In 2019, SAP acquired lifecycle personalization provider Emarsys for $500M. At the time, Emarsys had grown from $135M ARR in 2017 (when I joined) to $175M ARR in 2019, a ~14% CAGR that valued the deal at roughly a 3x revenue multiple.

In this episode, I break down why SAP made the move, how Emarsys fit into the CX portfolio, and what perspective investors like Summit Partners and Vector Capital (likely) had in pushing for the exit. I’ll also explain why the price reflected Emarsys’ mid-market growth ceiling.

On a personal note, I share what it felt like inside the company — from the chatter about what might change, to the reality that almost nothing did — and how watching that exit firsthand sparked my obsession with M&A as the higher-level game behind SaaS.

Disclaimer: None of this is private or insider information. Everything shared can be found in, or reasonably inferred from, publicly available sources.

#SaaSExits #MarketingAutomation #SaaSInvestor #MandA #Tech

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📒 Resources

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📖 𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗠𝗬 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞𝗦

🔗 CONTENT CAPITALIST: https://michaelbecker.org/product/content-capitalist-how-to-create-a-content-business-so-exclusive-customers-beg-to-buy-and-never-want-to-leave/

🔗 PRACTICES FOR SOVEREIGN LIVING: https://www.amazon.in/PRACTICES-SOVEREIGN-LIVING-Essays-Game-ebook

🎓 𝗛𝗜𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗘

🔗 http://michaelbecker.org/services/

📌 𝗦𝗨𝗕𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗕𝗘 - 𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗚

🔗 http://www.michaelbecker.org

🌐 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧 - 𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟

🔗 https://www.instagram.com/officialmbecker

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjbecker

◉ Thanks for listening! Be sure to subscribe, share & comment!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Twilio is one of the clearest examples of expansion revenue driving enterprise value. In this episode, I break down how Twilio’s developer-first GTM, usage-based pricing, and broad product catalog produced dollar-based net expansion rates of 170% in its early years, held 120–130% at scale, and sustained net negative churn for over a decade.

We’ll look at the mechanics behind usage-aligned billing, why a $20 free trial could scale into $10M+ accounts, how cross-sell into email and data shifted margins, and how Twilio’s valuation swung from $60B at peak to 3.5x forward revenue as net retention cooled.

If you’re building SaaS, this is a clear case study in how pricing models and retention metrics dictate growth and market cap.

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📒 Resources

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📖 𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗠𝗬 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞𝗦

🔗 CONTENT CAPITALIST: https://michaelbecker.org/product/content-capitalist-how-to-create-a-content-business-so-exclusive-customers-beg-to-buy-and-never-want-to-leave/

🔗 PRACTICES FOR SOVEREIGN LIVING: https://www.amazon.in/PRACTICES-SOVEREIGN-LIVING-Essays-Game-ebook

🎓 𝗛𝗜𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗘

🔗 http://michaelbecker.org/services/

📌 𝗦𝗨𝗕𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗕𝗘 - 𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗚

🔗 http://www.michaelbecker.org

🌐 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧 - 𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟

🔗 https://www.instagram.com/officialmbecker

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjbecker

◉ Thanks for listening! Be sure to subscribe, share & comment!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode comes from a conversation I had with Mehmet Gonullu on The CTO Show. We cover the shift from old-school marketing tactics to system-driven models, why outreach still matters but needs a new approach, and how startups can build momentum in content without a full marketing background.

I talk about reputation as a growth lever, the move toward decentralized content teams, and how founders can apply neuro-emotional techniques to get real traction. We also dig into AI—where it fits, where it doesn’t, and how to use it without losing the human element.

If you want a straight breakdown of how I think about content, outreach, and growth in today’s environment, this episode lays it out.

#StartupMarketing #SaaSGrowth #ContentStrategy #OutboundSales #SaaS #GTMstrategy

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📒 Resources

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📖 𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗠𝗬 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞𝗦

🔗 CONTENT CAPITALIST: https://michaelbecker.org/product/content-capitalist-how-to-create-a-content-business-so-exclusive-customers-beg-to-buy-and-never-want-to-leave/

🔗 PRACTICES FOR SOVEREIGN LIVING: https://www.amazon.in/PRACTICES-SOVEREIGN-LIVING-Essays-Game-ebook

🎓 𝗛𝗜𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗘

🔗 http://michaelbecker.org/services/

📌 𝗦𝗨𝗕𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗕𝗘 - 𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗚

🔗 http://www.michaelbecker.org

🌐 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧 - 𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟

🔗 https://www.instagram.com/officialmbecker

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjbecker

◉ Thanks for listening! Be sure to subscribe, share & comment!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You don’t need to wait years before people see you as an expert. In this episode, I walk you through a 30-day plan to build credibility fast.

Here’s what we cover:

• How to capture speaking footage that makes you look established, even if you book your own room.
• Why hosting your own small event series gives you consistent proof and fresh content.
• How to get guest articles published in niche sites so you can use their logos in your “As Seen In” section.
• The right way to collect and showcase client testimonials that actually build trust.
• A system for getting on 10–15 podcasts in a single month and using those appearances as authority.
• Why a single photo or Zoom screenshot with a recognizable name can instantly raise your status.
• How to rewrite your bio and headline with numbers and results that people can’t ignore.

