Wes Bush

Product-led coach helping founders scale from 6 to 8-figures in product-led revenue. Author of the bestselling book, Product-Led Growth.

Over the last 9 years, I’ve worked hands-on with 400+ SaaS companies, helping them unlock $1B+ in self-serve revenue through Product-Led Growth (PLG).

Six years ago, PLG was a choice.
Today, it is table stakes.

Recently, Brex published a list of the 50 fastest-growing software companies.
ALL of them have a PLG motion.

If you want to win in the SMB or Mid-Market space, you cannot survive without PLG in 2026.

What separates the winners is not whether they have PLG.
It is how strong their PLG motion is.

The best PLG motions showcase value in minutes and expand rapidly without adding headcount. Weak PLG motions get stuck in linear growth.

That is what I help founders fix in three ways:

➡️ Is PLG is right for you?

I wrote the bestselling book, Product-Led Growth: How to Build a Product That Sells Itself, to help you determine if PLG is the right strategy for your business. 

You can read it for free at ProductLed.com/Book - my treat!

➡️ What’s the best approach to scale up PLG?

After two years of research and working with hundreds of companies, I discovered the 9 essential elements that separate PLG success stories from the rest. 

I break it all down in The Product-Led Playbook.

You can grab a copy at ProductLed.com/Playbook, or watch my free masterclass to see the entire process in action: ProductLed.com/Masterclass

➡️ Ready to scale up?

If you’re ready to scale and need hands-on help, our ProductLed Implementers are here. They aren't consultants - they are experienced PLG operators who want to roll up their sleeves and work alongside your team to help you address your biggest growth bottleneck, whether that's getting more users to sign up, upgrade, or get to value.

Since we only work with a handful of clients at a time and guarantee growth, you must apply to work with us at ProductLed.com

Let’s turn your product into a growth engine and scale your business the product-led way. 🚀

CEO & Founder

We help you build a successful product-led business.

Start with our free ProductLed Masterclass 👉 productled.com

We asked 60,000 people: “who’s the best PLG operator you know?” 

and we researched who are (or were) behind the world’s best PLG companies (think early-days Slack, Notion, Miro, Etc.). 

Here are the results (2026 world rankings): 

#1 - Elena Verna
#2 - Giancarlo 'GC' Lionetti
#3 - Merci Victoria Grace
#4 - Melissa Tan
#5 - Wes Bush
#6 - Lauryn Motamedi
#7 - Laura Schaffer
#8 - Casey Winters
#9 - Jacob Bank
#10 - Kieran Flanagan
#11 - Leah Tharin
#12 - Ben Williams
#13 - Salvador Torres
#14 - Anton Osika
#15 - Carrie McMahon
#16 - Patrick Campbell
#17 - Esben Friis-Jensen
#18 - Ramli John
#19 - Bryan Ng
#20 - Kyle Parrish
#21 - Melissa Ross
#22 - Josh Sookman
#23 - Tommy Fink
#24 - Henrique Cruz
#25 - Casey Hill
#26 - Hila Qu 曲卉
#27 - David Barron
#28 - Mario Araujo
#29 - Kyle Poyar
#30 - Brian Balfour
#31 - Kate Syuma
#32 - Shaun Clowes
#33 - Meghan Gill
#34 - Michael T.
#35 - Shuo Wang
#36 - Eitan Helman
#37 - Raaz Herzberg
#38 - Shane Murphy-Reuter
#39 - Hiten Shah
#40 - Sam Crowell Richard
#41 - Jon Noronha
#42 - Etgar Bonar
#43 - Yaakov Carno
#44 - Aggelos Mouzakitis
#45 - Andrew Capland
#46 - Adam Fishman
#47 - Ravi Mehta
#48 - Jiaona "JZ" Zhang
#49 - Albert Cheng
#50 - Maor Shlomo
#51 - Francois Bondiguel
#52 - Sian Townsend
#53 - Brian de Haaff
#54 - Jules Walter
#55 - Amol Avasare
#56 - Arik Marmorstein
#57 - Dave Boyce
#58 - Sean Ellis
#59 - Rachel Hepworth
#60 - Jessica Gilmartin
#61 - Aaron Cort
#62 - Adam Robinson
#63 - Jason Fried
#64 - Alex Turnbull
#65 - Yasser Elsaid
#66 - Guillaume Moubeche
#67 - Nicolae Rusan
#68 - David Okuniev
#69 - Jan Oberhauser
#70 - Karim Atiyeh
#71 - Mickey Alon
#72 - David Barrett
#73 - Gary Brewer
#74 - James Hawkins
#75 - Nils Schneider
#76 - Daryna Kulya
#77 - Kurt Mackey
#78 - Koen Bok
#79 - Drew Banin
#80 - Patrick Thompson
#81 - Chris Bach
#82 - Melissa Kwan
#83 - John Foreman
#84 - Ryan Singer
#85 - Krithika Shankarraman
#86 - Pedro Magriço
#87 - Nick Chong
#88 - Harley Finkelstein
#89 - Hugh Molotsi
#90 - Ilan Rabinovitch
#91 - Jim Gochee
#92 - Neil Rahilly
#93 - Dylan Fox
#94 - Steffen Tjerrild
#95 - Ben Edelstein
#96 - Mauricio Idarraga
#97 - Carina Fonseca
#98 - Nick Rico
#99 - Fredo Tan
#100 - Rodrigo Fernandez
#101 - Justin Gallagher
#102 - Adam Jarczyn

