Join Me in SF for The Vibe Your SaaS Founder/Investor Mixer

Only three two one. No slot left.

If you had told me five months ago that this would be happening, I wouldn't have believed you.

Two Silicon Valley legends, Aaref Hilaly, Bain Capital Ventures, and ​Gautam Gupta, Strata Capital, have agreed to join me and my co-host, Arjun Dev Arora, for an invite-only and founder-friendly event.

When and where? During TechCrunch Disrupt on Tuesday, October 28, in San Francisco.

Who else is going to be there? Click here to find out. (Apply to attend on Luma)

20 Burning Questions Founders Have About Marketing + My Answers

Marketing a startup is messy, confusing, and feels like shouting into the void.

Believe me, I know.

I have been there with no budget. No awareness. No pedigree. Nothing.

But what’s great about startup marketing is you have the freedom to take chances.

You can be unique, different, or even outlandish. You can also employ new tools or strategies, and if done correctly, win.

These are 20 of the most common questions founders ask me, along with the answers I typically give when we're sitting down over coffee (hopefully in Seattle, where the coffee is so, so good), so they can ‘pick my brain.’

1. We just launched, but no one knows we exist. How do we get our first 100 users?

You do whatever it takes. Full stop.

Talk to people directly. DM potential users on LinkedIn, Twitter, Reddit, or on relevant Slack communities, and offer them free trials. Post content on social media, send emails, go to events, or go door to door. Get your friends and family to use it. Early traction comes from hustle, not scalable channels.

If none of that works, you may need to explore your thesis a bit more. Here are some growth hacking ideas to inspire you.

2. Everyone says “content is king.” But what kind of content actually works for SaaS in the early days?

Teach, don’t preach. Create how-to posts, mini case studies, or short Loom videos showing how you solve a painful problem. Keep it practical and tactical.

3. Should we focus on SEO and AEO now, or is it too early?

It’s too early for a big SEO or AEO (AI Engine Optimization) play. However, you should focus on quick wins, including your homepage, blogs, and key landing pages, by targeting obvious keywords, like your company name.

The primary goal is to build authority with content that succinctly explains your value proposition.

4. Is social media worth it for SaaS, or should we double down on direct outreach instead?

Do both. Build your authority on social media and use those channels to find prospects and reach out to them directly. If you only do social, you will never close anyone. If you only do direct outreach, you will never grow your brand value and ACV (Average Contact Value).

5. How do I know which growth channel is going to work best for us?

Most will advise running small tests across two to three channels and focusing on the ones that work. False.

This is biased towards a digital-first approach. Instead, use first principles and think deeply about who your target customers are. And then use the channels they use to find them. Not everyone is online. It might be events or door-to-door sales. The fallacy of growth hacking is that all customers are accessible on the internet. They aren’t.

6. Our product solves multiple problems. How do I decide what core message to lead with?

Start with the most painful, most expensive problem for your target user. Lead with that. The rest can come later.

7. What’s the fastest way to figure out if our messaging resonates with our target audience?

DM 10 to 20 people you think are in your target audience, a headline, or a JPG, and ask, “Would you buy this?” Brutal honesty beats A/B testing at the start.

8. Everyone in our space sounds the same. How do we stand out

Every industry has its jargon and terms. It is crucial to demonstrate you have the insider knowledge by using it to establish credibility. But you also need to take risks by being bold, conversational, and funny. I’ve written more about this here.

9. Do we really need a niche right away, or can we try to go broad at first?

Yes, it will be next to impossible if you go too broad in the beginning. By appealing to everyone, you appeal to no one.

Niche down and think deeply about your market entry and growth strategy. You want to create a narrative and path that allows for future expansion. Facebook’s Ivy League to universities to high schools to the general public is one of the most well-executed examples of a niche strategy that systematically scaled up. Here is a guide to building for niche markets.

10. Should I pitch features or outcomes when I talk about our product?

Always outcomes. People don’t buy “AI dashboards,” they buy “save 5 hours a week.”

11. Our homepage isn’t converting. What’s the single most important thing to fix first?

Your headline above the fold. If it doesn’t instantly explain who it’s for and what it does, people will bounce.

12. How do I write a headline that actually makes people want to try the product?

It must be direct and succinct. You can try this formula: [Target user] + [pain] + [solution/outcome]. Example: “For busy founders: Automate your reporting and win back 10 hours a week.” For my tips on copywriting, read this.

13. Do testimonials matter? We don’t have a lot of customers or users.

Yes. One strong testimonial beats none. Even a simple “This saved me 3 hours” is gold.

14. Should we put pricing on the site, or make people “book a demo” first?

I believe that pricing transparency builds trust and saves you time with tire-kickers. You can always offer custom enterprise pricing for large accounts.

