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Jul 17, 2019 · 16m · top-founders

1453 How This Event App Bootstrapped to $1M in ARR

Mats Backlund · 7m spoken Nathan Latka · 6m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

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

In this episode, host Nathan Latka interviews MeetApp founder Mats Backlund, exploring how the B2B event technology company successfully bootstrapped to a $1M+ annual run rate through efficient SaaS unit economics, low churn, and viral customer acquisition.

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 46.6% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 3.8 Guest teaching 1.8 Guest disagreement 0.8 Nathan pushing back 2.4
05100:0010:000:00–2:26 · Nathan as informed peer 0/10 Promoting How to Be a Capitalist Without Any Capital Solo host intro and book promotion followed by a brief summary of the guest's business metrics prior to the interview starting.2:26–6:22 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Introduction to MeetApp and Core Business Model Nathan probes into MeetApp's revenue structure and retention, pushing Mats to clarify ambiguous net retention claims with precise SaaS cohort math.6:22–8:57 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Bootstrapping Timeline, Growth, and Revenue Breakdown Nathan does real-time mental math on ARPU and customer counts, while Mats clarifies the split between one-time event customers and recurring subscriptions.8:58–14:09 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Team Composition and Offshore Development Management Nathan challenges Mats' CAC math and performs a live Google search to check his keyword rankings, leading Mats to explain fully loaded CAC and geographic SERP differences.14:10–16:06 · Nathan as informed peer 3/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions Standard rapid-fire questions followed by Nathan summarizing the key business metrics and thanking the guest.0:00–2:26 · Guest teaching 0/10 Promoting How to Be a Capitalist Without Any Capital Solo host intro and book promotion followed by a brief summary of the guest's business metrics prior to the interview starting.2:26–6:22 · Guest teaching 3/10 Introduction to MeetApp and Core Business Model Nathan probes into MeetApp's revenue structure and retention, pushing Mats to clarify ambiguous net retention claims with precise SaaS cohort math.6:22–8:57 · Guest teaching 2/10 Bootstrapping Timeline, Growth, and Revenue Breakdown Nathan does real-time mental math on ARPU and customer counts, while Mats clarifies the split between one-time event customers and recurring subscriptions.8:58–14:09 · Guest teaching 4/10 Team Composition and Offshore Development Management Nathan challenges Mats' CAC math and performs a live Google search to check his keyword rankings, leading Mats to explain fully loaded CAC and geographic SERP differences.14:10–16:06 · Guest teaching 0/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions Standard rapid-fire questions followed by Nathan summarizing the key business metrics and thanking the guest.0:00–2:26 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Promoting How to Be a Capitalist Without Any Capital Solo host intro and book promotion followed by a brief summary of the guest's business metrics prior to the interview starting.2:26–6:22 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Introduction to MeetApp and Core Business Model Nathan probes into MeetApp's revenue structure and retention, pushing Mats to clarify ambiguous net retention claims with precise SaaS cohort math.6:22–8:57 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Bootstrapping Timeline, Growth, and Revenue Breakdown Nathan does real-time mental math on ARPU and customer counts, while Mats clarifies the split between one-time event customers and recurring subscriptions.8:58–14:09 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Team Composition and Offshore Development Management Nathan challenges Mats' CAC math and performs a live Google search to check his keyword rankings, leading Mats to explain fully loaded CAC and geographic SERP differences.14:10–16:06 · Guest disagreement 0/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions Standard rapid-fire questions followed by Nathan summarizing the key business metrics and thanking the guest.0:00–2:26 · Nathan pushing back 0/10 Promoting How to Be a Capitalist Without Any Capital Solo host intro and book promotion followed by a brief summary of the guest's business metrics prior to the interview starting.2:26–6:22 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Introduction to MeetApp and Core Business Model Nathan probes into MeetApp's revenue structure and retention, pushing Mats to clarify ambiguous net retention claims with precise SaaS cohort math.6:22–8:57 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Bootstrapping Timeline, Growth, and Revenue Breakdown Nathan does real-time mental math on ARPU and customer counts, while Mats clarifies the split between one-time event customers and recurring subscriptions.8:58–14:09 · Nathan pushing back 5/10 Team Composition and Offshore Development Management Nathan challenges Mats' CAC math and performs a live Google search to check his keyword rankings, leading Mats to explain fully loaded CAC and geographic SERP differences.14:10–16:06 · Nathan pushing back 0/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions Standard rapid-fire questions followed by Nathan summarizing the key business metrics and thanking the guest.

