12 Visitors vs 12 Million: What Most Startups Get Wrong with Justin Abrams & Mike Rispoli

Stop Copying Your Competitors: Do This Instead!

Most teams can identify friction in their customer experience. The challenge is convincing leadership to invest in fixing it. Digital leaders from Walmart, FanDuel, US Bank, and American Eagle have all faced that challenge. In this encore episode, hosts Chuck Moxley [https://linkedin.com/in/chuck-moxley] and Nick Paladino [https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino] revisit key lessons on elevating frictionless experiences to the C-suite and reveal what separates ideas that get funded from those that don't. Vijay Jayaraman from Walmart explains how teams use peak events like Black Friday and Cyber Monday to quantify the impact of customer experience issues before they become major business problems. Shawn Sheely from US Bank shares how his team reframed accessibility from a compliance requirement into a billion-dollar market opportunity, helping reduce onboarding costs by 70%. Catherine Gignac from American Eagle offers a powerful perspective on designers as connectors, bringing together the work of dozens of stakeholders into a single customer experience.Scott Smith from FanDuel challenges a common assumption: stop obsessing over competitors. Your customers chose your brand for a reason. Instead of copying what others are doing, focus on understanding why your customers engage with you and what keeps them coming back. You'll also hear practical insights on measuring friction, defining the "spine" of an experience, interpreting customer behavior data, and translating customer pain points into business outcomes that executives care about. Key Actionable Takeaways: 1. Quantify friction using peak seasonal periods to justify investment - A problem affecting 10,000 Walmart users today could impact millions on Black Friday; use known high-traffic events to correlate current issues with future revenue impact and demonstrate why fixing seemingly trivial problems matters now 2. Reframe compliance as market opportunity not checkbox - US Bank saw accessibility as a billion-dollar market rather than legal requirement, reduced onboarding costs 70%, and opened entirely new customer channels by simplifying experiences for assistive technology users 3. Prioritize customer voice over competitive benchmarking - Your customers chose you because your brand resonates with them specifically; copying competitor journeys misses the point because their customers are fundamentally different people with different needs and preferences Want more tips and strategies about creating frictionless digital experiences?  Subscribe to our newsletter! https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/  [https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/] Download the Five Step Site Speed Target Playbook: http://bluetriangle.com/playbook [http://bluetriangle.com/playbook] Dom Costa's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/dominickcosta   [https://linkedin.com/in/dominickcosta] Nick Paladino's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino [https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino]  Chuck Moxley's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/chuck-moxley  [https://linkedin.com/in/chuck-moxley] Chapters: (00:00) Introduction (03:18) Quantifying friction (06:20) Vijay peak periods (11:10) Black Friday first impressions (15:15) Scott traffic conversions (20:40) Sean accessibility market (27:00) Compliance reframe (31:25) Team alignment (38:00) Katherine designers as builders (43:40) Voice of customer (45:25) Customer vs competitor focus (53:15) Vijay customer first (57:00) Katherine friction tools (01:01:20) Data interpretation (01:03:31) Conclusion

Don't Ask Customers What They Want, Ask This Instead with Dean Curtis, ex-Apple, Palm

