Matt Lerner

Startup growth strategist, Ex PayPal, 500 Startups VC, Founder @ SYSTM

I founded SYSTM to help startups find their big growth levers - the small actions that can have the biggest impact on their growth. We’ve worked with over 200 companies and earned a 96% founder “likely to recommend” score.

Before founding SYSTM, I was the London-based Partner of 500 Startups, an early-stage VC fund, where I built and ran an accelerator seed-stage growth program for our portfolio companies.

Prior to joining 500 Startups, I worked for many years building and managing growth teams for three  startups (two disasters, one exit), and later at PayPal. 

I approach my work first as a general manager and then as a marketer, product manager or both, as needed. My lens is quantitative, but rooted in deep customer insights and testing, and based on fast iteration. I’m always learning, and I really enjoy teaching and helping those around me to learn and improve. Skip to the references below, you'll see that I'm regarded as a thought leader in many areas of business, and an inspiring people manager who reliably delivers ahead of expectations.

Founder & CEO

At SYSTM (formerly Startup Core Strengths), our mission is to help early-stage startups find their big growth levers (and pull them). We've noticed that great startups don't waste time on small stuff, so we  focus everyone on the most impactful work.

Magnus Carlsen has a coach.

So does Serena Williams.

And Lewis Hamilton.

Taylor Swift, Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods – all had coaches.

Asking for coaching doesn’t signal weakness.

It signals a hunger.

Founder @ SYSTM, Ex PayPal, 500 Startups VC

What your founder secretly wants from you.
I climbed from doing marketing scut work to running an $800 million business when I figured out one thing…

Founders desperately want to promote you.

They'd love nothing more than for you to run part of their business, if they believed you could do it well.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰

Early in my career, I started working for a guy we’ll call Alex. He was 28 years old, and running the largest division of a publicly traded tech company. (I was 27) 

I kept asking myself, "Why is he the VP, and I'm just a marketer?" I studied his every move.

In C-level meetings, he spoke like he owned the business. He talked about the work I was doing, but took it 10% further – connecting it to shareholder outcomes – revenue and growth.

Nothing esoteric. He just drew a line from my work to revenue, growth and profit.

So I did some digging to find out where this wunderkind got his MBA.

Turns out he didn't have one. Just a Bachelor of Arts. In theater. 

That's when it clicked: Alex wasn't running a business because of some credential, he was running a business because he played the part – he thought and spoke like a business owner.

𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸, 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲
All I did was shift to an owner’s perspective. For example:

• Instead of "We increased engagement by 20%," I'd say: "We're retaining 20% more customers in month 2 – if it holds, that's $2M ARR over 24 months."

• Instead of test results, I'd share insights: "We learned that customers aren't price sensitive if they understand our value."

• Instead of optimizing channels, I'd think in systems: "Meta users have better retention than affiliates, so we’ll shift affiliate spend to Meta."

That’s all.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁
It worked. Within six months, I was getting invited to strategy meetings. Finance people started asking for my input, and defending my work when I wasn't in the room. 

Promotions came. Eventually I worked my way up to that GM role – running a nine-figure business at PayPal.

𝗡𝗼𝘄, 𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗘𝗢
Imagine your CEO's point of view – Busy and overwhelmed. They don't want to micromanage you! They’d love to hand you more responsibility. They pay recruiters massive fees to find people who think like owners.

You could be that person.

Just do that last 10%: Think like an owner. Talk like an owner. Become an owner.

Helpful? Re-post to pay it forward to your network.

This is weird... 

Products make up only 16% of GDP, but 47% of stock market earnings.

And services are 72% of GDP but only 53% of stock market earnings.

Why is that?

I have a theory... 

Product companies only work at scale – logistics, sourcing, volume discounts, mass production, distribution deals, expensive to develop new products.

They're just not viable below a certain size. That's why most D2C startups end up getting acquired by big companies. When they do IPO, it usually fails (e.g. GoPro, FitBit, Peloton, Sonos)

But services businesses can be viable, even profitable, at micro-scale: Law firms, ad agencies, nail salons, medical practices, consultants and accountants – don't need money from public markets.

But services don't IPO, because they can't scale revenue independent of headcount. A law firm rents out lawyers, a radiology practice rents out radiologists.

Until now.

AI breaks the fixed relationship between revenue and headcount in services businesses – profits can scale far ahead of salaries and other fixed costs.

That's why VC and Private equity are snapping up small local medical practices. And boutique law firms, agencies, tax preparers... will all get rolled up, or rolled over, soon.

There's a lot at stake – 72% of GDP!

Are you working in a services firm? Because AI adoption is a matter of life and death.

They didn't forget; they objected.

Instead of "activation" or "abandonment" emails, try this...

People don't abandon checkouts and free trials because they 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵, they abandon because they 𝘰𝘣𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵. 

Instead of sending “reminders,” figure out 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘣𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘥 and address the 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘰𝘣𝘫𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 – Not just in your emails, but at the root cause, before they abandon.

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗯𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀
If you ask ChatGPT, it'll tell you to offer free shipping and enable guest checkout – but you know it’s not that simple. Fixing “process friction” will only get you so far – most abandonment is caused by 𝘱𝘴𝘺𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, like an unanswered question or a nagging doubt.

