Revenue fell from $25M to $8M—so he raised $75M in crowdfunding and ignored VCs. | Dan Novaes, Co-Founder & CEO of Mode Mobile

Dan's first app made over $1M in two months. Then Facebook sent a cease and desist and killed it. His next company, Mode Mobile, grew revenue 32,481% in three years and ranked #1 on the Deloitte Fast 500. Then his crypto advertisers went bankrupt, revenue fell from $25M to $8M, and he cut half his staff. No VC wanted a declining Series B. So he raised $5M from his own users in three months—then $75M more.

In this episode, Dan breaks down how paying people to use their phone actually makes money, why revenue concentration and not growth is what nearly killed Mode, and how to run a creator-led marketing campaign at $30 a video.

Why You Should Listen

• Why the product market fit that feels insane is often the kind that dies fastest.
• How building on someone else's API cost him two different companies.
• Why extending your payback period is the fastest way to run out of cash.
• How to know within $20K to $30K whether creator-led marketing works for you.

Keywords startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, product market fit, finding pmf, Mode Mobile, Dan Novaes, crowdfunding, Reg A, consumer apps, rewards apps, creator-led marketing, UGC creators, user acquisition, revenue concentration, Android apps

Chapters

• 00:00:00 Intro
• 00:03:09 The App He Built In A Week
• 00:06:38 $1M In Two Months
• 00:08:25 Facebook Shuts It Down
• 00:15:39 The Pivots Before Mode
• 00:20:42 32,481% Growth To The Fast 500
• 00:26:26 Revenue Concentration Nearly Kills It
• 00:31:50 How Paying People To Play Works
• 00:37:53 Creator-Led Growth For $30 A Video
• 00:47:09 What Makes A Crowdfund Work