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

0:00 · Nathan 96.1% · guest 3.9%0:00 · Nathan 96.1% · guest 3.9%3:00 · Nathan 19.7% · guest 80.3%3:00 · Nathan 19.7% · guest 80.3%6:00 · Nathan 37.4% · guest 62.6%6:00 · Nathan 37.4% · guest 62.6%9:00 · Nathan 24.1% · guest 75.9%9:00 · Nathan 24.1% · guest 75.9%12:00 · Nathan 41% · guest 59%12:00 · Nathan 41% · guest 59%15:00 · Nathan 78.1% · guest 21.9%15:00 · Nathan 78.1% · guest 21.9%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 12:10 Guest rejects host's simplistic CAC calculation

Mats directly corrects Nathan's assumption that ad spend equals total CAC, explaining that CAC includes fully loaded sales salaries and marketing efforts.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 13:00 Host challenges SEO claims with live search results

Nathan checks Google search results in real time and challenges Mats on not appearing on page one for his target search keyword.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 4:22 Guest explains single-event to SaaS conversion model

Mats explains why offering one-off event pricing is an essential acquisition funnel rather than a liability in the event tech sector.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 6:04 Host provides precise cohort definition of net retention

Nathan demonstrates SaaS expertise by explicitly defining how cohort net retention and expansion should be calculated when Mats gives a vague answer.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Promoting How to Be a Capitalist Without Any Capital 0000 Solo host intro and book promotion followed by a brief summary of the guest's business metrics prior to the interview starting.
Introduction to MeetApp and Core Business Model 5314 Nathan probes into MeetApp's revenue structure and retention, pushing Mats to clarify ambiguous net retention claims with precise SaaS cohort math.
Bootstrapping Timeline, Growth, and Revenue Breakdown 5213 Nathan does real-time mental math on ARPU and customer counts, while Mats clarifies the split between one-time event customers and recurring subscriptions.
Team Composition and Offshore Development Management 6425 Nathan challenges Mats' CAC math and performs a live Google search to check his keyword rankings, leading Mats to explain fully loaded CAC and geographic SERP differences.
The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions 3000 Standard rapid-fire questions followed by Nathan summarizing the key business metrics and thanking the guest.

Statements from this episode (14)

Assertion Not checkable as stated
MeetApp subscription customers pay $400 to $500 monthly on average
“If it's a subscription, on average, they pay between four and 500 dollars a month.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 3:58
Assertion Not checkable as stated
About two-thirds of MeetApp revenue is subscription-based
“It's about two thirds are subscription.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 4:09
Assertion Not checkable as stated
MeetApp annual logo churn is roughly 10% to 15%
“We have a show now maybe 10 to 15% a year or 1.5% per month.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 5:12
Assertion Not checkable as stated
MeetApp's gross revenue churn is roughly 5% to 8%
“It's about half that I would say.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 5:28
Assertion Not checkable as stated
MeetApp customer upgrades fully offset revenue lost to churn
“The customers to upgrade and use the solution more compensate for whatever we lose if I put like that.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 5:50
Assertion Not checkable as stated
MeetApp generates about $70,000 per month in pure subscription revenue
“We have subscription revenues of Maybe a 70,000. a month, and then we have the setup fees.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 7:48
Assertion Not checkable as stated
MeetApp has roughly 150-170 annual subscription customers and 150-170 single-event customers
“If I calculate over a year, we have maybe a 150 170 subscription customers and about the same number of single event customers.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 8:05
Assertion Not checkable as stated
MeetApp doubled revenue year-over-year for the past couple years
“We have been able to double our revenue the last couple of years.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 8:21
Prediction Not checkable as stated
MeetApp projects revenue will grow by about 70% in 2019
“This year, maybe not, maybe in, in absolute terms we'll have a higher increase, but in, in percentage, maybe not a hundred percent. So let's say it's was, we will grow with maybe a 70% this year.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 8:26
Disclosure
MeetApp employs 18 to 19 people across Sweden, the US, and India
“We are 18 or 19 today. We are seven of us here in Stockholm. We are Three, two actually now, but version three in, in the U S and we have a team of nine in in India, in Chandigarh.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 9:08
Insight
Offshore dev teams fail unless taught to understand product context
“The key to succeeding in having an offshore team is that you need to really invest in, first of all, getting the right people in, of course, but also investing in getting them to understand the product, the business, so that they can actually think for themsel…”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 9:51
Assertion Not checkable as stated
MeetApp's fully blended customer acquisition cost is approximately $2,500
“It's around 2500 dollars.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 10:35
Disclosure
MeetApp spends roughly $2,000 to $3,000 monthly on paid ads
“Too little, I would say we want to increase it, but it's probably two to 3000 dollars.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 11:48
Assertion Not checkable as stated
MeetApp's organic search drives more leads than paid ads
“The search engines actually, I mean, the organic search actually bring in more leads than the ads.”
Mats Backlund Jul 17, 2019 ▶ 12:36
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