imo, this is a good example of why most ChatGPT-authored blog posts aren't worth the hype. There's no opinion or insight in this post; it's just a summary of well-known, widely-accepted information. Unless you mix in a unique insight with your prompt, ChatGPT articles on topics like this aren't interesting. I subscribed to your newsletter after reading your "Individual or Teams" essay — that was opinion-based writing with a unique insight that changed how I thought about something.
Because someone really had to - “Overall, ChatGPT's explanation of the bottom-up SaaS approach is quite comprehensive and covers the key characteristics of this strategy. However, one potential aspect that is not explicitly mentioned is the importance of data and analytics in driving product development and growth in the bottom-up approach. Data-driven decision making and iterative product development are often critical to creating a user-friendly and valuable product that can gain traction among individual users and teams. Additionally, customer feedback loops and user engagement metrics can help SaaS companies identify areas for improvement and prioritize product updates” — ChatGPT
You actually had a few very good blog posts in the past but this is double useless. I can ask the same question to ChatGPT and the point of following your blog is to get your ideas not a copy paste from other source much less from ChatGPT.
Great...., I actually thought of this approach last Halloween, I was going to pass out product at a Company, I had a plastic Pumpkin with many copies of the product to hand out.
Test the Premise, I have a version of the product, has many of the parameters in your outline. This is Educational in Nature, the work of an Astrophysicist, I can forward you Fifty Units, small, it is a "free" offering, however 3/4ths of the way through the product, if the 3/4ths free trial part was valuable, the remaining 1/4er can be requested from the Developer. You pick the company!
Within the first few lines it felt generic enough that it could be skimmed, which I continued to do for the rest of the article.
I agree with others in this comment thread - nothing insightful or particularly memorable here.
Maybe that will be the hallmark of future articles - it will no longer be about who is writing clearly, with structure etc. because those are things GPT can do well. But it will be about which writing packs the most insight in the shortest space.
While the article provides a comprehensive overview of the key characteristics of the bottom-up SaaS approach, there are a few interesting topics that it did not cover in detail. One such topic is the role of data analytics and metrics in the bottom-up approach. Data analytics can provide valuable insights into user behavior, preferences, and usage patterns, which can be used to improve the product and drive adoption. Metrics such as user engagement, retention, and conversion rates can also provide a clear understanding of the effectiveness of the bottom-up approach and help companies refine their go-to-market strategy. Additionally, the article did not touch on the challenges and risks associated with the bottom-up approach, such as the need to balance individual user needs with enterprise-level requirements, the risk of shadow IT, and the potential for security and compliance issues. Overall, while the article provides a solid overview of the key characteristics of the bottom-up approach, further exploration of these topics could provide deeper insights into the effectiveness and potential drawbacks of this approach.
Thanks for sharing your insightful article on the bottom-up SaaS approach, David! I completely agree that creating user-friendly and valuable products is critical to driving growth and adoption among individual users and small teams. Moreover, your emphasis on freemium or free trial models, virality and network effects, grassroots adoption, self-service, and ease of use is spot-on. I also think that integrating cutting-edge technologies like AI and LLMs can enhance the bottom-up SaaS approach even further. ChatGPT has also helped enhance my post with its AI capabilities.
For instance, AI-driven insights, natural language processing technologies, and AI-powered chatbots can help SaaS companies provide more valuable and user-friendly products, as well as automate tasks and improve marketing efforts. Overall, I think your article provides a great overview of the bottom-up SaaS approach and how AI and LLMs can take it to the next level. Thanks again for sharing!
Usually “Modest Initial (Non-Zero) Purchase Price” is part of the equation too — the element of expansion and upsell is captured but I’d add that bottom-up saas products are priced such that the initial user has or can easily get the budget authority to commit to an initial purchase.
Free trials that turn into buying committee decisions with long cycles are no longer really “bottoms up SaaS” in my book.
The other thing I’d add is typical examples given omit SolarWinds who always were and remain masters at this motion ;)
I’m currently reading Crossing the Chasm and this reminds me of his example of Salesforce going after the sales people vs the higher up decision makers when they were crossing the chasm. Good stuff
imo, this is a good example of why most ChatGPT-authored blog posts aren't worth the hype. There's no opinion or insight in this post; it's just a summary of well-known, widely-accepted information. Unless you mix in a unique insight with your prompt, ChatGPT articles on topics like this aren't interesting. I subscribed to your newsletter after reading your "Individual or Teams" essay — that was opinion-based writing with a unique insight that changed how I thought about something.
