals. At Front, the team shared revenue and tracked it daily for at least a year, with work focused on increasing it. She says discipline around a few clear priorities mattered more than having a grand vision.

Hire to scale work you understand

Early on, Collin handled product management, recruiting, marketing, sales, support, and customer success. She hired when she had worked out what a role needed to do, then looked for someone who could do it better. Front assessed candidates against its values, including low ego, high standards, care, collaboration, and transparency.

Learn from customers and choose a sales approach

Collin says she spoke with seven or eight leads and customers a day to understand their needs. A conversation with Homejoy CEO Adora led Front to add SMS, which Collin says drove revenue. She advises founders to listen closely, focus on paying customers’ feedback, and choose either a bottom-up or top-down sales approach before building a sales team.

Price early and stay accountable to growth

Front began with free and paid plans at $3 and $9 per user per month, then removed the free plan and raised prices after finding it distracted the team. Collin recommends publishing pricing early and adjusting it through customer response. She also credits regular team updates and attention to targets with helping Front stay accountable to growth.

Make room for life beyond the company

After co-founder Laurent was diagnosed with cancer in December 2016, Collin says she reconsidered the place of work in life. She tells new employees that being happy and healthy comes first. She also describes meditating for ten minutes each morning as a way to care deeply about the company without feeling overwhelmed.

Takeaways

  • Share goals and business information so people can connect their work to company priorities.
  • Define a role before hiring, then recruit someone who can scale what is already working.
  • Talk to leads and customers regularly, and use their workflows to guide product decisions.
  • Choose a sales motion early because it affects how you sell and whom you hire.
  • Track a few targets consistently while protecting time for health, relationships, and rest.

Mentioned in this talk

FrontY CombinatorGoogleThe FamilyStripeHomejoyTwilioClearbitLoomioTrelloHeadspaceEmailSMSbuilding in publiccustomer discoveryBottom-up salestop-down migration planningMeditationcontent marketingLaurentAlexPatrick AllisonKevin HaleAdora

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