Listen Here

| |
Subscribe

Conversation
Highlights

 

Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech’s most innovative B2B founders. In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Nick Soman, CEO & Founder of Decent, a healthcare technology company that has raised $43 Million in funding.

Here are the most interesting points from our conversation:

  • Risk and Motivation: Nick secured the domain “Decent” by spending $60,000 from his home equity line, pushing himself to succeed with the venture by leveraging personal risk.
  • Broken Healthcare System: Healthcare is fundamentally flawed because incentives are built around raising costs rather than reducing them, with insurance companies benefiting from inefficiencies in the system.
  • Level Funded Health Plans: Decent offers an innovative solution by combining level-funded health plans and direct primary care, allowing even small businesses to self-insure and save up to 40% compared to traditional market rates.
  • Direct Primary Care Movement: Decent is riding the wave of the growing direct primary care movement, which allows doctors to focus on personalized care for fewer patients while reducing overall healthcare costs.
  • GTM Strategy Evolution: Initially, Decent struggled with messaging. They shifted from promoting direct primary care upfront to leading with cost savings, which significantly improved their sales success.
  • Scaling Through Brokers: Instead of bypassing brokers, Decent embraced them, building tech tools to empower them, which proved crucial for scaling and reaching more small businesses.

 

Actionable
Takeaways

Leverage Personal Risk to Drive Commitment:

Nick’s decision to spend $60,000 on the Decent domain from his home equity line wasn't just a financial move—it was a motivator. Founders can use personal stakes as powerful incentives to push forward with their ventures, ensuring that success isn’t just a preference but a necessity.

Lead with What Customers Care About Most:

Decent’s initial GTM strategy failed because they focused on promoting direct primary care before addressing their audience’s primary concern: cost. They found success by flipping the messaging—leading with cost savings before explaining the innovative care model. For founders, this highlights the importance of understanding and speaking to your customers’ most immediate needs before introducing new concepts.

Harness Market Movements for GTM Traction:

Decent positioned itself as a support system for the growing direct primary care movement, rather than trying to build the movement itself. Founders should look for existing trends or movements in their market that they can align with to gain traction, rather than creating demand from scratch.

The Power of Strategic Partnerships in Scale:

Instead of bypassing intermediaries, Decent embraced the broker channel, turning it into a strategic asset by building tools that make brokers more effective. For B2B founders, building partnerships with key industry players—rather than trying to disrupt them—can be an effective scaling strategy.

Get Hands-On with Sales to Refine Strategy:

Nick refined Decent’s GTM approach only after stepping into a sales role himself and directly facing customer objections. Founders should consider leading sales efforts at critical stages, as firsthand customer interaction provides invaluable insights that can rapidly improve product positioning and strategy.

Recommended Founder
Interviews

Itzik Cohen

Co-Founder and CEO of PayZen

Itzik Cohen, Co-Founder and CEO of PayZen: $240 Million Raised to Build the Future of Affordable Health Care

Listen now

Alex Zekoff

CEO and Co-Founder of Thoughtful AI

Alex Zekoff, CEO and Co-Founder of Thoughtful AI: $21 Million Raised to Power the Future of Healthcare Automation

Listen now

Stacy Edgar

CEO and Co-Founder of Venteur

Stacy Edgar, CEO & Co-Founder of Venteur: $7.6 Million Raised to Build the Future of Health Insurance

Listen now

Kourosh Davarpanah

Co-Founder and CEO of Inato

Kourosh Davarpanah, Co-Founder and CEO of Inato: Over $35 Million Raised to Build the Future of Clinical Trials

Listen now

Viral Patel

Founder and CEO of Radish Health

Viral Patel, CEO of Radish Health: $5 Million Raised to Connect Employees with a Better Healthcare Experience

Listen now

Elad Ferber

CEO & Co-Founder of Synthpop

Elad Ferber, CEO & Co-Founder of Synthpop: $8 Million Raised to Build the Future of Healthcare Administration with AI

Listen now

Amy Brown

CEO and Founder of Authenticx

Amy Brown, CEO and Founder of Authenticx: $28 Million Raised to Build the Future of Listening AI

Listen now

Ty Allen

CEO of SocialClimb

Ty Allen, CEO of SocialClimb: $12 Million Raised to Power the Future of Healthcare Marketing

