Dirk Sahlmer

Acquiring SaaS companies @ saas.group | saas.wtf Newsletter

Engineer turned M&A professional. After 20+ transactions on the buy-side, I'm now helping tech founders run a structured exit process.

Posting regularly here on LI and in my saas.wtf newsletter on SaaS and  M&A topics.

Head of Origination

It's Sunday and you're scrolling LinkedIn instead of doing anything productive? Cool, I have something for you..


Alexander from MRR Unlocked 🚀 asked me to contribute to a playbook for SaaS founders scaling from 0 to €1M ARR.

My brief: Share your #1 tip.

If you've been following me for a while, you can probably guess what mine was ab

(Spoiler: It involves KPIs)

The article also includes insights from many other people who are smarter than me covering positioning, ICP, content strategy, pricing, and CRM.

Definitely worth a read: https://lnkd.in/es-EzACY

One more thing: Alex asked me to post about it tomorrow. But I'm doing it on Sunday evening because I like to make life difficult.
 
Please engage and help me send this to the moon, so he won't complain that I didn't follow directions.
 
Thanks in advance. 🫶

I help Tech founders exit | Partner @ FE International | saas.wtf Newsletter

El Bee PR

Owner El Bee PR

Weddings Costa Rica

Costa Rica's foremost destination wedding design and coordination firm. From hotels to huppahs, rental cars to cakes, we have every aspect of your wedding experience in the land of Pura Vida covered! Visit us at www.weddingscostarica.com

Owner/Head Designer

Costa Rican Vacations

Wedding Planner

City of St. Albert

Public Relations and Marketing Manager

Alberta Ballet Canada

Oversaw marketing and public relations for Northern Alberta, produced the annual Home and Garden Tour in Edmonton, produced An Evening with Mikhail Baryshnikov fundraiser.

Marketing And Public Relations Specialist

You’re the engine behind your clients’ succes, crafting strategy, driving growth, and building brands.

But when it comes to your visibility? You’re still the best-kept secret.

I work with high-performing fractional CMOs who want to elevate their authority, attract higher-caliber clients, and reduce their reliance on referrals.

My flagship program, 30 in Three, lands you 30 podcast interviews in 90 days, without writing a single pitch or lifting a finger on outreach. You show up. We handle the rest.

With over 30 years in PR, I’ve secured thousands of podcast appearances, secured clients in top-tier media, and helped experts appear in Google AI results and buyer searches, not just social feeds.
Because here’s the truth: You don’t need to create more content. You need to be heard by the right people, on the right platforms, at scale.

My results:

⭐Secured over $2.02 million in AVE (Advertising Value Equivalency) for SaaS company Sudshare in under 60 days
⭐Secured over 1 million lines of newspaper features, just in the province of Alberta, for MOW during production
⭐ Sold out multiple concerts during my years with Alberta Ballet and The Arden Theatre
⭐ Grew fitness client’s website traffic 357% through earned media
⭐ One strategic podcast interview netted 5-figure launch two weeks later
⭐ Accredited with Canadian Public Relations Society
⭐ Managed the Y2K Crisis Communications Department for the City of St. Albert
⭐ Columnist at SEE and Vue Magazines for four years
⭐ Published articles for Canadian Press, En Route Magazine, Destination Weddings & Honeymoons Magazine
⭐ Authored best-seller, Costa Rica - The Bradt Guide
⭐ Built 7-figure travel and wedding agency using only PR (no social or ads)

I bring a unique mix of marketing, journalism, and public relations to the table, enabling my team and I to plan strategically for maximum results without resorting to shortcuts like “pay to play.” 

Let's get you making headlines for all the right reasons - email me at larissa@elbeepr.com

Larissa Banting APR

Everywhere we look right now it’s the same story:
AI-generated everything.
Fake videos. 
Synthetic voices.
Half the time, you’re not sure if you’re listening to a human or a machine.

But that’s exactly why we’re seeing such a hard pivot into the trust economy.
* Trust is becoming the highest-value currency in business.
* It’s the hardest thing to earn and the easiest thing to lose.
* You can’t buy it, hack it, or shortcut it.

You don’t build that kind of trust with a clever ad or a one-off “viral” post.

We’re at the point where people are talking about 27 touchpoints before someone is ready to buy. That’s 27 chances to either reinforce, or erode, the belief that:
you’re credible
you’re consistent
you’re actually who you say you are

As we wrap up 2025 and look at 2026, the question isn’t: “What’s the next hack to get more eyeballs?”

It’s: “What am I going to do, consistently, to earn and keep the trust of the people I want to serve?”

Because in this new economy, trust is the top currency. It can’t be bought, it can only be earned—one decision, one conversation, one piece of content at a time.

I’m curious: what are you doing differently in 2026 to build real trust with your audience, not just attention?

⭐️ Helping Founders & CEOs Build Authority Through Earned Media | Top 10% Podcast Visibility | Accredited Publicist

Everyone says Thanksgiving week is dead for outreach.
My results didn’t get the memo...