15. If I only have $1,500 to spend, where should it go?

Who planted this question in the Q&A? That’s my pitch. Spend it with someone who can help you avoid burning all that cash on an ad campaign that won’t work.

16. How do I test different pricing models without confusing my early users? 

Talk to users and run short experiments. Offer cohort A a free trial, and cohort B a paid plan. Don’t overcomplicate, keep it simple, and learn fast.

17. Should I try freemium, free trial, or paid plans first?

The era of freemium is over (mostly). It’s hard to monetize early unless you’ve got huge distribution. Free trials are the way to go. Here are my thoughts on the end of freemium.

18. Is offering discounts early on a bad idea?

No. Do whatever it takes to get early traction. I know I keep saying this, and I am serious. You do what it takes. No excuses.

However, I would encourage finding value-added ways to make the deal attractive, such as an extended free trial or more services instead of discounts.

19. How can I turn our early users into advocates who help spread the word?

Overdeliver. Get them on Slack and respond quickly, offer personal support, and publicly celebrate their wins. Happy customers talk.

20. Should I build a community (Slack/Discord/LinkedIn group), or is that a distraction at this stage?

It’s a distraction unless your product is community-driven and you have a knack for building these, but then you wouldn’t be asking this question, would you?

At first, focus on product-market fit and then go hard on social media and direct outreach. The community can come later.

21. You didn’t address my questions?

Yeah? No problem. Just reply and let me know what questions I missed.

013 The Gregory and Paul Show - X is SO BACK! Apple teams up with Google | Waymo expanding

On the Gregory and Paul Show, we break down the latest in startups, SaaS, AI, and whatever the internet is debating this week.

On the Gregory and Paul Show, we break down the latest in startups, SaaS, AI, and whatever the internet is debating this week. On this episode, Gregory and Paul dive into the return of the X algorithm, Apple’s surprising Gemini partnership, Google’s antitrust win, Atlassian’s $610M browser bet, Waymo expanding to Seattle, Stripe’s stablecoin rails, and the controversial new “AI Key.” They wrap with details on their founder + investor mixer at TechCrunch Disrupt SF.

Watch episode 013 on YouTube →

Free Vibe Your SaaS Resources

• NEW From Zero to 1M in ARR - How to Market Your Startup: the slides from the most popular talk at Seattle Tech Week. Get the free presentations →

• How to Monetize Your Climate Startup: Strategies for transforming environmental breakthroughs into businesses. Get the free presentations →

• The Vibe Marketer's Guide to Reddit: Unlock Reddit's massive marketing potential with this guide. Get the free presentation →

• 100 Reasons Customers Say “No” (And How to Make Them Say “Yes”): A Comprehensive Google Sheet breaks down 100 fixes. Get the free tool →

• "Every marketing channel sucks right now": 19 unconventional Vibe Marketing ideas that Founders can harness. Get the free presentation →

• 30-Day SaaS Growth Plan Template: Designed for technical founders who’d rather be building. Get the free eBook →

• How to get your first 1,000 followers on 𝕏: Building a large following on 𝕏 in 2025 is still possible. Get the free eBook →

• VC Pitch Deck Templates for Founders: Based on the legendary Sequoia deck, built for real fundraising. Get the free templates →

One Month of Vibe Your SaaS Will Cost You Less Than a Failed Ad Campaign

Let me get right to the point. Founders are all good at building, but marketing? It’s an enigma, wrapped in a riddle.

I help founders get their sales and marketing sh*t together. Sometimes the pipeline grows fast. Sometimes it doesn’t. But every time we stop talking like a lame TEDx talk from 2009.

Not only do we meet weekly for an hour, but I also share my battle-tested marketing framework, specifically designed for early-stage companies, including:

• Vibe 3-Month Marketing Plan — Go from idea to $10K+ MRR.

• Minimum Sellable Product (MSP) Builder — Validate before you build.

• ICP Development Guide — Know exactly who to market to, no more guesswork.

• Competitive Landscape Evaluator — Know where you stand and how to win.

• Messaging Framework — Turn features into feelings people buy.

• Marketing Plan Templates — Copy-paste frameworks that convert.

• Monthly Content Planning Doc — Never stare at a blank page again.

I also charge a simple flat monthly fee. No contract. No lock-in. No BS.

Book a consultation here.

Let’s vibe.

About Me

I'm Gregory Kennedy, former creative director, 3X head of marketing, and founder of Vibe Your SaaS. I help early-stage startups build real momentum with strategic clarity, AI-driven execution, and zero BS. I love coffee. I love to ride a bike. And I love helping early-stage tech companies win.

Greogry Kennedy // Vibe Your SaaS // www.vbmrktr.com

006 Vibe Your SaaS - We Are SO Back

These tunes celebrate Nikita's change to the X algorithm.

Listen here →

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