From early signals to recurring customers: our validation journey
A look at how we are taking marketgoo Domain Intelligence from vision to recurring paying customers and how we aim to get to product market fit
At the beginning of 2024 our second business unit, marketgoo Domain Intelligence, was little more than an idea we were excited to build. Over the years of scaling our first SEO SaaS business, we had developed a powerful data platform that gradually began powering various ad-hoc use cases for our customers. Eventually, we recognized the opportunity to build on those experiences, package an MVP around it and test how the market would respond.
We decided to present this MVP at the main event in our industry, test the concept in front of a live audience and see if it resonated. The feedback was fantastic. Everyone loved the platform and was eager to use it to better understand their end customers. It was hard not to get carried away by all the positive feedback and goodwill. We celebrated briefly, then went back home to keep evolving the product and turn those conversations into our first customers.
What followed, as many startups experience, was the classic gap between early excitement and real traction. After the initial wave of enthusiastic feedback from the market we kept progressing but customer agreements came much slower than we had hoped. By the end of 2024 we had a handful of one-off projects and a few non-paying pilots. These early signals showed there was some interest in what we were building but it was taking forever to accomplish tangible results. From there came months of almost delusional belief in the value we thought we could unlock for our customers.
In the Product Management academy they teach you to build quickly and go to market fast to validate a business idea. Turns out building a data platform and selling into the enterprise segment is a bit more complicated than that.
Sheer patience, mixed with more than a few moments of frustration, kept us pushing forward as we continued building the platform and working to turn those opportunities into real deals.
Where we are today
Fast forward to today: those initial one-off projects and non-paying pilots have gradually started turning into recurring customers. The pilots began to deliver real results and we closed a few high-ticket deals along the way.
Critical to this progress was transforming our go-to-market approach, moving from founder-led selling to building a senior Sales and Marketing team. The shift from isolated transactions to committed subscriptions has been our strongest validation so far. It showed that the product was not only solving real problems but also earning long-term trust.
Now we have recurring high-ticket customers using our data across different use cases. Domain Intelligence has become a new data business unit along with its existing MRR while we’ve been closing additional deals and hope to steadily grow that base.
At this point we’re seeing stable recurring revenue in the tens of thousands per month with growth levers ahead in the final quarter of the year. We believe we’re onto something with real potential, a business that could scale into millions in annual revenue.
Are we there yet?
Having said that, can we tell ourselves that we’re there yet? That we’ve achieved product–market fit, stability or reached the end of our validation journey for this business unit?
Definitely not. Validation is still very much in progress.
What we want to see next is customers adopting the product independently, without relying so heavily on our sales efforts. We want use cases that have fast adoption and are easy to explain, moving from pilots to fully activated customers where growth happens beyond the initial champions. The key question remains: are these champions exceptional cases or do they represent a scalable segment of the TAM we’ve envisioned?
From a revenue and financial perspective success will mean predictable recurring revenue over defined time frames. It will mean transitioning from short-term pilots or low-commitment deals to 12- or 24-month agreements. Also seeing clear upsell and cross-sell opportunities within our existing customer base, while capturing new ones.
For now, the most important takeaway is that somehow we have managed to progress consistently in the business validation journey.
The next phase is all about consistency, repeatability and scale. It’s about expanding our customer base across different verticals, identifying which use cases deliver the most value and building the right product layers on top of what today is still a blend of data and service.
Still there’s no guarantee we’ll succeed. The market is less predictable than ever and AI is reshaping the landscape fast. The odds are not in our favor but I guess sometimes you’ve got to be a bit delusional.
A habit that helps me
In these complex company stages, I try to add small rituals to my routine that help me stay focused on strategy. It also forces me to pause and reflect on whether I’m performing at the standard I set for myself.
This is the list I check at the end of each workday to optimize for the next one:
I know our company’s current bottleneck to scale.
I committed the necessary resources to remove that bottleneck.
I spent my time like a true CEO, not a doer.
I created or improved an internal asset.
I reviewed our scorecard and key metrics today.
I led through clarity, vision and accountability.
I said no to something that was urgent but non-essential.
I checked in on cash flow and capital reserves.
My calendar tomorrow reflects my highest priorities.
I acted like an owner, not just an employee.
A suggestion
I have recently read Get Scalable by Ryan Deiss.
This is the kind of book many would find redundant or easy to skip, but for me, it was worth it just for the 15–20% of nuggets I could plug into our ever-evolving operating systems. If you’re as obsessed with operations as I am, I definitely recommend it.
Life lately
Wences came to Palma and we spent hours talking about work, life and the future. I have a feeling we’ll remember it for years to come. It was all about getting closer to the crazy pizzeria goal but with some updates on boring businesses.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately that, although remote work is deeply embedded in our core values, it’s during these in-person moments, long conversations with light agenda over good food, where we really move the needle.
Enjoyed this?
I’m also available on X, happy to chat and connect.
See you in the next one!