Traction Lab Podcast
Traction Lab Podcast

Traction Lab Podcast

JDM and Cameron Law

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Episodes

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The Traction Lab Podcast is a light-hearted, science-based weekly to help first-time founders go from fuzzy idea to real traction with honest insights, tactical experiments, tons of snark, and zero startup BS. zerototraction.substack.com

Recent Episodes

How we evaluate traction
MAY 2, 2026
How we evaluate traction
<p>Hey friends 👋</p><p>Six paying customers. $4,800 MRR. The founder already knows which two to discount. Same evidence. Cameron gives it an 8. JDM gives it a 6. That’s the conversation the Strength of Evidence Matrix is built for.</p><p>This week, we dig into the Strength of Evidence Matrix — one of the core Traction Lab tools. It evaluates your traction on two axes: how robust is the signal (from interest to intent), and how independent is the source (from affiliated to cold). Most founders count their evidence. This framework <em>grades</em> it — and most of the time, the grade is a lot worse than it looks.</p><p>From a pet emergency app drowning in warm surveys, to a background check SaaS with real revenue but one cold customer keeping the whole signal honest, to a B2B platform that made it from their rolodex all the way to a cold annual contract — we run three scenarios through the matrix and rate each on the conviction scale. There’s even a JDM-Cameron split on the last one.</p><p>JDM’s three-year Lord of the Rings marathon is almost over. Cameron just watched the GuLP team take fifth place and $10K in Minneapolis.</p><p>As always, thanks for listening.</p><p>—Cameron and JDM</p><p>Resources:</p><p>* <a target="_blank" href="https://luma.com/0jte03oe">High Conviction Happy Hour, August 27th</a></p><p>* <a target="_blank" href="https://tlvs.link">Traction Lab Venture School</a></p><p>Timestamps</p><p>00:00 - Introduction</p><p>02:15 - Strength of Evidence Matrix</p><p>05:30 - Scenario 1: Pet emergency vet app</p><p>12:45 - Scenario 2: Background check SaaS</p><p>25:00 - Scenario 3: B2B CPG broker platform</p><p>40:00 - Frivolous Thoughts</p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://zerototraction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_1">zerototraction.substack.com</a>
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38 MIN
Weekly AMA: what investors actually need
APR 29, 2026
Weekly AMA: what investors actually need
<p>Hey friends 👋</p><p>You’ve had the good conversations. Coffee chats that ended with “this is really interesting.” Followers who DM you to say they can’t wait. And when you go to investors, they pass.</p><p>Because interest and evidence are two completely different things.</p><p>This week, JDM and Cameron are joined by Nikki Sims — operator, VC fund veteran, and someone who’s actually seen what happens when founders confuse the two. In a special format, we invited founders from the <a target="_blank" href="https://tlvs.link">Traction Lab Venture School</a> to join us on the livestream to ask their questions.</p><p>We covered traction signals that matter in historically offline industries, what happens to your roadmap when you land a 227-location enterprise deal, why your TAM slide is probably lying to investors without you realizing it, what to do when your market has a literal expiration date, and how to think about funding a hard goods business when VC math doesn’t apply.</p><p>Nikki didn’t hold back. Neither did the guys. It’s the kind of honest investor feedback you usually only get if you already know someone.</p><p>As always, thanks for listening.</p><p>—Cameron and JDM</p><p>Timestamps</p><p>00:00 - Introduction & Nikki Sims</p><p>05:00 - Traction in offline markets (AgTech / game birds)</p><p>18:00 - When your market has an expiration date</p><p>24:30 - The enterprise trap: SMB to 227 locations</p><p>32:00 - Funding a hardware business (not a SaaS)</p><p>51:00 - TAM slides: bottoms-up or bust</p><p>58:30 - Biotech buy vs. build decisions</p><p>1:02:30 - Channel strategy for construction tech</p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://zerototraction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_1">zerototraction.substack.com</a>
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71 MIN
This TAM is just a snort of hopium
APR 25, 2026
This TAM is just a snort of hopium
<p>Hey friends 👋</p><p>You know the pattern — founder shows up with a deck, flips to the TAM slide, and there it is: $53 billion… $67 billion… any enormous number with a B at the end. And everyone in the room nods like it means something.</p><p>It usually doesn’t.</p><p>This week JDM goes solo (Cameron’s out representing the ecosystem and cheering at a pitch competition — we’ll forgive him) to dig into one of his all-time founder pet peeves: the TAM.</p><p>Not the concept — the lazy, hopium-laced, percentage-game version that shows up in almost every pitch deck. The one that mistakes the market your <em>customers</em> are in for the market your <em>product</em> is in. The one that picks 0.1% because it makes the math look reasonable, not because it means anything.</p><p>From a Slack bot claiming a slice of the wrong pie, to a procurement platform that actually did the math (mostly), to an AI tutoring app that averaged its way to a $67B fantasy, JDM runs the conviction scale on three real TAM claims and calls out every shortcut along the way.