SaaS Backwards - Reverse Engineering SaaS Success

Ep. 122 - From SaaS Startup to Restaurant Revolution - with Dave Dittenber, CEO & Co-Founder of BYOD

Ken Lempit Season 3 Episode 22

Building a strong foundation is essential for long-term business success, especially when faced with unexpected challenges. 

We spoke with Dave Dittenber, Co-Founder and CEO of BYOD, who faced the ultimate challenge with the unexpected passing of his Co-Founder, Frank Luijckx. He recounts the loss and emphasizes how Frank’s forward-thinking and meticulous planning had a lasting positive impact on the business’s trajectory and contributed to its continued success.

In this episode, Dave shares his remarkable journey from starting as a dishwasher at age 12 to becoming the CEO of a cutting-edge AI SaaS company that powers Mabel, the first virtual restaurant assistant. 

He also provides personal insights into the challenges and strategies of funding a tech startup, stressing the importance of prudent financial planning and maintaining investor confidence through transparency and strategic growth.

This episode provides CEOs and CMOs in the SaaS industry insights into the challenges faced by restaurant operators, the importance of leveraging technology to improve operations, strategies for accelerating growth and enhancing profitability, and valuable lessons on funding, sales, and navigating through tough times in business. 

Key takeaways from this episode:

  • How active participation in industry associations offers key insights, connections, and mentorship for software entrepreneurs
  • How transparency with investors helps build trust and drive business growth
  • The importance of thorough documentation, recovery plans, and strategic playbooks


Other resources to check out:

Interview with Vinay Bhagat, Founder and CEO of TrustRadius who publishes a yearly report about how B2B buyer behavior is changing.

The Lead Gen Mistake I Guarantee You’re Making – how to create content that better identifies intent from today’s b2b buyer.

And, if you want an outside look at your content with actionable advice, take advantage of our Content Audit. Valued at $20K in free consulting.

---

Thanks for listening to the SaaS Backwards Podcast, brought to you by Austin Lawrence Group. We help SaaS firms reduce churn, accelerate sales, and generate demand. Learn more at AustinLawrence.com.

---

Is your messaging a sales ally or sneaky saboteur? Let us help with our free messaging audit.

We’ll look at your website’s messaging, content, and conversion potential from the eyes of today’s buyer and deliver a presentation with new combinations to more sales conversations and demos.

And the best part? It’s absolutely free.

Get started today!