Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 6 days ago
At Together Toronto, Mahbod "Moe" Sabbaghi, Co-Founder & COO of The Intelligent Search Company (TISC), shares how his team pivoted from selling to swimming pool marketplaces to building AI-powered search for basketball coaches - and the unconventional sales tactic that turned free users into paying customers.
Moe's biggest insight: don't sell the product, sell the career win. By aligning with assistant coaches' ambitions rather than pitching features, TISC built real stickiness - and proved product-market fit by simply turning off free access and watching who came back.
This talk is essential viewing for early-stage founders figuring out go-to-market, product pivots, and how to close your first paying customers in a crowded AI market.
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📅 Explore upcoming TechTO events: techto.org/events Watch more talks: youtube.com/c/TechTorontoOrg
Upcoming events: techto.org/events
Events calendar: luma.com/TechTO-Events
Newsletter — The read on Canadian tech: blog.techto.org
Membership: techto.org/memberships
At Together Toronto, Mahbod "Moe" Sabbaghi, Co-Founder & COO of The Intelligent Search Company (TISC), shares how his team pivoted from selling to swimming pool marketplaces to building AI-powered search for basketball coaches - and the unconventional sales tactic that turned free users into paying customers.
Moe's biggest insight: don't sell the product, sell the career win. By aligning with assistant coaches' ambitions rather than pitching features, TISC built real stickiness - and proved product-market fit by simply turning off free access and watching who came back.
This talk is essential viewing for early-stage founders figuring out go-to-market, product pivots, and how to close your first paying customers in a crowded AI market.
🔔 Subscribe for more real founder stories from TechTO
📅 Explore upcoming TechTO events: techto.org/events Watch more talks: youtube.com/c/TechTorontoOrg
Upcoming events: techto.org/events
Events calendar: luma.com/TechTO-Events
Newsletter — The read on Canadian tech: blog.techto.org
Membership: techto.org/memberships