Couldn’t tag everyone on this post. In the comments! 

Who do you know that’s not on this list, but should be? 

Let me know below 👇

Genspark AI reached $155M ARR in 10 months but I still got stuck getting to  value when I onboarded.

Here’s my full teardown of their PLG motion, and what I would change to get to $1B if I was in charge of self-serve growth 👇

DM me to get the full 10-minute Loom of me onboarding and giving feedback.

Oh, and Wen S. is coming on the pod. Stay tuned.

Reverse-engineering AI companies hitting $100M ARR ≤ 12 months

Genspark AI - PLG Teardown

Right now, founders have two choices.

One, they can pretend like they're living under a rock with their product, even if they have strong product-market fit right now. Or two, they can realize that product-market fit evolves faster than ever before with AI.

Let’s say you’re running a $45M business.

Growth is steady.
Churn is manageable.
Customers are happy.

On paper, everything looks solid.

But AI is compressing time.

If someone enters your category and delivers the same outcome in a fraction of the time, the equation changes fast.

The issue is → is your product still the fastest path to value?

That’s where the hard decision shows up.

Do you keep optimizing the current product?

Or do you build the version that makes your current product feel slow?

I’ll be direct: You should build the version that replaces you.

Design the AI-native experience that gets users to value dramatically faster.

Because if you don’t, someone else will.

And when they do, growth shifts quickly.

You’ll notice churn creeping up.
You’ll run experiments.
You’ll tweak onboarding.
You’ll adjust pricing.

But if the core workflow is slower, optimization won’t save you.

So the choice becomes simple.

Ultimately, these are the two choices you have to make:

1. Adapt or die: You must decide to disrupt yourself.
2. Be disrupted: Continue as you are and face the consequences.

That’s the decision.

I’m going to be blunt.

This was the best interview we’ve ever recorded.

Because Wen S. (COO + co-founder of Genspark AI) doesn’t talk in startup clichés.

He explains, in plain language, how a 50-person team hit $100M ARR in 9 months, then $155M ARR by month 10… with almost no marketing until after $100M.

Here are the ideas I can’t stop thinking about.

1) People want the job done. Period.

Wen said something that reframed the whole category for me:

People look for information because they need to finish something.

That’s why Genspark shifted the goal from “answer questions” to “finish work.”

2) Their “secret sauce” is boring, but effective: output quality.

Genspark put 99% of their energy into one thing: make the output so good you can ship it.

Work you can use right away.

That obsession is what made word-of-mouth do the heavy lifting early.

3) They refused to spend on marketing.

Most startups pour fuel on distribution early.

Genspark avoided ads on purpose.

Only after they crossed $100M ARR did they say: “Okay. This must be real. It’s time.”

4) They made a Super Bowl ad in 10 days (10x’d growth).

Yes, they ran a Super Bowl spot.

But the part that matters is they made it happen in ~10 days.

Script and creative generated using Genspark.
Shot fast.
Shipped fast.

Traffic jumped 10x overnight.

5) “Focus on one thing” is becoming bad advice.

In the old world, building multiple products meant multiplying teams and coordination.

In the AI-native world, you can reuse the same context across outputs.

People don’t want 12 tabs and 8 subscriptions. They want one place where context carries across everything.

6) How 50 people ship like 500.

Wen shared that 90%+ of their code is written by AI.

Instead of a classic org chart (frontend team, backend team, DevOps, design), they built a platform and kept ownership tight.

7) Why AI companies are hitting warp speed growth.

Adoption comes from two directions at once:

Bottom-up: individuals try it and get value immediately.
Top-down: leadership feels urgency and formalizes adoption.

If you aren't growing at warp speed, attend WARP Week from March 2nd to March 7th.

