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Mar 4, 2017 · 23m · top-founders

EP 588: Zirra Raises $3M, Hits $50k MRR Helping You Get Company Data with CEO Aner Ravon

Anur Ravan · 12m spoken Nathan Latka · 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

Nathan Latka interviews Zirra co-founder and Chief Product Officer Aner Ravon to discuss how the company automated investment intelligence, scaled to $50,000 in monthly recurring revenue, and raised $3 million in venture capital. Ravon details Zirra's transition from a free alpha to paid tiers, its 85-source rule-based data engine, and its strategy to disrupt traditional financial research through narrative-driven analysis.

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 41.2% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 5.0 Guest teaching 2.8 Guest disagreement 1.0 Nathan pushing back 4.0
05100:0010:0020:005:00–8:26 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Zirra's Founding and Transition from Free to Paid Nathan guides the founding story and probes into the mechanics of converting early free corporate users to paying customers. Anur cooperatively shares how they instituted paywalls and transitioned users from promotional credits.8:26–11:43 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Revenue Streams and In-Depth Due Diligence Reports Nathan does real-time mental math on the reported ARPU and subscriber count, calling out an apparent discrepancy with the $50k MRR figure. Anur clarifies that habitual one-off buyers and high-ticket due diligence reports make up the difference.11:43–14:26 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Company Team, Venture Funding, and Revenue Growth Nathan systematically audits the company's headcount, funding background, and annual revenue trajectory. Anur details their team structure, angel backers, and 2017 growth targets.14:26–17:03 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Zirra's 85 Data Sources and Automated Rule Engine Nathan immediately presses Anur to define what 'well covered' means and asks whether data is enriched via third-party APIs like Clearbit. Anur explains their proprietary NLP pipeline, 85 data feeds, and 300 business rules.17:03–18:58 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Market Ambitions and Differentiating through Company Storytelling Nathan challenges Anur on what proprietary edge Zirra holds over incumbents like PitchBook, CB Insights, and Mattermark. Anur reframes the comparison, arguing their moat lies in synthesized storytelling rather than raw dashboard metrics.5:00–8:26 · Guest teaching 2/10 Zirra's Founding and Transition from Free to Paid Nathan guides the founding story and probes into the mechanics of converting early free corporate users to paying customers. Anur cooperatively shares how they instituted paywalls and transitioned users from promotional credits.8:26–11:43 · Guest teaching 3/10 Revenue Streams and In-Depth Due Diligence Reports Nathan does real-time mental math on the reported ARPU and subscriber count, calling out an apparent discrepancy with the $50k MRR figure. Anur clarifies that habitual one-off buyers and high-ticket due diligence reports make up the difference.11:43–14:26 · Guest teaching 2/10 Company Team, Venture Funding, and Revenue Growth Nathan systematically audits the company's headcount, funding background, and annual revenue trajectory. Anur details their team structure, angel backers, and 2017 growth targets.14:26–17:03 · Guest teaching 4/10 Zirra's 85 Data Sources and Automated Rule Engine Nathan immediately presses Anur to define what 'well covered' means and asks whether data is enriched via third-party APIs like Clearbit. Anur explains their proprietary NLP pipeline, 85 data feeds, and 300 business rules.17:03–18:58 · Guest teaching 3/10 Market Ambitions and Differentiating through Company Storytelling Nathan challenges Anur on what proprietary edge Zirra holds over incumbents like PitchBook, CB Insights, and Mattermark. Anur reframes the comparison, arguing their moat lies in synthesized storytelling rather than raw dashboard metrics.5:00–8:26 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Zirra's Founding and Transition from Free to Paid Nathan guides the founding story and probes into the mechanics of converting early free corporate users to paying customers. Anur cooperatively shares how they instituted paywalls and transitioned users from promotional credits.8:26–11:43 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Revenue Streams and In-Depth Due Diligence Reports Nathan does real-time mental math on the reported ARPU and subscriber count, calling out an apparent discrepancy with the $50k MRR figure. Anur clarifies that habitual one-off buyers and high-ticket due diligence reports make up the difference.11:43–14:26 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Company Team, Venture Funding, and Revenue Growth Nathan systematically audits the company's headcount, funding background, and annual revenue trajectory. Anur details their team structure, angel backers, and 2017 growth targets.14:26–17:03 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Zirra's 85 Data Sources and Automated Rule Engine Nathan immediately presses Anur to define what 'well covered' means and asks whether data is enriched via third-party APIs like Clearbit. Anur explains their proprietary NLP pipeline, 85 data feeds, and 300 business rules.17:03–18:58 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Market Ambitions and Differentiating through Company Storytelling Nathan challenges Anur on what proprietary edge Zirra holds over incumbents like PitchBook, CB Insights, and Mattermark. Anur reframes the comparison, arguing their moat lies in synthesized storytelling rather than raw dashboard metrics.5:00–8:26 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Zirra's Founding and Transition from Free to Paid Nathan guides the founding story and probes into the mechanics of converting early free corporate users to paying customers. Anur cooperatively shares how they instituted paywalls and transitioned users from promotional credits.8:26–11:43 · Nathan pushing back 6/10 Revenue Streams and In-Depth Due Diligence Reports Nathan does real-time mental math on the reported ARPU and subscriber count, calling out an apparent discrepancy with the $50k MRR figure. Anur clarifies that habitual one-off buyers and high-ticket due diligence reports make up the difference.11:43–14:26 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Company Team, Venture Funding, and Revenue Growth Nathan systematically audits the company's headcount, funding background, and annual revenue trajectory. Anur details their team structure, angel backers, and 2017 growth targets.14:26–17:03 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Zirra's 85 Data Sources and Automated Rule Engine Nathan immediately presses Anur to define what 'well covered' means and asks whether data is enriched via third-party APIs like Clearbit. Anur explains their proprietary NLP pipeline, 85 data feeds, and 300 business rules.17:03–18:58 · Nathan pushing back 5/10 Market Ambitions and Differentiating through Company Storytelling Nathan challenges Anur on what proprietary edge Zirra holds over incumbents like PitchBook, CB Insights, and Mattermark. Anur reframes the comparison, arguing their moat lies in synthesized storytelling rather than raw dashboard metrics.