Dean Curtis was literally in the room when the iPhone was about to change enterprise mobile computing forever. He was at Palm during the smartphone wars, then moved to Apple right as they were trying to crack the enterprise market. In his Apple interview, he asked the VP of iPhone whether the lack of a physical keyboard would kill their chances in enterprise. The answer? "I think we're going to be okay."  Today, there's not a single physical keyboard on a phone anymore. Join hosts Nick Paladino [https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino] and Chuck Moxley [https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley/] as we explore one of our favorite themes: customers don't actually know what they want. Dean Curtis [https://instagram.com/deancurtis23] trains his team on this: don't let customers design features, get them to tell you the problem they're trying to solve. He's got this great line about how Apple looked at the keyboard problem differently. Everyone else asked, "How do we make a better keyboard?" Apple asked, "Why is this thing taking up half the device when you're not using it 95% of the time?" Then there's the California Highway Patrol story. Palm did a pilot with officers using mobile devices for license lookups in the early 2000s. Every single device came back broken after three days. Turns out the officers ran over them with their cars because nobody ever asked if they actually wanted the technology. That's the enterprise adoption problem in a nutshell.  Dean breaks down the three pillars most companies miss: having the right stakeholders including IT, marketing for brand consistency, and someone responsible for training and readiness. Skip any of those and you're setting yourself up for failure. And his take on AI is refreshing. He says the widely held belief that new technology ruins everything is simply wrong. It just makes space for new possibilities. His line: AI rewards the curious.  Key Actionable Takeaways: 1. Involve all stakeholders before software deployment, not after - Include IT for technical integration, marketing for brand consistency, and someone responsible for training and readiness; rolling out software Monday morning without user input guarantees resistance and low adoption 2. Define problems, not solutions, then let experts solve them - Customers will request features based on what they know, but the real innovation comes from understanding the underlying problem they're trying to solve and approaching it differently, like Apple did with keyboards taking up 50% of the device when unused 95% of the time 3. Build trust and confidence through presentation consistency - Whether it's pen-and-paper napkin math or polished iPad proposals, both can work if the customer trusts you; the technology should enhance confidence in the numbers you present, not replace the human element that builds belief in your ability to solve their problem Want more tips and strategies about creating frictionless digital experiences? Subscribe to our newsletter! https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/  [https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/] Download the Five Step Site Speed Target Playbook: http://bluetriangle.com/playbook [http://bluetriangle.com/playbook] Dean Curtis' Instagram: https://instagram.com/deancurtis23 [https://instagram.com/deancurtis23]  Ingage: https://ingage.io [https://ingage.io]  Nick Paladino's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino [https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino]  Chuck Moxley's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley/] Chapters: (00:00) Introduction (03:20) Palm and early smartphones (06:42) Apple interview keyboard question (09:04) Customers don't know what they want (11:09) Balancing customer feedback (13:05) Steve Jobs customer experience (14:53) Form factor unlocking productivity (16:22) Editing video on phone (18:07) iPad-only app pivot (19:33) Plumber pen vs iPad trust (22:03) Software adoption challenges (24:34) Three pillars of deployment (25:50) California Highway Patrol story (28:48) Convincing successful salespeople (30:15) Trust drives adoption decisions (33:08) Punching above your weight (34:31) Tying design to bottom line (37:54) Bad word of mouth kills deals (39:32) Apple excellence lessons (42:06) Technology approachability myth (43:54) AI rewards the curious (45:40) Hackathon framework (48:00) SaaSpocalypse build vs buy (50:15) Conclusion

AI Won't Replace Your Doctor, But This Approach Might with Dr. Tina Manoharan ex-Phillips

Your bank details are at your fingertips on your phone. Your healthcare records? Still scattered across paper files and incompatible systems. Dr. Tina Manoharan [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-tina-manoharan/] spent 16 years at Siemens Healthcare, then led data and AI innovation at Philips, and she's seen firsthand what happens when you deploy AI in an industry where getting it wrong isn't just expensive, it's life or death. We're replaying one of our most fascinating episodes because Tina's framework for AI implementation matters more now than ever. Join hosts Chuck Moxley [https://linkedin.com/in/chuck-moxley] and Nick Paladino [https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino] as we revisit Tina's infectious enthusiasm for healthcare innovation. She got genuinely excited when her German doctor put her prescription on a card instead of printing it on paper. The nurse couldn't figure out why someone leading AI innovation for a global company was thrilled about digital prescriptions. That's how far healthcare still lags behind banking. Tina breaks down where AI adds value: oncologists making treatment decisions with no idea what happened to similar patients. Individual doctors see limited cases, but AI learns from thousands across institutions. She flips the script on implementation. Don't start with data, start with the problem. Her Uber example shows you don't automate calling cabs, you transform the workflow.  We explore global challenges: US-trained models fail in Asia because organ sizes differ. She discusses navigating FDA, EU AI Act, and NMPA regulations. She emphasizes co-creation: you need clinicians, nurses, and patients, not just data scientists. And she addresses the fear every professional has, “will AI replace my job?” Even doctors asked. Her answer, leaders being innovative won't be replaced, they'll just perform better.  Key Actionable Takeaways: 1. Start with the problem, not the data - Never begin with "what data do we have, let's build AI for that"; instead, understand the customer need, map the value flow and data flow, then determine the right AI solution working backwards from the actual problem 2. Integrate AI into existing workflows, don't force new ones - AI solutions must fit seamlessly into current clinical workflows rather than requiring separate devices or processes; however, be prepared for AI to fundamentally transform workflows like Uber changed transportation, not just automate existing manual tasks 3. Co-create with all stakeholders across disciplines - Include clinicians making decisions, nurses preparing information, patients receiving care, medical officers, sales leaders bringing multi-hospital insights, and clinical partners; AI development requires perspectives from everyone in the value chain to avoid building solutions that don't address real needs Want more tips and strategies about creating frictionless digital experiences?  Subscribe to our newsletter! https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/ [https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/]  Download the Black Friday/Cyber Monday eBook: http://bluetriangle.com/ebook [http://bluetriangle.com/ebook]  Dr. Tina Manoharan's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-tina-manoharan/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-tina-manoharan/]  Nick Paladino's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-tina-manoharan/] Chuck Moxley's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/chuck-moxley  [https://linkedin.com/in/chuck-moxley] Chapters: (00:00) Introduction (03:11) Calling from Germany (04:42) Healthcare AI focus areas (06:43) Provider and patient journeys (08:38) Banking vs healthcare digital gap (09:43) Digital patient records globally (11:26) Digital prescription excitement (12:26) Regulatory compliance challenges (14:17) Global AI model differences (16:40) Device ecosystem complexity (18:35) Rare disease diagnosis assistance (20:40) Tumor board decision support (23:16) Co-creation innovation approach (26:02) Starting with data vs problem (27:20) Future state thinking (28:29) Physician AI resistance evolution (32:00) Human fear of replacement (33:10) Uber workflow transformation (35:05) Automation vs AI distinction (37:00) Workflow integration requirements (40:10) Uber payment friction removal (41:00) How to connect