Save your spot: https://lnkd.in/gQfq4hYd

8) The real proof is revenue.

A consultant who used to spend weeks coordinating research and building decks now pays $25/month, gets the grunt work done in days, keeps more margin, and serves 5–6x more clients.

9) Their only advice to founders: obsess over the product.

If you have a great product, people will notice.

Stay paranoid. Keep shipping. Keep raising the quality bar.

That’s the game.

👉 Listen or watch the episode:
https://lnkd.in/geRJEhTk

“60 seconds to value? That’s impossible for my product.”

I hear this every time I talk about WARP.

Here’s what I tell them:

Cursor writes complex code in seconds.

Midjourney creates complex art in seconds.

Lovable builds entire applications in seconds.

These aren’t simple products. The difference is who does the work.

Old way: “You do the work and get X result.”

New way: “Tell me what you want done. Boom, it’s done.”

Even if you can’t hit 60 seconds today, what if you went from 3 days to 5 minutes?

That’s still a massive moat. And the window to capture it is now, while users are still actively trying new tools.

Wait until everyone has settled on their defaults and the cost of winning that same user goes up 10x.

That’s what we’re building in WARP Week.

Starts Monday. Link in comments.

I spoke with a $50M ARR founder yesterday.

He said something I haven’t stopped thinking about:

“We have product-market fit right now. But that’s PMF pre-AI.”

Let that sink in.

Most users aren’t deeply loyal.

They’re accepting the friction because there hasn’t been a dramatically better option.

If someone builds a tool that delivers the same outcome in 60 seconds instead of 30 minutes, switching becomes obvious.

And here’s the part founders don’t like to admit:

That company is being built right now.

Today.

Very likely by someone who understands your category inside out.

I’ve been studying what I call WARP speed companies.

The ones going from zero to $100M ARR in under 12 months.

They share a pattern.

Zero friction to value.

Users reach their first meaningful outcome in 60 seconds or less.

That’s the new bar for product-market fit in the AI era.

The question is no longer “Do people want this?”

It’s “How fast can they experience the outcome?”

Because speed to value is becoming the moat.

So the real question is simple.

If AI is going to compress your workflow, will you be the one compressing it?

Or will someone else?

10 months ago, Wen S. launched Genspark.

Today, it’s at $155M ARR with ~50 people.

For the first time, he shared exactly how they did it:

1. They didn’t build a better chatbot.

They rebuilt “work.”

Instead of answering questions, Genspark focuses on finishing tasks: decks, models, briefs, decisions.

2. They let individuals pull the product in.

Adoption started bottom-up.

Employees used it because it was immediately useful. Then leadership stepped in to formalize it.

3. They refused to spend on marketing until after $100M ARR.

No big ad budgets.

No artificial fuel.

If it grew, it had to be because the product earned it.

4. They made a Super Bowl ad in 10 days.

After product-market fit was obvious, they took a high-leverage swing.

Traffic jumped 10x overnight.

5. They built a 50-person team that ships like 500.

Over 90% of their code is AI-written.

Weekly releases.

70+ models orchestrated under the hood.

As Wen said, the entire team’s obsession is output quality.

Not features!

The formula is clear → Get users to real value fast. Make the output so good they can ship it. Keep raising the bar every week.

Individuals adopt.

Companies follow.

Growth compounds.

That’s what AI-era product-market fit looks like.

🎧 Listen to the full breakdown: https://lnkd.in/geRJEhTk

⚡️Freelance UX Designer voor SaaS oplossingen // Founder van The best UX

I went from unpredictable income to 100% inbound in under 3 months.

(All through LinkedIn)

In 2023 I started as a freelance UX designer for B2B SaaS companies

As with many freelancers, that looked like this:

1. Chasing new clients for 2 months
2. Handling fulfillment for 3 months
3. After fulfillment: crickets

And the whole cycle would repeat itself again.

Can’t tell you how much I hated the stress.

I was thinking about work 24/7 and became a big ol’ grumpy husband/dad, which frustrated me even more.

"What if I'd go back to my old job?"

Hell effin' no.

So I changed how I operated:

I became a PLG specialist vs. a B2B generalist.
I started solving 1 problem vs. many problems.
I started sharing content around #1 and #2.

In less than 3 months, I had:

- 4X’d my revenue
- Built a 100% inbound business
- Doubled my followers on LinkedIn

I worked with clients like ProductLed, Matterhorn, and Passguard.

Instead of chasing clients, I attracted them with my content.

Then inquiries changed:

“I really love your content, is this something we can do together?
"I want to get more clients from LinkedIn.”

