In this value-packed episode of SaaS Fuel, Mark Osborne, founder of Modern Revenue Strategies and top 25 marketing technology trailblazer, joins host VO and Jeff Mains for a tactical deep dive into building holistic, scalable revenue systems that go beyond the siloed tactics of old.

Mark reveals why random acts of marketing and sales are growth killers, the transformative impact of aligning marketing, sales, and customer success, and practical steps for identifying and nurturing your ideal customers. You’ll also learn how storytelling and “microscripts” can drive trust and reduce friction, the importance of bow-tie funnels (aka the power of retention and expansion), and get a playbook for creating try-before-you-buy offers that accelerate confidence. If you want your SaaS business to be built for significance and scale—this episode is your treasure map.

00:00 "Mastering Sales & Revenue Strategy"

05:11 "Building Effective Revenue Systems"

06:17 Revenue Growth Through Three Systems

12:35 Identifying Top Customers Strategically

13:39 Targeting the Right CRM Customers

19:31 "Aligning Teams to Drive Revenue"

23:49 B2B Buying Shift: Trust Erodes

25:34 Health, Perception, and AI Challenges

29:02 "Bite-Sized Client Value Strategy"

32:12 Effective SaaS Onboarding Strategies

35:49 Focus on One GTM Strategy

40:50 The Power of Specialization

42:35 "Storytelling Powers Human Connection"

47:28 "Creating a Category of One"

48:35 "Collaborative Metrics and Visual Mapping"

52:31 "3D Holograms & AI Innovation"

"But what I find is that really building a revenue system that has multiple components and sort of interlocking components is the real key to growth." — Mark Osborne

Category of One Marketing: "And so we have built a proprietary proven process that leverages our unique expertise for this unique marketplace. And if you believe that that's the right way to solve this problem, then we're the only solution that exists for you." — Mark Osborne

Quote: "the stat is now that something like 70% of the buyer's journey is done before they talk to a single provider, much less you, if you're the second or third tier provider in the marketplace." — Mark Osborne

Lower-Risk Sales Strategies: "it's just a way of giving them that bite of the burger so they can then be excited about coming in and finishing the meal rather than feeling like, well, should I talk to five more people or two more people or get three more references instead." — Mark Osborne

The Power of Storytelling in Sales: "Telling stories is the way that we really resonate and connect with people. So each of those different sort of layers of really small stories and really, you know, sort of large allegories are important throughout the sales process." — Mark Osborne

Build Systems, Not Silos

Sustainable growth comes when every part of the revenue journey is connected—attraction, acceleration, activation.

Customer Obsession Beats Logo Hunting

Long-term companies focus on advocating for and expanding existing customers, not just acquiring new ones.

Say No to the Wrong Revenue

The discipline to turn away poorly-matched clients fuels long-term success and product integrity.

Create Alignment Through Visual...

In this groundbreaking episode of SaaS Fuel, Jeff Mains sits down with Amos Bar Joseph, CEO and co-founder of Swann, the AI-native company on a quest to build the world’s first truly autonomous business. With only three human founders and a fleet of AI agents, Swann is redefining the startup playbook—targeting $10M ARR per employee and running leaner operations without sacrificing growth or burning out teams.

Amos Bar Joseph shares how Swann scales via intelligent automation and human-AI collaboration, creating systems where both people and agents operate in their zone of genius. Listeners learn actionable ways to build their “AI muscle,” leverage experimental GTM strategies, and develop organizations that amplify human talent rather than replace it.

00:00 "Building Resilient Customer-Focused Teams"

05:23 Reinventing the Startup Playbook

08:52 "Scaling Innovation Through AI Agents"

10:14 "Building an AI Support Agent"

15:00 "Optimizing Funnel With Human Leadership"

17:16 "AI-Powered GTM Automation Tool"

20:51 AI Amplifying Human Talent

26:56 Continuous Innovation Through Experiments

28:13 "Balancing Risk in Business Growth"

32:43 "Building AI Muscle Internally"

36:37 "AI Failures: Perfection Over Adaptation"

39:11 Defining Failure in Experiments

42:59 "Redefining Scale with Human-AI"

48:21 Automated Sales Lead Management

52:06 "Connect, Learn, Build Autonomously"

54:40 "Scaling Revenue & Holographic Tech"

"It wasn't like that. What happened is that we started iterating in human in the loop workflows where humans and agents work side by side and there's an iteration mechanism where we refine that collaboration until we got to a process that one person could scale to an output of what used to in the past." — Amos Bar Joseph

