The Dave Gerhardt Show (from Exit Five)

Building a Marketing Machine from Scratch (with Erin May, CMO at User Interviews)

20 snips
Mar 12, 2026
Guest
Erin May
Erin May, CMO who scaled User Interviews from a two-page site to $20M+ ARR, explains picking one niche audience and going all in. She reveals why ungated content and SEO-driven guides mattered. She describes quarterly "bangers" tentpoles, channel stacking, podcast ROI, and how AI changes content strategy.
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INSIGHT

Audience Research Is Timeless Despite Channel Shifts

  • The first principles of audience research never change even as channels evolve.
  • Erin still starts with who the audience is, does quick research, finds gaps, then chooses the right channel (now AEO/XEO rather than pure SEO).
ADVICE

Stack Channels Sequentially Not Simultaneously

  • Stack channels one at a time and focus on the few that drive the majority of pipeline.
  • Erin used a power-law approach: dominate two channels for 90% of pipeline while keeping a diversified portfolio to hedge risk.
ANECDOTE

Referral Program Failed Then Grew Into A Major Channel

  • A participant referral program failed initially but later became a major growth channel.
  • Erin tried incentivized referrals for participants; the first version failed but iterative attempts turned it into one of their biggest channels.
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