Here’s what actually happened in the last 7 days 👇 
* 33% acceptance
* 27% replies
* 59 conversations
* 100% qualified

Meanwhile, most e-commerce campaigns were a ghost town.
The strategist running my outreach told me he was shocked at the engagement (and then used my results in his Black Friday email).

Here’s the real takeaway:
Authority doesn’t care about holidays. When your positioning is clear, people respond, even in slow weeks.

This is why I keep hammering visibility ecosystems with founders and CMOs:
You’re busy. You don’t have time to crank out original content every day.

But one strong podcast interview gives you:
*long-form material your marketing team can actually use
*social posts for weeks
*messaging clarity for outbound
*AI-friendly authority signals
*a footprint that speeds up deal flow

It’s the gift that keeps on giving, just like yesterday's leftovers, but far more profitable.

Visibility isn’t random; it’s a system. When the pieces work together, results like this aren’t “lucky,” they’re predictable.

If you want 2026 working in your favor, the groundwork starts now.

Most “visibility” offers aren’t actually visibility, they’re pre-visibility prep.

Things like:
 • curated podcast lists
 • messaging frameworks
 • pitch templates
 • content prompts
 • micro-podcast creation

Those things aren’t wrong.
But they’re not the finish line.

And here’s what most business owners never calculate:
If you invest $2,000–$3,000 in a prep-only offer, then spend 20–30 hours writing pitches, sending emails, tracking responses, and following up, 
and your time is worth even $150/hr…

Your real cost wasn’t $2,500.

It was $5,500–$7,000 before a single interview is confirmed.

Done-for-you visibility doesn’t sell potential.
It delivers booked interviews on your calendar.

Lists create potential.
Bookings create proof.

If you’re ready for confirmed visibility instead of more tasks, DM me BOOKED.

Quick visibility tip for you.

Podcast hosts book guests who help their audience get a clear result, not guests who ramble, share random stories, or “wing it.”

If you want to get booked faster, your message needs one simple outcome that listeners can walk away with.

Before you think of reaching out to any podcast, clarify this for yourself first:
What's the main result you help people get?

Examples to get the creative juices into hyperdrive:
– overcome burnout
 – fix their digestion
 – get their first paying clients
 – grow without constant posting
 – reduce inflammation
 – improve team communication
 – increase revenue without ads

Want help?

Just drop your result below (one short phrase) and I’ll tell you if it’s podcast-ready.

CMOs are under more pressure than ever to drive authority, leads, and visibility - fast.

Here’s the truth most teams don’t want to admit: podcast guesting is one of the highest-ROI visibility channels, but almost no one has the bandwidth to actually do it.

Writing pitches.
 Researching shows.
 Following up.
 Scheduling.
 Nurturing hosts.
 Tracking metrics.

It turns into a second job, and gets shoved to the bottom of the priority list every single quarter.

So I built a system that lets CMOs stack 30 podcast bookings confirmed in 90 days… without doing any of the pitching themselves. 

In this short walkthrough, I break down how the process works, how we guarantee bookings, and why CMOs use it to:
Build executive authority
Drive warm leads
Shorten sales cycles
Increase brand visibility
Become the “go-to voice” in their vertical

If you want my team to run this system for you, book a call with me (link in comments). I’ll show you exactly how we tailor it to your niche, your positioning, and your revenue goals.

https://lnkd.in/epH_9CGn

Open video: CMOs Land 30 Podcast Bookings in 90 Days on loom.com

AI is reshaping how customers discover brands, and most CEOs aren’t ready for what this report reveals.

MuckRack's "What Is AI Reading?" report dropped, and the data is blunt:
* 94% of sources AI cites are non-paid, meaning ads won’t save you.
* Nearly 25% of all citations come from journalism. Traditional media still drives authority in the AI era.
* Press release citations have surged 5x since July. Structure matters: cited releases include more stats, more action verbs, more bullet points, and more unique company mentions.
* Half of AI citations come from content published within the last 11 months. Fresh, authoritative visibility isn’t optional -  it’s the cost of staying discoverable.

Here’s what this means if you’re a Founder or CEO:
Your brand’s AI visibility is already being shaped, whether you’re participating in it or not.

When someone asks an LLM, “Who should I hire?” “What solution is best?” or “Which companies lead in ___?” … AI isn’t guessing. It’s pulling from earned media, high-authority journalism, and specific outlets that you may not even be targeting.

Owned content only wins when the question is transactional.

Discovery, where new customers first encounter you, is driven almost entirely by earned visibility.

Your competitors who invest in PR today will dominate tomorrow’s AI search landscape.
 
This isn’t about hype but about being findable when buyers turn to AI instead of Google.

If you’re still treating PR as a “nice to have,” you’re missing the biggest shift in brand discoverability since SEO. AI doesn’t amplify the loudest brand - it amplifies the most credible one.

If you want 2026 to be the year your company becomes the default answer inside AI and not the afterthought, it’s time to rethink your visibility strategy.

taplio

The Battle

Dirk Sahlmer

Larissa Banting APR

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreDirk Sahlmer's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreLarissa Banting APR's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Dirk Sahlmer

Larissa Banting APR

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Dirk Sahlmer's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreLarissa Banting APR's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreDirk Sahlmer's LinkedIn Performance