Brian Casel (@casjam) and Jordan Gal (@jordangal) share their raw and real behind-the-scenes of their entrepreneur journeys. From bootstrapping software startups to raising money to selling and exiting businesses, to growing teams and the emotional rollercoaster that is startup life. It's all here in Brian and Jordan's weekly(ish) updates.
We're back for a mid-year update!
The last time we were on the mics together it was January 2025. So what's the outlook 8 months into the year?
What we're working on:
Don't be a stranger!
We're still podcasting here:
...
Keep your Bootstra...
It's true. We're calling this a final episode—for now—but don't unsubscribe! We promise to pop into the feed every few months to catch up :)
But for now, we're taking a breather and staying focused on executing our businesses in 2025: Jordan's crankin on Rosie, Brian's building Instrumental Products.
Don't be a stranger!
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2024 look-back and takeaways. 2025 goals. Let's go!
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Bluesky is having a moment. Halloween. Customers telling us their problems are solved. Essential onboarding. Calm before the (hiring) storm. Projects are waiting. The podcasting election.
Bluesky starter packs to follow:
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Join us in the (free) Bootstrapped Web community on Ripple.fm
Today:
Political noise. Removing features. Positioning. Products for developers. Idea wireframes (as a service). Hiring a video editor. Retainer-based hiring. Frequent flyer miles. Apple picking.
Brian's stuff:
Jordan's stuff:
...Hey we didn't talk about WordPress this week! But we did talk about Elon... Also: Brian's working on a components product (instrumental.dev), Jordan's figuring out onboarding (heyrosie.com), and Brian's starting to scale consulting (onemonth.app).
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Join us in the (free) Bootstrapped Web community on Ripple.fm
Today:
Brian's new product (Instrumental.dev). Comparing the open-source leadership styles of Matt, DHH, and Taylor. Building products for builders. Components. Tightening the team. Scaling consulting from 1 to...? Let's Go Mets.
Brian's stuff:
Brian and Jordan's expert (lol) takes on WordPress-land. Car shopping. Netflix rec's. Funnel tracking. Customer observations. Over-building.
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If you're wondering "what's happening in WordPress?", our friend Matt Medieros published this excellent "just the facts" timeline.
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Join us in the (free) Bootstrapped Web community on Ripple.fm
Today:
Optimizing our onboarding funnels. Calls to action. Lead ads. ARPU. API plans. Pearl Jam. Sleep (or lack thereof).
Brian's stuff:
Jordan's stuff:
Q4 energy. Signup funnels. Self-serve vs. not. Building assets vs. building cashflow. Membership business models.
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Join us in the (free) Bootstrapped Web community on Ripple.fm
Today:
Why makes SaaS more difficult than other business models? Rosie first customers! Brian's pricing experiment update. Training businesses. AI waves. Profitability at $1-2m. College Football. US Open Tennis.
Brian's stuff:
Jor...
Today on Bootstrapped Web:
What if we bootstrapped? Funnel projects. Pricing experiments. Software speed. Tech-enabled services. Listener conversations on Ripple.
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Connect with Brian, Jordan and fellow listeners in the Bootstrapped Web community on Ripple.fm
Today:
Asking the hard-hitting questions like...
Coconut pastries... for or against? Is anyone actually able to log into the black hole that is Meta ads? Publishing a 1-page HTML landing page shouldn't be difficult. Should it?
Brian's stuff:
Ripple.fm is live and open. Rosie is live for self serve signups. Niche social networking. Advertising using video. Cold outreach playbooks. And a special guest joins the show
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Brian launches built and launched something new. 2 things actually. Jordan changes pricing strategy for Rosie. Brian also changes pricing strategy for Clarityflow. And all find our AI hardware "friend".
Connect with Brian, Jordan and fellow listeners in the Bootstrapped Web community on Ripple.fm
Brian's stuff:
Yet another new product announcement from Brian. Jordan launches to first customers. The era of hacking on new ideas. Summer speed ups. Professional standards. Vacations. Special guest joins us to tell us it's time to stop.
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Brian's next product announcement. Marketing first. Small bets. Private podcasting. AI product development speed. Summer vacations.
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US Presidential debate analysis. America. Launch week. First customers. Perfect storm for a new product idea. Questioning assumptions. Seeking feedback.
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My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.
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If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
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