StarZero All shows Try the podcast clipper →

Oct 19, 2017 · 21m · top-founders

817: SaaS: DemandBase Raises $65m More, $90m+ ARR, Leading ABM Space, IPO Next?

Nathan Latka · 10m spoken Chris Golec · 8m 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 of The Top, host Nathan Latka interviews Demandbase founder and CEO Chris Golec to explore the company's rapid growth past $75 million in ARR, its recent $65 million funding round, and its strategic leadership in the account-based marketing software space.

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 53.7% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 6.2 Guest teaching 3.0 Guest disagreement 1.6 Nathan pushing back 3.6
05100:0010:0020:001:50–4:35 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Chris Golec on Demandbase's Funding and AI Innovation Nathan sets the stage by reciting precise historic metrics from their previous interview including customer count, ARR, and funding. Chris updates the numbers with the newly closed $65M round and AI product developments.4:35–7:20 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 ABM Market Differentiation and Strategic Investors Nathan introduces the ToutApp fire sale as a comparison to ask why Demandbase thrives while competitors fail. Chris corrects the premise by clarifying that ToutApp was an SDR tool rather than an account-based marketing platform, before detailing strategic investments from Salesforce and Adobe.7:21–12:11 · Nathan as informed peer 8/10 Revenue Milestones, Unit Economics, and Global Expansion Nathan pushes hard on financial realities, specifically pressing Chris on how he can project capital breakeven while simultaneously telling board investors they are aggressively deploying newly raised growth capital. Chris explains their scaling efficiencies and international expansion.12:12–16:28 · Nathan as informed peer 7/10 Sales Operations, Target Marketing, and Acquisition Strategy Nathan digs into sales team quota structures, ad spend, and CAC payback dynamics, analyzing why high retention allows companies to extend payback windows. Chris explains their ABM targeting efficiency and dismisses barter customer acquisition tactics.16:28–21:46 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Sponsor Segment: Acuity Scheduling Efficiency Monologue Segment starts with Nathan's Acuity Scheduling sponsor read and transitions into the Famous Five rapid-fire questions covering favorite business books, CEOs, sleep, and entrepreneurial advice.1:50–4:35 · Guest teaching 2/10 Chris Golec on Demandbase's Funding and AI Innovation Nathan sets the stage by reciting precise historic metrics from their previous interview including customer count, ARR, and funding. Chris updates the numbers with the newly closed $65M round and AI product developments.4:35–7:20 · Guest teaching 5/10 ABM Market Differentiation and Strategic Investors Nathan introduces the ToutApp fire sale as a comparison to ask why Demandbase thrives while competitors fail. Chris corrects the premise by clarifying that ToutApp was an SDR tool rather than an account-based marketing platform, before detailing strategic investments from Salesforce and Adobe.7:21–12:11 · Guest teaching 4/10 Revenue Milestones, Unit Economics, and Global Expansion Nathan pushes hard on financial realities, specifically pressing Chris on how he can project capital breakeven while simultaneously telling board investors they are aggressively deploying newly raised growth capital. Chris explains their scaling efficiencies and international expansion.12:12–16:28 · Guest teaching 3/10 Sales Operations, Target Marketing, and Acquisition Strategy Nathan digs into sales team quota structures, ad spend, and CAC payback dynamics, analyzing why high retention allows companies to extend payback windows. Chris explains their ABM targeting efficiency and dismisses barter customer acquisition tactics.16:28–21:46 · Guest teaching 1/10 Sponsor Segment: Acuity Scheduling Efficiency Monologue Segment starts with Nathan's Acuity Scheduling sponsor read and transitions into the Famous Five rapid-fire questions covering favorite business books, CEOs, sleep, and entrepreneurial advice.1:50–4:35 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Chris Golec on Demandbase's Funding and AI Innovation Nathan sets the stage by reciting precise historic metrics from their previous interview including customer count, ARR, and funding. Chris updates the numbers with the newly closed $65M round and AI product developments.4:35–7:20 · Guest disagreement 3/10 ABM Market Differentiation and Strategic Investors Nathan introduces the ToutApp fire sale as a comparison to ask why Demandbase thrives while competitors fail. Chris corrects the premise by clarifying that ToutApp was an SDR tool rather than an account-based marketing platform, before detailing strategic investments from Salesforce and Adobe.7:21–12:11 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Revenue Milestones, Unit Economics, and Global Expansion Nathan pushes hard on financial realities, specifically pressing Chris on how he can project capital breakeven while simultaneously telling board investors they are aggressively deploying newly raised growth capital. Chris explains their scaling efficiencies and international expansion.12:12–16:28 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Sales Operations, Target Marketing, and Acquisition Strategy Nathan digs into sales team quota structures, ad spend, and CAC payback dynamics, analyzing why high retention allows companies to extend payback windows. Chris explains their ABM targeting efficiency and dismisses barter customer acquisition tactics.16:28–21:46 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Sponsor Segment: Acuity Scheduling Efficiency Monologue Segment starts with Nathan's Acuity Scheduling sponsor read and transitions into the Famous Five rapid-fire questions covering favorite business books, CEOs, sleep, and entrepreneurial advice.1:50–4:35 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Chris Golec on Demandbase's Funding and AI Innovation Nathan sets the stage by reciting precise historic metrics from their previous interview including customer count, ARR, and funding. Chris updates the numbers with the newly closed $65M round and AI product developments.4:35–7:20 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 ABM Market Differentiation and Strategic Investors Nathan introduces the ToutApp fire sale as a comparison to ask why Demandbase thrives while competitors fail. Chris corrects the premise by clarifying that ToutApp was an SDR tool rather than an account-based marketing platform, before detailing strategic investments from Salesforce and Adobe.7:21–12:11 · Nathan pushing back 7/10 Revenue Milestones, Unit Economics, and Global Expansion Nathan pushes hard on financial realities, specifically pressing Chris on how he can project capital breakeven while simultaneously telling board investors they are aggressively deploying newly raised growth capital. Chris explains their scaling efficiencies and international expansion.12:12–16:28 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Sales Operations, Target Marketing, and Acquisition Strategy Nathan digs into sales team quota structures, ad spend, and CAC payback dynamics, analyzing why high retention allows companies to extend payback windows. Chris explains their ABM targeting efficiency and dismisses barter customer acquisition tactics.16:28–21:46 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Sponsor Segment: Acuity Scheduling Efficiency Monologue Segment starts with Nathan's Acuity Scheduling sponsor read and transitions into the Famous Five rapid-fire questions covering favorite business books, CEOs, sleep, and entrepreneurial advice.

