Can a startup go straight to enterprise and survive? Shensi Ding, Co-Founder at Merge, shares how they scaled from zero to 25,000+ customers by starting enterprise-first, rebuilding their go-to-market team, and why founders should skip SMBs entirely.
⏱️ Timestamps
3:00 – Merge's origin story and why they wish they started with enterprise sooner
8:34 – The case for starting enterprise-first vs selling to startups
13:30 – Rebuilding go-to-market: hiring new CRO and team
18:00 – Rethinking B2B marketing beyond LinkedIn vibes
27:00 – Sales decks, POCs, and what actually closes enterprise deals
30:00 – AI in engineering: why founders should still code
38:00 – Pricing power and enterprise vs startup sales
42:00 – Fundraising and founder-VC dynamics
