All Segments
Sarah Tavel, Partner, Benchmark - The Fuel Powering Enduring, Billion Dollar Businesses
18 segments available
In this session, Sarah Tavel, General Partner at Benchmark, and early employee at Pinterest shares her 4-step framework for building multi-billion dollar companies. Sarah covers how to: - drive engagement - retain users - create viral loops Sarah Tavel is a General Partner at Benchmark where she invests in consumer businesses, consumerization of IT, and the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Prior to Benchmark, Sarah was a General Partner at Greylock Partners and was also Vice President at Bessemer Venture Partners, where she sourced the firm’s investment in Pinterest before joining the company as one of their first 35 employees. While at Pinterest, Sarah served as product lead for search, recommendations, machine vision, and pin quality, and also led the company through a period of hyper-growth, including international launch and several acquisitions. She is also a founding member of All Raise, a nonprofit organization working to accelerate the success of women in the venture capital and VC-backed startup ecosystem. Presented by: Boast.AI R&D Tax Credit Software - https://boastcapital.com Launch - https://www.launchacademy.ca
Segments Timeline
Turbocharging Engagement for Growth
Sarah Tavel emphasizes the importance of focusing on engagement as the key to building enduring billion-dollar businesses. She discusses how engagement is crucial for product growth and how investors assess early-stage companies for their potential to become iconic brands.
"well thanks for having me you guys i uh vancouver is one of my favorite cities and i also living in san francisco don't see a lot of rain so it's like a new experience right now for me but so today i ..."
Turbocharging Engagement
Sarah Tavel emphasizes the importance of engagement in building enduring billion-dollar businesses. She discusses how focusing on user engagement is crucial for founders and investors alike, sharing insights from her experience at Greylock and Pinterest. Tavel highlights the need to identify companies that can become iconic by nurturing user engagement from the very early stages.
"well thanks for having me you guys i uh vancouver is one of my favorite cities and i also living in san francisco don't see a lot of rain so it's like a new experience right now for me but so today i ..."
The Journey from Startup to Success
Tavel shares her personal journey from investing in Pinterest as a small startup to becoming a product manager there. She reflects on the growth from 30,000 users to 100 million monthly active users, highlighting the critical role of user engagement in this transformation.
"one of these these big companies and this is something that we obsess over at greylock which is the the firm that i'm i'm part of uh when you actually look at all of the public companies that exist ri..."
From Startup to Success
Tavel shares her personal journey from investing in Pinterest as a small startup to becoming a product manager there. She reflects on the growth from 30,000 users to 100 million monthly active users, illustrating the critical role of engagement in this transformation. This segment highlights the foundational elements necessary for building a successful business.
"one of these these big companies and this is something that we obsess over at greylock which is the the firm that i'm i'm part of uh when you actually look at all of the public companies that exist ri..."
The Hierarchy of Engagement
In this segment, Tavel introduces her framework for engagement, which consists of three levels: growing engaged users, retaining those users, and creating self-perpetuating products. She explains how each level builds upon the previous one, emphasizing the importance of nurturing user engagement to create a sustainable business model.
"does it take to build one of those businesses and what i ended up deciding and realizing the more i kind of think about this is that really what it comes down to is engagement and understanding how to..."
The Hierarchy of Engagement
In this segment, Tavel introduces her framework for engagement, outlining the hierarchy that starts with growing engaged users. She stresses the need for companies to focus on nurturing user engagement to build a solid foundation for growth.
"does it take to build one of those businesses and what i ended up deciding and realizing the more i kind of think about this is that really what it comes down to is engagement and understanding how to..."
Growing Engaged Users
Tavel discusses the significance of focusing on users who complete core actions within a product. She warns against the pitfalls of 'empty calories of growth,' where companies may report increasing user numbers without meaningful engagement. This segment stresses the need for businesses to ensure that their growth strategies align with user actions that drive value.
"companies and i would love for you to speak to me so growing engaged users so you know especially in silicon valley i don't know if you guys have experienced as much here but there's this trope where ..."
