Startup Stories - Mixergy

Today’s guest is a guy who has software that allows people to create online stores. The minute I heard about this idea, I said, “Whoa, he’s going to get crushed.” There are competitors already in the space who are really, really big. I’m talking about Amazon and Shopify. And into this space he waltzes in and he says, “I’m going to build something better.” I want to find out how far he’s come. Gal Ratner is the founder of ShopSnap, which allows customers to create an online store in a snap. The fact that he’s here shows you that he’s come pretty far. But I want to understand how. Gal Ratner is the founder of ShopSnap, which allows customers to create an online store in a snap. Sponsored byIf you need anything designed–a new web page, a new landing page, a new logo, DesignCrowd will do it for you. They ask you what you’re looking for, who you are, what your company is like. They will give you lots of options, you pick the one you like, pay for it, and they guarantee results. It’s that simple. Find out how DesignCrowd is different than the other companies and go to designcrowd.com/mixergy. ActiveCampaign – Improve your marketing & sales processes by upgrading to an automated platform. Start sending follow-up that adapts to your customers’ behavior so you are sending the perfect message at the perfect time. You’ll have happier customers and higher conversions. See why over 150,000 marketers use ActiveCampaign to create intelligent marketing that gets better results. If you’re with one of their confusing competitors and you want something new, you owe it to your business to check out ActiveCampaign. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

This interview is about how to build an online recruitment agency, which enables businesses to find remote IT employees. What I’m trying to figure out is how today’s guest is competing in a world with so many recruitment companies that are so deeply venture backed. How is he getting customers? How is he finding the candidates? And then, what happened in the past when things didn’t exactly work out for him and he felt like he lost your soul running a previous company? Sharon Koifman is the founder of DistantJob, a boutique recruitment agency specializing in remote IT employees. Sharon Koifman is the founder of DistantJob, a boutique recruitment agency specializing in remote IT employees. Sponsored byWith Bench, you get a professional bookkeeping team to do your books for you and our simple, elegant software to review your finances. It’s everything you need to forget about your bookkeeping, without actually forgetting about your bookkeeping. Sign up at Bench and get 20% off for your first 6 months. Regus has built an unparalleled network of office, co-working and meeting spaces for companies to use in every city in the world, an infrastructure to support every business opportunity. Their network of workspaces enables businesses to operate anywhere, without the need for set-up costs or capital investment. It provides our customers with immediate cost benefits and the opportunity to fully outsource their office portfolio. It’s a network designed to enhance productivity and connect 2.5 million like-minded professionals: an instant global community, and a place to belong. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

Today’s guest helps executives and CEOs drive more predictable execution at their company. I want talk to him about that. I also want to talk to him about also NetQoS, which is the company that he founded. It was a developer of network and application performance management software which he sold to CA Technologies. Joel Trammell is currently the CEO of Black Box, a leading digital solutions provider dedicated to helping customers design, build, manage, and secure their IT infrastructure. My focus for this interview is going to be how he built NetQoS. Joel Trammell is currently the CEO of Black Box, a leading digital solutions provider dedicated to helping customers design, build, manage, and secure their IT infrastructure. Sponsored byWith Bench, you get a professional bookkeeping team to do your books for you and our simple, elegant software to review your finances. It’s everything you need to forget about your bookkeeping, without actually forgetting about your bookkeeping. Sign up at Bench and get 20% off for your first 6 months. Toptal – If you’re having trouble finding developers, Toptal is a network of elite pre-vetted software developers. You tell Toptal what you’re looking for, they search their network for the best people, they test the candidates, and then they present you with only the candidates who meet your individual needs. Once you pick someone you can start work with them the next day. They offer a no-risk trial period. Go to Toptal.com. Get the best of the best right now. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