By the end of the month, you’ll have stacked enough credibility signals that people treat you like an authority—and the process itself will push you closer to truly becoming one.

#AuthorityBuilding #PersonalBrandGrowth #CredibilityHacks #SaaSFounderTips

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📒 Resources

========================

📖 𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗠𝗬 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞𝗦

🔗 CONTENT CAPITALIST: https://michaelbecker.org/product/content-capitalist-how-to-create-a-content-business-so-exclusive-customers-beg-to-buy-and-never-want-to-leave/

🔗 PRACTICES FOR SOVEREIGN LIVING: https://www.amazon.in/PRACTICES-SOVEREIGN-LIVING-Essays-Game-ebook

🎓 𝗛𝗜𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗘

🔗 http://michaelbecker.org/services/

📌 𝗦𝗨𝗕𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗕𝗘 - 𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗚

🔗 http://www.michaelbecker.org

🌐 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧 - 𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟

🔗 https://www.instagram.com/officialmbecker

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjbecker

◉ Thanks for listening! Be sure to subscribe, share & comment!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode is a concise, operator-grade briefing on what buyers actually underwrite in diligence and how to engineer a company that commands a premium valuation multiple. You’ll learn how to align your GTM, ops, and finance with the exact factors PE and strategic acquirers model so you can increase enterprise value, speed up diligence, and avoid price chips at close.

The 7 levers we cover include:

• Recurring Revenue: Increase MRR/ARR predictability and cohort retention to derisk future cash flows.
• Proprietary Assets: Build defensible moats (IP, data, brand, distribution) that competitors can’t replicate.
• Margins: Drive healthy gross and EBITDA margins through pricing, mix, automation, and vendor discipline.
• Customer Satisfaction: Prove durability with retention, NPS/CSAT, and NRR; expansion > new-logo dependence.
• Clean Books: GAAP-ready financials, organized contracts, and a clear cap table for a frictionless data room.
• Growth Potential: Credible upside (TAM, adjacencies, channels, velocity) buyers can model post-close.
• Scalability: Systems and processes that add revenue without proportional cost—demonstrated operating leverage.

Use this as a pre–diligence audit to tighten your data room, raise confidence with acquirers, and convert strong performance into a better outcome at exit.

#BusinessGrowth #FractionalCMO #SaaSGrowth #B2BMarketing #GoToMarketStrategy #DemandGeneration

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📒 Resources

========================

📖 𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗠𝗬 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞𝗦

🔗 CONTENT CAPITALIST: https://michaelbecker.org/product/content-capitalist-how-to-create-a-content-business-so-exclusive-customers-beg-to-buy-and-never-want-to-leave/

🔗 PRACTICES FOR SOVEREIGN LIVING: https://www.amazon.in/PRACTICES-SOVEREIGN-LIVING-Essays-Game-ebook

🎓 𝗛𝗜𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗘

🔗 http://michaelbecker.org/services/

📌 𝗦𝗨𝗕𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗕𝗘 - 𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗚

🔗 http://www.michaelbecker.org

🌐 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧 - 𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟

🔗 https://www.instagram.com/officialmbecker

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjbecker

◉ Thanks for listening! Be sure to subscribe, share & comment!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The SaaS Growth Lab will feature short, potent episodes designed for founders, marketers, and operators who want actionable insights to scale revenue and build enterprise value.

Hosted by Michael Becker — 11+ years in B2B SaaS growth, with experience at VC-backed startups, YC alumni, and a $500M exit at Emarsys — this show breaks down the frameworks and tactics that actually matter.

In this intro episode, Michael shares what the show is about, his background, and the topics you’ll hear: outbound prospecting systems, content that compounds, GTM strategy, SaaS valuation levers, positioning plays, and lessons from the trenches.

If you want no-BS, quick-hitting deep dives on SaaS growth, this is the place to queue up! Welcome to the show!

#BusinessGrowth #FractionalCMO #SaaSGrowth #B2BMarketing #GoToMarketStrategy #DemandGeneration

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📒 Resources

========================

📖 𝗚𝗘𝗧 𝗠𝗬 𝗕𝗢𝗢𝗞𝗦

🔗 CONTENT CAPITALIST: https://michaelbecker.org/product/content-capitalist-how-to-create-a-content-business-so-exclusive-customers-beg-to-buy-and-never-want-to-leave/

🔗 PRACTICES FOR SOVEREIGN LIVING: https://www.amazon.in/PRACTICES-SOVEREIGN-LIVING-Essays-Game-ebook

🎓 𝗛𝗜𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗘

🔗 http://michaelbecker.org/services/

📌 𝗦𝗨𝗕𝗦𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗕𝗘 - 𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗚

🔗 http://www.michaelbecker.org

🌐 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗖𝗧 - 𝗦𝗢𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟

🔗 https://www.instagram.com/officialmbecker

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjbecker

◉ Thanks for listening! Be sure to subscribe, share & comment!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.