Growing Engaged Users
Tavel discusses the importance of not just acquiring users but ensuring they complete core actions that drive engagement. She warns against 'empty calories of growth' and emphasizes the need for users to engage meaningfully with the product.
"that will power your business and the way i think about that is is what i call the hierarchy of engagement so the first level that you need to be focused on as as uh people working these companies fou..."
The Core Action of Your Product
Tavel elaborates on the concept of core actions, which are essential for user engagement. She uses examples from Pinterest, Twitter, and YouTube to illustrate how these actions are foundational to the success of their respective platforms.
"chance of building one of these iconic companies and i would love for you to speak to me so growing engaged users so you know especially in silicon valley i don't know if you guys have experienced as ..."
Retaining Users with Value
Tavel elaborates on the second level of her engagement hierarchy: user retention. She explains the concepts of accruing benefits and mounting loss, illustrating how products can create value for users over time. By ensuring that users see increasing benefits from continued engagement, businesses can reduce churn and foster loyalty.
"company and so then ultimately the the question that you have to have when you're trying to see whether you can build this base of the foundation to be broad enough to build one of these big iconic co..."
Creating Self-Perpetuating Products
In this segment, Tavel addresses the challenge of building self-perpetuating products through virtuous loops. She shares examples from Pinterest and other platforms, explaining how user engagement can drive growth and enhance the overall experience. Tavel emphasizes that authentic virtuous loops are rare but essential for long-term success.
"product and let's talk about twitter um you know i'm a big twitter user and it is something that i use now to spread my ideas when i write a medium post i i tweet it out and get the word out that way ..."
Retaining Users: The Leaky Bucket Problem
In this segment, Tavel addresses user retention and the challenges of maintaining a stable user base. She introduces the concept of 'accruing benefits' and 'mounting loss' as strategies to keep users engaged and prevent churn.
"that are completing the core action of your product and so core actions are is the action that you need to be hyper focused and vigilant um about getting your users to do and it's a thing that when yo..."
The Power of Engagement
Tavel concludes her talk by reiterating the critical role of engagement in building iconic companies. She summarizes her framework, highlighting the importance of focusing on core actions, retaining users, and creating self-sustaining growth mechanisms. This final segment serves as a call to action for entrepreneurs to prioritize engagement in their business strategies.
"about the in the way of accruing benefits and mounting loss so let's talk then about the third and hardest level which is to make a product self-perpetuating so we've got growing base of engaged users..."
Building Sticky Products
Tavel explains how to create products that retain users by providing accruing benefits and mounting loss. She shares examples from Facebook and Twitter to illustrate how these concepts enhance user stickiness.
"company and so then ultimately the the question that you have to have when you're trying to see whether you can build this base of the foundation to be broad enough to build one of these big iconic co..."
The Importance of User Experience
Tavel discusses the significance of user experience in retaining users. She contrasts successful products with those that fail to create a compelling user experience, using examples like Evernote and Twitter to highlight the importance of engagement.
"and it's because either you're translating my my data my implicit or explicit actions into into data that you then use to make the experience better um so as an example uh on facebook i'm sure all of ..."
Creating Virtuous Loops
In this segment, Tavel introduces the concept of virtuous loops and their role in driving growth. She explains how these loops can create self-perpetuating engagement, using Pinterest as a prime example of a successful implementation.
"start using it more and more right like you you take notes for things i start dumping pdfs in evernote i forward emails and articles to evernote because now i know that if i do a search it just is thi..."
Challenges of Building Virtuous Loops
Tavel discusses the difficulties companies face in creating authentic virtuous loops. She shares insights on how to identify and implement these loops effectively to enhance user engagement and drive growth.
"when you think about when you think about the in the way of accruing benefits and mounting loss so let's talk then about the third and hardest level which is to make a product self-perpetuating so we'..."
The Key to Iconic Companies
Tavel concludes by summarizing her framework for building iconic companies. She reiterates the importance of engagement, retention, and virtuous loops, emphasizing that focusing on these elements is crucial for long-term success.
"so hard and so rare to have exist authentically in the product um most companies try to create virtuous loops in the product it's the thing that makes you know your the growth engine in your product u..."