Founder’s Dance with George Levin #8

I'm slowly getting used to writing this newsletter, and I've come up with a goal. No, it's not about the number of subscribers.

I’m committing to sending 100 newsletters. If my math is correct, the 100th one will be sent in July 2026. At first, that sounds crazy, but on second thought, I think it’ll be cool if at least ten people reading these words stick with me until the 100th one.

By the way, I’ve added two new features to the newsletter: comments and an audio version. To access them, click 'Read online' at the top right corner of the email.

Another update is that you can access all previous newsletters here. I’ve made nice thumbnails with key points and added tags for easier navigation.

Startup Hacks: Retention Lessons

This week, I had a call with our adviser, Dmitry Stavisky. We reviewed CRMchat's metrics and saw that retention wasn’t great, which is disappointing because retention is critical at this early stage. Without good retention, it doesn't make sense to scale marketing. Dmitry asked what event we were using to measure retention, catching me off guard.

Disclaimer: I have more B2B experience than B2C, so B2C metrics aren't my strong side.

I initially thought it made sense to measure retention from sign-up. Dmitry suggested otherwise, explaining it should be tracked from a key activation event—the point when a user becomes active.

In our case, the activation event is when a user creates a contact in the CRM. We switched the retention metric from sign-up to “contact creation” and saw vital changes:

• Retention wasn’t as bad—15% by week 5, with week 0 being when the user created their first contact.

• Conversion from sign-up to “first contact creation” is low, only 20%.

We found many users took steps we didn’t anticipate, leading to dead ends where they didn’t see the product's value. We’ve simplified onboarding and removed those dead ends. We’re waiting for new data to see if the conversion has improved.

Instead of focusing on one retention metric, we split it into two different ones: conversion from sign-up to activation and retention of activated users.

Product Spotlight: Screen Studio

This week's product is Screen Studio, which makes it easy to create beautiful, professional screen recordings. See below.

I love this product and have been using it daily for months. All CRMchat's videos are made with Screen Studio. I’m jealous because when I post product updates, the first reaction often is, "Wow, how did you make this cool video?"

This brings me to the second point: the founder, Adam Pietrasiak, proved you can build a successful product outside the US without VC money by nailing one thing very well. In the case of Screen Studio, it’s the auto zooms. You record the video, and the rest is done automatically. It took me two minutes to create the video below.

Adam aimed to attract customers away from established competitors by perfecting this use case and eliminating the learning curve.

It’s impressive how this approach made Screen Studio stand out from Loom and iMovie. I even canceled my Loom subscription.

Screen Studio made $30K in its first month, even when the product was still very raw. Most of the traffic came organically as users shared it. For example, I got recommendations to use Screen Studio from three people in one month. Later, Adam reinforced this viral sharing by introducing an affiliate program, leading to over $177,000 in revenue and more than 50,000 clicks from affiliates in a month.

If you want to learn more, I recommend this podcast with Adam.

Mind Bender: Breaking the Cycle of Unspoken Tension

The quality of relationships depends on how often you have uncomfortable conversations about what bothers you or crosses your boundaries. These conversations require energy, and they're postponed if you don't have it. The paradox is that when you have energy, you feel good and avoid disrupting that mood, leading to further delays.

Over time, negative feelings build up and get projected onto your loved ones, creating tension.

There are two ways to break this cycle. The best, though most challenging, is to address issues as soon as they arise, defending your boundaries. This takes decisiveness and courage, which require practice. But be cautious: when upset, there’s a risk of making things personal and creating a guilt trip.

The easier option is to have uncomfortable conversations when you’re in a good mood. In this state, it’s easier to provide respectful, caring feedback focused on your feelings, not the other person’s mistakes. The more care you bring, the less defensive the other person will feel.

On this subject, I like this piece from Tim Ferriss' show with Naval Ravikant, where Naval says that radical sincerity not only saves energy but is also the easiest way to stay present because you don't have to keep track of lies or half-truths in your mind. Tim also recommends the book Lying by Sam Harris, which I’ve already downloaded on Audible as my next listen.

Culture Corner: You Are What You Read

Our actions and decisions are shaped by "background knowledge," which most people accumulate unconsciously. This knowledge includes ideas, concepts, values, clichés, and prejudices forming from early childhood. Family, school, friends, films, books, and social media are key sources.

This background knowledge builds our worldview, shaping emotional reactions, ethical beliefs, behavior, and decision-making. It influences our life choices in hidden ways, often making us believe we're in control when we're not.

Some control comes from consciously choosing our knowledge sources. For example, you can get most of your information from books and a few trusted, well-evaluated authors.

I sincerely thank you for reading this newsletter and making me a part of your background knowledge.

Speak soon,

George,

October 13, 2024. Brooklyn Heights.

Twitter | LinkedIn | Consulting