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

0:00 · Nathan 96.7% · guest 3.3%0:00 · Nathan 96.7% · guest 3.3%3:00 · Nathan 26.7% · guest 73.3%3:00 · Nathan 26.7% · guest 73.3%6:00 · Nathan 16.7% · guest 83.3%6:00 · Nathan 16.7% · guest 83.3%9:00 · Nathan 43.3% · guest 56.7%9:00 · Nathan 43.3% · guest 56.7%12:00 · Nathan 12.8% · guest 87.2%12:00 · Nathan 12.8% · guest 87.2%15:00 · Nathan 11.5% · guest 88.5%15:00 · Nathan 11.5% · guest 88.5%18:00 · Nathan 53.1% · guest 46.9%18:00 · Nathan 53.1% · guest 46.9%21:00 · Nathan 77.1% · guest 22.9%21:00 · Nathan 77.1% · guest 22.9%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 18:18 Reframing raw data competition into storytelling

Rather than accepting Nathan's premise that Zirra must possess unique raw data sources to compete with PitchBook or CB Insights, Anur reframes their value proposition entirely around automated synthesis and storytelling.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 9:48 Catching MRR math discrepancy

Nathan refuses to let the revenue claim slide, pointing out that 15 subscribers paying $700 per month accounts for only $10.5k of the reported $50k MRR.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 15:32 Explaining the 300-rule business engine and NLP pipeline

Anur educates Nathan on how Zirra processes 85 unstructured data sources using NLP sentiment analysis and comparative hiring ratios to automatically flag investment risks.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 9:48 Demonstrating fast unit economics verification

