Richard van der Blom’s Post

The $50K mistake 91% of SMBs are making right now 🕵️ Last week, a digital marketing agency owner DM'd me in panic mode. "We're drowning. My team spends 6 hours daily on lead qualification, another 4 on email campaigns, and don't even get me started on the CRM chaos." Sound familiar? Here's what most founders don't realize: While you're manually copying leads from LinkedIn to your CRM, your competitors are using Al agents that do it in seconds. While you're writing individual follow-ups at 9 PM, they're home with family because their Al workflow already sent 500 personalized emails. The reality check? 68% of small businesses are already using Al automation. Not thinking about it. Not planning it. Actually using it. Today. But here's where it gets interesting.🤔 I helped that agency owner build a simple n8n workflow that: → Automatically captures leads from 5 different sources. Enriches data using Al (company size, decision-maker info, pain points) Scores leads based on buying signals → Routes hot leads directly to sales with personalized context Nurtures cold leads with Al-crafted email sequences Time to implement? 3 days. Time saved weekly? 42 hours. Revenue increase in 60 days? 47%. The best part? This isn't some enterprise-level complexity. We're talking about drag-and-drop tools like Zapier, Make, and pre-built Al agents from CrewAl that any founder can implement. Stop competing on hours worked. Start competing on systems built. Your move: What's the ONE manual task eating most of your team's time right now? (Drop it below - I'll tell you exactly how to automate it) P.S. - Building custom Al workflows for SMBs and digital agencies. If you're ready to get those 50% time savings, let's talk → DM me "AUTOMATE"🚀 #Automation #AI #Startup #Entrepreneurs

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝟵𝟬% 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗮𝗮𝗦 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗹𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹𝘀 📊 Funnel optimization is pretty straightforward if you're tracking the right things. Whether you're doing PLG, SLG, or a combination, tracking your funnel is table stakes if you want to grow your business. Even if you stumble into a profitable niche, continuing without proper measurement won't get you to 10x growth. The most efficient and consistently growing organizations have a solid handle on their funnel analytics. Yet I see it time and time again across different orgs: 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀: ❌ ✺ Inconsistent event naming conventions ✺ False-positive event firing ✺ Lack of imagination on custom properties ✺ No clear measurement strategy ✺ Insufficient buy-in from leadership 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀? Not understanding the "Aha moment" for your users. Solving churn also becomes far less mystical than many make it out to be. (I'll save that deep dive for another post.) The formula is simple: Improve time to value (TTV) by decreasing friction in your funnel, then reinforce engagement with that value as often as your product requires for user success. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗴𝗼 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴: 🎯 They get stuck on feature addition as a placebo for the deeper problem—users aren't finding value fast enough or at all. 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹. You could be attracting the wrong prospects: ✺ Those with no success potential (don't care to solve the problem) ✺ Those with no budget 💰 ✺ Those who aren't even aware they have a problem 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: If you can align holistically on your tracking plan and how you'll use it to identify conversion bottlenecks, the potential is enormous. 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀-𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘃𝘆 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹𝘀: 📈 You have to double down on rigor and make it come from the top. As an organization, tracking and contributing to funnel data must be a company objective—not just a marketing afterthought. Everything else will likely flail without this foundation. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝘃𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀? 👇 #SaaS #FunnelOptimization #ProductLedGrowth #Analytics ---- 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 Preston Zeller 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽𝘀, 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘆. → 𝘗𝘚: 𝘛𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐'𝘮 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘯, 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘻𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘩𝘢𝘶𝘴.𝘤𝘰𝘮. 

The Most Undervalued Growth Hack in 2025: Business Automation Most businesses chase new marketing tricks... But the real game-changer? 👉 Building automated systems that work while you sleep. Here’s what I’ve seen working with service & productized businesses: 1️⃣ Lead Capture That Never Misses Instead of relying on “manual follow-ups,” tools like HubSpot, Zoho, or Pipedrive instantly capture and nurture leads. 💡 One client closed 30% more deals just by automating first-touch responses. 2️⃣ Customer Journeys That Feel Human With platforms like ActiveCampaign & Mailchimp, emails adapt to customer behavior. Example: If someone downloads a guide → they get case studies → then an invite to book a call. Seamless. 3️⃣ Operations Without Bottlenecks Teams used to juggle WhatsApp, Excel, and endless emails. Now, with ClickUp / Monday.com / Asana, everything is centralized. Result? 40% faster project turnaround. 4️⃣ Marketing That Runs 24/7 Zapier + LinkedIn Automation tools: Outreach on autopilot ChatGPT-powered bots: Answer FAQs instantly Ad automation with Meta & Google Ads: Budget optimized in real-time ✨ The Result? More consistency. Less chaos. A business that feels 10x more professional to your customers. 👉 If you’re still doing everything manually, you’re not just wasting time—you’re leaving money on the table. Which part of your business would you automate first—leads, operations, or customer experience? #BusinessAutomation #DigitalTransformation #MarketingStrategy #BusinessGrowth