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

0:00 · Nathan 94.3% · guest 5.7%0:00 · Nathan 94.3% · guest 5.7%3:00 · Nathan 32.9% · guest 67.1%3:00 · Nathan 32.9% · guest 67.1%6:00 · Nathan 50.9% · guest 49.1%6:00 · Nathan 50.9% · guest 49.1%9:00 · Nathan 44% · guest 56%9:00 · Nathan 44% · guest 56%12:00 · Nathan 42.8% · guest 57.2%12:00 · Nathan 42.8% · guest 57.2%15:00 · Nathan 71.8% · guest 28.2%15:00 · Nathan 71.8% · guest 28.2%18:00 · Nathan 23.2% · guest 76.8%18:00 · Nathan 23.2% · guest 76.8%21:00 · Nathan 99% · guest 1%21:00 · Nathan 99% · guest 1%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 5:04 Differentiating ToutApp from Demandbase's category

Chris firmly rejects Nathan's premise that ToutApp is in Demandbase's category, clarifying that ToutApp is an SDR tool rather than an ABM platform.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 10:19 Pressing on breakeven vs capital deployment

Nathan directly challenges Chris on the paradox of claiming impending capital breakeven right after raising tens of millions in fresh venture funding meant for aggressive spending.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 5:04 Explaining the enterprise ABM platform architecture

Chris educates Nathan on why single-purpose sales point solutions get replaced while end-to-end ABM platforms integrate deeply across the entire enterprise customer lifecycle.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 14:15 Breakdown of unit economics and payback flexibility

Nathan demonstrates SaaS financial mastery by explaining how 110% net revenue retention justifies lengthening payback periods from 8-12 months out to 15-18 months.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Chris Golec on Demandbase's Funding and AI Innovation 6212 Nathan sets the stage by reciting precise historic metrics from their previous interview including customer count, ARR, and funding. Chris updates the numbers with the newly closed $65M round and AI product developments.
ABM Market Differentiation and Strategic Investors 6534 Nathan introduces the ToutApp fire sale as a comparison to ask why Demandbase thrives while competitors fail. Chris corrects the premise by clarifying that ToutApp was an SDR tool rather than an account-based marketing platform, before detailing strategic investments from Salesforce and Adobe.
Revenue Milestones, Unit Economics, and Global Expansion 8427 Nathan pushes hard on financial realities, specifically pressing Chris on how he can project capital breakeven while simultaneously telling board investors they are aggressively deploying newly raised growth capital. Chris explains their scaling efficiencies and international expansion.
Sales Operations, Target Marketing, and Acquisition Strategy 7324 Nathan digs into sales team quota structures, ad spend, and CAC payback dynamics, analyzing why high retention allows companies to extend payback windows. Chris explains their ABM targeting efficiency and dismisses barter customer acquisition tactics.
Sponsor Segment: Acuity Scheduling Efficiency Monologue 4101 Segment starts with Nathan's Acuity Scheduling sponsor read and transitions into the Famous Five rapid-fire questions covering favorite business books, CEOs, sleep, and entrepreneurial advice.

Statements from this episode (10)

Prediction Not checkable as stated
Demandbase expects 50% or higher revenue and customer growth in 2017
“We'll, you know, probably see 50% or north growth this year. In revenue, customers”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 3:12
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Golec predicts Oracle, SAP, and Microsoft will soon advance in ABM
“I don't think it's going to be long before you know, Oracle makes more advancements as well as, you know, SAP and Microsoft.”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 6:42
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Salesforce, Oracle, SAP, and Microsoft are all Demandbase customers
“Well, and all of those companies are large customers of ours.”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 6:59
Disclosure
Salesforce and Adobe are both strategic investors in Demandbase
“Yeah, Adobe participated in this round and both Salesforce and Adobe are Our investors in the company.”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 7:14
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Demandbase has enterprise customers spending several million dollars annually
“We have customers now spending Several million dollars here with us.”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 9:36
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Golec: Demandbase will likely reach capital breakeven by Q2 2018
“We'll probably be capital break even, you know, somewhere, you know, Q one, Q two of next year.”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 10:13
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Demandbase's customer payback period ranges between 8 and 12 months
“You know, it ranges, you know, generally, you know, you'd be somewhere between eight and 12 months.”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 14:11
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Demandbase maintains a 110% net dollar retention rate
“We get a very high dollar amount per customer and, you know, a 110% net dollar retention.”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 14:40
Insight
Golec: Software barter deals between startups always unravel
“They all, all those things, those deals always unravel because the companies are, you know, so it's funny.”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 15:55
Insight
Golec: Founders who want to be their own boss work for everyone
“You know, people start companies for the wrong reasons. They start companies because they don't want to work for anybody else. And, you know, what you quickly realize is when you start a company, you're working for everyone, everyone else. You're working for y…”
Chris Golec Oct 19, 2017 ▶ 20:39
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