If your product hasn't taken off (radical simplification) episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 19, 2026 · 22 MIN

If your product hasn't taken off (radical simplification)

from The Physics of Startups · host Rob Snyder

Your startup has customers. Revenue is growing. So why does growth still feel harder than it should? Rob tackles one of the most frustrating challenges founders face: knowing your product works, but not knowing why growth isn't accelerating. Rob explains why the issue is almost always traced back to just two causes: 1. You haven't identified who truly has PULL for your product, or 2. You're doing something that prevents those people from buying. In this episode, we cover:• Why most founders feel like there are a million possible reasons growth has stalled• The two root causes behind most startup growth problems • How to identify the customers who are weird not to buy your product • Why some customers buy quickly while others never become successful • How to narrow your ICP based on real-world evidence instead of assumptions • Why most sales processes create friction instead of momentum • The difference between what causes a purchase and what prevents one • How demos, sales calls, and onboarding often work against founders • A simple way to audit your sales calls for hidden problems • The signals that tell you whether a prospect actually has PULLLinksPre-order The Power of PULL and get Rob's Claude skill: https://www.robsnyder.org/bookRob's PULL course: https://robsnyder.org/courseWork with Rob: https://www.robsnyder.orgConnect with Rob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rsnyder1/Follow Rob's Substack: https://thephysicsofstartups.substack.com/Chapters00:00 Book and course updates04:56 Why founders feel stuck06:42 The two causes of stalled growth08:27 Who this framework applies to10:00 Reason #1: You haven't identified who has PULL11:41 Narrowing your ICP13:09 Why PULL isn't knowable in advance16:56 Reason #2: You're preventing people from buying19:45 How sales processes create friction20:29 Auditing your sales calls21:27 The one-minute demo rule22:08 A simple test for PULL

Your startup has customers. Revenue is growing. So why does growth still feel harder than it should? Rob tackles one of the most frustrating challenges founders face: knowing your product works, but not knowing why growth isn't accelerating. Rob explains why the issue is almost always traced back to just two causes: 1. You haven't identified who truly has PULL for your product, or 2. You're doing something that prevents those people from buying. In this episode, we cover:• Why most founders feel like there are a million possible reasons growth has stalled• The two root causes behind most startup growth problems • How to identify the customers who are weird not to buy your product • Why some customers buy quickly while others never become successful • How to narrow your ICP based on real-world evidence instead of assumptions • Why most sales processes create friction instead of momentum • The difference between what causes a purchase and what prevents one • How demos, sales calls, and onboarding often work against founders • A simple way to audit your sales calls for hidden problems • The signals that tell you whether a prospect actually has PULLLinksPre-order The Power of PULL and get Rob's Claude skill: https://www.robsnyder.org/bookRob's PULL course: https://robsnyder.org/courseWork with Rob: https://www.robsnyder.orgConnect with Rob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rsnyder1/Follow Rob's Substack: https://thephysicsofstartups.substack.com/Chapters00:00 Book and course updates04:56 Why founders feel stuck06:42 The two causes of stalled growth08:27 Who this framework applies to10:00 Reason #1: You haven't identified who has PULL11:41 Narrowing your ICP13:09 Why PULL isn't knowable in advance16:56 Reason #2: You're preventing people from buying19:45 How sales processes create friction20:29 Auditing your sales calls21:27 The one-minute demo rule22:08 A simple test for PULL

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If your product hasn't taken off (radical simplification)

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This episode was published on June 19, 2026.

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Your startup has customers. Revenue is growing. So why does growth still feel harder than it should? Rob tackles one of the most frustrating challenges founders face: knowing your product works, but not knowing why growth isn't accelerating. Rob...

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