Why Product-Led Growth Burned Out in 2026

Lucas and Luna dive into the unraveling of product-led growth (PLG) for B2B SaaS. One specific case drives the conversation: Calendly's late-2025 pivot from freemium to a paid-first model, which led to a 30% drop in new user sign-ups but a 22% boost in revenue per customer. Lucas explains how the PLG playbook—self-serve signups, viral loops, freemium tiers—worked when venture capital was cheap and growth was the only metric, but broke when investors demanded profitability. Luna pushes back on whether PLG is dead or just evolving, pointing to Canva's hybrid approach that still grows organically while pushing paid conversion at the right moment. The episode covers the hidden cost of 'free' users, why enterprise sales teams are staging a comeback, and what marketers should learn from PLG's hangover. Listeners walk away understanding why 2026 is the year of 'product-led sales'—a blend of self-serve and human touch. #ProductLedGrowth #SaaS #Calendly #Canva #B2BMarketing #Freemium #MarketingStrategy #GrowthMarketing #RevenueModel #CustomerAcquisition #SalesTech #Marketing #BusinessPodcast #FexingoBusiness #MarketingCareer #SaaSMarketing #VentureCapital #UnitEconomics Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo