B2B go-to-market that actually drives ARR. Richard Blundell shares the simple operating cadence founders need to land real customers, cut churn, and scale without burning cash. Richard Blundell is a SaaS sales and go-to-market expert with more than 20 years of experience scaling B2B software companies as a founder, CRO, and CEO. He’s helped dozens of founders grow from first product to recurring revenue, guiding many beyond the $1 million ARR mark and toward investment readiness.
As founder of Vencha and the Vencha Scale Academy, Richard delivers practical, proven strategies that cut through the noise with clarity, structure, and hard-won lessons from the trenches. He’s also an author, creator, and most recently taught his Go-to-Market Playbook at ESCP Business School in London.

What you’ll learn

• How to build a GTM motion technical founders can run
• The “customer at 3 a.m.” test for messaging that stops the scroll
• Why introverts often outsell extroverts
• When to hire sales vs. customer success
• Niching vs. scale: how to choose and when to shift
• War-gaming meetings so deals move faster
• Churn, CAC, LTV: which metric matters when
• Differentiation through simple, visual pain→outcome stories

Who this helps

• Founder-led B2B SaaS teams from zero to $5M ARR
• First-time CROs and product-led CEOs
• CS leaders fixing churn and expansion
• Investors mentoring seed to Series A

Guest

• Richard Blundell, Founder, Venture + Venture Scale Academy
• https://vencha-academy.com/

Host

• Burn The Playbook Podcast — Digital Rebels Consulting
• https://DigitalRebelsConsulting.com

B2B SaaS, go-to-market, GTM strategy, ARR, product–market fit, product–pain fit, churn, CAC, LTV, ICP, positioning, differentiation, introvert sales, customer success, sales hiring, niching, messaging, founder-led sales, pitch deck, LinkedIn content, AI go-to-market

#B2BSaaS #GoToMarket #BurnThePlaybook #Startup #FounderLedSales #SalesLeadership #CustomerSuccess #Churn #ARR #Messaging

B2B SaaS; go to market; GTM; ARR; churn; CAC; LTV; ICP; founder led sales; introvert sales; differentiation; positioning; pitch deck; customer success; SaaS growth; sales hiring; niching strategy; venture scale academy; richard blundell; digital rebels consulting; burn the playbook; marc crosby; ai go to market; sales engineering

• 1: The “3 a.m. customer” test for messages that convert. #GoToMarket
• 2: Stop hiring sales too early. Fix product–pain fit first. #SaaS
• 3: Why introverts quietly win big deals. #Sales
• 4: Churn kills faster than no pipeline. Here’s what to track. #Startup
• 5: Differentiate by simplicity. Show pain → outcome fast. #B2B

• Website → DigitalRebelsConsulting.com
• Linktree → https://linktr.ee/digitalrebelsconsulting
• Socials → Follow us on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/marcccrosby
• Email → marc@digitalrebelsconsulting.com
• Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/burn-the-playbook/id1828969451
• Burn The Playbook Website → https://www.buzzsprout.com/2522863

Views expressed are our own and do not represent any organizations

© 2025 Digital Rebels Consulting. All rights reserved.

Business storytelling that closes deals. In this episode, Microsoft and Unilever advisor Nir Zavaro shows how to ditch slide-first pitching and lead with a clear, written narrative that aligns marketing, sales, and leadership. If your team talks features instead of a story, this is your playbook.

Nir Zavaro is a global keynote speaker, author, and consultant known as "The Business Storyteller." With over 20 years of experience, he helps founders and top brands like Microsoft and Unilever implement storytelling to improve marketing, sales, and brand identity. Nir's work is centered on the principle that a compelling narrative is the most critical element for connecting with an audience and driving action.

He travels the world teaching a proven methodology that enables corporate teams and leaders to move beyond a reliance on slides and craft powerful pitches that win deals. His keynotes are high-energy, practical sessions that provide actionable frameworks for building better brands and improving business outcomes through the power of a clear, consistent story.

He is the founder of the creative agency Streetwise and the author of F*ck the Slides, a book dedicated to transforming presentations and pitches. His narrative-driven approach ensures that a company's marketing, sales, and internal communications are all aligned with a single, powerful story, helping them to scale more effectively.

