15 Lessons From 15 years

Hello, Alison here; I realised recently that it's been 15 years since I started working in tech, SaaS, and startups. Honestly, it wasn't part of some grand plan; it was the end of the recession. I needed a job, and I'd just been rejected for a role at the BFI I thought I wanted. B2B SaaS didn't sound exciting at the time, but it was the beginning of a huge shift in how we buy and sell almost everything. Since then, I've worked across different stages of growth through various trends, hype cycles, developments and acquisitions, and over time, there are a few things I've found myself repeating, sometimes as advice and sometimes with a slight exasperation. I thought it might be a good moment to write some of them down. These are the first 15 that came to mind:

I thought it might be a good moment to write some of them down. These are the first 15 that came to mind:

1. The best growth strategies are often the most unremarkable

It's usually the consistent, steady work that moves things forward: refining messaging, improving the funnel, and talking to customers. It doesn't always feel exciting, but it's what tends to work.

2. People respond to outcomes, not features

When selling, there's a tendency to focus too much on features and not enough on benefits. Most users care far more about whether something makes their life easier and is simple.

3. Retention Beats Acquisition

If users aren't sticking around, it's hard to grow—no matter how good your acquisition looks. Strong retention makes everything else more sustainable.

4. The terms change, but the work stays the same

New terms pop up all the time: product-led growth, disruptive marketing, brand first, and sales-assisted. But the fundamentals haven't really changed. It's still about understanding your customer, solving a problem, and finding a way to reach the right people.

5. Content and brand take time to work,

Organic/earned can feel slow, especially when performance marketing gets quicker results. But over time, content and brand tend to drive the kind of growth that compounds.

6. It's not just about volume, it's about knowing which levers to pull

There are plenty of ways to grow: convert more customers, improve clickthrough, etc. But having a clear view of the whole pipeline and knowing where to focus matters more than just chasing bigger numbers. I would rather have 20% of 100 than 1% of 1000.

7. Don't give your prospects more work

A demo or trial uses up time, and switching tools means learning something new. So even if it's free, people are busy, and the easier their lives, the more likely they are to give you a chance.

8. Growth usually takes longer than you'd like

It's easy to feel behind or assume others are moving faster. But in most cases, it takes time, and consistency matters more than rushing.

9. Earned and owned channels are harder to build, but more valuable over time

Paid is appealing because it's quick, but it's not always sustainable. Long-term growth usually comes from things like SEO, newsletters, reputation, and people sharing what you've built.

10. Don't confuse tactics with strategy

Sending a newsletter, posting on social, and paid ads are not a strategy. Strategy is knowing who you're trying to reach, what you want them to do, and how each piece of work gets you closer to that.

11. Marketing data is astrology for marketers

You can analyse every number, but you're just making an educated guess at some point. I've seen people spend hours trying to spot patterns like they're written in the stars. These days, I find myself saying, "I don't know" or "Let's test and see what happens" more than ever.

12. Marketing needs time, budget and resource

Startups probably only have two of the three. It's about making the most of what you've got and being realistic about what's possible with it.

13. You'll hear ten different opinions from ten different people

You'll hear advice from everywhere, and much of it is contradictory. The most useful skill is learning how to filter it and trust in your gut.

14. Don't compare your inside to someone else's outside

It's easy to feel behind when you see another startup launch, raise, or scale. But you don't know what's happening behind the scenes or how long it took them to get there.

15. Too many SaaS businesses forget about the last 'S'

There's a lot of focus on the software, features, activation, and usage but very little attention to what people need to succeed with it. Retention often comes down to the moat you build and the support you give.