SMB Tech Innovators, powered by Gusto | Embedded Finance, Vertical SaaS, Payroll API

For far too long, banking has been an overly complicated process. Especially for SMBs who have to go through lengthy regulatory processes to set up a business bank account.

The growing integration of fintech makes banking significantly more accessible. Streamlining the process, and saving both time and money. 

Today, Michael Rangel, Founder & CEO at Novo, shares the journey of the growth of his company.  He talks about when it makes sense to integrate fintech into your offering and why Novo's banking solution is now more necessary than ever among an exploding market of new SMBs.

Highlights include:

- What it means to extend the capability of a traditional checking account.

- The biggest problem for SMBs.

- Novo's plan for improving inbound payments.

- Where does Novo fit among a world of vertical SaaS competitors?

- Advice for founders interested in building out a fintech ecosystem.

Michael Rangel - https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rangel/

Novo - https://www.linkedin.com/company/novo-hq/

Learn more about Novo at https://www.novo.co/

Any specific guest you'd like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions.

For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #Saas #HR #Payroll #SmallBusiness

On this episode, Brian Busch, Head of Marketing at Gusto, speaks with Gusto Co-Founders Josh Reeves, Edward Kim and Tomer London.

Eventually, every founder faces the challenge of navigating the unpredictable economy.

Gusto has managed to adapt to every economic curve for over a decade, while also staying focused on providing as much value as possible to customers instead of extracting value from them.

Today, Gusto's co-founders band together to discuss how they've dealt with adversity and tough economic environments.

Highlights include:

- Growing in the middle of a tough economic environment.

- The most exciting parts of fintech from a developer's perspective.

- What customer segment does Gusto see the most traction with so far?

- The percentage of revenue Gusto Embedded Payroll will be responsible for in the future.

- The right time to go to market, become a platform and offer additional services.

Gusto - https://www.linkedin.com/company/gustohq/

Josh Reeves - https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuareeves

Edward Kim - https://www.linkedin.com/in/edawerd

Tomer London - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomerlondon

Any specific guest you'd like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions.

For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #Saas #HR #Payroll #SmallBusiness

On this episode, Brian Busch, Head of Marketing at Gusto, speaks with Nathan Gill, Chief Product Officer at Epos Now and Jacob Olins, Vice President, Head of Financial Services, Strategic Partnerships & App Marketplace at Epos Now.

As consumer expectations change, businesses must undergo key transformations to keep up, most often in the form of more complete, personalized product offerings.

Today, Nathan and Jacob discuss why software companies are evolving into payment companies and providing single-source solutions for their customers.

Highlights include:

- How payment processing has changed over the last decade.

- Why embedded finance should be product led.

- Balancing core features vs. add-ons in your product offering.

- What makes a good embedded fintech partner?

- How to sequence your embedded fintech roadmap and prioritize products.

- A key lesson learned during the pandemic.

Nathan Gill - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathan-gill-15b24a/

Epos Now - https://www.linkedin.com/company/epos-now/

Jacob Olins - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobolins/

Learn more about Epos Now at https://www.eposnow.com/us/

Any specific guest you'd like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions.

For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #Saas #HR #Payroll #SmallBusiness

On this episode, Somrat Niyogi, General Manager & Head of Business Development at Gusto, speaks with Roland Ligtenberg, Co-Founder, SVP Growth & Innovation at Housecall Pro.

To keep up with customer demand, there’s been a major push toward technology adoption in the home service category, with many new opportunities on the horizon.

Today, Roland covers how to create evangelists for your brand and why both horizontal and vertical software solutions have a place in the market.

Highlights include:

- The technology gap in the home service industry.

- Tactics to grow your customer base early on (and things to avoid).

- Building successful strategies outside of your product offering.

- Advice for founders building a company in a vertical SaaS market.

- How to determine whether a market is too small or not.

Roland Ligtenberg - https://www.linkedin.com/in/rolandal/

Housecall Pro - https://www.linkedin.com/company/housecallpro/

Any specific guest you'd like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions.

For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #Saas #HR #Payroll #SmallBusiness

On this episode, Somrat Niyogi, General Manager and Head Of Business Development at Gusto, speaks with Hooman Radfar, Co-Founder and CEO at Collective.

Collective was founded to support the largest and fastest-growing class of entrepreneurs in the world: businesses-of-one.

Today, Hooman covers why entrepreneurs should focus on their passions instead of paperwork, why the SMB market is often overlooked and how entrepreneurs of today can take advantage of the economic downturn.

Highlights include:

- Why the solopreneur niche is getting a bigger spotlight.

- How Collective currently views the freelance market.

- How Collective created its pricing model.

- The balance between vertical and horizontal solutions.

- Advice for businesses that are serving small to midsize businesses.

- How to know when to stay the course versus expanding.

- Tips for founders about to raise money in the next year.

Hooman Radfar - https://www.linkedin.com/in/hooman/

Collective - https://www.linkedin.com/company/collective/

Learn more about Collective at https://www.collective.com/

Any specific guest you'd like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions.

For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #Saas #HR #Payroll #SmallBusiness

On this episode, Brian Busch, Head of Marketing at Gusto, speaks with Victoria Li, Co-Founder at Heard.

Heard integrates smart software with real humans to handle bookkeeping, taxes and payroll for therapists, whose demand is currently at an all-time high.

Today, Victoria covers what therapists can learn from the creator economy and how a visit with her first therapist inspired her work with Heard.

Highlights include:

- What is changing in mental health that you're probably not aware of?