Then I realized:

- Most SaaS experts have the skill
- They have the track record
- They have the results

But ideal customers have NO clue they exist.

And LinkedIn isn't working for them (yet).

That's when I created the B2B LinkedIn Flywheel:

1. 3 months of co-creating content
2. Access to my DM Conversion System
3. Visual assets that make your offer a no-brainer

I'm opening 3x spots (1-on-1) for independent SaaS experts who want to plug into my systems, co-create high-converting content, and get access to my full content library (including infographics and carousels).

Designed to attract buyers AND followers.

No course or theory-only. We create and win together.

If that sounds interesting, DM me “B2B” and I’ll send you a short doc with the details (no commitments at this stage).

🟡 Roelof Otten

Last week, 1 of my clients asked me why inbound has become harder. I told her:
 
Look for the signs.

Here’s what no one tells you about inbound:   

You don’t have to wait for it.   

When you post, 3 things happen:    

1. People like/comment   
2. People start following you   
3. People send you connection requests  

Now, if the RIGHT people do it, it means they are interested in what you offer.  

(if you share the right content ofc)  

And YOU have to open the door for them.  

Here’s what I look for: 
 
1. Profile views

If my ICP has viewed my profile, I send this:

Hey [name] 

Just saw your comment/post on [ICP industry topic], and that tells me you deal with [ICP pain]. 

I just helped [competitor] get [results]

Interested in a short chat?

It's direct, but it works, because it shows I've done my research.

2. New follower

If a peer or ICP starts following me, I send them this:

Hey [name], 

Appreciate the follow. Would love to know what topics around [expertise] interest you, so I can improve my content

The goal here is to uncover pain points, so I can follow up on that.

3. Connection request
   
If an ICP is sending me a connection request, I follow up with this:

Hey [name],

Thanks for connecting. Are you interested in [my premium offer], or are you just expanding your network?

I spark interest by presenting my offer, but also give them a way out if they just want to follow my content.

All the examples above are examples of warm outbound.
 
People already know you
 
They have shown interest
 
They just need a small nudge to talk.
 
ps if you're a >5k p/m consultant/coach, and you know you should get more clients from LinkedIn, DM me.

Roelof Otten 

Helping SaaS consultants get clients through LinkedIn

Every. Single. Time.

And every time I think:

Should I just post funny sh*t?

It looks like that's the only thing working on LinkedIn right now.

Post with loads of value gets 

500 impressions
20 likes.
10 comments

Posts with memes, gifs, or just single-line jokes get:

10k impressions
100s of likes
100s of comments

I’m not even mad about it.
 
Some of those posts are genuinely funny.
 
Or as we say in the Netherlands:
 
“They make me laugh the balls out of my pants.”
 
(Yes… I’m laughing while writing the translated version 😂)

But here's the interesting part.

Yesterday I read a post from a big LI creator. He said he follows a woman on LinkedIn whose posts make him laugh every single time.

But...

He had no idea what she actually does.

Her content is entertaining.

Her profile? Vague.

She stands out, but most people still don't know why they should contact her. 

Including me.

That's the trap with just posting entertaining stuff for reach and likes. 

It created reach, but it doesn't always build a sustainable business.

That's why I still believe in mixing things up 

My simple rule for LinkedIn content:

THINK
→ your opinions
 
KNOW
→ your expertise

DO
→ your real work
 
If people laugh but don't know what you do...

You're building an audience

not a business.

You post on LinkedIn. 0 leads. Sound familiar? Let’s fix that.

Your LinkedIn profile is not a resume.

It's a lead magnet ↓

During the first week of working 1:1 with a client, we start by building the foundation.

We work on their:

- ICP
- Offer
- Positioning

If we've got that covered, it's time to wrap it all up into a profile that works like a lead magnet.

Here's how we do that:

1. Tagline
Use this formula: "I help [ICP] [reduce pain / achieve goal] by [solution]"

No fluff. No fancy titles. Just clarity.

2. Banner
Your banner should support your tagline. Go a bit deeper. Show what you actually do.

Think of it as the second line of your landing page.

3. Profile Picture
80% face. Add a personal background color.

People recognize you faster when scrolling if they see your face + a distinct color.

4. CTA Button (Premium)
If you have it, use it. Link to your calendar or a resource.

5. About Section
This is where most people mess up.

They write about themselves. Their achievements. Their story.

Wrong.

Write about your ICP.

I use the PAIS framework (shoutout Justin Welsh):

→ Pain: What's their struggle?
→ Agitation: Why does it hurt?
→ Ideal situation: What do they actually want?
→ Solution: How do you get them there?

