Use Cases
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The TL;DR version of this article is this:
- We just launched a new (free!) Slack community: Global SaaS Leaders.
- It’s open to leaders at established SaaS and software companies (including founders!).
- You can apply for membership here. We’d love for you to join!
Why we’re starting a free Slack community
Because communities are awesome!
No, seriously.
Yes, there are other SaaS and software communities out there. Many of them are great.
But when we thought about creating the kind of community that we’d like to be a part of, we saw an opportunity to create something new.
For that reason, we created Global SaaS Leaders as a space with five unique qualities:
1. Global focus
We found many SaaS and software communities that were U.S.-based or centered around a specific location.
Global SaaS Leaders will be different. FastSpring may be located in the U.S., but our customers and the broader SaaS community is spread out all over the world.
As we develop the community, we’ll be intentional about developing a diverse membership and a global perspective.
2. Designed for leaders from established SaaS and software companies
Some of the best software conversations we found on the web were around starting a new SaaS company:
Conversations like these are extremely valuable for people trying to get started building a SaaS.
With that said, we noticed it was actually quite difficult to find helpful conversations between leaders from established SaaS and software companies.
That’s why we’ve chosen to build a community for SaaS leaders thinking about growing and scaling an established software business, not building minimum viable products or securing seed-stage funding.
If you’re a lifestyle entrepreneur with a bootstrapped SaaS already doing $10,000 a month, we want to help you connect with others like you.
Same if you’re the development lead at a venture-backed startup that just crossed $10 million a year.
That will be our focus in Global SaaS Leaders: to create a space where you can talk about the unique challenges that happen after you reach product-market fit and begin to grow.
3. Professionally moderated
It takes a dedicated and talented moderator (or team of moderators!) to create a positive, supportive culture in a community.
We’ve learned a lot from the Reddit community r/entrepreneur, for example.
But even quality communities like this one sometimes struggle with focus. It’s telling that the No. 1 thread this year is a combative post about how cryptocurrency has been overwhelming the feed:
Katie Stephan and Nathan Collier (authors of this post!) are the first moderation team as we launch the Global SaaS Leaders community.
Together, we have over a decade moderating online communities with thousands of members.
And building and launching this community is part of our job descriptions.
We’ll keep the conversation focused on SaaS and software — and we’ll make sure you won’t have to deal with spam, unsolicited offers, personal attacks, or trolling of any kind.
4. Not focused on venture capital or funding rounds
We don’t care if you’re bootstrapped, venture-funded, private-equity backed, or any other ownership model.
Global SaaS Leaders won’t be a place with a major focus on funding rounds or exit strategies.
Instead, we hope to create a place where you can have conversations about hiring, revenue, profit, tools, pricing models, technical infrastructure, and anything else related to growing a successful software business.
It’s fine if members occasionally discuss funding. But it won’t be the only discussion.
5. The most supportive SaaS and software community anywhere on the web
Some online communities are unsafe places.
Whoever you are, wherever you’re from, and whatever your background, we want you to feel comfortable posting and interacting in our community.
Katie and I will do everything we can to create and cultivate a positive, supportive culture in this new community. And we will not tolerate personal attacks, bigotry, racism, sexism, or any kind of disrespectful behavior.
Our target is no less than this: to create the most supportive SaaS and software community anywhere on the web.
How to Join the Global SaaS Leaders Community
If you’re a leader at an established SaaS company, we’d love to have you in our community!
You can apply to join us by filling out the form here.
We know it’s a long application form, but we use the information to ensure the quality of the community — and to screen out any potential spammers.
And there’s an FAQ on the application page that might answer some of your questions.
We also have a full set of community guidelines we ask you to read before applying, which details even more about the community.
We hope you’ll join us!
