EP 541: VerticalIQ Hits $175k MRR, Helping 140 Banks Prep for Company Meetings with President Bobby Martin — VerticalIQ Hits $175k MRR, Helping 140 Banks

In Episode #541, I interview Bobby Martin, the author of The Hockey Stick Principles: The Four Key Stages to Entrepreneurial Success. He believes too many startup founders pivot way too early, quit too early, and expect rapid take off. Through his experience of starting and selling First Research, he’s learned firsthand the challenges and solutions at each stage of entrepreneurial growth. Bobby’s currently the chairman and co-founder of Vertical IQ—a leading provider of sales research insight for banks. He’s an angel investor and an active board member with several innovative startups including Local Eyesight, Boardroom Insiders, My Life Site, SageWorks and etailinsights. While he’s a national speaker, he’s still a hometown guy who focuses most of his investments in North Carolina where he’s lived and worked. Famous Five: Favorite Book? – Rework What CEO do you follow? – Brian Hamilton Favorite online tool? — Salesforce Do you get 8 hours of sleep?— No If you could let your 20-year old self, know one thing, what would it be? – Be patient for a long journey Time Stamped Show Notes: 01:42 – I introduce Bobby to the show 02:53 – First Research was launched in 1999 03:19 – Bobby had the exit before the bubble 03:31 – First Research provided profiles to sales and marketing professionals 03:51 – First Research is a SaaS business 04:11 – It took 7-8 years for Bobby to build First Research 04:42 – Bobby made the book because he loved the process 05:09 – Bobby loved the journey 05:26 – Bobby had a publisher and agent for the book 06:00 – Bobby’s agent negotiated the deal with the publisher 06:28 – Bobby’s book was just recently published 06:41 – The average number of copies sold 07:30 – Bobby shares what he thinks made the book sell 08:57 – Bobby is an angel investor 09:40 – Vertical IQ provides profile revenue to bankers 10:19 – The revenue model of Vertical IQ is similar to SaaS 10:30 – Vertical IQ gets paid upfront annually 10:43 – Average number of customers 10:55 – “We don’t charge per seat, we charge according to the number of bankers” 11:20 – Vertical IQ pre-sells to banks 12:05 – ACV is between $15-20K annually 12:28 – Average ARR 12:40 – Gross customer churn 13:25 – Average CAC 13:34 – Vertical IQ is a sales driven company 14:04 – Vertical IQ has a solid profit margin 14:55 – LTV 15:53 – Team size 16:40 – First year revenue 16:58 – 2015 total revenue 17:15 – Vertical IQ is self-funded 19:00 – The Famous Five 3 Key Points: Write a book—not because it’s convenient—write because you have something to share to the world. Requesting an upfront annual payment can have clear advantages over monthly payments. Be patient and do not get discouraged—the entrepreneurial journey takes time.