Listen now

Aasim Saeed

CEO and Founder of Amenities Health

Aasim Saeed, CEO and Founder of Amenities Health: $10 Million Raised to Build the Future of Patient Engagement

Listen now

Alfred Griffin

CEO and Co-Founder of CEO and Co-Founder

Alfred Griffin, CEO and Co-Founder of LightForce: $150 Million Raised to Power the Future of Orthodontics

Listen now

Michael Gorton

Founder of Teladoc

Teladoc Founder Michael Gorton on the Early Days of Pioneering the Telemedicine Category (And What’s He’s Up to Next)

Listen now

Dipanwita Das

CEO and Co-Founder of Sorcero

Dipanwita Das, CEO and Co-Founder of Sorcero: Over $20 Million Raised to Power Medical Affairs Teams of the Future

Listen now

Austin McChord

CEO of Casana

Austin McChord, CEO of Casana: Over $46 Million Raised to Create the Future of In-Home Health Monitoring

Listen now

Rishi Nayyar

CEO and Co-Founder of PocketHealth

Rishi Nayyar, CEO and Co-Founder of PocketHealth: $22.5 Million Raised to Power the Future of Medical Image Sharing

Listen now

Joe Gagnon

CEO of 1upHealth

Joe Gagnon, CEO at 1upHealth: Over $75 Million Raised to Build the Future of Healthcare Data

Listen now

James Bates

CEO and Founder of AdviNOW Medical

James Bates, CEO and Founder of AdviNOW Medical: $24 Million Raised to Build the Future of AI-Powered Healthcare

Listen now

Trenor Williams

CEO and Co-Founder of Socially Determined

Trenor Williams, CEO and Co-Founder of Socially Determined: $34 Million Raised to Build the Social Risk Intelligence Category

Listen now

Brett Kleger

CEO of Datacubed Health

Brett Kleger, CEO of Datacubed Health: $43 Million Raised to Revolutionize Clinical Trial Data Collection

Listen now

Danny Freed

CEO & Founder of Blueprint

Danny Freed, CEO & Founder of Blueprint: $13.7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Therapist Enablement

Listen now

Dr. Nan-Wei Gong

CEO and Founder of FIGUR8

Dr. Nan-Wei Gong, CEO & Founder of FIGUR8: $40 Million Raised to Build the Future of Musculoskeletal Health and Injury Data Solutions

Listen now

Kyle Kiser

CEO of Arrive Health

Kyle Kiser, CEO of Arrive Health: Over $40 Million Raised to Improve the Value of Healthcare Through Informed Decision-Making

Listen now

Daniel Lambert

CEO of PathologyWatch

Daniel Lambert, CEO of PathologyWatch: Over $50 Million Raised to Build the Future of Digital Pathology

Listen now

Cesar Herrera

CEO and Co-Founder of Yuvo Health

Cesar Herrera, CEO and Co-Founder of Yuvo Health: $28 Million Raised to Revolutionize Healthcare Access

Listen now

Hala Borno

Founder and CEO of Trial Library

Hala Borno, Founder and CEO of Trial Library: $5M Raised to Improve Patient Recruitment and Diversity in Oncology Clinical Trials

Listen now

Justin Dearborn

Founder & CEO of Praia Health

Justin Dearborn, Founder & CEO of Praia Health: $20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Consumer Experience in Healthcare

Listen now

Andreas Cleve

CEO and Co-Founder of Corti

Andreas Cleve, CEO and Co-Founder of Corti: $32 Million Raised to Power the Future of Patient Consultations

Listen now

Brad Kittredge

CEO & Co-Founder of Brightside

Brad Kittredge, CEO & Co-Founder of Brightside: $150 Million Raised to Build the Future of Mental Healthcare

Listen now

Matt Renfro

Co-Founder & CEO of Lynx

Matt Renfro, CEO of Lynx: $17.5 Million raised to Bring Modern Fintech to Healthcare

Listen now

Armon Sharei

CEO & Founder of Portal

Armon Sharei, CEO & Founder of Portal: $5 Million Raised to Power the Future of Cell Engineering

Listen now

Derek Streat

Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Dexcare

Derek Streat, CEO of Dexcare: $110 Million Raised to Help Health Systems to Find Time for the Best Care

Listen now

Samson Magid

Co-Founder and CEO of HealthSnap

Samson Magid, Co-Founder and CEO of HealthSnap: Over $12 Million Raised to Build the Future of Remote Patient Monitoring