Quote: "It's kind of like a developer that works with sales and marketing and sometimes founders or rev ops to turn any go to market idea into an agentic workflow. So you can scale go to market with intelligence, not revenue, not headcount, and really iterate on your go to market at the speed of thought." — Amos Bar Joseph

Quote: "The moment that you remove all the technical complexity with a tool like Swann, then you can start iterating on your go to market at the speed of thought." — Amos Bar Joseph

Quote: "what we aim for is actually these unconventional playbooks, because these playbooks, these tactics, are the ones that you can drive the most disproportionate value from the resource that you invest in." — Amos Bar Joseph

Why Most AI Projects Fail: "The number one reason for that is that the user, the buyer, the organization is optimizing and the vendor together, they're optimizing for perfection, not for adaptation, as you just laid out, Jeff. And the reason is why that is the number one reason, is because you don't know what perfection looks like when you start." — Amos Bar Joseph

Leverage Talent, Not Headcount:

Focus on value creation per employee, using AI to scale intelligent output—not just adding more people.

Iterate to Innovate:

Use experimentation and iterative processes to refine human-agent collaboration and maximize business results.

Embrace the Zone of Genius:

Place team members in roles where their passions and skills create disproportionate value; let AI take on everything outside that zone.

Bias Toward Building

Adopt a build-first mentality with AI tools—solve your own business bottlenecks rather than just buying external solutions.

Stand Out With Unconventional Playbooks:

In...

This episode dives deep into the shifting landscape of SaaS growth, investment philosophy, and leadership with Klee Kleber, former Dell and Rackspace executive and co-founder at Build Group.

Klee Kleber shares why he prefers the "long game" model over traditional VC, explains the math behind durable businesses, talks about the importance of relentless execution, and how empathy, self-awareness, and diversity drive lasting success. From stories of luck at Dell to building customer love at Rackspace and the bold ambition of Topwater, this episode is packed with pragmatic wisdom for SaaS founders, operators, and investors.

00:00 Building for Impact and Permanence

03:12 "Strategic Investing and Growth Playbooks"

06:40 "Efficient Growth Through Discipline"

12:47 "Separate Division for Innovation"

15:14 Apple's Strategy: Innovation & Adaptability

19:21 "Scaling After Market Fit"

20:32 Obsessed Founders: Numbers & Customers

23:57 "Teamwork Drives Effective Leadership"

27:49 "Commit, Focus, Scale Success"

30:08 Exit Strategy Driven by Management

34:24 "Growth Limits and Opportunities"

39:31 "Customer Loyalty Drives Growth"

40:16 Target Audience Traits Matter

46:10 "Defining ICP: Human vs. MBA"

49:45 AI vs Doctor: Diagnosis Revolution

51:44 "Leadership, Innovation, Differentiation Challenges"

54:29 "AI-Driven Growth with Topwater"

"You can't diversify your way to success—you can only retain your wealth through diversification. To build a company, you have to go all in." — Klee Kleber

"Start with customer love—and radiate out from there. Obsess over the customers who love you, and the referrals will follow." — Klee Kleber

"Relentless execution is what differentiates great companies from those that just do okay or even good." — Jeff Mains

"Efficiency isn’t boring—it’s the secret to durable, compounding growth that actually lasts." — Klee Kleber

"Most business to me is treading water, being disciplined, not burning, testing ideas, measuring like crazy, until you find the live wire." — Klee Kleber

"Self-aware founders who build teams that compensate for their weaknesses are the ones who scale and thrive." — Klee Kleber

1. Build for the Long Game – Focus on investments and company-building strategies that aim for durability and lasting impact, not just quick wins.
2. Efficiency is a Competitive Advantage – Discipline in metrics like LTV/CAC and payback periods creates sustainable growth, instead of hoping for a lucky exit.
3. Relentless Execution Beats Strategy Alone – Luck may start the journey, but relentless, focused execution is what converts opportunity into success.
4. Balance Data with Customer Contact – Great founders marry spreadsheet discipline with real human customer feedback and empathy.
5. Embrace Diverse Perspectives – Teams with varied backgrounds, skills, and viewpoints consistently outperform homogenous ones and spark true breakthroughs.
6. Self-Awareness Multiplies Leadership Impact – Know your personal strengths and weaknesses; build teams that complement you and delegate accordingly.

klee@buildgroup.com

https://www.buildgroup.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kleekleber/

The Captain's Keys

Small Fish, Big Pond –