12 Visitors vs 12 Million: What Most Startups Get Wrong with Justin Abrams & Mike Rispoli

A/B testing your landing page with 12 visitors. Building a custom e-commerce platform when you haven't made your first sale. Redesigning your app three times before launch because it doesn't look like Apple. If any of this sounds familiar, Justin Abrams [https://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/] and Mike Rispoli [https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/], co-founders of Cause of a Kind, have some hard truths for you.  Join hosts Nick Paladino [https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino] and Chuck Moxley [https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley/] as we explore what happens when you have 12,000 visitors a month instead of 12 million. Justin and Mike introduce brilliant basics: stop trying to innovate and just play the greatest hits. Use Shopify templates, use Webflow, don't build custom solutions like you're a billion-dollar brand when you're not.  They don't talk about failure, they talk about data collection. These two have been friends since they were 15, tried building software for a decade, failed a lot, before finally building an agency because their network kept asking them to do what they're actually good at.  Justin's thesis: follow opportunity instead of your passions. Stop fighting the universe and listen to where opportunities come from. Mike's framework: marry the problem but date the solution. The founders who succeed stay flexible on how they solve it, not what they're solving. And they break down the maturation journey: certain businesses aren't mature enough for nuanced analytics. If you're just starting, measure session duration, page consumption, click paths and not tiny conversion funnel optimizations. Key Actionable Takeaways: 1. Play the greatest hits until you have meaningful traffic - Use Shopify templates for e-commerce or Webflow for B2B sites rather than custom builds; you can't AB test landing pages with no traffic, and trying to innovate before validation wastes time and money 2. Features are friction for startups - Each additional feature confuses your marketing story, elevator pitch, and user flows; solve one problem extremely well before adding capabilities, and resist the urge to redesign before you have user data 3. Manually shepherd early users and measure different metrics - With low traffic, watch screen recordings, talk to individual users, measure session duration and click paths rather than conversion funnels; find your first-dollar metric (like Facebook's seven connections) and optimize getting users there faster Want more tips and strategies about creating frictionless digital experiences?  Subscribe to our newsletter! https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/ [https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/] Download the Five Step Site Speed Target Playbook: http://bluetriangle.com/playbook [http://bluetriangle.com/playbook] Cause of a Kind: https://causeofakind.com [https://causeofakind.com]  Strictly From Nowhere Podcast: https://www.causeofakind.com/strictly-from-nowhere [https://www.causeofakind.com/strictly-from-nowhere]  Justin Abrams' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/]  Mike Rispoli's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/]  Nick Paladino's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino [https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino]  Chuck Moxley's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley/] Chapters: (00:00) Introduction (03:10) Starting Cause of a Kind (05:26) Failed ventures  (08:15) Failing fast (09:36) Enterprise vs. startup friction (11:20) Porsche on Toyota budget (13:14) Non-technical founder empathy (14:30) Every brand is a tech company (15:55) Marry problem date solution (17:15) Craigslist as UX example (18:16) Brilliant basics explained (22:00) Manual user validation process (24:43) When measurement matters (26:47) Onboarding flow friction (29:10) First dollar metric (30:00) Successful journeys beyond conversion (33:36) Home Depot mobile vs desktop (36:33) Attribution challenges (38:26) Vibe coding and AI tools (41:02) Discipline and resource deployment (44:15) Features are friction (46:17) Conclusion