6. Services
Most people skip this. I use it for testimonials.

Add a short visual of the person + what they said. It builds trust fast.

7. Featured Section
This is your CTA section.

- Newsletter signup
- Book a call
- Free resource

Make it easy to take the next step.

8. Experience
If it's relevant to what you do now, detail it.

Show how your past builds up to your current offer. It adds credibility.

That's it.

Took me 3 rewrites to get my profile right. But once I did, people started reaching out.

ps. Want help turning your profile into a lead magnet? DM me "PROFILE" and I'll tell you about my 1:1 Inbound Accelerator.

"My ICP never interacts with my posts."

I hear this all the time.

Last week, a client told me this:

"I got a DM from my ICP. Saying he follows all my content and loves it. I've never seen him in the likes or comments though"

If you're long enough on LinkedIn, you know this works.

Peers → Interacts
ICPs → Lurk.

They do see your content, but 99% of the time, they don't interact.

They just:

- Take notes
- Save your post
- Share it with colleagues

A client even told me he printed out one of my infographics and hung it in the office. (No joke)

But the only time your ICP is going to react is when they are in buying mode. 

When that moment comes, they either:

→ Send you a DM
→ Call you

Nothing in between. 

I've closed multiple 25K+ deals without ever seeing my client show up in my posts.

So don't be discouraged.

Your ICP is watching.

---

Hi 👋🏻, I'm Roelof. I help B2B SaaS Consultants get clients through LinkedIn content. 

Follow or connect to see my content 5x p/w in your feed.

The last 2 weeks, I have been as inconsistent AF.

- I commented less
- I didn't reply to every comment
- I skipped my regular days of positioning
- I didn't start 5 conversations in the DMs daily
- I engaged less with my usual circle of creators
- I didn't share quick thoughts or small insights enough

As a result?

50,2% less impressions.
Fewer inbound leads

Who would have thought that if you want to do LinkedIn right, you actually need to put in the work?

TGIF. 

Let's do better next week 💪

Yesterday, a prospect told me that creating content was his biggest struggle. I told him to do this:

Write about what you:

Think
Know
Do

It's just that simple. 

Many of my 1:1 and DFY clients struggle with creating content that resonates with their ICP. 

And I get it, I've been there myself as well.

For me, it was not having a content strategy that was simple, flexible, and built around my own experience.

I tried using strategies from the big LinkedIn creators, but most of them just made it more confusing.

So I created my own.

It helped me increase

My followers by 250%
My impressions by 171%
My monthly inbound leads by 400%

Here's how it works:

1. Think
This is my thought-leadership layer. I share perspectives, opinions, and observations about my business, life, and the industry I work in.

2. Know
This is my credibility layer. I share frameworks, case studies, breakdowns, how-to posts, and lessons learned. I teach, explain, and show my expertise.

3. Do
This is my sales layer. I share how I helped clients, my offers, client transformations, and the ways people can collaborate with me.

I connect all of this to my main topic: 

Helping SaaS founders and consultants get clients through LinkedIn. 

And with a set of 10 questions per topic, I never run out of lived experience-based content.

I now teach this to my 1:1 clients, and also use it for my DFY clients.

The results speak for themselves

One client landed a $10k deal within 3 weeks
Another one landed 6 high-ticket leads in just 4 weeks.

This strategy made that possible. 

PS: Want similar results as my clients, without wasting months?
 
I'm just a DM away

"I have 0 inspiration for a new post"

Try this ↓

Most of my clients struggle with this 1 thing:

Creating new content every week

When working with clients, I like to use 3 types of posts

THINK
KNOW
DO

It gives them a flexible structure, but some of them still struggle with generating new content ideas.

I always tell them this:

“Look at your previous post. You already have a solid database with inspo”

Most of my clients think they can't reuse old posts

Wrong.

You've built a database with high-quality posts. Why only use those ones?

"Aren't people going to notice?"

Probably not. 

Less than 10% of your followers have seen that post, the other 90% is still interested in what you have to share.

So here's how I do it:

Step 1. 
Go to your post overview

Step 2
Check the posts of 2+ months and older.

Step 3
Pick a post that has performed best. Look at saves, reposts, and comments.

Step 4
Grab that post, and tweak  it based on recent DMs, calls, and insights.

"What about the visual?"

Good question. 

I try to find a different angle, but tbh, I don't overthink it, I just focus on that 10%.

That’s how I still create posts, even on days when I’m:

- In a hurry
- Out of inspiration
- Not feeling creative at all

That's it. 

ps. do you reuse your old posts?