𝟲 𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗣𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 (𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝘅 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺)

1. 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 – Is it compatible with…? Does it do X thing? 
   𝗙𝗶𝘅: Live chat & detailed Q&A
   
2. 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 [𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿’𝘀 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹]?  
   𝗙𝗶𝘅: Show the main use cases, testimonials with specific results
   
3. 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗜 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝘁? Or forget it but keep getting billed? 
   𝗙𝗶𝘅: Generous cancellation / return policies
   
4. 𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 – What will my boss / team / spouse think?  
   𝗙𝗶𝘅: Give them a story to justify the purchase to themselves (e.g. “it's cheaper in the long-run” or “you only live once.”)
   
5. 𝗜𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗺𝗲? (e.g. Coders, non-native speakers, gen Z women?)
   𝗙𝗶𝘅: Say & show who it’s for
   
6. 𝗢𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻 – They are switching from their last product for a reason, so they need to believe your product won't have that flaw.
   𝗙𝗶𝘅: Position against your competitor’s flaw (e.g. “99.999% availability,” or “24/7 live support.”)

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝗽𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻:

Don't speculate. Ask your 𝘴𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘴: 
1. 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 – “What are the main objections you hear from prospects?”
2. 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 – “What made you almost not buy?”

Prospects who abandoned probably had 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘴 as the ones who bought.

𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗲
Many people will say they’ve “been too busy.” That’s bullsh*t. Reality: either they don’t understand how it helps, your product or site confused them, or they don’t actually need it.

Helpful? Re-post to help others in your network.

Visable

- Generated over 7 figures in revenue through strategic optimization of Google Ads and Meta Ads campaigns, leveraging advanced audience targeting and analytics.
- Reduced Cost Per Click (CPC) by 25% and improved Cost Per Lead (CPL) by 70%, driving higher ROI across paid media channels.
- Enhanced conversion rates by 30% through A/B testing and optimization of landing pages, ensuring alignment with user intent and ad copy.
- Developed and executed data-driven strategies by analyzing performance metrics, identifying trends, and applying insights to maximize campaign profitability.
- Collaborated cross-functionally with design and development teams to implement changes that directly boosted campaign revenue and customer acquisition.

Senior Manager, Performance Marketing

AutoScout24

- Developed and executed a comprehensive European acquisition optimization strategy resulting in a 25% decrease in CPC; boosted ROI significantly and grew ads impression share by an impressive 40%.
- Engaged with cross-functional teams in the creation and deployment of tailored marketing strategies throughout the sales funnel, leading to a 10% rise in lead conversion rates and a 9% growth in YTD revenue.
- Boosted retargeting campaign conversions by 35% by collaborating on landing page enhancements, resulting in a 15% increase in overall user engagement, as well.
- Reduced cost per lead acquisition by 20% by implementing advanced audience targeting strategies, leading to a 15% increase in marketing ROI.

Performance Marketing Consultant

Autobahn Security

- Spearheaded global acquisition strategy that resulted in 30% decrease in CAC & CPL and 50% boost in lead generation within 1 Q
- Sat up over 90 SEO and SEA optimised paged for better conversion and retargeting
- Led a comprehensive analysis of marketing funnels, identifying critical bottlenecks while crafting and executing growth loops strategies; delivered an impressive 20% surge in post-trial conversion rate within just 3 months.
- Effectively managed marketing budgets and reported on campaign performance that resulted in a 100% alignment with company OKRs while leading and mentoring a team of marketers to drive results and team success

Performance Marketing Lead

Babbel

- Ran data-driven campaigns influencing over 11 deals worth 6 figures.
- Identified areas for improvement by analysing marketing funnels and implementing growth loops to enhance post-trial conversion by 5%
- Established data driven attribution modelling that helped in effective marketing budget spending and decreasing budget waste.
- Enhanced over all CRM & User Engagement metrics by 20%

Senior Manager Marketing Operations

adam.ai

- Directed marketing initiatives resulting in 40% reduction in CAC, 30% increase in lead generation, and achieving seven figures in ARR.
- Collaborated with Product Management, Sales, and Customer Success to optimise marketing messaging and onboarding that led to 30% increase conversion.
- Assembled a team of 4 marketers to achieve individual and team success that contributed to weekly updates to content, paid marketing & A/B testing

Growth Marketing Lead

Instabug

- Constructed paid acquisition campaigns across paid channels and surged ads impression share by 30%
- Decreased CPC by 15% for SEA & Paid Social
- Enhanced conversion rate by 10% through building and optimising landing pages & applying growth and funnel loop approaches.
- Implemented Home page & Landing Page optimisation strategies that improved website conversion rate by 25%.

Growth Marketer

tajawal

- Built over 200 pages for SEO & SEA with content to improve organic ranking & ads ranking.
- Conducted market and competitive analysis that factored to a large boost in impression share (90%) in MENA region through user acquisition Strategies across Paid, Search & Display channels.

Growth Marketing Executive / Content Manager

Almosafer

Seera Group

With over 8 years of hands-on experience in performance and growth marketing, Wael helped companies scale their revenue, acquisition, and conversion across various industries, such as Automotive, Travel, Cybersecurity, FinTech, Mobile Apps, Banking and E-Learning. 

Wael currently serve as the Senior Manager of Performance Marketing at Visable (an Alibaba Company), where He spearheads the EU acquisition strategy to achieve the company's vision for exponential growth.

Wael has a strong background in data-driven and customer-centric marketing, with certifications from Apple, Google, Meta, CXL, and Reforge.

Some of Wael's areas of expertise include growth model strategies, product-led growth, analysis and market research, data-driven experience optimization, A/B testing, search engine optimization, and content marketing. 

Wael is passionate about finding new and creative ways to engage and retain customers, optimize conversion, and maximize revenue.

In his free time Wael likes to write short stories, read about mental health, fashion, filmmaking & photography 

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