LU 349: How Attest CEO Jeremy King Uses Data to Perfect Consumer Research (podcast)

Eric

5 years ago

On the show today we welcome the CEO and founder of Attest, Jeremy King. Attest has become the leading consumer growth platform that has grown from a team of 27 to 90 employees in just one year. The story of how the company was founded is an unusual one as Jeremy worked and was schooled as a scientist who, after his time at a global management consulting firm, also did his MBA. He talks about his passion for empiricism and his strong philosophy of data-based decision-making, and it is this drive that led him to start a business that eliminates all the guesswork around potential customers and markets. Jeremy shares about their primary clientele, the various subscriptions packages the offer, how they approached fundraising for a product that can be complex to explain, and what their best sales pitch looks like. He also differentiates between Attest’s mission and vision, makes a case for Harvard Business School, talks about their go-to-market tool stack, and shares what he learned from Charles Darwin and Alexander Agassiz in Reef Madness.

TIME-STAMPED SHOW NOTES:

[00:41] Before we jump into today’s interview, please rate, review, and subscribe to the Leveling Up Podcast!
[00:57] Jeremy’s science background and passion for empiricism and data-based thinking.
[01:30] Working for the McKinsey consulting firm in over 25 different countries.
[01:40] The difficulty with meeting and understanding the customers you don’t have yet.
[02:03] When Attest was founded, where it is based, expansion plans, and what their vision is.
[02:47] Their primary clientele and how they help them to target customers more effectively.
[03:46] Attest – One platform that can be used in a wide range of ways.
[04:17] Helping clients better understand consumers to increase their growth.
[04:39] Making money through a subscription service: A Saas platform in your browser.
[05:14] The price range of the various subscription packages on offer.
[05:57] Approaching the fundraising process with a complex message.
[06:59] Their mission of making the market much bigger by making customer research simpler.
[07:35] Key lesson from his diverse background and experiences before Attest.
[09:40] The motivation behind Attest’s quick and trusting onboarding process.
[10:37] Why Jeremy still recommends Harvard Business School and its vibrant network.
[12:04] Going from a team of 27 to 90 in 2019, their exponential growth, and net retention.
[13:39] The six components of company culture at Attest and how it is lived.
[16:17] The larger the organization, the more important for each person to live out the culture.
[16:36] Learning about the value of pre-onboarding from other SaaS companies in the UK.
[18:01] The vision of Attest: the elimination of guessing when it comes to prospective markets.
[18:57] On a mission to make it easy to acquire data so no guesswork is needed.
[19:48] Growth by simplifying the proposition and showing clients how Attest applies to them.
[22:08] What we can learn from Zoom: Doing the simple things well.
[23:10] Key thoughts about Charles Darwin and Alexander Agassiz in Reef Madness.
[25:50] Using the most popular go-to-market tools, and all about the Singapore #StartupStack.
[28:06] Being inspired by ProfitWell’s product marketing and how they explain what they do.

Resources From The Interview:

Must-read book: Reef Madness and Prisoners of Geography

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