🚨 Big news: Gojiberry just unlocked a whole new level. Over the last few weeks, our team rebuilt key parts of the product from the ground up - and today, we’re rolling out one of our biggest updates ever. Because finding warm leads isn’t enough anymore. You need to see buying intent, act on it instantly, and send messages that actually get replies. Here’s what’s new 🔑 1️⃣ The “Visited Your Profile” Signal You’ll now know exactly when someone checks your LinkedIn profile, and your AI Agent will instantly surface who they are, what they do, and how to reach them. It’s your new unfair advantage to start conversations right when people are curious about you. 2️⃣ Integrations that supercharge your flow Smartlead, Clay, Zoho, Zapier, API, Webhooks. Your AI Agents now plug directly into your stack - so your warm leads move from detection → outreach → CRM automatically. 3️⃣ AI-personalized messages that triple your reply rates No more guessing what to say. Gojiberry now writes hyper-personalized LinkedIn messages for every lead - based on their intent, activity, and context. Early users are seeing 3x higher reply rates across campaigns. This is the most powerful version of Gojiberry we’ve ever shipped. It’s faster, smarter, and built for one goal: turn intent into booked meetings - on autopilot. 🚀 Go try it.

Funnels have changed. And that’s a good thing. Not just the tech, but how we use them. The pushy, hype-y sales pages of the past? They’re not working like they used to. Because people have changed. We want honesty, clarity and human-first experiences. So what’s working right now? ✅ Simple, focused landing pages with 1 clear message and 1 clear next step ✅ Lead magnets that solve a small but real problem ✅ Nurture emails that feel like conversations, not campaigns ✅ Honest storytelling that builds connection, not pressure What’s coming next then? 1. Interactive funnels, quiz funnels or diagnostic tools 💡 E.g. A wellness brand offers a “What’s Your Stress Style?” quiz to help visitors identify their stress triggers, and then recommends the most suitable product bundle or resource. 2. More personalization with the help of AI to tailor the journey 💡 E.g. A course creator uses AI to segment email subscribers based on their interests and goals. Someone who selects “beginner” sees different subject lines, product suggestions and CTAs than someone marked as “advanced.” 3. Human-led automation to blend strategy with real connection 💡 E.g. A service provider sets up an automated onboarding sequence, but includes a video of themselves personally welcoming new subscribers and offering a free audit via Calendly. 4. Values-driven offers because purpose matters just as much as price 💡 E.g. A coaching program weaves in social impact: for every signup, they donate a portion to a cause aligned with their values. This is highlighted clearly in the funnel messaging. These small shifts are making a big difference. They feel better to create too. Because when your systems align with your voice and values, they stop being "sales machines" and start being service pathways. The future of funnels isn’t just about tech or trends. It’s about creating experiences that feel aligned for both you and your audience. Not for the algorithm. Not for the hype. But for you and the people you're here to help. Which of these shifts are you already seeing (or using)? #FunnelsThatFlow #DigitalMarketing #SolopreneurTips #HumanFirstFunnels #SalesFunnels #MarketingWithHeart

🚀 The Moment I Realized I Was Building the Wrong Kind of Business (And How It Led to GrowWithAI) Two years ago, I was running a traditional digital marketing and Lead Gen Company. We offered SEO, content, social media — the classic “full-service” model. We were busy. We had clients. We were making money. But something felt… off. I kept asking myself: Are we actually helping our clients grow? Or are we just keeping them busy with deliverables that look good on reports but don’t move the needle? Then came the wake-up call. One of our long-term clients — a SaaS founder — pulled me aside after a quarterly review. He said: “I appreciate the content and SEO work, but I’m still struggling to get qualified leads. I need pipeline. I need sales. Can you help me with that?” And I didn’t have a good answer. We were great at creating content and driving traffic — but not at generating real, qualified leads that convert. That conversation stuck with me. I went down a rabbit hole — studying how top companies were acquiring customers. Testing AI tools. Building automated workflows for lead sourcing, outreach, and qualification. And then it clicked. The real value isn’t in offering “services.” It’s in building systems — AI-powered engines that generate leads 24/7, fill pipelines predictably, and free founders from the constant chase. That’s when GrowWithAI was born. Now, we don’t just run campaigns. We build intelligent, automated lead-generation systems for founders who want predictable growth without burnout. No more manual outreach. No more cold messages into the void. No more hoping for results. Just smart, scalable, AI-driven lead generation that actually delivers. That day taught me something powerful: If your work doesn’t move the needle, it’s just noise. If you’re a founder tired of “marketing” that looks good on paper but doesn’t grow your business — let’s talk. Comment below or DM me “System”, and I’ll share how we can build your automated lead engine. Because you shouldn’t have to choose between growth and sanity. #FounderStory #LeadGeneration #AIAutomation #GrowWithAI #StartupLife #CEO #PersonalJourney

