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Startups For the Rest of Us

Rob Walling
Saas
Entrepreneurship
Microconf
B2B Saas
Tinyseed
Marketing
Product Market Fit
Bootstrapping
Startups
Outboundsync
Hello Query
Savvycal
SEO
Product-Market Fit
Saas Companies
Freemium Model
Pricing Strategy
Tiny Seed
Saas Customer Success
Paul Graham

The original podcast for bootstrapped and mostly bootstrapped startups, this show follow the stories of founders as they start, acquire, and grow SaaS companies. Hear when they fail, struggle, succeed, and take you with them through the tumultuous life of a SaaS founder. If you like Mixergy, This Week in Startups, or SaaStr, you’ll enjoy Startup for the Rest of Us.

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes329Founded16 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
EntrepreneurshipBusinessMarketing

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Artwork for Startups For the Rest of Us

Latest Episodes

What does it take to make a lifetime deal work?

In this listener questions episode, Rob Walling revisits the lifetime pricing debate with new context from Davis Baer of Youform. He also tackles why building is rarely the hard part, how bootstrappers... more

What does it take to build a seven figure SaaS in a market almost no one thinks about?

In this episode, Rob Walling sits down with Brian Henderson, co-founder of Wash-Dry-Fold POS, to walk through the 10-year arc of building it in one of the most ov... more

YouTube

Are you building systems for your team, or are you still the system?

In this episode, Rob Walling talks with Julien Marzouk, a former SaaS founder and coach who has worked with hundreds of seven and eight figure founders over the past decade. Julien... more

YouTube

Is SaaS dead now that AI can build an app in a weekend?

In this solo episode, Rob Walling gives his most definitive answer yet to the question flooding the internet: what's the future of SaaS now that AI makes it easier than ever to build and copy a... more

YouTube

Key Facts

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Recent Guests

Brian Henderson
Co-founder of Wash-Dry-Fold POS
Wash-Dry-Fold POS
Episode: Episode 844 | Building a $1M+ ARR SaaS for Laundromats
Julien Marzouk
Former SaaS founder and SaaS coach
SaaS Institute (TinySeed)
Episode: Episode 843 | Success Patterns of $1M+ SaaS Founders
Nick Francis
Co-founder of Help Scout
Help Scout
Episode: Episode 839 | The Journey Growing Help Scout to $35M ARR
Taylor Hendricksen
SaaS Institute coach and performance marketer with extensive ad spend experience
SaaS Institute
Episode: Episode 835 | The Right Way to Use AI in Your Startup Marketing
Eric Ries
Founder of The Lean Startup
The Lean Startup
Episode: Episode 834 | Eric Ries Revisits The Lean Startup and Discusses How to Become Incorruptible
Adam Wathan
Co-founder of Tailwind CSS
Tailwind Labs
Episode: Episode 825 | Talking Tailwind CSS and Founder Fitness (with Adam Wathan)
Tracy Osborn
Head of Product of TinySeed and of MicroConf
TinySeed, MicroConf
Episode: Episode 823 | Hot Take Tuesday: Is A.I. Killing B2B SaaS?, ChatGPT Ads, OpenClaw
Jay Clouse
Founder of Creator Science, an educational media company helping content creators improve
Creator Science
Episode: Episode 821 | How to Do Founder-Led Marketing (with Jay Clouse)
Jason Cohen
Founder of WP Engine and SmartBear
SmartBear
Episode: Episode 817 | Bootstrapping in the Age of AI with Jason Cohen

Host

Rob Walling
Host of Startups For the Rest of Us; frequent host and primary moderator focused on bootstrapped SaaS and founder-led growth.

Reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars from 1.6k ratings
  • Good early entrepreneur podcast

    I love Rob’s insights about starting a business, what matters, and how to navigate common and critical decisions. His regular guests are great.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Bobarewski
    United States3 months ago
  • My favorite tech / startup podcast

    Been listening for a couple years. It’s really great. Rob is unassuming, low ego, and a good interviewer. I like the mix of solo episodes and interesting guests. Most other podcasts in this space just seem like one long ad for something.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Murphycj
    United States6 months ago
  • Great content

    I am a solopreneur with a small business and Rob’s podcast is so helpful and inspiring and empathic. 5 stars.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    MicXXCCC
    Italy10 months ago
  • I don’t want to give it 5 stars

    I rather gate keep this and keep all this info goodness to myself, only reason i am giving it 5 stars and writing this review is because i feel i need to repay them for all the no bs down to earth realistic info on how to build a SaaS. Even in the age of AI this podcast is very valuable. Keep it up! I look forward to every episode.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Sashogs
    Australiaa year ago
  • Rob's podcast is THE manual for bootstrapping a startup

    I've been a listener for several years now. Rob Walling produces an amazingly informative and brilliant podcast discussing startups, bootstrapping a startup, and the journey of others who have bootstrapped their companies. He and guests are transparent about mistakes they made and will discuss options in realtime to weigh pros and cons. Listener question episodes and "Rob solo adventure" episodes are an excellent. I can't believe this doesn't have hundreds of 5 star reviews tbh. Highly recommend... more

