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AI Agents: Pivoting from Consulting Services to $1M ARR | Cotera
Manage episode 521459948 series 61396
Ibby Syed accidentally built a consulting agency while trying to build software. In this episode, early-stage B2B SaaS founders will learn how Cotera escaped the "services trap" and pivoted to AI agents to hit $1M ARR.
Ibby breaks down why hitting $150k ARR in consulting revenue was actually a "local maxima" that nearly killed the startup. You will learn how his co-founder replaced months of data science work with a 100-line OpenAI API experiment, and the painful but necessary decision to fire legacy customers to focus on a scalable product.
In this episode, Ibby also reveals his "value-first" LinkedIn outbound strategy that books 25+ meetings a week, why horizontal AI platforms (like Cotera) will outlast narrow vertical tools, and how they transitioned from custom enterprise contracts to a product-led growth model.
This episode is brought to you by:
š ā Gearheartā ā Book a call + get the first 20 hours of development free
šØ ā ā ā ā ā NordStellarā ā ā ā ā ā ā ā ā Book a demo and get 20% off with code blackfriday20
š” ā ā ā Signal Houseā ā ā ā ā Learn more and get a demo
š Key Lessons
- š The Consulting Trap: Why early service revenue can trick you into building an unscalable agency instead of a software product.
- š¤ The AI Pivot: How 100 lines of OpenAI API code outperformed a massive data science stack and sparked the pivot.
- š§ LinkedIn Outbound: The "Value-First" playbook (sending free leads, not pitches) that books 25+ meetings a week.
- š ļø Horizontal vs. Vertical: Why broad tools (like Zapier/Cotera) are more defensible than niche AI wrappers.
- š° Pricing Strategy: Moving from custom enterprise contracts to a $20/mo usage model to fuel PLG.
Chapters
- The consulting trap and false traction
- Why $150K ARR nearly killed the company
- The 100-line OpenAI experiment that changed everything
- Firing customers and stopping services
- Pivoting to AI agents and prompt-based workflows
- Why deals became easier after the pivot
- LinkedIn outbound by sending free value
- Horizontal vs. vertical AI startups
- Pricing from enterprise contracts to PLG
š Get weekly 5-minute SaaS insights: https://saasclub.io/email
SaaS Club Programs
- Join the SaaS Club founder community: https://saasclub.co/plus
- Build your $10K MRR SaaS: https://saasclub.io/launch
- Scale from 6-figures to $1M ARR Faster: https://saasclub.io/mastermind
Resources
- Full show notes: https://saasclub.io/463
- Subscribe to the podcast: https://saasclub.io/subscribe
629 episodes
Manage episode 521459948 series 61396
Ibby Syed accidentally built a consulting agency while trying to build software. In this episode, early-stage B2B SaaS founders will learn how Cotera escaped the "services trap" and pivoted to AI agents to hit $1M ARR.
Ibby breaks down why hitting $150k ARR in consulting revenue was actually a "local maxima" that nearly killed the startup. You will learn how his co-founder replaced months of data science work with a 100-line OpenAI API experiment, and the painful but necessary decision to fire legacy customers to focus on a scalable product.
In this episode, Ibby also reveals his "value-first" LinkedIn outbound strategy that books 25+ meetings a week, why horizontal AI platforms (like Cotera) will outlast narrow vertical tools, and how they transitioned from custom enterprise contracts to a product-led growth model.
This episode is brought to you by:
š ā Gearheartā ā Book a call + get the first 20 hours of development free
šØ ā ā ā ā ā NordStellarā ā ā ā ā ā ā ā ā Book a demo and get 20% off with code blackfriday20
š” ā ā ā Signal Houseā ā ā ā ā Learn more and get a demo
š Key Lessons
- š The Consulting Trap: Why early service revenue can trick you into building an unscalable agency instead of a software product.
- š¤ The AI Pivot: How 100 lines of OpenAI API code outperformed a massive data science stack and sparked the pivot.
- š§ LinkedIn Outbound: The "Value-First" playbook (sending free leads, not pitches) that books 25+ meetings a week.
- š ļø Horizontal vs. Vertical: Why broad tools (like Zapier/Cotera) are more defensible than niche AI wrappers.
- š° Pricing Strategy: Moving from custom enterprise contracts to a $20/mo usage model to fuel PLG.
Chapters
- The consulting trap and false traction
- Why $150K ARR nearly killed the company
- The 100-line OpenAI experiment that changed everything
- Firing customers and stopping services
- Pivoting to AI agents and prompt-based workflows
- Why deals became easier after the pivot
- LinkedIn outbound by sending free value
- Horizontal vs. vertical AI startups
- Pricing from enterprise contracts to PLG
š Get weekly 5-minute SaaS insights: https://saasclub.io/email
SaaS Club Programs
- Join the SaaS Club founder community: https://saasclub.co/plus
- Build your $10K MRR SaaS: https://saasclub.io/launch
- Scale from 6-figures to $1M ARR Faster: https://saasclub.io/mastermind
Resources
- Full show notes: https://saasclub.io/463
- Subscribe to the podcast: https://saasclub.io/subscribe
629 episodes
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