How do you take a niche SaaS product from zero to $150k MRR in under two years — without venture capital?

In this episode of Founder Views, Kosta Panagoulias sits down with Nadav Boaz, co-founder of VoiceDrop, to break down exactly how they scaled fast by combining cold email mastery, SEO execution, and ruthless operational discipline.

This isn’t theory. Nadav shares what actually worked — and what didn’t — across dozens of past businesses before VoiceDrop finally clicked.

We cover:

• How VoiceDrop reached $150k MRR with a lean, remote team
• The exact 3 growth channels they double down on (and why)
• How cold email is used strategically — not spammy
• SEO tactics that helped them rank #1 and show up in AI search
• Why pre-authorizing trial users increased conversions from 12% → 50%
• Managing churn in a high-ticket SaaS
• Why “usage” matters more than logins
• Lessons from running (and failing) dozens of businesses before success

If you’re a SaaS founder focused on execution, leverage, and real growth, this episode delivers.

Chapters / Timestamps

00:00 – Why VoiceDrop caught Kosta’s attention
02:00 – What VoiceDrop does (ringless voicemail explained)
04:00 – Team size, remote setup, and founder roles
07:00 – Using past businesses as leverage for new SaaS launches
10:20 – The 3 growth pillars: SEO, cold email, Google Ads
13:30 – SEO execution: keywords, authority, and SOPs with VAs
16:00 – Ranking in AI search (ChatGPT, Gemini, etc.)
18:10 – Cold email infrastructure that actually works
22:00 – Targeting, segmentation, and ARPU strategy
26:00 – When SEO overtook outbound as the #1 channel
27:00 – Boosting trial-to-paid conversion to 50%
30:00 – Pre-authorization: filtering tire-kickers
32:00 – Human vs product-led conversions
36:00 – Using AI inside the product (voice cloning, scripts)
39:00 – AI for outbound replies and internal leverage
41:30 – Scaling fast without burning out as a founder
45:30 – Customer support, tooling, and cost control
50:00 – Managing churn in a high-ticket SaaS
53:30 – The single metric Nadav watches daily
54:20 – Favorite business book & lifestyle choices
56:20 – One billboard lesson for SaaS founders

👉 Hard Knock SaaS is a practical video series for SaaS founders who want real-world playbooks — not theory.
Built from my experience bootstrapping, scaling, and exiting SaaS companies, it covers sales, positioning, pricing, and execution.
Learn more at: https://hardknocksaas.com