From growth at all costs to profitable growth; A pricing framework to building products with scalable unit economics; How to use VC backchanneling to your advantage
Where women in tech lead, shape and fund the future.
Hi, welcome to Femstree't’s life online. I’m Sarah and this is the 240th edition of Femstreet. If you enjoy this issue full of goodies, please share it with your friends and like it above.
It’s hard to keep up with Kim K. She recently sold a 20% stake in her own beauty company for $200M. Skims is valued at $3.2B, generating $400M in revenue. And she just launched her own PE shop. Still wondering why a Carlyle veteran would leave to go into business with Kim Kardashian? Interest in Private Equity? Here’s a really good breakdown of how the PE business works. Female managers make fairer pay decisions than their male counterparts. Surprised? German staff relocation SaaS company Localyze, co founded by Hanna Asmussen, raised a $35M Series B led by General Catalyst. Fandom x Creativity: What the Japanese denim industry can teach us about innovation. We all know that VC funding has surged in recent years, but unfortunately numbers haven't leapt forward for female founders at the same pace.
From builders and investors in our universe…
“People are a company’s biggest asset and investment. Finding “Swiss Army Knife” people who can play multiple roles can really help scale a business and be cost-effective. It can also create a more agile and engaged team, as employees will be learning and growing in new ways.”
Advice from seasoned CFOs on navigating a downturn
Prolonged low-interest rates starting in 2020 caused a lot of capital to flow into venture. This led to startups getting funded at unprecedented levels and unprecedented public market valuations for high-growth, unprofitable tech companies. But the world has changed. Leading in today’s environment will require different conversations, decisions, and emphasis. Jillian Williams and Amanda Robson of Cowboy VC talked to finance leaders on how to navigate our new, uncertain normal…Read more.
VC backchanneling? Use it to your advantage
If you’re meeting an investor, you should assume that whatever you show or tell that investor will become public knowledge. Investors do their homework and call up references. You should assume prospective investors will call up your current investors, so it’s strategic to arm them with information that can help you with your raise. Elizabeth Yin of Hustle Fund on how backchanneling can work for you or against you…Read more.
“Powerful monetisation doesn't take away from customer experience. It rides on it. In the best cases, it improves the experience. Thoughtful monetisation can even reduce prices.”
A pricing framework to building products with scalable unit economics
Thinking about raising prices to increase LTV? Minor changes in price cause massive fluctuations in output-KPIs. Thesolution is to build a more diversified, customisedproduct and pricing model, moving away from one-size-fits-all and towards granularity. Figment’s Dee Sahni shares her four-step framework of breaking down your user base into value-driving segments to create product and pricing models that scale gracefully. Learn how to layer pricing models and customise them for your users…Read more.
Shifting from growth at all costs to profitable growth
It's no secret that investors—public or private—are no longer rewarding growth at all costs. In public markets, the index of unprofitable tech companies has fallen twice as much as Nasdaq. Now CAC, burn multiple and profitability are king. Gusto’s Head of Marketing, Jaleh Rezaei, explains that to grow efficiently, you have to shift to program-level CAC, invest in conversion, not just demand, launch new programs iteratively, and design an operating cadence…Read more.
How to carve a career path on your own terms
Career fulfilment’ and ‘finding your passion’ are nebulous and somewhat intangible goals — yet we continue to reach for them. When embarking on an unchartered career path you are taking the road less travelled (risk) for a greater sense of fulfilment (reward). Ellen Donnelly of The Ask shares six steps to get the process right…Read more.
How product leaders can build customer empathy without over pivoting on their own needs
One of the risks every Product Manager faces is feeling like their experiences are the only ones that matter. But for most products, you are likely not the target audience. Don’t allow those blind spots to impact the products you build. Deb Liu of Ancestry shares how Product Managers can build empathy for customers and get a wide range of perspectives to meet the customers' unique needs…Read more.
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