10 honest answers about my 1:1 Inbound program

1) Do you write my posts?

No. I'm going to teach you how to do it yourself. In the end, it's more valuable to learn the skills, then hire someone to do it for you.

2) I suck at writing. Is this still for me?

Yes. Most of my clients aren't writers. In fact, some of them hate it. (I used to be one of them). I learn you how to write fast, simply, and make it fun. Promise 

3) Do we have 1:1 calls?

Yes. Every 2 weeks, we have a 60-minute call. We go over your content, comments, DMs, and all other questions you have.

4) How long does it take to see the first results?

Some will get leads after just 1 week. Others take up to 2 months. Ultimately, this depends on your niche, audience, and offer.

5) Do you also help me with visuals?

Yes. I'll review your copy and visuals every day. Sometimes I just give feedback, sometimes I help you actually design it. Plus, you get access to all my visuals for inspo

6) How long do we work together

The inbound OS is created around the idea that within 3 months, you've seen results, and learned the skills to do it yourself

7) What if I don't see results?

If we work together, it means I'm certain we can get results. With that, I guarantee you'll get at least your investment back. If not, I'll work with you until we do.

8) What is it like to work with you?

I have skin in the game, so I'm here to get results. I'm a fun guy to work with, but going to push you if needed. I'll do what is necessary to win together.

9) How much time do I need per day to make this work?

It depends. I try to get my clients to a level that they can run LI within 90 minutes (including post creation). But some may take longer. 

10) Do you also have resources I can use?

Yes. I have DM scripts, sales decks, visuals libraries, and post templates, all packed into Notion.

That's it. 

I'm opening up 3 spots in March for my 1-on-1 Inbound OS (2 already claimed). 

If you're ready to turn content into clients, send me a DM with "CLIENTS", and I'll share a short doc for you to review.

3 years ago, I landed my first SaaS client through LI. 

Not by posting 7x per week or commenting 10x a day.

Just by becoming visible in the right niche.

In 2023 I started freelancing while doing an interim gig at a large Dutch corporate

The money was great.

€12k+ each month

But after 3 months, the excitement of the money was gone.

It felt like a 9-5 job again.

So I decided to pivot.

I hired a business coach and focused B2B SaaS.

I even changed my business name to Saasmeister (people still complement me about that, haha)

LinkedIn could help me get my first clients, but I had no idea where to start.

"What should I post about?"

"What would people think of me?"

"What if I get 0 likes?"

My coach didn't care. 

Just start.

So I start with 3 things:

1. Updated my profiile
Instead of "UX designer," I positioned myself as:

UX designer for B2B SaaS (€500k - €1M ARR)

2. I started posting about SaaS
Nothing fancy. Just industry observations and frameworks that I knew.

3. I commented SaaS peers
My comments weren't great, but I tried sharing my POV and making sure I was visible at multiple places. 

Was my content good?

No

Was it consistent?

Hell no. 

But here's what happened.

2 months in, the CTO of a Dutch SaaS company reached out:

"Hey Roelof, can I call you about a UX project?"

My first inbound lead.

I asked him how he found me.

Because I've never seen him interact with my posts.

Most of my posts got maybe:

5 likes
3 comments
300 impressions

"I heard about you from someone who follows you on LinkedIn. After checking your profile, I knew you were the right guy"

That project changed everything.

I quit the interim role and went all in.

Since then, I've worked with 20+ companies all over the world. 

First, as a UX designer
then as a PLG consultant
And now, as a LinkedIn coach.

All because I made this 1 decision:

Pressing 'post' 

Even when it felt pointless.

Again and again.

My client posted 5x per week on LinkedIn. 

Still 0 leads. Here's why

When we started working together, he was frustrated.

He was playing LinkedIn on hard mode

- Posting 5x per week
- Commenting randomly
- Doing cold outreach just to get clients

"I'm at the point where I want to quit"

So we looked at everything:

His offer
His content
His comments
His profile

And tbh it made perfect sense why LI wasn't working:

- Educational content only
- His profile was just pretty, not clear
- Most of his comments were just "great post"

That's not how you win this.

So we rebuilt his complete strategy from scratch.

Here's what we changed:

1. We redefined his ICP.
In week one, we answered 20 simple questions.

Questions like: 

"What have your clients already tried that failed?"
"What problem do they really want solved?"
"What do they search for at 11pm"


The answers were our starting point. Was it perfect? F*ck no. That's not the point. We wanted to start testing. Fast


2. We fixed his positioning
We used a simple formula:

I help [ICP] get [ultimate goal] by [reducing the biggest pain]

Instead of talking to everyone, he made it clear that he was only helping a specific client with a specific problem, which only he could solve

3. We rebuild his profile
His profile was okay(ish), but it didn't answer the one question every lead has:

"Can you solve my problem?"

