Winning in a large target market with Cognism's James Isilay

How to Win podcast with Peep Laja

Key Points:

• James explains how his trading background led him to founding Cognism (01:04)
• Cognism's first major pivot (02:25)
• My thoughts on early pivots with a quote from Eric Ries (03:39)
• James describes how Cognism's market size meant there was plenty of growth opportunity, despite competition (06:24)
• I explain the advantage of starting your business outside the hyper-competitive US market with a quote from Jean-René Boidron (07:18)
• James talks through why friendly, warm relationships with your early customers is key (08:53)
• My opinion on networking and why you should begin marketing efforts years before your product is available (09:57)
• I unpack why even mediocre companies can succeed if they have excellent product-market fit, with a quote from Wealthfront's Andy Rachleff (12:28)
• James discusses the importance of mentorship (13:28)
• My advice on seeking out mentors (14:21)
• Why Cognism did things in the early days that wouldn't scale, with a quote from Y Combinator's Paul Graham (16:26)
• My thoughts on building out your brand narrative once you've identified your competitive edge (18:55)
• James describes the moats Cognism is building for the future (23:57)
• Advice James would give to fellow SaaS founders (26:40)
• Wrap up (28:09)

Mentioned:

James Isilay LinkedIn

James Isilay Twitter

Cognism LinkedIn

Cognism Website

Lean Startup by Eric Ries

Expanding internationally into market openings with Kameleoon's Jean-René Boidron

Andy Rachleff LinkedIn

Paul Graham Twitter

My Links:

Twitter

LinkedIn

Website

Wynter

Speero

CXL