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Growing an App to 1M Paid Subscribers — Ron Schneidermann, AllTrails
Description
On the podcast, we talk with Ron about the magic of consumer subscriptions, experimenting with freemium strategies, and how private equity isn’t always as bad as you’ve been led to believe.
Our guest today is Ron Schneidermann, CEO at AllTrails, the ultimate guide for outdoor adventures. AllTrails was early to the consumer subscription space, launching a $3/month premium tier way back in 2012. Ron joined as CMO and COO in 2015, and then took over as CEO in 2019, helping to grow AllTrails to over 1 million subscribers and tens of millions of active users worldwide.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
- How to refine and optimize your freemium strategy
- Two things you need to keep an eye on as a founder
- The pros & cons of outside funding vs. organic growth
- How Ron fast-tracked AllTrails’ profitability
Links & Resources
Ron Schneidermann’s Links
- Ron Schneidermann’s LinkedIn page
- AllTrails Celebrates 1 Million Paid Subscribers! (January press release)
- AllTrails’ website
- AllTrails is hiring
- Follow AllTrails on Twitter
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Episode Transcript
00:00:00 David:
Our guest today is Ron Schneidermann, CEO at AllTrails, the ultimate guide for outdoor adventures, AllTrails was early to the consumer subscription space, launching a $3 per month premium tier, way back in 2012. Ron joined as CMO and COO in 2015, and then took over as CEO in 2019, helping to grow AllTrails to over 1 million subscribers and tens of millions of active users world.
On the podcast, we talk with Ron about the magic of consumer subscriptions, experimenting with freemium strategies, and how private equity isn’t always as bad as you’ve been led to believe.
Hey, Ron! Welcome to the podcast.
00:00:59 Ron:
Thanks for having me.
00:01:00 David:
Yeah. Really looking forward to the chat today. I wanted to kick it off, and most people know what AllTrails is, and it’s a fantastic brand. It kind of tells you what it is right there on the tin. What’s your pitch? We’re in 2021, post pandemic.
Give us the short version of what AllTrails is. What does it mean?
00:01:21 Ron:
Yeah. So AllTrails is a free app and website that helps you find trails all over the globe, so you can spend more time enjoying the outdoors, and spending time in nature.
00:01:34 David:
That’s awesome.
00:01:35 Jacob:
That’s a very nice mission. That’s way more beautiful than helping developers make more money. Both are important, but I can smell that. It smells, “piney” and I like it.
00:01:46 David:
Yeah, it smells like the Colorado forest. I haven’t been hiking f