When I first heard about HubSpot, I thought it was just another random CRM platform. A place to throw in contacts and keep track of leads, opportunities and deals. But then I started exploring, and wow, it’s like a Swiss Army knife for startups. Now, here’s why: CRM that remembers everything for you. No more sticky notes or let me dig through emails. HubSpot tool keeps every lead, every chat, every deal in one place. You know exactly where the conversation stopped and what the next step is. 📌Email marketing that actually feels personal Instead of blasting the same email to everyone, HubSpot lets you tailor messages. Hey John, here’s that demo you asked about hits way harder than Hello valued customer. Startups win when customers feel seen. 📌Sales pipeline that’s crystal clear You can literally drag-and-drop deals across stages, Like moving sticky notes on a board, but smarter. You’ll know who’s close to buying and who still needs a nudge. No guess work No chasing in circles. 📌Customer support tools Startups grow fast, and so do customer questions. HubSpot’s ticketing + live chat make sure no customer feels ignored. Even if you’re a one-person team, you look organized and professional. 📌Automation that saves you hours Hubspot allows you send follow ups, reminders, meeting bookings, Lead nurturing emails all on autopilot. It’s like cloning yourself so you can focus on the bigger stuffs. 📌Analytics that tell the truth Which emails are working? Which leads are hot? HubSpot shows you the numbers so you don’t waste time guessing. Startups don’t have money or energy to burn, data helps you spend both wisely. So here’s the thing: HubSpot isn’t just a tool. It’s an all-in-one growth system. It helps you attract people, turn them into customers, And keep them coming back, all without juggling 10 different apps. And when you’re running a startup, that kind of focus is everything. Because you don’t just need tools. You need leverage. And that’s what HubSpot gives you. Which CRM system are you currently using in your business or for your clients? #Virtualassistant #CRM #Automation #customersupport #Linkedin

Wondering why people visit your site but don’t sign up? In marketing lingo, this is called 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐎𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 (CRO). We analyzed 100+ startup websites in 2025 and found the same buttons everywhere. The problem? They don’t convert anymore. Here are 12 CTAs that fail in 2025 - and better alternatives, with examples from popular sites: ❌ “Submit” → ✅ “Get My Free Report” (used by HubSpot lead magnets) ❌ “Learn More” → ✅ “See How It Works” (like Stripe’s product pages) ❌ “Click Here” → ✅ “Show Me the Results” ❌ “Sign Up” → ✅ “Create Your Free Account” (Slack, Notion) ❌ “Get Started” → ✅ “Start Building in 30 Seconds” ❌ “Buy Now” → ✅ “Unlock Lifetime Access” (Coursera, MasterClass) ❌ “Subscribe” → ✅ “Join 50,000 Marketers Who Get Weekly Wins” ❌ “Try Free” → ✅ “Test Drive for 7 Days, No Card Needed” ❌ “Download” → ✅ “Instant Access to the Playbook” ❌ “Contact Us” → ✅ “Talk to a Growth Expert Today” ❌ “Request Demo” → ✅ “See It in Action” (Salesforce, HubSpot) ❌ “Join Today” → ✅ “Become Part of the Fastest-Growing [Industry] Network” The real difference isn’t the button. It’s the 𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 behind it. We use AI to generate CTA variants that actually convert - but only if you feed it the right prompt. Want the exact JSON prompt we use? Comment “𝐂𝐓𝐀” and I’ll share it with you.

Imagine having an extra team member that that flags churn before it happens, tells sales which leads are hot, and proves marketing ROI in real-time. That’s not sci-fi, or a mystery unknown to mankind. It’s simply AI inside HubSpot. HubSpot gives you the choice of 5 AI team members that can help you save time and promote clarity within your teams: 👥Customer Agent: Handles inquiries fast & accurately, escalating when needed. 🔍Prospecting Agent (Beta): Researches accounts, personalises outreach, and engages leads so your reps can focus on closing. ✍️Content Agent (Beta): Creates blogs, landing pages, and case studies, freeing your team for strategy. 🧠Knowledge Base Agent (Beta): Spots content gaps and drafts help articles based on real tickets. 📱Social Media Agent (Beta): Crafts posts, suggests publishing times, and maintains your brand voice. The best part about all of this? These agents are constantly adapting and improving to be the best version of themselves. Which one would you choose to boost your business growth? #growth #growthagency #hubspot

If your funnel feels broken, it’s probably just disconnected. Here’s where the disconnect usually shows up: - Messaging that changes tone from IG to Paid Search to landing page. - Data trapped in channels and silos with no one seeing the full picture. - Team handoffs from brand to demand to sales to retention that drop customer momentum or worse shift expatations. Fixing it starts with visibility across the entire funnel: shared KPIs, shared reporting, and goals that ladder to to outcomes.. Try this 4 step framework instead: -Map your value to a buyer mindsets -Map problems needs and wants at each stage of the journey. -Map your journey to funnel stages and create a marketing Rosetta Stone. -Then map messaging to funnel stages and buyer mindsets. Awareness is not the same as Decision. But they must line up. Audit every handoff. Is it losing or gaining velocity ? Does the customer know the next action or are the left a little lost? The funnel is not dead. It just needs to be reconnected. There’s a simple 5-step framework I’ve used with clients from Fortune 500s to scrappy startups that later became unicorns. It helps reconnect funnels and create momentum: I’m dropping the link in the comments. 👉 If you find it helpful, comment Fixed Journey. 👉 If you really find it helpful, hit repost so others can use it too.