You are about to hear from an entrepreneur who is creating the next generation of monsters. Jack Davis is the founder of Crypt TV, which creates monster stories that change culture and bring the world closer together. They’re creating the next generation of monsters. They just happen to be using social sites like YouTube and Facebook to create and promote them. I feel like this is the future. I invited him here to talk about how he’s doing this, why he’s doing this, and can he really take on Hollywood? Jack Davis is the founder of Crypt TV, which creates monster stories that change culture and bring the world closer together. Sponsored byHostGator – Ready to take your website to the next level? Whether you’re a first-time blogger or an experienced web pro, HostGator has all the tools you need to create a great-looking website or online store. A wide range of options includes cloud-based web hosting, reseller hosting, VPS hosting and dedicated servers. Founded in 2002, HostGator is the perfect web partner for business owners and individuals seeking hands-on support. Visit www.hostgator.com/mixergy to see what HostGator can do for your website. ActiveCampaign – Improve your marketing & sales processes by upgrading to an automated platform. Start sending follow-up that adapts to your customers’ behavior so you are sending the perfect message at the perfect time. You’ll have happier customers and higher conversions. See why over 150,000 marketers use ActiveCampaign to create intelligent marketing that gets better results. If you’re with one of their confusing competitors and you want something new, you owe it to your business to check out ActiveCampaign. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

Today’s guest created a translation service that he built into a really incredible company. Because of it, he got lots of other opportunities. He’s doing Startup Grind in Europe; he is even investing in other startups. Sergiu Matei is the founder of TRAVOD, an online or professional translation service. Basically, he’s got one of these really successful companies that’s giving him a lot of freedom to do a lot of things including travel to San Francisco where I met him. I invited him here to talk about how he did it. You can check out the article Matei wrote on Startup Grind here. Sergiu Matei is the founder of TRAVOD, an online or professional translation service. Sponsored byRegus has built an unparalleled network of office, co-working and meeting spaces for companies to use in every city in the world, an infrastructure to support every business opportunity. Their network of workspaces enables businesses to operate anywhere, without the need for set-up costs or capital investment. It provides our customers with immediate cost benefits and the opportunity to fully outsource their office portfolio. It’s a network designed to enhance productivity and connect 2.5 million like-minded professionals: an instant global community, and a place to belong. HostGator – Ready to take your website to the next level? Whether you’re a first-time blogger or an experienced web pro, HostGator has all the tools you need to create a great-looking website or online store. A wide range of options includes cloud-based web hosting, reseller hosting, VPS hosting and dedicated servers. Founded in 2002, HostGator is the perfect web partner for business owners and individuals seeking hands-on support. Visit www.hostgator.com/mixergy to see what HostGator can do for your website More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

Hiring has been a huge issue for me. And in a past interview with Cameron Herold, I brought it up because he’s the founder of the COO Alliance, the world’s leading network for the second in command. I don’t get embarrassed by a lot of stuff. If you heard my interviews, you hear me get pretty frank about my flaws, my mistakes. But this issue is something I was embarrassed about. I think if I don’t hire somebody to be the second in command at Mixergy, I am probably going to collapse. So, that’s what today is about. It’s not so much an interview as it is a coaching call with the guy who knows hiring better than anyone else. You’ll get to hear what I learned and my hope is that you benefit from it too. Cameron Herold is the founder of the COO Alliance, the world’s leading network for the second in command. Sponsored byWith Bench, you get a professional bookkeeping team to do your books for you and our simple, elegant software to review your finances. It’s everything you need to forget about your bookkeeping, without actually forgetting about your bookkeeping. Sign up at Bench and get 20% off for your first 6 months. Toptal – If you’re having trouble finding developers, Toptal is a network of elite pre-vetted software developers. You tell Toptal what you’re looking for, they search their network for the best people, they test the candidates, and then they present you with only the candidates who meet your individual needs. Once you pick someone you can start work with them the next day. They offer a no-risk trial period. Go to Toptal.com. Get the best of the best right now. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