ChatGPT missed a key difference between bottom-up and top-down SaaS:
Bottom-up: Early adopters get promoted
Top-down: Early adopters get laughed out of the room
Because someone really had to - “Overall, ChatGPT's explanation of the bottom-up SaaS approach is quite comprehensive and covers the key characteristics of this strategy. However, one potential aspect that is not explicitly mentioned is the importance of data and analytics in driving product development and growth in the bottom-up approach. Data-driven decision making and iterative product development are often critical to creating a user-friendly and valuable product that can gain traction among individual users and teams. Additionally, customer feedback loops and user engagement metrics can help SaaS companies identify areas for improvement and prioritize product updates” — ChatGPT
You actually had a few very good blog posts in the past but this is double useless. I can ask the same question to ChatGPT and the point of following your blog is to get your ideas not a copy paste from other source much less from ChatGPT.
As applied to Newsletter growth this interests me. Do I really have control over the direct to consumer audience and product here?
I will definitely be adopting this method with my upcoming app release
Listen to this article at https://playtext.app/doc/clg802aqv0000xfaiowez78i4
Great...., I actually thought of this approach last Halloween, I was going to pass out product at a Company, I had a plastic Pumpkin with many copies of the product to hand out.
Test the Premise, I have a version of the product, has many of the parameters in your outline. This is Educational in Nature, the work of an Astrophysicist, I can forward you Fifty Units, small, it is a "free" offering, however 3/4ths of the way through the product, if the 3/4ths free trial part was valuable, the remaining 1/4er can be requested from the Developer. You pick the company!
Within the first few lines it felt generic enough that it could be skimmed, which I continued to do for the rest of the article.
I agree with others in this comment thread - nothing insightful or particularly memorable here.
Maybe that will be the hallmark of future articles - it will no longer be about who is writing clearly, with structure etc. because those are things GPT can do well. But it will be about which writing packs the most insight in the shortest space.
Missed the leverage of going open source.
Land and Expand. Enterprise Software Sales 101 strategy for decades.
Hi David. Do you have similar blogs on Sales Assisted Growth or growth that needs both product and marketing?
ChatGPT:
While the article provides a comprehensive overview of the key characteristics of the bottom-up SaaS approach, there are a few interesting topics that it did not cover in detail. One such topic is the role of data analytics and metrics in the bottom-up approach. Data analytics can provide valuable insights into user behavior, preferences, and usage patterns, which can be used to improve the product and drive adoption. Metrics such as user engagement, retention, and conversion rates can also provide a clear understanding of the effectiveness of the bottom-up approach and help companies refine their go-to-market strategy. Additionally, the article did not touch on the challenges and risks associated with the bottom-up approach, such as the need to balance individual user needs with enterprise-level requirements, the risk of shadow IT, and the potential for security and compliance issues. Overall, while the article provides a solid overview of the key characteristics of the bottom-up approach, further exploration of these topics could provide deeper insights into the effectiveness and potential drawbacks of this approach.
Thanks for sharing your insightful article on the bottom-up SaaS approach, David! I completely agree that creating user-friendly and valuable products is critical to driving growth and adoption among individual users and small teams. Moreover, your emphasis on freemium or free trial models, virality and network effects, grassroots adoption, self-service, and ease of use is spot-on. I also think that integrating cutting-edge technologies like AI and LLMs can enhance the bottom-up SaaS approach even further. ChatGPT has also helped enhance my post with its AI capabilities.
For instance, AI-driven insights, natural language processing technologies, and AI-powered chatbots can help SaaS companies provide more valuable and user-friendly products, as well as automate tasks and improve marketing efforts. Overall, I think your article provides a great overview of the bottom-up SaaS approach and how AI and LLMs can take it to the next level. Thanks again for sharing!
Usually “Modest Initial (Non-Zero) Purchase Price” is part of the equation too — the element of expansion and upsell is captured but I’d add that bottom-up saas products are priced such that the initial user has or can easily get the budget authority to commit to an initial purchase.
Free trials that turn into buying committee decisions with long cycles are no longer really “bottoms up SaaS” in my book.
The other thing I’d add is typical examples given omit SolarWinds who always were and remain masters at this motion ;)
I’m currently reading Crossing the Chasm and this reminds me of his example of Salesforce going after the sales people vs the higher up decision makers when they were crossing the chasm. Good stuff