There are few moments in an industry's history where a trend or emerging technology introduces a step function that unlocks an entirely new level of growth. With the rise of D2C and other web based experiences, game publishers are experiencing a rare opportunity to increase profits and establish better long term relationships with players. But how can an industry often reliant on gatekeepers and walled-garden ecosystems build out innovative web teams that quickly and effectively take advantage of this historic opportunity?
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview Caleb Brown of X-Team, a provider of technology talent as a service for top game publishers, about his thoughts around the drivers behind the rise of web experiences in gaming, the key challenges of building an innovative web team from scratch, and how top game publishers & studios are approaching building out their own innovative web teams.
If you're wondering how you'll develop your own web strategy to take advantage of this historic opportunity, don't miss this episode of Growth Stage. Watch or listen now!
00:00 Introduction to the Rise of Web in Gaming
07:32 Understanding X-Team and Its Role
14:18 The Shift Towards Direct-to-Consumer Models
15:51 Building Innovative Web Teams
27:43 The Product vs. Marketing Dynamic
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for digital products, FastSpring delivers an all-in-one solution for payments, subscriptions, and automated tax compliance — enabling digital businesses to expand globally with reduced complexity and lower costs.
If you've recently launched a web store to take advantage of new steering rules on iOS in the US or even if you're an old pro at web store monetization, you may be wondering what is the best way to price and package my in-game items or subscriptions on my web store vs. what I offer in-game through app stores.
In this episode of Growth Stage we interview Chip Thurston, Head of Gaming at FastSpring and former monetization leader at Scopely and SciPlay, about his thoughts around how pricing and packaging strategies differ in-game vs. on a web store, what are the top considerations, the role of creators in driving web store value, and how to strike the right balance in rewarding players and increasing your profits.
If you're scratching your head wondering what the best pricing and packaging strategies are for your game and web store, don't miss this episode of Growth Stage. Watch or listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
00:00 Introduction to Pricing and Packaging Strategies
05:12 Understanding Game Economy and Player Empathy
09:54 Direct-to-Consumer: Web Store vs. App Store
15:09 Balancing Player Choices and Monetization
20:13 The Role of Creators in Driving Web Store Traffic
25:07 Attribution and Incremental Purchases
30:04 Key Takeaways for Web Store Success
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for digital products, FastSpring delivers an all-in-one solution for payments, subscriptions, and automated tax compliance — enabling digital businesses to expand globally with reduced complexity and lower costs.
Conversation with Kickbox Director of Operations Hank Hoffmeier about the science of email marketing.
Email marketing is often hailed as the highest-ROI channel — especially for SaaS and digital product companies. But what happens when your emails don’t even make it to the inbox?
In this episode of Growth Stage, we speak with Hank Hoffmeier, email deliverability evangelist at Kickbox, about how authentication, verification, and deliverability impact your bottom line. Listen to learn:
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview payments industry legend and VP of Payments at FastSpring, Jeremy Waxman about his thoughts on what the most common payment stack attacks are, why bad actors choose those particular types of attacks, and what you can do to make your payment stack more secure regardless of who your payment provider is.
With 25+ years of experience spanning Comcast, Fiserv, and Digital River, Jeremy has seen it all — from brazen carding attacks to operationally overwhelming waves of chargebacks. In this discussion, he breaks down how fraudsters operate, the costly mistakes companies make, and what you can do to stay ahead.
Listen for the full insights into:
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for digital products, FastSpring delivers an all-in-one solution for payments, subscriptions, and automated tax compliance — enabling digital businesses to expand globally with reduced complexity and lower costs.
Building a lasting business isn’t easy.
Knowing what really makes a company succeed long term can be even harder.
That’s why it can be helpful to learn from companies that have stood the test of time.
In this episode of Growth Stage, we celebrate FastSpring’s 20th anniversary with insights from its first CEO, Dan Engel, and current CEO, David Nachman. They share:
Whether you’re planning to exit in two years or fifty, take a moment to step back and think about the long term future of your business. Watch or listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Equalize Digital CEO Amber Hinds about making the web more accessible for people with disabilities.
Amber Hinds is the founder and CEO of Equalize Digital, a mission-driven agency focused on digital accessibility. As the creator of the Accessibility Checker plugin for WordPress and lead organizer of the WordPress Accessibility Meetup, Amber is at the forefront of helping companies make their websites and SaaS products usable for everyone — including people who are blind, deaf, or have mobility or cognitive impairments.
In this episode, Amber shares the real-world implications of accessibility, how it intersects with SEO and compliance, and what companies can do right now to improve usability for all.
