Gaurav Jain

Having just raised a Series B financing, the case protagonist is faced with a tough decision: should she “step on the gas” and scale the customer base, or continue focusing on fine-tuning the product and business model. The case describes the various marketing channels employed by the BabbaCo team (Search, Email, Social Media, Deal Sites, Affiliates, etc.), including the strategy and effectiveness for each. Readers can use this knowledge to evaluate the effectiveness of the marketing efforts to… Show more

Having just raised a Series B financing, the case protagonist is faced with a tough decision: should she “step on the gas” and scale the customer base, or continue focusing on fine-tuning the product and business model. The case describes the various marketing channels employed by the BabbaCo team (Search, Email, Social Media, Deal Sites, Affiliates, etc.), including the strategy and effectiveness for each. Readers can use this knowledge to evaluate the effectiveness of the marketing efforts to date and determine whether they think the company is ready to scale those efforts or whether it is premature to do so. Show less

Young CEO of a venture-backed startup needs to figure out his sales strategy and the first key sales hires. Should he tap into an existing channel or build out a sales force from scratch? Hire an experienced senior sales executive or a scrappy mid-level sales manager?

This case explores the nuances of leveraging an existing sales channel vis-à-vis building a sales force from scratch, especially at a very early stage of a venture-backed startup. How do you decide on your first few key… Show more

Young CEO of a venture-backed startup needs to figure out his sales strategy and the first key sales hires. Should he tap into an existing channel or build out a sales force from scratch? Hire an experienced senior sales executive or a scrappy mid-level sales manager?

This case explores the nuances of leveraging an existing sales channel vis-à-vis building a sales force from scratch, especially at a very early stage of a venture-backed startup. How do you decide on your first few key sales hires: go for an experienced senior sales executive that can build out a team and walks in with a rolodex, or hire a more scrappy mid-level sales manager than can get his/her hands dirty? Issue of cost is also a real one at this stage of the company. Show less