In this episode of the SaaS Sessions podcast, Jacob Bank, founder of Relay.app, shares his journey from academia to startup founder, discussing the challenges of building a product in the AI space. He emphasizes the importance of validating ideas, finding early customers, and experimenting with various marketing channels. Jacob also highlights the significance of cohort retention as a measure of product-market fit and the need to balance innovation with competition in a rapidly evolving market.

Key Takeaways –

1. You’re not failing - your distribution is
Building is easy; getting customers is the battlefield.
Early channels (Reddit, network, cold email) only take you so far.
Most startup advice is outdated or irrelevant to your context - test everything yourself.

2. Validate with precision, not ego
The Mom Test changed how Jacob gathered honest feedback.
10 well-run interviews can kill or greenlight an idea.
Getting “likes” is not validation - retention and willingness to pay are.

3. Every growth stage needs a new motion
0 → 10: Scrappy hustle (Reddit, LinkedIn DMs, direct outreach).
10 → 100: Partner marketing, SEO, and high-intent blog content.
100 → 1000: Viral LinkedIn content + YouTube for education + community-led growth.

4. PMF isn’t hype - it’s cohort retention
Retention is the only true sign of product-market fit.
Competitive pressure is a forcing function to build better products.
Don’t be afraid to pick a fight in a crowded space - just know your edge.

Connect with Jacob Bank:
🔗 Jacob Bank - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobbank/
📅 Join his Build an AI Agent with Me sessions - https://events.relay.app
🌐 Try Relay.app for free: https://relay.app

Relay.app is an AI agent builder that connects your tools into smart workflows. Designed to bring humans into the loop where automation fails, Relay combines intuitive UX with AI-native capabilities, enabling teams to move faster without drowning in manual ops.

Chapters:
00:10 – Introduction
00:50 – Jacob’s journey from academia to Google to Relay
02:14 – The pain of early go-to-market and what didn’t work
06:09 – Using The Mom Test to validate early MVPs
07:59 – Breaking through with traction experiments
10:52 – Reddit, Product Hunt, and the weak links in early GTM
13:49 – From 10 to 100: What channels actually scaled
15:18 – Facing the 100 → 1000 wall
16:37 – Cracking virality with LinkedIn
21:29 – Mid-funnel levers: YouTube and email
27:13 – Competing in a mature category and why it’s a good thing
33:15 – Defining and validating PMF the hard way
38:27 – Retention is king—no tricks, just product
40:28 – Lightning round
42:41 – Final thoughts + how to join Jacob’s live AI agent sessions

Visit our website - https://saassessions.com/
Connect with me on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunilneurgaonkar/

S9E3 - Cracking Early-Stage SaaS Growth ft. Jacob Bank, CEO of Relay.app