Your MVP Is Probably Broken—Ship This Instead with Nakul Goyal, CMO at Carfax

Your staging environment just saved you tens of millions of dollars in half an hour. Your MVP shipped on time but isn't actually viable anymore. Your team is surprised by their performance review. If any of these sound familiar, Nakul Goyal has thoughts. Nick and Chuck are bringing back one of their favorite episodes featuring Nakul Goyal, now Chief Marketing Officer at Carfax. Join hosts Chuck Moxley [https://linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley] and Nick Paladino [https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino] as we revisit Nakul's [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nakulgoyal/] counterintuitive take on friction: the goal shouldn't be zero friction, but rather the right friction in the right places. For high-stakes, low-frequency purchases like cars, removing trust signals like reviews, security badges, and testimonials actually kills conversion.  Nakul shares the staging environment story from a previous employer where stakeholders thought he was crazy for requesting a million dollar investment to preview taxonomy changes before production until they found catastrophic issues in 30 minutes that would have cost tens of millions. He breaks down his four prong framework for building high-performing teams: hiring people with the right DNA, setting clear goals with constant visibility, building rituals around outcomes not outputs, and practicing radical candor.  We explore Carfax's evolution from one-trick-pony accident reports to a lifecycle product with the Car Care app that notifies you about needed repairs, registration deadlines, and real-time car value estimates. Nakul doesn't just talk ROI, he bleeds it. He calculates team time as money. And he flips the script on MVPs: teams under deadline pressure strip scope until products are no longer viable, shipping broken experiences that become permanent because priorities shift.  Key Actionable Takeaways: 1. Add the right friction to build confidence in high-stakes transactions - For infrequent purchases, consumers need trust signals like reviews, security badges, testimonials, and clear payment confirmation wording even if it adds steps; speed without confidence kills conversion 2. Measure outcomes not outputs and shift from MVP to MLP - Teams incentivized to hit dates will strip scope until products aren't viable; delay launch if needed to ship a Minimum Lovable Product rather than leaving broken experiences that never get fixed 3. Build performance transparency into team rituals - Implement monthly reviews (15-20 minutes), RAG dashboards (red/amber/green visible from 10 feet away), and clear accountability so annual reviews are summaries not surprises; if employees are shocked, leadership has failed Want more tips and strategies about creating frictionless digital experiences?  Subscribe to our newsletter! https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/ [https://www.thefrictionlessexperience.com/frictionless/] Download the Five Step Site Speed Target Playbook: http://bluetriangle.com/playbook [http://bluetriangle.com/playbook] CARFAX Website: https://www.carfax.com/ [https://www.carfax.com/]  Nakul’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nakulgoyal/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nakulgoyal/]  Nick Paladino's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino [https://linkedin.com/in/npaladino]  Chuck Moxley's LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/chuck-moxleyhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/chuckmoxley/] Chapters: (00:00) Introduction (03:18) Friction eliminating confidence (06:00) Buyer confidence signals (09:03) Carfax history and evolution (12:28) Car Care app lifecycle (15:45) Staging environment story (19:10) Testing as intentional friction (21:45) One step forward two back (24:00) Shipping right things right pace (26:20) Being less wrong daily (27:40) High performing teams framework (29:10) Clear goal setting (30:00) Performance review surprises (30:40) Building rituals around outcomes (31:36) RAG dashboard system (32:20) Radical candor philosophy (34:37) Monthly review process (35:15) Team centered growth (36:42) ROI obsession (41:25) MVP versus MLP (44:23) Artificial deadline pressure (45:40) MVPs become final versions (46:20) Measure outcomes not outputs (47:26) Conclusion