The guy you’re about to meet in today’s interview started an online therapy business, which years ago I would have said, “Who wants to do that? That seems a little bit impersonal.” But over the years I realized that therapy stinks. Every therapist that I’ve been to in person was either crappy or good, but I don’t have the time to see them because they’re so good that I can’t get on their calendar. I’ve tried online therapy and I’ve had bad experiences with bad companies. I’m especially interested in Mark’s business and how he build it. He’ll tell me about the challenges trying to get therapy online and trying to get people, like me, to understand it. And how he was able to sell it. Mark Goldenson is the founder of Breakthrough.com, an online therapy service. It has since been acquired by MDLIVE. Mark Goldenson is the founder of Breakthrough.com, an online therapy service. Sponsored byActiveCampaign – Improve your marketing & sales processes by upgrading to an automated platform. Start sending follow-up that adapts to your customers’ behavior so you are sending the perfect message at the perfect time. You’ll have happier customers and higher conversions. See why over 150,000 marketers use ActiveCampaign to create intelligent marketing that gets better results. If you’re with one of their confusing competitors and you want something new, you owe it to your business to check out ActiveCampaign. Regus has built an unparalleled network of office, co-working and meeting spaces for companies to use in every city in the world, an infrastructure to support every business opportunity. Their network of workspaces enables businesses to operate anywhere, without the need for set-up costs or capital investment. It provides our customers with immediate cost benefits and the opportunity to fully outsource their office portfolio. It’s a network designed to enhance productivity and connect 2.5 million like-minded professionals: an instant global community, and a place to belong. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

I am so frickin’ fascinated by chatbots and it’s because I recognized that reaching my audience via email was a losing proposition. No matter how much effort we were putting into better headlines, better copy, whatever, people just don’t love email. The benefit of Messenger is we don’t write long messages, we write short messages that will reach them and they actually check it. Well, today’s guest is the founder of a Messenger marketing platform that helps e-commerce companies connect with customers and drive sales. Matt Schlicht, of Octane AI, showed me what he does and blew my frickin’ mind. I invited him here because I think anyone who’s interested in Messenger as a way of communicating with customers has to see what they have done. Matt Schlicht is the founder of Octane.ai, a messenger marketing platform that helps ecommerce companies connect with customers and drive sales. Sponsored byActiveCampaign – Improve your marketing & sales processes by upgrading to an automated platform. Start sending follow-up that adapts to your customers’ behavior so you are sending the perfect message at the perfect time. You’ll have happier customers and higher conversions. See why over 150,000 marketers use ActiveCampaign to create intelligent marketing that gets better results. If you’re with one of their confusing competitors and you want something new, you owe it to your business to check out ActiveCampaign. Mailshake – Mailshake is an easy-to-use way of taking away the pain point of high volume emails while still being personal and not ending up in the “promotions” tab in Gmail. Use it as a biz dev tool to reach out to prospects on your target customer list. Mailshake is light weight and low cost email software for marketers and sales folks. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

This interview is completely different from any other interview on Mixergy. Here’s why–A couple years ago, I invested in a company called Assist that went through a bunch of different iterations, but eventually, it became one of the first Facebook Messenger chatbot makers. I loved the whole idea of chatbots as a platform, but I felt that a lot of people didn’t get it. Well, Scott Oldford and Katya Sarmiento are here to tell you how they started a business called Bots for Business. And I’ve got a big announcement you’ll hear about in this interview. Scott Oldford and Katya Sarmiento are the founders of Bots for Business, which helps customers generate more leads and sales using Messenger bots. Katya also runs Reach and Make Millions where she helps 6-figure entrepreneurs scale up to 7-figures. Sponsored byWith Bench, you get a professional bookkeeping team to do your books for you and our simple, elegant software to review your finances. It’s everything you need to forget about your bookkeeping, without actually forgetting about your bookkeeping. Sign up at Bench and get 20% off for your first 6 months. ActiveCampaign – Improve your marketing & sales processes by upgrading to an automated platform. Start sending follow-up that adapts to your customers’ behavior so you are sending the perfect message at the perfect time. You’ll have happier customers and higher conversions. See why over 150,000 marketers use ActiveCampaign to create intelligent marketing that gets better results. If you’re with one of their confusing competitors and you want something new, you owe it to your business to check out ActiveCampaign. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