Nathan instantly calculates the product of reported ARPU and subscriber count to verify financial consistency on the fly.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Zirra's Founding and Transition from Free to Paid 4213 Nathan guides the founding story and probes into the mechanics of converting early free corporate users to paying customers. Anur cooperatively shares how they instituted paywalls and transitioned users from promotional credits.
Revenue Streams and In-Depth Due Diligence Reports 6316 Nathan does real-time mental math on the reported ARPU and subscriber count, calling out an apparent discrepancy with the $50k MRR figure. Anur clarifies that habitual one-off buyers and high-ticket due diligence reports make up the difference.
Company Team, Venture Funding, and Revenue Growth 4212 Nathan systematically audits the company's headcount, funding background, and annual revenue trajectory. Anur details their team structure, angel backers, and 2017 growth targets.
Zirra's 85 Data Sources and Automated Rule Engine 5414 Nathan immediately presses Anur to define what 'well covered' means and asks whether data is enriched via third-party APIs like Clearbit. Anur explains their proprietary NLP pipeline, 85 data feeds, and 300 business rules.
Market Ambitions and Differentiating through Company Storytelling 6315 Nathan challenges Anur on what proprietary edge Zirra holds over incumbents like PitchBook, CB Insights, and Mattermark. Anur reframes the comparison, arguing their moat lies in synthesized storytelling rather than raw dashboard metrics.

Statements from this episode (16)

Assertion Not checkable as stated
Zirra charges angel investors $99 per month for basic access
“Angels pay us 99 dollars per month and they get up to three free reports plus discounts on our value-added services.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 4:28
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Zirra charges private equity firms $499 to $1,299 per month
“Private equity firms pay us anywhere between four 99 and 12 99, depending on the depth of service that they need to receive and they get either 10 reports, all the way from 10 reports a month to unlimited usage.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 4:37
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Zirra's average monthly paying customer pays $700 to $800
“About 708 hundred dollars a month.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 4:58
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Ravon: Zirra analyzed 4,000 companies for 150 free users pre-monetization
“We had about a 150 a 150 users, and we have covered by then about 4000 companies for these 150 customers.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 6:02
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Silver Lake and Microsoft heavily used Zirra's platform as free users
“We have Silver Lake a couple of banks in Israel. We started in Israel. We just made the first inroads to the US market I guess six months ago. Microsoft was using us pretty heavily, but free, but for free.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 6:22
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Zirra converted nearly 85% of its free users to paid plans
“We just blocked free usage to the service and happily, we were happy to see that most of the customers, almost like 85% of the customers went from free to paid services.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 6:51
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Ravon: Zirra has 15 committed monthly subscribers
“So if you just look at the ones who are committed to paying a monthly subscription, how many customers are paying that currently? Right. 15.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 9:12
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Ravon: Zirra has 40 to 50 habitual single-report buyers
“Actually, about 40 to 50 of these are habitual users who sort of structure their own subscription by being habitual.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 9:20
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Zirra crosses $50k in monthly recurring revenue
“Yeah, so we crossed the 50, 50,000 dollars MRR.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 9:41
Assertion Partly supported
Zirra sells deep due diligence reports for $1,000 to $3,000 each
“There is another product which all three customers convert to, and that is the deep report, which we sell for anywhere between 1000 to 3000 dollars.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 10:25
Disclosure
Zirra raised $3M from ex-Microsoft angels, AOL, and Verizon Ventures
“We raised close to three million dollars to date. Mostly angel investors. We have a group of ex-Microsoft executives who's led their angel round. And then we have AOL, Verizon Ventures joined that round.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 12:50
Disclosure
Zirra generated $400,000 to $450,000 in total revenue in 2016
“Four 50. 400.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 13:51
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Zirra aims for a $5M annual revenue run rate by late 2017
“Well, we want to be at a pace, we want to be at a five million pace, at least by the end. So yeah, by the growth rate that we do, we are negotiating a few strategic distribution deals who hopefully will, you know, will triple and quadruple the incoming the inc…”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 14:00
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Ravon: Zirra covers approximately 100,000 companies
“About a 100,000 companies are well covered.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 14:27
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Bloomberg and Reuters lack inroads to comprehensive private company data
“Current leaders in this space, I guess, would be the Bloombergs and the Reuters and those types of players who need to cover hundreds of thousands or millions of companies very, very effectively and do not have good inroads to these sources of data that I just…”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 17:43
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Ravon: Zirra will reach profitability by the end of 2017
“So I do see us becoming profitable by the end of the year.”
Anur Ravan Mar 4, 2017 ▶ 18:09
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