So we changed:

- headline → clear outcome
- banner → problem + solution
- about section → written for his ICP
- Featured section → Clear CTAs

4. We changed his content

Before, he shared tips, advice, and the occasional case study. Good content, but for the wrong audience.

We switched it to: 

• buyer problems
• Client successes
• Lessons he had learned

All based upon my THINK/KNOW/DO strategy

5. We fixed his commenting strategy

No more "great post", but comments that had to do one thing:

- Add value
- Share expertise
- Ask a smart question

That's how he became visible everywhere.

6. We started conversations

No cold outreach, but warm conversations with:

• Profile visitors
• Commenters
• People who engaged with his posts

The results?

The first leads came in after just 3 days.

4 weeks in:

8 inbound leads
200+ new followers
first $10k deal signed
775% increase in engagement

Most people think LI is about posting more. Trust me, it's not. 

It's about saying the right things to the right people.

If you want to start Q2 by attracting the right people.

Send me a DM with "Q2" and I'll show you how we can do this.

When I was 13 I was diagnosed with a panic disorder.
 
It was so bad I was homeschooled for 2 years because I just couldn’t leave the house.
 
After 2 years of therapy I was finally back on track.
 
But it would take another 6 years to fully overcome it.
 
I hated every minute of therapy but it taught me 1 thing:
 
Fear hurts you when you avoid it:
 
If you avoid crowds, you avoid personal contact.
 
If you avoid sports, you avoid getting healthier.
 
If you avoid quitting your job (but want to), you avoid a happy career.
 
Ask yourself this:
 
”What’s the worst thing that could happen?”
 
For me, that question changed everything.
 
2023: Scared to quit my job but I did it anyway. Result: 2X’ing my FTE’s income in 6 months.
 
2024: Scared to post on LinkedIn but I did it anyway. Result: building a fully inbound-led business.
 
2025: Scared to pivot my biz but I did it anyway. Result: close to €30k in revenue in month 1.
 
These were the scariest things I had ever done.
 
Yet they worked out better than I ever imagined.
 
Now I see the same thing working with clients:
 
They’re scared to post. They’re scared to go public with their business. They’re scared it’ll all fail.
 
But the opposite always happens:
 
One client made €15k in 2 weeks of working together. A client grew by 210%. Another client got 6 leads in 4 weeks.
 
They couldn’t be happier because they took the plunge.
 
You see, fear isn’t your enemy.
 
Because it shows you what to do next.

"I'll get back to you after the weekend" 

3 weeks later, still 0 response. 
 
ngl. Being ghosted sucks.
 
You both have spent time on the call:
 
- Understanding the problem
- Looking for the exact pain
- Agreed on the goal
 
And then?
 
Nothing.
 
A simple:
 
"Sorry for your time, but at the moment it's just not a good fit"
 
would be enough, but instead, you're just wondering what went wrong during the call.
 
The next 2 weeks after the call, I followed up with some simple text messages.
 
0 response.
 
"okay, this guy doesn't want my help,"
 
Still, it kept running through my mind.
 
Not that I needed this client.
 
I just found it so ff'ing anyoing that someone kept me hanging.
 
So I did just one more attempt.
 
a voice note.
 
5 minutes later:
 
"Hey Roelof! Sorry haven't been able to get back. Been really busy. I found a few low-hanging fruit so focusing on those atm."
 
Why did this work?
 
Because:
 
1. People see a voice note and can't resist listening to it.
2. It's personal and indicates you've put in some time.
3. Not replying to an actual person feels rude
 
tbh standing out on LinkedIn has never been easier.
 
Todays' feed is full of automations and AI-generated slop.

Heck, most people just assume you're using AI with your content, comments, and DMs.

So send a voice note. 
Send a personal video.

Show it's you, and that you've taken some time to actually work on the relationship.

That's how you stand out.

Share 1 thing that makes you want to vomit every time you see it on LinkedIn. I’ll go first:

People adding ‘expert’ to their tagline.

My God. 

If you need to claim that yourself, you’re just as much as an expert as I am. 

Stop.

Your turn:

I want to vomit every time I see this on LinkedIn:

"How many times do I need to post on LI?"

This question? Every. Single. Time.

Most people are obsessed with the number of times they need to post.

Gurus will tell you:

- 3 times p/w
- 5 times p/w
- 7 times p/w

Some will tell you to post 2 times per day, so you reach people from other time zones as well.