- Why therapists need a vertical solution.

- How therapists use Heard on a daily basis to run their practices.

- What makes a good API?

- Figuring out which fintech products to build first.

- How to highlight fintech product features to customers.

- Specific embedded finance features that Heard is considering.

Victoria Li - https://www.linkedin.com/in/victoli/

Heard - https://www.linkedin.com/company/heardaccounting/

Learn more about Heard at https://www.joinheard.com/

Any specific guest you'd like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions. For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #Saas #HR #Payroll #SmallBusiness

On this episode, Somrat Niyogi, General Manager & Head Of Business Development at Gusto, speaks with Sima Gandhi, Co-Founder and CEO at Creative Juice.

There was a time not long ago when digital content creation was only considered a hobby.

Now, due to easy internet access, growing popularity and widespread globalization, many people have considered content creation as a full-fledged career option, which opens up a massive demand for financial literacy in this niche.

Today, Sima discusses what exactly defines a creator, why they should treat themselves like a business, and how Creative Juice was built with the intention of handling every financial inquiry a creator could have.

Highlights include:

- Sima’s diverse background and joining Plaid early on.

- What is a creator?

- Could Creative Juice have existed a decade ago?

- How traditional banks view the market of creators.

- The risk for Creative Juice and creators.

- Advice for founders in the creative economy.

- How to determine the next best project to take on with so many options.

Sima Gandhi - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sima-gandhi/

Learn more about Creative Juice at https://www.getjuice.com/

Any specific guest you’d like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions.

For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #Saas #HR #Payroll #SmallBusiness

On this episode, Somrat Niyogi, General Manager & Head of Business Development at Gusto, speaks with Herman Man, Chief Product Officer at Bluevine.

For too long, small businesses have struggled to access traditional banking services and, as a result, have been restricted in their opportunities to truly scale.

By providing streamlined end-to-end banking solutions to simplify business payments for small businesses, Bluevine has been on a mission to fill that demand.

Today, Herman discusses why small businesses are so underserved, what they should consider before they add banking solutions to their offerings, and what else they can offer to stay competitive in the markets they serve.

Highlights include:

- What exactly is a chief product officer?

- Why companies decide to take on new brand identities.

- Unique features Bluevine offers customers that banks don’t.

- What are the criteria for a business to be considered a small business?

- Why it’s easier to offer banking products today.

- Herman’s take on the emerging embedded lending market.

- Adopting an embedded lending solution vs creating your own.

- Using customer segmentation to drive roadmap priorities.

- Advice to companies considering offering banking solutions.

Herman Man - https://www.linkedin.com/in/hermanjman/

Learn more about Bluevine at https://www.bluevine.com/

Any specific guest you’d like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions.

For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #SmallBusiness

On this episode, Somrat Niyogi, General Manager & Head Of Business Development at Gusto, speaks with Obi Omile Jr, CEO & Co-Founder at theCut.

After spending 2 months without getting a haircut...

Obi discovered that finding a great barber wasn’t as simple as it needed to be. At the time, the best option was a Google search.

After 6 and a half years of growing theCut’s brand, Obi has booked over 50 million appointments, with 50,000 new people discovering a barber on the platform every month.

Today, Obi covers why he targets individual barbers instead of entire barbershops, the hidden opportunities within the barbershop industry, and why his brand has barely scratched the surface of the market that’s available out there.

Highlights include:

- How theCut was bootstrapped before it grew into 4.5 million users.

- The unique aspects of theCut’s strategy in the industry.

- Why is barbering currently one of the fastest growing industries out there.

- Managing barber shop needs vs individual barber needs.

- Determining what products should be free and what should be paid.

- Adopting digital payments in a primarily cash-based industry.

- How to prioritize your product strategy and roadmap.

Learn more about theCut at https://www.thecut.co/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #SmallBusiness

Any specific guest you’d like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions.

For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

On this episode, Somrat Niyogi, General Manager & Head Of Business Development at Gusto, speaks with David Arnold, Chief Strategy Officer at Buildertrend.

The residential construction industry is one of the few industries that hasn’t adapted to heavy technology use yet, which presents a lot of opportunities ...

And that’s where David and Buildertrend come in.

David has an immense amount of experience in building SaaS businesses across multiple industries and sees a huge opportunity for an industry that only needs to change a few habits to become a software-enabled operation.

Today, David outlines the opportunities software has in the construction niche, why so many are available right now, and how customers and businesses alike will win from the tech boom.

Highlights include:

- The role of a chief strategy officer.

- Buildertrend’s bootstrapped beginnings.

- How taking on institutional money helped scale Buildertrend.

- How to decide whether to build, partner with or buy a company.

- The type of company that Buildertrend is interested in partnering with.

- A unique approach to marketplace investments.

- Why has the construction industry been so active in the last few years?

- How companies should approach new product investments.

- Advice for bootstrap founders in their early days.

Learn more about Buildertrend at https://buildertrend.com/

Any specific guest you’d like to hear on the show? Leave your suggestions at https://www.smbtechinnovators.com/

Thanks for listening to The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, hit the subscribe button and never miss another insightful conversation. And be sure to leave a review to help get the word out about the show.

This episode of The SMB Tech Innovators Podcast is brought to you by Gusto. Gusto has spent a decade building and testing its payroll, tax filing, and compliance infrastructure, which is available as a robust set of APIs, so you can develop custom-tailored payroll solutions.

For more information, go to https://gusto.com/

#SMB #Fintech #Innovation #SmallBusiness