From Side Project to 10,000 Customers: Aclaimant’s Journey to Product-Market Fit
Most successful B2B companies don’t start with a fully formed vision. Sometimes, they begin with a father-in-law’s app idea and a healthy dose of skepticism. In a recent episode of Category Visionaries, David Wald shared how Aclaimant evolved from a weekend project to serving 10,000 organizations across North America.
The Unlikely Beginning
When Michael Schultz, a 35-year insurance industry veteran, approached his daughter’s boyfriend with an app idea, David’s initial reaction was telling: “Oh, my God, what could possibly go right with me starting work to work with my girlfriend’s father?”
But Michael’s industry expertise and persistence eventually won out. As David recalls: “He has been part of agencies and carriers and TPAs and all the things that make the world go around in the insurance space.” Together with Joel Friedman as CTO, they began building the product nights and weekends.
The Breakthrough Moment
The transition from side project to real company happened faster than anyone expected. “Six months into working this, we had a chance to pitch three huge companies: Kelly Services, CNA and the Navy,” David shares. “And out of nowhere, nights and weekend project for six months, all three companies said, this is great. Let’s get it in procurement.”
This early validation from major enterprises revealed a crucial insight: there was significant demand for modern risk management tools, even in traditional industries.
Finding Their Market Focus
Initially, Aclaimant took a narrow approach to market entry. “Our thought was we’re going to just find staffing firms and insurance agencies that like our product,” David explains. This focused strategy helped them build deep expertise in specific verticals before expanding.
The market itself was evolving in their favor. “The past five years alone. Pick your poison. COVID, supply chain, severe weather, political instability, you name it, rising amounts of people working, remote wages going up. All these things make it a lot more difficult and potentially risky to run businesses.”
The Mid-Market Opportunity
A key realization shaped their growth: risk management challenges weren’t just affecting major enterprises anymore. These issues were impacting businesses of all sizes, from “your 100 person almond farmer or your 75 person construction firm.”
This insight led to a crucial pivot in their market positioning. Rather than competing directly with enterprise RMIS providers, they focused on democratizing risk management tools for the middle market.
Building Trust Through Expertise
Success in the risk management space required more than just good technology. “We live in a world that is highly regulated, that is full of expert practitioners who know their stuff,” David notes. Even small mistakes in terminology could derail sales conversations: “You’d use the word claims or work comp and you get a sideways lesson.”
Their response was to lean heavily into industry expertise and education. Rather than pushing products, they focused on empowerment. “You can’t beat people into being safer,” David explains. “You really have to have them understand that they have a choice and they can choose to better.”
The Growth Formula
Today, Aclaimant’s approach to growth is considerably more sophisticated. “Right now we run a very data driven inbound referral and channel strategy on our go to market that’s very driven using targeting and tech tools,” David shares. They look for specific signals that indicate when companies are ready to invest in safety and risk management.
The ultimate validation of their product-market fit came through steady expansion beyond their initial target markets. Today, they serve organizations ranging from small businesses to major enterprises like Caesars Entertainment and Carvana.
Key Lessons for Founders
Aclaimant’s journey to product-market fit offers several valuable insights:
- Start narrow but stay alert to market expansion opportunities
- Let existing expertise guide your early market entry
- Pay attention to how external factors affect your market
- Build credibility before attempting to scale
- Focus on empowerment rather than fear-based selling
For founders building complex B2B products, Aclaimant’s evolution from side project to market leader demonstrates the importance of combining deep industry expertise with modern technology solutions. Their story shows that finding product-market fit isn’t just about building the right product – it’s about understanding your market deeply enough to serve it effectively.