I hear you thinking.

F*ck, 2 times per day? How in the world can I keep up with that pace?"

I don't know. I'm certainly not going to. 

Especially cause I'm too busy cracking up at all those GIFs in the feed 

(different story)

But here's the spoiler, people.

repeat after me:

IT. DOESN'T. F*CKING. MATTER

again:

IT. DOESN'T. F*CKING MATTER.

There you go. 

Posting isn't the holy grail. 

If posting is the only thing you do on LI, you're probably missing out on a lot of leads anyway. 

I post 5x p/w. 

Monday → Friday

If I'm too busy, I only: 

- Send out connection request
- Comment on other posts
- Respond to DMs

Still active. Still visible.

Ps. 

I'm opening 3x spots for my DFY service. 

I have 2 options:

1. The Content Engine
I write 12 - 20 posts a month (incl. visuals), you do the rest

2. The Full Inbound Engine
I take over your complete account (posts, comments, DMs, the whole shabang)

If that sounds interesting, DM me “B2B” and I’ll send you a short doc with the details (no commitments at this stage).

4 months ago, I told everyone I would never do this.

And yet today I'm annouching:

I'm adding a DFY service to my offerstack.

Back in November, I made a huge pivot.

I stopped doing PLG consultancy and decided to help SaaS founders and consultants get clients through LinkedIn.

Over the last 4 months 1 coached 10 clients

Some of the results:

→ 1 client closed a $15k deal within the first 4 weeks
→ Another got 6 high-ticket leads in just 3 weeks
→ Another landed a $20k lead within just 2 weeks

But something interesting kept happening.

Almost every prospect asked the same thing:

"Can you just do it for me?"

I resisted that idea for months, because I thought I couldn't write in someone else's voice.

After rewriting 100s of posts in the last months, I realized that the assumption was stupid.

So I'm running a DFY pilot.

For the next 3 months, I'm opening 3 spots for my DFY (1 already taken)

2 ways we can work together:

1. Content Engine 
1 monthly 90-minute call.  From that call, I create 12–15 LinkedIn posts + visuals in your tone of voice.

2. Full Inbound Engine
Everything from the Content Engine.
 
Plus, I handle:
 
- Comments  
- Connection requests  
- DMs
 
Your only job is to show up to the calls I book for you.

If you're a SaaS founder or consultant who wants leads from LinkedIn, without spending time on it. 

This is for you.

Send me a DM with "ENGINE", and I'll share a short offer doc for you to review (no commitment at this stage)

"My comment got 30k impressions." My client. Happy AF. Showing her 30k comment during the call

Yesterday I was on a call with 1 of my clients.

She told me her reach was still pretty low, and it frustrated the hell out of her.

Then pulled up one of her comments.

"Holy sh*t, my comment got 30k impressions"

And just like that, she proved my point again:

If you want more reach, start commenting.

My client has been strategically commenting on:

5-10k peers → the rising stars. 
They want to grow, and will engage with your comments and your posts (generating more reach)

30k+ peers → the thought leaders. 
They might engage with your comments, but if not, your comment will still be seen by peers, and your ICP

ICPs → mostly invisible.
They don't post or comment that much, but if they do, you should engage. One of my clients got a $20K lead, just by engaging daily on their post.

With commenting, she placed her profile in front of 1000s of new peers and her ICP.

It's the reason why I focus a lot on strategic commenting during my 1:1 Inbound Accellerator.

Oh yeah, and to be clear:

This isn't commenting:

"Great post"
"Love your content."
"I agree with [summarizing the post]"

Treat your comments like a mini-post (just like my client did)

Share your own experiences, your struggles, your unique perspective, and the lessons you've learned.

That's how you add value.

That's how you stand out.

ps. If you think getting clients through LinkedIn shouldn't be as hard as it is right now.

Sent me a DM.

You don't know what to write about on LinkedIn, but every week you have:

5 calls with clients
3 DMs from prospect
10 support tickets from users

All filled with:

Questions
Objections
Misconceptions

You're just sitting on a sh*tload of content.

Use it.

How did you tackle that objection
How did you change their minds
What advice did you gave

Every post should contain a lesson, big or small.

That's your content.

taplio

The Battle

Wes Bush

🟡 Roelof Otten

Followers

Posts

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Performance ScoreWes Bush's LinkedIn Performance

Performance Score🟡 Roelof Otten's LinkedIn Performance

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taplio

The Battle

Wes Bush

🟡 Roelof Otten

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);}Wes Bush's LinkedIn Performance

Performance Score🟡 Roelof Otten's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreWes Bush's LinkedIn Performance