What you’ll learn

• How to craft a 70-word hook and a 3-minute “trailer pitch” buyers remember
• Toilet deck vs. Babylon deck: what to send, what to present, what to keep in reserve
• Why the brand is the hero and teams play supporting roles
• Turning “no” leads into revenue with a customer-journey funnel
• Sales–marketing alignment that actually works in the field
• Startup vs. enterprise branding: what changes and what never should

Who this helps

• B2B founders and CROs selling complex solutions
• Marketing leaders who need sales alignment
• Enterprise sellers who pitch across buying committees
• RevOps teams mapping handoffs and SLAs

Guest

• Nir Zavaro, “The Business Storyteller,” author of “F*ck the Slides,” founder of Streetwise
• Website: https://nirzavaro.com/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nirzavaro/

Host

• Burn The Playbook Podcast — Digital Rebels Consulting: https://DigitalRebelsConsulting.com
• Marc Crosby on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcccrosby/

#BusinessStorytelling #B2BSales #BurnThePlaybook #SalesLeadership #Marketing #Brand #CustomerJourney #Pitching #SalesEnablement; business storytelling; B2B storytelling; sales pitch; pitch deck; fuck the slides; toilet deck; babylon deck; customer journey; sales marketing alignment; enterprise sales; startup brand; narrative selling; Marc Crosby; Digital Rebels Consulting; Nir Zavaro; Streetwise; trailer pitch; buyer enablement; sales workshop

• Website → DigitalRebelsConsulting.com
• Linktree → https://linktr.ee/digitalrebelsconsulting
• Socials → Follow us on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/marcccrosby
• Email → marc@digitalrebelsconsulting.com
• Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/burn-the-playbook/id1828969451
• Burn The Playbook Website → https://www.buzzsprout.com/2522863

Views expressed are our own and do not represent any organizations

© 2025 Digital Rebels Consulting. All rights reserved.

AI for life science sales and marketing that actually moves revenue. In this episode of Burn The Playbook, Marc Crosby digs in with Matt Wilkinson, founder of Strivenn, on how commercial teams cut through hype and apply AI where it matters: personas, buying groups, objection prep, and sales practice that sticks.

What you’ll learn

• How “persona AI” turns real LinkedIn and VOC data into a usable synthetic customer
• A simple way to map buying groups and pressure-test your pitch with role play
• Where AI helps most in product launch, ABM, and key account management
• Why ungating content now matters for search and AI bots
• How to prep objections with custom assistants and stay human in the loop
• “Moments over funnels” and what that means for 2026 GTM planning
• Practical tools Matt uses: Claude, ChatGPT, Humantic, Yoodli, Notebook LM

Chapters
00:00 Welcome and setup
00:30 Meet Matt Wilkinson and Strivenn
01:29 When ChatGPT changed the game
03:24 Science mindset for using AI
05:21 Persona AI explained
07:10 Synthetic buyers and role play
08:05 From product to marketing to sales
09:32 Mapping stakeholders
10:18 Objection prep with custom assistants
11:30 KAM board work and AI’s impact
13:18 Big obstacles: data, maturity, fear
15:00 Policies, “secret cyborgs,” and guardrails
17:45 Showing value and time savings
19:31 Repeatable assets reps will use
19:39 Favorite tools for sales enablement
21:41 Buying group mastery and practice
23:55 2025–2026 outlook for life sciences
26:17 Notebook LM for learning and policy chatbots
26:46 Moments over funnels
28:51 Rapid fire: the takes that matter
35:46 Burn one habit, build one for 2026
36:28 Where to find Matt + 2026 speaking

Who this helps

• Life science commercial leaders and KAM teams
• B2B marketers running ABM and launches
• Founders building GTM in technical markets
• Sales enablement leaders installing AI the right way

Guest

• Matt Wilkinson, Founder, Strivenn | Website: https://www.striven.com | LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-wilkinson/

Host

• Burn The Playbook Podcast — Digital Rebels Consulting: https://DigitalRebelsConsulting.com
• Host: Marc Crosby

AI for life sciences, persona AI, buying group mapping, key account management, ABM, objection handling, sales role play, Notebook LM, Claude, ChatGPT, Humantic, Yoodli, moments over funnels, commercial data readiness, AI policy, synthetic customers, B2B marketing, sales enablement, life science GTM, 2026 GTM planning

1: Persona AI that isn’t fluff. Real data. Real buyers. #LifeSciences

2: Map the buying group and stress-test your pitch. #SalesEnablement

3: Ungate content so humans and bots can find you. #B2BMarketing

4: Objection prep with custom assistants in minutes. #SalesTips

5: Moments over funnels. Win where decisions happen. #GTM

• Website → DigitalRebelsConsulting.com
• Linktree → https://linktr.ee/digitalrebelsconsulting
• Socials → Follow us on LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/marcccrosby
• Email → marc@digitalrebelsconsulting.com
• Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/burn-the-playbook/id1828969451
• Burn The Playbook Website → https://www.buzzsprout.com/2522863

Views expressed are our own and do not represent any organizations

© 2025 Digital Rebels Consulting. All rights reserved.