StarZero All shows Try the podcast clipper →

Aug 21, 2021 · 15m · top-founders

No Code Agency Moves to SaaS, 1200 Customers, $2m+ ARR

Albert Santalo · 7m spoken Nathan Latka · 5m spoken Eric Yuan · 4s spoken Vivek Bhaskaran · 2s spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

Eightbase founder and CEO Albert Santalo discusses scaling his low-code platform past a two million dollar run rate by balancing product-led growth with enterprise contracts and transitioning away from professional agency services.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 40.4% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 4.8 Guest teaching 2.4 Guest disagreement 1.6 Nathan pushing back 2.6
05100:0010:001:29–4:24 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Introducing Eightbase and Balancing PLG with B2B Sales Nathan digs into Albert's past background with CareCloud and tries to classify Eightbase's revenue model between PLG and custom agency work. Albert clarifies how customer pricing splits between self-serve accounts paying around one hundred dollars and B2B accounts paying closer to fifteen hundred dollars.4:26–8:27 · Nathan as informed peer 7/10 Transitioning Revenue Streams and Setting Run Rate Targets Nathan calculates recurring revenue figures from customer volume and aggressively corners Albert on hitting a five million dollar run rate target. Albert playfully resists publishing exact numbers and explains the strategic purpose of running professional services to assist non-technical founders.8:32–12:35 · Nathan as informed peer 7/10 Sponsor Break: Non-Dilutive Funding with Founderpath Following an ad read, Nathan tracks previous financing rounds and computes implied valuations based on equity dilution percentages below ten percent. Albert explains the round structure, high net retention rate of 135 to 140 percent, and distributed engineering staff across Russia and Latin America.12:35–15:15 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Front-End Expansion and Architectural Scalability in Low-Code Albert explains his product differentiation around building low-code architecture that avoids breaking at enterprise scale, followed by standard responses in the Famous Five closing questions.15:15–15:45 · Nathan as informed peer 0/10 Executive Summary and Episode Conclusion Host monologue summarizing Eightbase's key metrics including ARR, customer counts, capital raised, and net dollar retention.1:29–4:24 · Guest teaching 3/10 Introducing Eightbase and Balancing PLG with B2B Sales Nathan digs into Albert's past background with CareCloud and tries to classify Eightbase's revenue model between PLG and custom agency work. Albert clarifies how customer pricing splits between self-serve accounts paying around one hundred dollars and B2B accounts paying closer to fifteen hundred dollars.4:26–8:27 · Guest teaching 2/10 Transitioning Revenue Streams and Setting Run Rate Targets Nathan calculates recurring revenue figures from customer volume and aggressively corners Albert on hitting a five million dollar run rate target. Albert playfully resists publishing exact numbers and explains the strategic purpose of running professional services to assist non-technical founders.8:32–12:35 · Guest teaching 3/10 Sponsor Break: Non-Dilutive Funding with Founderpath Following an ad read, Nathan tracks previous financing rounds and computes implied valuations based on equity dilution percentages below ten percent. Albert explains the round structure, high net retention rate of 135 to 140 percent, and distributed engineering staff across Russia and Latin America.12:35–15:15 · Guest teaching 4/10 Front-End Expansion and Architectural Scalability in Low-Code Albert explains his product differentiation around building low-code architecture that avoids breaking at enterprise scale, followed by standard responses in the Famous Five closing questions.15:15–15:45 · Guest teaching 0/10 Executive Summary and Episode Conclusion Host monologue summarizing Eightbase's key metrics including ARR, customer counts, capital raised, and net dollar retention.1:29–4:24 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Introducing Eightbase and Balancing PLG with B2B Sales Nathan digs into Albert's past background with CareCloud and tries to classify Eightbase's revenue model between PLG and custom agency work. Albert clarifies how customer pricing splits between self-serve accounts paying around one hundred dollars and B2B accounts paying closer to fifteen hundred dollars.4:26–8:27 · Guest disagreement 3/10 Transitioning Revenue Streams and Setting Run Rate Targets Nathan calculates recurring revenue figures from customer volume and aggressively corners Albert on hitting a five million dollar run rate target. Albert playfully resists publishing exact numbers and explains the strategic purpose of running professional services to assist non-technical founders.8:32–12:35 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Sponsor Break: Non-Dilutive Funding with Founderpath Following an ad read, Nathan tracks previous financing rounds and computes implied valuations based on equity dilution percentages below ten percent. Albert explains the round structure, high net retention rate of 135 to 140 percent, and distributed engineering staff across Russia and Latin America.12:35–15:15 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Front-End Expansion and Architectural Scalability in Low-Code Albert explains his product differentiation around building low-code architecture that avoids breaking at enterprise scale, followed by standard responses in the Famous Five closing questions.15:15–15:45 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Executive Summary and Episode Conclusion Host monologue summarizing Eightbase's key metrics including ARR, customer counts, capital raised, and net dollar retention.1:29–4:24 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Introducing Eightbase and Balancing PLG with B2B Sales Nathan digs into Albert's past background with CareCloud and tries to classify Eightbase's revenue model between PLG and custom agency work. Albert clarifies how customer pricing splits between self-serve accounts paying around one hundred dollars and B2B accounts paying closer to fifteen hundred dollars.4:26–8:27 · Nathan pushing back 5/10 Transitioning Revenue Streams and Setting Run Rate Targets Nathan calculates recurring revenue figures from customer volume and aggressively corners Albert on hitting a five million dollar run rate target. Albert playfully resists publishing exact numbers and explains the strategic purpose of running professional services to assist non-technical founders.8:32–12:35 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Sponsor Break: Non-Dilutive Funding with Founderpath Following an ad read, Nathan tracks previous financing rounds and computes implied valuations based on equity dilution percentages below ten percent. Albert explains the round structure, high net retention rate of 135 to 140 percent, and distributed engineering staff across Russia and Latin America.12:35–15:15 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Front-End Expansion and Architectural Scalability in Low-Code Albert explains his product differentiation around building low-code architecture that avoids breaking at enterprise scale, followed by standard responses in the Famous Five closing questions.15:15–15:45 · Nathan pushing back 0/10 Executive Summary and Episode Conclusion Host monologue summarizing Eightbase's key metrics including ARR, customer counts, capital raised, and net dollar retention.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 63.2% · guest 36.8%0:00 · Nathan 63.2% · guest 36.8%3:00 · Nathan 30.3% · guest 69.7%3:00 · Nathan 30.3% · guest 69.7%6:00 · Nathan 39.5% · guest 60.5%6:00 · Nathan 39.5% · guest 60.5%9:00 · Nathan 37.9% · guest 62.1%9:00 · Nathan 37.9% · guest 62.1%12:00 · Nathan 24.4% · guest 75.6%12:00 · Nathan 24.4% · guest 75.6%15:00 · Nathan 63.9% · guest 36.1%15:00 · Nathan 63.9% · guest 36.1%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 6:03 Albert shuts down revenue forecast drilling

Albert firmly draws the line when Nathan attempts to pin down whether Eightbase will reach five million ARR, reminding him that the company does not publish specific revenue targets.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 5:43 Nathan boxes in run rate estimates

Nathan refuses vague answers about growth, calculating recurring volume on the fly and pressing Albert directly on whether he has crossed two million or five million in ARR.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 6:38 Albert reframes the agency model as enterprise implementation

Albert educates Nathan on enterprise SaaS dynamics, clarifying that their service work is not a traditional agency distraction but essential implementation support similar to classic enterprise rollouts.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 11:49 Nathan deduces valuation from dilution terms

Nathan demonstrates financial mastery by instantly extrapolating that Albert's sub-ten-percent dilution on a two million dollar check implies a valuation north of twenty million dollars.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Introducing Eightbase and Balancing PLG with B2B Sales 6323 Nathan digs into Albert's past background with CareCloud and tries to classify Eightbase's revenue model between PLG and custom agency work. Albert clarifies how customer pricing splits between self-serve accounts paying around one hundred dollars and B2B accounts paying closer to fifteen hundred dollars.
Transitioning Revenue Streams and Setting Run Rate Targets 7235 Nathan calculates recurring revenue figures from customer volume and aggressively corners Albert on hitting a five million dollar run rate target. Albert playfully resists publishing exact numbers and explains the strategic purpose of running professional services to assist non-technical founders.
Sponsor Break: Non-Dilutive Funding with Founderpath 7324 Following an ad read, Nathan tracks previous financing rounds and computes implied valuations based on equity dilution percentages below ten percent. Albert explains the round structure, high net retention rate of 135 to 140 percent, and distributed engineering staff across Russia and Latin America.
Front-End Expansion and Architectural Scalability in Low-Code 4411 Albert explains his product differentiation around building low-code architecture that avoids breaking at enterprise scale, followed by standard responses in the Famous Five closing questions.
Executive Summary and Episode Conclusion 0000 Host monologue summarizing Eightbase's key metrics including ARR, customer counts, capital raised, and net dollar retention.

Statements from this episode (11)

Disclosure
Santalo: Eightbase's Largest Customer Pays About $20k per Month
“First of all, it starts at free, and it goes, you know, the largest customer today is at about 20,000 dollars a month.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 2:44
Disclosure
Santalo: Eightbase PLG Accounts Average $100/mo Versus $1,250-$1,500 for B2B
“On the average customer on the product led growth side is probably somewhere around a hundred bucks a month. And on the B to B engagement side is probably closer to 12, 50, 1500 dollars a month.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 3:33
Disclosure
Santalo: Eightbase Has Approximately 1,200 Paying Customers
“Yeah somewhere around 1200.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 4:02
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Santalo: Non-recurring services make up around 50% of Eightbase revenue
“Non-recurring revenue now is, is somewhere around 50% of our overall revenue.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 5:13
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Santalo: Eightbase has already broken a $2 million run rate
“We have.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 5:49
Disclosure
Santalo: Eightbase will transition services to provider ecosystem
“The idea is that over time, we will transition the services side to an ecosystem of providers.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 7:12
Assertion Supported
Santalo: Eightbase reached $4.8M total raised via priced round
“We, we've closed, we're, we did a price round and closed the overall closing was 4.8. That includes the conversion of everything before.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 7:39
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Santalo: Eightbase maintains net dollar retention between 135% and 140%
“It's somewhere in the one 35 to one 40 range.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 10:41
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Santalo: Eightbase is approaching 50 employees across onshore and offshore teams
“It's we're approaching onshore and offshore. We're approaching 50.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 10:49
Disclosure
Santalo: Eightbase sold less than 10% equity in $2M seed round
“No, we sold less than that.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 11:52
Insight
Santalo: MVPs should be light on features, not on architecture
“You build an MVP because it's a good thing to build an MVP, but an MVP that is light on features, not light on architecture.”
Albert Santalo Aug 21, 2021 ▶ 13:18
Made with StarZero

Turn any episode into a week of clips.

This entire site, over 2,600 episodes transcribed, diarized, checked and made playable, runs on the StarZero media pipeline. Drop in your own episode and the podcast clipper finds the moments worth sharing, cuts them, captions them, and reframes them for every feed.

Try the podcast clipper Learn more