LU 329: How to Market a Unique Product When There’s No Current Product-Market Fit (podcast)

Hey everyone! In today’s episode, I share the mic with Hubert Palan, the Founder and CEO of productboard, a product management system that helps you understand what users need, prioritize what to build and rally everyone around your roadmap.

Tune in to hear how productboard winning the TechCrunch Startup Battlefield competition helped the company skyrocket, Hubert’s advice for those who want to create spectacular products and how he was able to familiarize people with a completely new concept.

TIME-STAMPED SHOW NOTES:

• [00:41] Before we jump into today’s interview, please rate, review, and subscribe to the Leveling Up Podcast!
• [00:54] Hubert’s product management background, moving to Silicon Valley and his MBA.
• [01:12] Realizing that good product management requires great tools.
• [02:10] Creating the first product management system and the challenges they faced.
• [03:53] The initial marketing difficulty: how to create a new category and its associations.
• [04:09] Making money through a subscription software service tailored for different size teams.
• [05:09] The point at which they hit product-market fit for productboard.
• [06:52] How winning the TechCrunch Startup Battlefield competition catapulted the business.
• [07:16] The magic number of years it takes to see a business start growing exponentially.
• [08:30] Their diverse strategies for customer acquisition.
• [09:54] An overview of what the different pricing tiers look like for their model.
• [12:05] The biggest struggle since starting the business.
• [13:29] How to improve product management if you want to create something special.
• [15:30] Not confusing long-term vision with short-term solutions.
• [16:24] The resources that Hubert recommends for anyone in the field.
• [17:33] How the Superhuman email app changed how he operates email.

Resources From The Interview:

• Hubert Palan
  
• Hubert Palan on LinkedIn
  
• productboard  
  
• Salesforce 
  
• SugarCRM
  
• Pipedrive 
  
• Asana  
• Microsoft 
  
• UC Berkley 
  
• TechCrunch Startup Battlefield 
  
• Marketing School 
  
• Steve Jobs 
  
• Inspired
  
• Marty Cagan on LinkedIn
  
• Superhuman 
  
• Must-read book: High Growth Handbook
  
• Extreme Revenue Growth
  

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