Todd Watson is the owner and CEO of Showit, a popular no-code website builder and platform for designers and photographers. Todd is a native of Phoenix, Arizona where he started as a videographer before joining a friend in 2007 to create a scrappy software business that made inexpensive photo-presenting and sharing tools for photographers.
The Showit company was created when Todd took one of their two products and half the small team in 2010 to spin off Showit as an independent business. The small revenue from the small customer base and his own savings allowed them to rewrite Showit for the cloud and then continue their fanatic customer focus to keep growing every year—without any outside funding.
Now Showit is used by 35,000 designers, photographers, and small businesses as their website platform using its elegant “Photoshop-like” no-code visual builder. The Showit company is growing quickly every year and is profitable, yet Todd has no interest in taking outside funding or selling his beloved company.
In this episode, you’ll hear how Todd and the Showit team:
- Spun off Showit from a small software company, then rewrote the software from old Flash technology to new cloud software
- Serve and love their customers to create a fanatically loyal community that is expanding quickly without expensive marketing
- Recruit, engage, and empower their employees in creative ways that no funded software company ever would
- Never think about external funding or selling the company despite the company’s extraordinary value and potential
- Started with a fanatic niche focus on an underserved community and then expanded its market as the community grew
Showit Company Facts
- Number of Employees: 45 and growing
- Funding: Self-funded, now customer-funded
- Office Location: Gilbert, Arizona
- Founded: spun off and started as a new company in 2010
- Software Type: Small business no-code website builder
Links
The Practical Founders Podcast
Tune into the Practical Founders Podcast for weekly in-depth interviews with founders who have built valuable software companies—without big funding.
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The Practical Founders Podcast
Tune into the Practical Founders Podcast for weekly in-depth interviews with founders who have built valuable software companies—without big funding.
Subscribe to the Practical Founders Podcast using your favorite podcast app.