Listen now

Ben Albert

CEO & Co-Founder of Upfront Healthcare

Ben Albert, CEO & Co-Founder of Upfront Healthcare: $30 Million Raised to Power the Future of Patient Engagement

Listen now

Henry O’Connell

CEO & Founder of Canary Speech

Henry O’Connell, CEO & Founder of Canary Speech: $26 Million Raised to Build the Future of Vocal Biomarker Technology

Listen now

Dimitrios Skaltsas

CEO & Co-Founder of Intelligencia AI

Dimitrios Skaltsas, CEO & Co-Founder of Intelligencia AI: $15.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Drug Development

Listen now

Kevin Flyangolts

CEO and Founder of Aclid

Kevin Flyangolts, CEO & Founder of Aclid: $4 Million Raised to Build the Future of Biosecurity

Listen now

Joshua Miller

CEO and Co-Founder of Gradient Health

Joshua Miller, CEO & Co-Founder of Gradient Health: $5.7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Medical Imaging

Listen now

Amar Kendale

President and Co-Founder of Homeward

Amar Kendale, President & Co-Founder of Homeward: $70 Million Raised to Transform Rural Healthcare Through Technology

Listen now

Rafid Fadul

CEO and Co-Founder of Zivian Health

Rafid Fadul, CEO and Co-Founder of Zivian Health: $3 Million Raised to Power the Future of Compliant Healthcare Collaborations

Listen now

Kristen Valdes

CEO & Founder of B.well

Kristen Valdes, CEO & Founder of B.well: $100 Million Raised to Reimagine the Healthcare Experience

Listen now

Joseph Schneier

CEO of Trusty Care

Joseph Schneier, CEO of Trusty Care: $13+ Million Raised to Shape the Future of Medicare

Listen now

Senan Ebrahim

CEO & Founder of Delfina

Senan Ebrahim, CEO & Founder of Delfina: $10 Million Raised to Build the Future of Intelligent Pregnancy Care

Listen now

David King Lassman

Founder of GigXR

David King Lassman, Founder of GigXR: $7 Million Raised to Bring Immersive Learning to Healthcare

Listen now

Richard Queen

CEO and Co-Founder of DignifiHealth

Richard Queen, CEO and Co-Founder of DignifiHealth: $7 Million Raised to Drive Better Patient Outcomes in Rural Healthcare and Beyond

Listen now

Khaled Boukadoum

Founder of Torch Dental

Khaled Boukadoum, Founder of Torch Dental: $49.5 Million Raised to Transform Dental Supply Management Through Digital Innovation

Listen now

Dr Thomas Oakley

CEO of Feedback PLC

Dr Thomas Oakley, CEO of Feedback PLC: £20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Patient Data Sharing

Listen now

David Berry

CEO and Founder of Valo

David Berry, CEO and Founder of Valo: Over $500 Million Raised to Build the Future of Drug Discovery

Listen now

Vicky Demas

CEO of Identifeye Health

Vicky Demas, CEO of identifeye HEALTH: $90 Million Raised to Power the Future of Retinal Imaging

Listen now

Dilpreet Sahota

CEO of Trek Health

Dilpreet Sahota, CEO of Trek Health: $3 Million Raised to Help Mental Health Providers Accept Insurance

Listen now

Matthew Stoudt

CEO and Founder of AppliedVR

Matthew Stoudt, CEO and Founder of AppliedVR: Over $70 Million Raised to Build the Future of Chronic Pain Relief

Listen now

Ignacio Medrano

Founder & CMO of Savana

Ignacio Medrano, Founder & CMO of Savana: $44M Raised to Transform Healthcare Intelligence Through AI

Listen now

Brock Leonti

CEO & Co-Founder of Prescribe FIT

Brock Leonti, CEO & Co-Founder of Prescribe FIT: $15 Million Raised to Build the Future of Orthopedic Care

Listen now

Daniel West

CEO of Prospection

Daniel West, CEO of Prospection: $36 Million Raised to Build the Future of Patient-Centric Intelligence

Listen now

Mark Lehmkuhle

CEO & Founder of Epitel

Mark Lehmkuhle, CEO & Founder of Epitel: $20 Million Raised to Build the Future of Brain Health Monitoring

Listen now