</p><p>For his lone frivolous thought, he recommends Ben McKenzie’s documentary <em>Everyone Is Lying to You for Money</em> — a deep dive into crypto with strong opinions and receipts to match.</p><p>As always, thanks for listening.</p><p>—JDM & Cam</p><p>Timestamps</p><p>00:00 - Introduction</p><p>02:15 - TAM: what the slide is supposed to answer (and doesn’t)</p><p>05:30 - Scenario 1: The Slack status bot</p><p>12:45 - Scenario 2: Food manufacturer procurement platform</p><p>25:00 - Scenario 3: AI tutoring app for K-12</p><p>40:00 - Frivolous Thoughts</p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://zerototraction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_1">zerototraction.substack.com</a>
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30 MIN
Do your investor updates secretly suck?
APR 18, 2026
Do your investor updates secretly suck?
<p>Hey friends 👋</p><p>You’ve seen the email before:</p><p><strong>Subject:</strong> “Huge month!!”</p><p><strong>Body:</strong> 10,000 users, engagement through the roof, three new features shipped, featured in a newsletter. No revenue. No retention breakdown. No ask. And somehow, you think that’s an investor update.</p><p>This week, JDM and Cameron break down what investor updates are actually <em>for</em> — and why the founders sending the flashiest ones are often the ones with the least to show.</p><p>A good update isn’t a highlight reel. It’s a signal:</p><p>* Here’s the one metric that matters right now;</p><p>* Here’s what’s working and what isn’t; and</p><p>* Here’s exactly what we need from you.</p><p>That’s it.</p><p>Do that consistently, and you’re building trust long before anyone writes a check.</p><p>Then comes the game! Three realistic scenarios, scored on the conviction scale:</p><p>* A SaaS tool drowning in vanity metrics and no ask (a very generous two).</p><p>* A dental practice management startup with actual numbers, actual churn honesty, and a specific ask that almost got there (a strong eight).</p><p>* A consumer mental health app with 150K downloads, no paying customers, and a premium tier with results too “encouraging” to share yet (another two).</p><p>And it’s a conviction sandwich!</p><p>But a Keto edition… the good stuff is in the middle.</p><p>Frivolous thoughts this week: JDM got a YouTube Music recommendation he didn’t ask for and absolutely needed; and Cameron walked out of a Sacramento record shop with some Cat Stevens vinyl.</p><p>Turns out the thread between grunge, riot-grrl, punk, and folk peace anthems is stronger than you’d think.</p><p>As always, thanks for listening.</p><p>—Cameron and JDM</p><p><strong>Timestamps</strong></p><p>00:00 Introduction</p><p>02:15 What is an investor update (and why most are facades)</p><p>05:30 What to actually include: the five elements</p><p>13:30 Scenario 1</p><p>23:15 Scenario 2</p><p>33:15 Scenario 3</p><p>37:30 Frivolous Thoughts</p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://zerototraction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_1">zerototraction.substack.com</a>
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42 MIN
When your best customer is also your biggest threat
APR 15, 2026
When your best customer is also your biggest threat
<p>Hey friends 👋</p><p>You’ve got 43 customers using your product for free, a pilot converting at 4 out of 11, and a franchisor who just announced they’re building your product themselves—for free.</p><p>This week’s office hours was a live collision of founders at very different stages, all running into the same underlying problem: they’re optimizing for the wrong thing at the wrong time.</p><p>JDM and Cameron tackle five questions live from YouTube and LinkedIn:</p><p>* a funeral home consolidator mid-pricing negotiation</p><p>* a B2C wellness app chasing a launch before knowing who they’re selling to</p><p>* a CrossFit gym SaaS getting sherlocked by its own franchisor</p><p>* a baby sleep consultant product that discovered its pilot structure too late</p><p>* a surf school booking tool trying to solve seasonality before it’s solved willingness to pay.</p><p>We break down enterprise pricing psychology, the trap of logo-hunting, why “stoned beach dudes” is not a customer segment problem, and how a transaction-based revenue model might untangle a seasonal billing headache.</p><p>We recorded in person again, the rain is visible through the window, Cameron’s deep into <em>Justified,</em> and JDM is watching Harrison Ford gracefully exit <em>Shrinking</em>.</p><p>And, as always, thanks for listening.</p><p>—Cameron and JDM</p><p>Timestamps</p><p>00:00 Intro </p><p>02:15 Live Q: When to hold firm vs. concede on pricing</p><p>10:30 Q2: Building momentum before MVP launch</p><p>20:00 Q3: Getting sherlocked by the franchisor</p><p>25:00 Q4: 4 out of 11 pilot conversions and what the split actually means</p><p>30:30 Q5: Union workers who don’t buy their own software</p><p>36:00 Q6: Seasonality, and when to charge</p><p>43:30 Frivolous Thoughts: the future of TV (which is now)</p> <br/><br/>This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://zerototraction.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_1">zerototraction.substack.com</a>
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48 MIN