In the early days of Bitcoin when most people didn’t understand it or believe in its future, today’s guest decided that he was going to accept it as a real way for people to pay. As a result he got into Bitcoin before most people even knew about it. He has built up a reputation and businesses in the Bitcoin world. Roger Ver is the founder of Bitcoin.com, where you can go to learn about Bitcoin and get a free wallet. Roger Ver is the founder of Bitcoin.com, where you can go to learn about Bitcoin and get a free wallet. Sponsored byWith Bench, you get a professional bookkeeping team to do your books for you and our simple, elegant software to review your finances. It’s everything you need to forget about your bookkeeping, without actually forgetting about your bookkeeping. Sign up at Bench and get 20% off for your first 6 months. If you need anything designed–a new web page, a new landing page, a new logo, DesignCrowd will do it for you. They ask you what you’re looking for, who you are, what your company is like. They will give you lots of options, you pick the one you like, pay for it, and they guarantee results. It’s that simple. Find out how DesignCrowd is different than the other companies and go to designcrowd.com/mixergy. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

I’ve been looking to understand today’s guest for years. He created one of the first form software on the Internet, the kind of form that you could put into your website. He created it, he built it up, he monetized it, and it went really well. And then, he comes up with this thing called Formspring. It was a site where anyone could ask questions and get answers, and it just became this huge social network. And it went away, almost as fast as it started. I’ve gotten in trouble with entrepreneurs by saying that one of their businesses failed but I want to know what happened. I’m going to ask him about that in this interview. Today’s guest is Ade Olonoh, the founder of form software Formstack. Ade Olonoh is the founder of form software Formstack. Sponsored byWith Bench, you get a professional bookkeeping team to do your books for you and our simple, elegant software to review your finances. It’s everything you need to forget about your bookkeeping, without actually forgetting about your bookkeeping. Sign up at Bench and get 20% off for your first 6 months. ActiveCampaign – Improve your marketing & sales processes by upgrading to an automated platform. Start sending follow-up that adapts to your customers’ behavior so you are sending the perfect message at the perfect time. You’ll have happier customers and higher conversions. See why over 150,000 marketers use ActiveCampaign to create intelligent marketing that gets better results. If you’re with one of their confusing competitors and you want something new, you owe it to your business to check out ActiveCampaign. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

I’m fascinated by companies that leave a legacy. The truth though is that most software companies don’t really end up enduring. Which is why I was fascinated when I found out that ActiveCampaign was not just still around but growing and getting better and better. And so I’ve been trying for months and months and months to get the founder on here to do an interview. Jason VandeBoom is the founder of ActiveCampaign which lets you send out smart email and automate your interaction with customers. Jason VandeBoom is the founder of ActiveCampaign which lets you send out smart email and automate your interaction with customers. Sponsored byToptal – If you’re having trouble finding developers, Toptal is a network of elite pre-vetted software developers. You tell Toptal what you’re looking for, they search their network for the best people, they test the candidates, and then they present you with only the candidates who meet your individual needs. Once you pick someone you can start work with them the next day. They offer a no-risk trial period. Go to Toptal.com. Get the best of the best right now. If you need anything designed–a new web page, a new landing page, a new logo, DesignCrowd will do it for you. They ask you what you’re looking for, who you are, what your company is like. They will give you lots of options, you pick the one you like, pay for it, and they guarantee results. It’s that simple. Find out how DesignCrowd is different than the other companies and go to designcrowd.com/mixergy. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

