SendView isn't your typical SaaS company. There are no venture capitalists funding our growth, just the couch cushions in the living room and whatever our users paid last month. Instead of a fancy, sprawling office, it's a couple guys in Walmart sweat pants trying to do something they believe in.
Now the "what?" of this conundrum is (hopefully) clear by now: we're building a service called SendView that gives email marketers a smart alternative to signing up for competitor emails with their own email addresses.
Instead of a bloated inbox, we're aiming to give marketers the answers and insights and ideas they've always wanted but haven't been able to glean from Outlook or Gmail.
Who are we?
The first guy in Walmart sweat pants is Gregg Blanchard. Gregg is a marketer who realized along the way his design skills and code-wrangling abilities had, surprisingly, become something better than terrible.
But Gregg also realized that he needed some help. That help came in the form of a good friend and co-worker, Patrick Sande; an insanely-talented marketer who is great with people (and products) and could keep things on course and on pace.
What we lack in ping pong tables or laser-cut logos in our offices (err...spare bedrooms), we make up for with a personal, honest approach to our work.
Why?
It may come as a surprise to many, but our purpose is not to quit our day jobs. We're co-workers at Inntopia (a resort and hotel email marketing and ecommerce platform) and love the stability of a regular paycheck.
But if the carrot isn't the classic "escape from the 9-5" mantra, what is it? A fine question indeed. Here are three (of many) answers.
First, some extra income. Our expectations are modest, but a little bit of money on the side goes a long way. Maybe it's another trip to Disneyland with the kiddos, maybe it's a smoother transition between jobs, maybe it's that teardrop trailer Gregg's been wanting to build (update: I built it!).
Second, it's a chance to learn and grow. We learn a ton from working on SendView. UX/UI, product management, data science, and sales are all skills we wanted to improve on but don't fit our day-job titles. This project gives us that opportunity.
Third, it's a ton of fun. There's something incredibly satisfying about putting in a lot of work on something you care about and seeing people use it. And to do it with a good friend? Icing on the cake.
Thanks
So, that's our story. One that ends with a simple thanks. A thanks for stopping by. A thanks for giving us a small slice of your day. A thanks for actually making it this far in a "hmm, this is getting longer than I planned" blog post.
And, if you end up giving SendView a try, a thanks for taking a chance on us. We'll do our best to make it worth your time.