To learn more about how accessibility impacts business growth, listen for the full insights into:
To hear all this and more about making the web work for everyone, listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
00:00 Introduction to Accessibility and Equalize Digital
03:05 Understanding Website Accessibility
05:58 The Importance of Accessibility
08:56 Legal Implications of Accessibility
11:45 Barriers to Implementing Accessibility
14:55 Human Testing vs. Machine Testing
17:48 User Testing and Accessibility Feedback
24:57 Effective User Testing for Accessibility
28:32 The Importance of Accessibility in Software Development
32:29 Examples of Accessibility Best Practices
38:42 Getting Started With Accessibility Improvements
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with brandiD’s Founder and CEO Rachel Gogos about how SaaS leaders can build personal brands that drive connection, credibility, and growth.
Your personal brand is more than a polished LinkedIn profile — it’s how you stand out, connect with customers, and build long-term credibility as a founder or executive. But how do you create an authentic personal brand that actually works?
In this episode of Growth Stage, we talk with Rachel Gogos — Founder and CEO of brandiD — about her SOULiD framework and how digital business leaders can craft a brand that reflects who they truly are, while supporting their business goals.
Rachel shares:
If you're a founder, executive, or thought leader looking to stand out and connect with the right audience — without turning into a personal branding cliché — this episode is for you. Listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Nexus CEO Justin Sacks introducing the FastSpring and Nexus web shop integration.
If you're looking for one of the fastest ways to launch your D2C channel, you may be interested in hearing more about the incredibly easy-to-implement solution offered through a partnership with D2C payment platform FastSpring and creator program in a box provider Nexus.
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview CEO of Nexus Justin Sacks about his thoughts on:
If you're sitting on your hands worried that launching D2C has to be a massively disruptive project, you may be surprised what is possible for you and your players. Listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with oeksound CEO Hannes Andersson about taking an audio plugins business global.
When the first oeksound plugin, Soothe, was created in 2016, creator Olli Keskinen and his friend Hannes Andersson were studying music technology to become recording engineers. And as Hannes puts it, they weren’t in the plugin industry or experienced with software ecommerce when Olli’s plugin quickly became popular, thanks to a simple post on a popular online audio forum.
Today, oeksound is a global software company in the audio and video space, with their plugins used by some hugely recognizable names in the music industry.
To learn more about how they did it, listen for the full insights into:
To hear all this and more about oeksound’s experience with taking their plugin business global, listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Here’s Waldo Recruiting’s Founder and CEO Lizzie Mintus about how to compete with large brands to recruit the best talent.
If you're running a smaller digital business, you may find it challenging to hire great talent. Larger technology companies can pay more, offer more benefits, and provide a more marketable brand on a candidate's resume. So how are smaller companies supposed to compete with large brands for the best talent?
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview Lizzie Mintus — Founder and CEO of Here's Waldo Recruiting and host of The Here’s Waldo Podcast — about her thoughts on:
If you're facing challenges winning the best candidates for your roles, or if you have a small number of roles and every hire really matters, then don't miss this episode of Growth Stage. Listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Flippa CEO Blake Hutchison about Flippa and selling a SaaS or digital product business.
If you own a SaaS or other digital product business — such as a Slack plugin, Chrome extension, online publishing business, mobile app, or even a blog — and you’re looking to exit, you may have a lot of questions about how best to go about it.
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview Flippa CEO Blake Hutchison about how Flippa works, as well as insights on what you should know if you're a digital business owner looking to sell your business.
Listen for the full insights into:
If it’s time to sell your SaaS, app, or other digital product business, listen to this episode of Growth Stage now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Nexus CEO Justin Sacks about earning 50% or more of your game’s revenue via D2C sales.
With changes to legislation in the EU and lawsuits in the U.S., the future of monetizing your game direct to consumer looks brighter than ever. That said, you might be wondering what strategies work within the confines of today's rules and if it's even possible to earn 50% or more of your game's revenue through D2C.
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview gaming D2C and creator marketing expert Justin Sacks of Nexus about his thoughts on:
If you're wondering how to exponentially grow your profits and deliver a better experience for your players, listen to this episode of Growth Stage now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with FastSpring Product Manager Sudipto Manna about using targeted payment methods to achieve global growth.
As you work to expand your SaaS, software, mobile games, or other digital product business worldwide, having the right payment methods available to global customers is key to ensuring they all feel comfortable purchasing. But just knowing which payment methods you need to offer in each region can get really complicated really quickly, let alone how to implement them.
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview Sudipto Manna of FastSpring about:
If you want to offer more payment methods around the world, don’t miss this episode of Growth Stage. Listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with FastSpring Senior Account Executive Jay Jia about expanding a digital goods company in Asia.