Today’s guest had an experience with wine that left him feeling stupid. Instead of feeling defeated by the experience he decided it was something he wanted to fix. And he did fix it. He created a solution called Vivino. It’s what many analysts are now calling a unicorn. Heini Zachariassen is the founder of Vivino, the most popular wine community and marketplace. Heini Zachariassen is the founder of Vivino, the most popular wine community and marketplace. Sponsored byHostGator is your one-stop shop for all things web hosting. From design and marketing services to easy-to-use website builders, they are with you every step of the way. Thanks to their 24/7 – 365 days a year live support – which you can get via chat, phone and email – any and all questions you have can be answered in no time at all. HostGator offers unlimited disk space and bandwidth, an easy to use control panel, one click WordPress installs and more. ActiveCampaign – Improve your marketing & sales processes by upgrading to an automated platform. Start sending follow-up that adapts to your customers’ behavior so you are sending the perfect message at the perfect time. You’ll have happier customers and higher conversions. See why over 150,000 marketers use ActiveCampaign to create intelligent marketing that gets better results. If you’re with one of their confusing competitors and you want something new, you owe it to your business to check out ActiveCampaign. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

Today’s guest is a San Francisco entrepreneur who discovered a problem that maybe you have. I know when I go to conferences, sometimes they want to do add me to a Slack group for everyone at the conference. It’s fun for the first day, and then it becomes a distraction from the other stuff I do in Slack. It doesn’t really work for me. Other times, they create their own app and I forget to go check their app or it’s not written very well. They’re trying to connect with the people at the event, send updates, last-minute issues or changes, and also allow attendees to get to know each other. Slack doesn’t really work for that. Facebook doesn’t really work for that. There hasn’t really been a product that works. Today’s guest said, “How about if we create something better?” And she did. Sharon Savariego is the founder of Mobilize, a software that allows communities to get organized. It allows you to reach your community members via email, if that’s how they prefer, text if that’s how they prefer. The whole idea is to make it easy for community managers to grow their communities and community members to participate without a big distraction to their day. Sharon Savariego is the founder of Mobilize, a software that allows communities to get organized. Sponsored byHostGator is your one-stop shop for all things web hosting. From design and marketing services to easy-to-use website builders, they are with you every step of the way. Thanks to their 24/7 – 365 days a year live support – which you can get via chat, phone and email – any and all questions you have can be answered in no time at all. HostGator offers unlimited disk space and bandwidth, an easy to use control panel, one click WordPress installs and more. If you need anything designed–a new web page, a new landing page, a new logo, DesignCrowd will do it for you. They ask you what you’re looking for, who you are, what your company is like. They will give you lots of options, you pick the one you like, pay for it, and they guarantee results. It’s that simple. Find out how DesignCrowd is different than the other companies and go to designcrowd.com/mixergy. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint

If you want to launch a new product but you want to figure out if it will even work before you launch it, today’s guest has found a way to help. Thor Ernstsson is the founder of Alpha which helps teams make better decisions based on users, products, and new markets. Here’s what that means, before you invest time in coding, before you invest time in marketing an idea, Alpha helps you understand what people will really think of your idea. Thor Ernstsson is the founder of Alpha which helps teams make better decisions based on users, products, and new markets. Sponsored byAcuity Scheduling – Acuity Scheduling helps businesses offer and manage their appointments online. With this tool, you’ll be able to automate your client bookings, cancellations, reminders & even payments without sacrificing you soul. Plus, automated reminders and follow-ups eliminate your no-shows, and incentivize repeat bookings. Get an exclusive 45-day trial at AcuityScheduling.com/mixergy HostGator is your one-stop shop for all things web hosting. From design and marketing services to easy-to-use website builders, they are with you every step of the way. Thanks to their 24/7 – 365 days a year live support – which you can get via chat, phone and email – any and all questions you have can be answered in no time at all. HostGator offers unlimited disk space and bandwidth, an easy to use control panel, one click WordPress installs and more. More interviews -> https://mixergy.com/moreint Rate this interview -> https://mixergy.com/rateint