The story so far

Over the past decade, I've worked with startups and scaleups in the Seed to Series B stage range, focusing on Growth (the intersection of Marketing and Product).

Before that, my experience working in Marketing for two listed betting operators paved my focus on Growth and PLG.

There, we faced lots of pressure to meet targets and provide regular dividends to shareholders. I learned that marketing is about delivering on targets and bringing in happy customers and revenue.

While in charge of the Acquisition and Activation teams for Sportingbet/Entain, I was increasingly obsessed with data analysis, identifying growth loops and mitigating customer friction points.

The PLG frameworks naturally led me to transition from heavy reliance on paid media to building a Product-Led business.

It was time to move on and pursue my passion for problem-solving and building solutions.

Since then, I've worked with B2C and B2B SaaS startups and scaleups in Fintech, Gig Economy, marketplaces, HR Tech, and EdTech.

I led Growth at Head-of or C-level capacity at four companies and experienced the rollercoaster of startup life.

Some startups I worked with succeeded (two exited), while others hit the wall. I've learned invaluable lessons from both successes and failures.

And then it's when 8percent Growth comes in.

I find joy and adrenaline in growing businesses. I also love using my knowledge and expertise to grow the metrics, mitigate mistakes, and inspire teams to help them improve - individually and as a group.

8percent Growth is the instrument to fulfil my passion and provide solutions to startup and scaleup growth challenges.

Pablo Asensio - Growth and Markering Leader - CGO, CMO, Advisor, startups

So, what's in a name?

In Paul Graham's celebrated seminal 2012 essay Startup = Growth, the Co-founder of Y Combinator says:

During Y Combinator we measure growth rate per week, partly because there is so little time before Demo Day, and partly because startups early on need frequent feedback from their users to tweak what they're doing. A good growth rate during YC is 5-7% a week.

This benchmark has stayed with me since, and my ambition to meet and exceed targets has been a driving force throughout my career.

I strive to be better than good and aim for an 8% growth rate WoW instead of that 5-7%, yet a reasonable stretch compared to -let's say- growing 80% WoW, pushing boundaries while staying realistic. Happy customers, happy team, happy investors.

This led to the creation of 8percent Growth, with a mission to use data and PLG to acquire customers, generate revenue, exceed targets, and drive growth.

And I want other startups and scaleups to grow with my expertise and knowledge.

Work/Life

What's it like working with me?

My core values best convey it: integrity, humility, ownership, authenticity, and, of course, growth.

These values shape my working style, have helped me exceed targets, and earned me the respect of my teams, peers, and managers/founders.

There are a few things that don't sit well with me: silos, red tape, vanity (whether in metrics or people), insincerity, and stagnation.

I thrive in environments that foster collaboration, challenge the status quo, and promote progress and innovation.

What am I like outside of work?

I was born and raised in Asturias, Northern Spain, but I left for three months after finishing Uni and never returned. I have lived in the UK, Sweden, and Portugal.

London has been Home for the past two decades, and I live here with my partner and our daughter.

While I love my work, I also cherish my spare time.

My extended family is very international; thus, travelling and languages are two of my interests.

You can also find me cycling, enjoying food, making artisan coffee, socialising with friends, listening to all sorts of music or suffering Real Oviedo’s fate.

I'm always looking to meet great people, so feel free to connect on LinkedIn or let's have a chat!

Some companies I’ve worked with

Testimonials

  • "Pablo's exceptional skills, dedication, and humility played a crucial role in transforming Appjobs into a profitable business. His intelligence and methodical approach enabled the platform's growth, while his leadership nurtured a collaborative and inclusive environment. "

    Alok Alström, CEO, Appjobs

  • “Pablo was tasked with leading the marketing team and improving our CPA/lead generation processes. He brought an innovative, highly-professional and robust approach and was a valuable addition across the board. Respected by his reports, trusted by colleagues, Pablo made a positive commercial impact in a relatively short space of time.”

    Margaret Garrard, Managing Director, Optimus Education

  • "You will find integrity, hard work and critical thinking in Pablo. His cultural arsenal is able to make people admire him and his data-driven team management style makes him a very strong leader to work with."

    Bertan Baytekin, COO and Co-Founder, Appjobs

  • "Pablo brought his holistic view of marketing and gravitas to CrowdScores contributing to our growth over a challenging transitional period. His enthusiasm and inside out knowledge of digital were a great asset for the company as he managed and mentored the Marketing and Business Development teams."

    David Walker, CEO and Founder, Crowdscores

  • Tomasz NerdCow

    "Not only Pablo was on point with every advice, he also took extra time to make sure I'm clear on the next steps. He came prepared for our call, which was an amazing initiative. I appreciated his outside-of-the-box thinking to solve my problem. It's clear to me that Pablo is the kind of person who "been there, done that" multiple times. He draws from his vast experience to help you avoid mistakes and set you on the right path. I can't recommend him enough! Go talk to him!"

    Tomasz Lisiecki, Founder and CEO, Nerdcow

  • Margot helloaudience

    "Just had my first session with Pablo and I am feeling so energized! He sent questions prior to our chat and set expectations at the beginning of the call to make sure I still wanted to cover the same things. It is clear that he has a ton of knowledge and passion for B2B marketing and growing marketplaces; he gave me a ton of specific and actionable feedback and growth tips for my directory website that I can't wait to implement. I found him to be thoughtful and authentic, and his positive energy is absolutely infectious as well. Thank you!"

    Margot Leong, Founder and CEO, helloaudience

  • Veli RevenueOS

    "My session with Pablo was incredibly insightful. He thoroughly prepared by reviewing my challenges in advance and posed clarifying questions that deepened our discussion. The learning began even before our meeting officially started, and his enthusiasm genuinely encouraged me. Look forward to our next session."

    Veli Burak Celen, Co-Founder, RevenueOs.io

Some results

Stagnated Growth

€925k to €3M

— ARR increase for a B2B SaaS, HR tech

Scale up Growth

120%

— Customer acquisition increase (vs target of 75%) for a B2C, gaming

Product-Led Growth

45% and 26%

— Growth in ARR and leads, respectively (and CAC went down 48%) for a B2B SaaS, EdTech