Your A lot Larger Competitors Isn’t At all times Out to Get You. It Usually Simply Doesn’t Care.

So competitors is so visceral in most of SaaS, and particularly in start-ups, the place each lead is usually valuable.  Particularly each larger one.

However one factor I discover a whole lot of start-ups get unsuitable is how their a lot larger competitiors take into consideration them.

The opposite day I used to be catching up with a founding father of a SaaS chief at $2B+ ARR and talked in regards to the area basically, and talked about an adjoining competitor at $80m ARR, rising rapidly. Not a direct competitor, however an adjoining one.

This A+ founder had by no means heard of the competitor at $80m ARR.  I’m certain he would have it was a direct competitor vs. an adjoining one, however it’s in the identical general area.

However the vendor at $80m? They continually speak in regards to the $2B+ ARR competitor.

Equally, after I was a VP at Fortune 500 Tech Firm, the checklist of high opponents in lots of classes was typically one which seemed rather more at at this time than the longer term.  It is smart.  VPs should hit the plan for this 12 months, not the one for five+ years on the market.  So the opponents we checked out after I was in a Massive Tech Co have been really a materially completely different group than after I was working my very own SaaS start-up.

A tiny instance is SaaStr itself.  After we moved SaaStr Annual post-2020 to September for 3 years (SaaStr Annual 2025 is Might 13-15), it ended up conflicting with Dreamforce and we needed to transfer it.  The battle created large points for distributors, for venues, and extra.  A giant deal to us.  To Salesforce?  They kind of knew, however didn’t care.  It didn’t matter to them.

Look this isn’t essentially the most profound put up on the planet, however an necessary one.

No matter you consider the competitors — simply notice they doubtless see the world in a different way.  Particularly if they’re both smaller or bigger than you’re.

All of us have completely different realities.   Particularly with regards to competitors.

(Picture from right here)