Welcome to episode 4 of Maximus & The Founder Quest! In this monthly series, Max Greenwald (Co-founder & CEO of Warmly) continues his founder brand journey with Dave Gerhardt (Author of Founder Brand & Founder of Exit Five).
Max reveals Warmly's new explainer after user testing: "AI tools to build your best lists of prospects and convert them automatically." They refine the messaging around person-level intent signals and debate whether "buying committee" is too jargony for their authentic brand voice.
Dave and Max dive into Chapter 4: Finding Your Role Models, Mentors, and Anti-Role Models. They discuss why most advice isn't statistically significant, how to observe successful brands without needing meetings, and why you should steal bits and pieces from different role models rather than copying anyone wholesale.
Max shares his role models (Adam Robinson, David Risher from Lyft) and they explore the balance between being controversial and being yourself.
Tune in to learn how to build your marketing playbook by cherry-picking the best traits from brands you admire!
HIGHLIGHTS:
0:00 Intro
0:35 Episode Begins
1:30 Recap: Warmly's new explainer and tagline
2:24 Drafting off AI trends while staying simple
2:47 Person-level intent signals vs. buying committee language
4:39 Why "buying committee" feels too formal
5:24 Making your explainer authentic and approachable
6:06 Chapter 4: Finding Role Models, Mentors, and Anti-Role Models
6:42 Why most advice isn't statistically significant
7:54 The "experience share" approach to advice
8:12 Multiple ways to succeed in marketing
9:09 Looking beyond SaaS for brand inspiration
10:01 Brand role models vs. technical role models
10:22 Anti-role models: defining what you don't want to be
11:15 You don't need meetings with your role models
12:07 The digital trail: learning from the Wayback Machine
13:05 Max's role model: Adam Robinson and building in public
13:52 Taking ingredients, not the whole recipe
14:51 Buffer's transparency playbook
15:16 David Risher at Lyft: staying close to customers
16:06 Using VCs as mentors for broader data perspective
16:15 Anti-role models: not boring, not too safe
16:42 Getting flamed on LinkedIn no matter what you post
18:09 Being controversial requires conviction and big boy pants
18:39 Defining your anti-role models through your own taste
20:04 Staying authentic when moving upmarket
20:38 Building a mood board of marketing you love and hate
21:09 Having a strong point of view as competitive advantage
22:00 Founder-led marketing beyond LinkedIn posts
23:03 The Patagonia lesson: easier to be yourself than a character
23:55 Clarity on your marketing approach enables authenticity
Connect with Max on LinkedIn - /max-greenwald
Connect with Dave on LinkedIn - /davegerhardt
Want to convert your website visitors instantly? Try Warmly for free - https://warmly.ai/