    Audible
    5
    Anonymous
    United Statesa year ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

The show is a go-to resource for founders seeking real-world guidance rather than hype.
Listeners praise practical, down-to-earth advice and actionable takeaways.
The host is seen as honest, focused, and credible; some note increased self-promotion over time.
Guests are consistently high-quality and relevant to bootstrapped SaaS.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Episode 841 | One-time Payments, Growing a Step 2 Business, Positioning, and More Listener Questions (Rob Solo)
Q: How should a Shopify app with custom development work price and positioning? Should there be a low price plus consulting, or a high price with direct customization, or some mix?
I'd favor a tiered approach, typically a lower-priced recurring plan (e.g., $49/month) for the tool with an upfront project fee for the custom work, and a higher agency/enterprise tier (e.g., $249/month) to justify dedicated support and closer collaboration. The key is clear differentiation between tiers, ensuring the higher tier delivers meaningful value beyond the base product, and being prepared to set boundaries if one tier cannibalizes the other. If your high-end tier can't be justified with ongoing value, consider adjusting pricing or replacing the tier with better-feature differentiation.
Episode 841 | One-time Payments, Growing a Step 2 Business, Positioning, and More Listener Questions (Rob Solo)
Q: What is your take on using a one-time purchase as a validation step before transitioning to a subscription, and can you ever run both at the same time without cannibalizing revenue?
My view is that you can test demand with a subscription and gather real customer feedback by having people pay recurring, which tends to yield deeper insights than a one-time payment. A one-time approach can work in very specific cases (e.g., high upfront value and strong marketing reach like AppSumo), but in general I'd avoid it for SaaS that requires ongoing delivery; if you do run both, you need clear differentiation and an understanding that the one-time option is a temporary experiment rather than a core model.
Episode 840 | 5 PM Revisited, Starting Over After Failure, Never Shipping, and More Listener Questions (Rob Solo)
Q: Hi Rob, where should I focus next to grow this business (event-based B2C SaaS)?
Steve, the host is skeptical about easy wins with paid ads for very low-LTV products and leans toward focusing on core value channels like SEO and organic growth, and evangelizing use cases that scale beyond a single event; long-term growth likely comes from expanding use cases (pub trivia hosts, corporate trainings) and checking whether there is a viable B2B angle for recurring revenue rather than chasing short-term paid strategies.
Episode 837 | How Do You Learn Product? and Optimizing Your Trial Funnel (with Ruben Gamez)
Q: What role does friction play in a trial funnel, and how should a founder think about it for different products?
Friction should be used strategically and contextually. For some products with longer time-to-value and more anxiety (like proposals), educational and slower onboarding can help; for simpler or more signup-driven products (like SignWell), reducing friction can boost initial conversions but may hurt long-term upgrades if misapplied. The best approach is to test with volume and segment users to learn what actually converts.
Episode 837 | How Do You Learn Product? and Optimizing Your Trial Funnel (with Ruben Gamez)
Q: How does one go about learning the skill of product, given the core four SaaS skills?
Develop a deep mix of hands-on practice, mentorship, targeted reading, and real-world experimentation. Start with learning from people who've built products, study frameworks, and spend time understanding your customers—then translate that into thoughtful prioritization and design decisions.

Audience Metrics

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Listeners per Episode
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Frequently Asked Questions About Startups For the Rest of Us

What is Startups For the Rest of Us about and what kind of topics does it cover?

A practical, founder-focused show that delivers actionable guidance for bootstrapped SaaS and small software businesses. Episodes blend founder journeys, realistic growth tactics, pricing, marketing, and product decisions with hands-on frameworks and real-world anecdotes. Listeners tend to value down-to-earth advice, honest assessments of challenges, and tactical takeaways they can apply to their own ventures. The show frequently features experienced bootstrappers and operators who share lessons from building sustainable, long-running software companies. Noteworthy is the emphasis on pragmatic economics, customer-focused pricing, and founder health and sustainability as components of long-term success.

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How many listeners does Startups For the Rest of Us get?

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What are the audience demographics for Startups For the Rest of Us?

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How many subscribers and views does Startups For the Rest of Us have?

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Which podcasts are similar to Startups For the Rest of Us?

These podcasts share a similar audience with Startups For the Rest of Us:

1. The Startup Ideas Podcast
2. Y Combinator Startup Podcast
3. My First Million
4. The Official SaaStr Podcast: SaaS | Founders | Investors
5. REWORK

How many episodes of Startups For the Rest of Us are there?

Startups For the Rest of Us launched 16 years ago and published 329 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact Startups For the Rest of Us?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

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What guests have appeared on Startups For the Rest of Us?

Recent guests on Startups For the Rest of Us include:

1. Brian Henderson
2. Julien Marzouk
3. Nick Francis
4. Taylor Hendricksen
5. Eric Ries
6. Adam Wathan
7. Tracy Osborn
8. Jay Clouse

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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