If your business is based in the APAC region and you’re focused on expanding into new areas, there are a lot of common challenges to face and questions to ask about the best way to do that.
On this episode of Growth Stage, we interview Jay Jia, FastSpring Senior Account Executive, about his insights into:
If you’re not sure how to kickstart growth for your digital products or software business in Asia, listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Sr. Product Marketing Manager Braden Steel of FastSpring.
Is your product marketing team struggling to coordinate marketing resources to support an endless stream of product launches, with vague release dates and a chorus of product managers demanding tons of marketing attention for each release? What if there were a better way?
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview Braden Steel, Sr. Product Marketing Manager at FastSpring, to discuss his thoughts on what is wrong with traditional product marketing and how FastSpring is using quarterly thematic product launches to:
If you’re running yourself ragged with over-active product roadmaps, endless “t-shirt” sizing for agile project estimations, slipping product release dates, or being worried about letting your product managers down, it may be time to consider thematic product releases. Learn how in this episode of Growth Stage. Listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Gamesight Founder and CEO Adam Lieb about developing a winning KPI strategy for video game marketing.
With so many marketing channels to manage to promote your game, combined with the complexity of monetizing your games on multiple platforms, in PC marketplaces, or even D2C via your own webshop, your head might be spinning keeping up with where to focus your efforts.
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview Adam Lieb of Gamesight about his thoughts on:
If you're wondering how to focus your team where it matters the most, don't miss this episode of Growth Stage. Listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Sahil Patel, CEO of Spiralyze, about B2B CRO and A/B testing.
The most common examples of successful CRO tactics provided at many conferences tend to focus on B2C ecommerce, but what are the proven winning tactics you can use in your B2B CRO strategy?
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview Sahil Patel of Spiralyze about his thoughts on:
If you're scratching your head wondering what you'll test next with your B2B CRO strategy, don't miss this episode. Listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Adam Riemer, President of Adam Riemer Marketing, about advanced affiliate marketing and SEO.
Affiliate marketing can be a great growth lever to scale your digital product business, but how can you drive meaningful growth with the right affiliates without losing out to fraud or shady attribution schemes?
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview affiliate marketing veteran and attribution animal Adam Riemer of Adam Riemer Marketing about his thoughts on:
If you've set up an affiliate program and don't know what to do next, or you're looking for tips on how to tame your existing affiliate program, don't miss this episode of Growth Stage. Listen now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Podia Senior Growth Marketer Marc Thomas about how to de-risk trying new, more innovative marketing strategies.
Traditional marketing playbooks are falling short in the SaaS world, but while many marketers privately acknowledge the ineffectiveness of these playbooks, they are still hesitant to discuss it publicly. Far too often, too much time is spent implementing copy-and-paste versions of existing marketing playbooks, and not enough time is spent on creating new playbooks that are unique to your company and fueled by research that makes you stand out.
Plus, while many marketing leaders have the career stability and influencer clout to try risky things without risking their jobs, the people at the bottom who are actually doing the work don’t have that advantage — and they’re the ones who are often held responsible for metrics and success numbers. So how do marketers break out of the cycle of always sticking to the safest playbooks when if they aren’t working as well as they used to?
In this episode of Growth Stage, Fred Linfjärd interviews Podia Senior Growth Marketer Marc Thomas about:
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
Conversation with Fred Linfjärd, Director of Growth at Planday, about switching from a one-time fees model to a subscription billing model.
If you're selling your software, plugin, add-on, or other digital product for a one-time fee, you’re likely thinking about switching to a recurring subscription model. While the financial reasons are strong to switch to subscriptions, your path to roll out this massive change to your business is filled with peril. Will your existing users revolt to the change and switch to a new product? Will your subscriptions renew at a high enough rate to counteract a reduction in one-time sales? How do you even roll this out?
In this episode of Growth Stage, we interview Fred Linfjärd of Planday about his experiences switching from a one-time billing model to subscriptions. Fred shares his thoughts on:
As a bonus, our host David Vogelpohl also has experience moving massively popular digital products from one-time fees to subscriptions, so this interview is full of hard-learned insights you can use to find success in your own rollout of subscriptions.
Whether you're considering switching to subscriptions or are in the middle of switching, don't miss this chance to learn insider tips on how to make this transition successful for your business. Listen or watch now!
Transcript available on the FastSpring blog.
This podcast is brought to you by FastSpring. As the leading merchant of record payment platform for SaaS and software, FastSpring lets you reduce your payments, subscriptions, entitlements, fulfillment, and tax management stack down to one. We manage all the hard parts of transacting globally, allowing you to focus on moving your business farther, faster.
