You Can Build Anything. Can You Sell It?

At every tech meetup these days, someone demos what they built over the weekend with AI, and almost nobody demos what they sold. We’ve been guessing what people want, then adding one more feature instead of trying to sell it, because selling doesn’t come naturally to most of us. Now AI makes the building fast, but when the ladder leans against the wrong wall, we just get to the wrong place faster. Finding the right wall is the part we skip.

This one is sales for people who’d rather be coding. Rob Snyder, author of The Power of Pull, starts with people who are already trying to solve a problem and are stuck. Find them, sell them a way out, and only then build it. Done his way, it feels more like helping than pitching.

What is PULL?
PULL is Rob’s test for whether someone is ready to buy: they have a Project on their to-do list, it is Unavoidable now, they have a List of options (including building it themselves), and every option has Limitations. Rob will show what to do with that.

What you’ll learn

• Why buyers act on blocked priorities, not pain points
• How to find the people already trying to buy, before you build anything
• Why selling done Rob’s way feels like helping, not pitching

Who should attend?
Developers, AI builders and technical founders who have built something and are wondering who will pay for it. No sales experience needed; that’s the point.

Agenda

• 12:00 - 12:05 PM: Welcome and community updates
• 12:05 - 12:40 PM: Rob Snyder, Feature presentation
• 12:40 - 1:00 PM: Q&A and discussion

Optional homework

• Listen to Rob on Lenny’s Podcast: An 86-minute guide to finding PMF (product-market fit)
• Get the book: The Power of Pull

Keep going after the talk
No Manning book raffle this time, on purpose, and thank you to Manning for always offering one. The best thing to take home from this session is Rob’s method, so here is how to keep going, whatever your budget:

• Free: Rob’s newsletter and podcast, The Physics of Startups
• The full course: PULL (five recorded sessions from discovery to designing your sales process)
• Ready to invest in your startup: PMF Camp, Rob’s 2-week founder cohort for finding product-market fit, or a 1:1 sprint with Rob

Speaker
Rob Snyder is a founder and advisor to B2B startups and the author of The Power of Pull. As a founder he has taken three companies from $0 to $1M+ ARR, and as an advisor he has helped more than 50 startups do the same. He writes the Physics of Startups newsletter and podcast.

Serverless Toronto has been bridging the gap between IT and business needs since 2018. 6,000+ members. Past sessions: youtube.serverlesstoronto.org