How Chris Scaled G2 in APAC

Welcome to Maven Club.

Maven Club is one of the fastest growing communities for serious startup builders. We talk to founders and GTM/Product leaders and share their real playbooks and key learnings—stuff you won’t find on LinkedIn.

Today, we break down the journey of Chris Perrine—a veteran B2B leader who helped G2, the world’s largest B2B tech review platform, expand across Asia Pacific from scratch.

From co-founding Springboard Research (acquired by Forrester) to building G2’s APAC presence, Chris has spent 28 years working across Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Australia. As G2’s first hire in APAC, he grew the team, built revenue from the ground up, and drove over 33% of global traffic from the region—all while bootstrapping the operation at the start.

(Before you keep reading, follow us on LinkedIn, X and Youtube to hear more insights from real builders!

Also, move us to your primary box so that you will not miss future insights. You can do it by simply hitting the 3 dots at the top right corner, click “Move” to then “Primary”.)

Here’s how he did it—and the powerful, tactical lessons founders can apply today. Enjoy!

1. How to Build a GTM Engine With No Budget

"We got limited working capital at first and we had to basically eat what we killed."

When Chris launched G2’s APAC operation, he had no team, no budget, and no brand awareness in the region. Instead of waiting for a perfect setup, he focused on fundamentals—targeting the right accounts and maximizing every outreach.

What worked:

• Data-first targeting: Chris didn’t chase logos—he chased behavior. For example, they prioritized a 20-person startup that gathered 30 reviews in a month, because it showed strong belief in the power of reviews.

• High-conviction outreach: G2’s own data was turned into insights and shared with prospects—making every email valuable, even if it didn’t lead to a reply immediately.

Founder Takeaways:

• Start with the highest-propensity users, not the biggest names.

• Your product or internal data might already contain the insights you need for effective outreach.

• Make every interaction value-driven—even cold emails should teach, not pitch.

2. When Cold Emails Fail, Change the Content—Not the Channel

"Our early emails were being ignored. So we turned them into insight-packed, educational notes."

Like many startups, G2 struggled with low engagement from early email campaigns. Junior reps weren’t trained to speak to CMOs, and content felt generic. Instead of abandoning email, Chris reinvented the format.

What worked:

• Educational, non-salesy content: They shifted to sending industry benchmarks, category data, and competitive insights.

• Built-in credibility: Recipients began using G2's insights internally—even when they didn’t reply to sales emails.

Founder Takeaways:

• Don’t kill the channel—improve the content. Most emails fail because they’re unhelpful.

• Lead with value, not a pitch. If your emails were leaked publicly, would people find them useful?

3. Social Proof Isn’t Just Vanity—It’s a GTM Strategy

"We can really celebrate our customers when they hit a milestone—and that promotion has worked really well for us."

Chris used one of G2’s greatest assets—review data—to help vendors build credibility. G2 promoted customer wins like reaching the #1 spot in a category or hitting review milestones.

What worked:

• Authentic validation: These were based on real reviews, so vendors loved the credibility.

• Demand creation: Vendors began requesting these posts in contracts, seeing them as critical to brand building.

Founder Takeaways:

• Use customer proof as a demand driver, not just a feel-good moment.

• Build GTM tactics around third-party validation—it has more weight than your own claims.

• Turn success into social content your customers want to be part of.

4. Events That Actually Work: Small, Focused, Peer-Led

"People open up when they’re in a room with peers who’ve faced the same problems."

Instead of hosting large webinars or generic panels, G2 focused on running intimate, topic-specific events. These weren’t sales pitches—they were peer-to-peer learning sessions.

What worked:

• Role-specific focus: Events grouped attendees with similar functions and challenges.

• Real talk, not case studies: Attendees shared unfiltered experiences on what worked and what didn’t.

Founder Takeaways:

• Big events often lead to small insights. Small events lead to big conversations.

• The best community is built around shared problems—not polished presentations.

• If you’re building in B2B, consider events as a GTM engine—not just a brand exercise.

5. Crack New Markets With Education, Not Discounting

"We bootstrapped out here. I was the salesperson for the first four months before we hired anybody."

APAC was a very different beast from the US. Smaller vendors were less familiar with review platforms and far more price-sensitive. Chris didn’t lower prices—he increased education.

What worked:

• Over-invested in content: Chris built more APAC content than what was made for the US and Europe combined.

• Localized tactics: Events in Australia included tactics like how adding a G2 badge increased conversions by 84%.

Founder Takeaways:

• Education > Discounting. Don’t lower your price—raise your customer’s understanding.

• Build region-specific playbooks. What works in the US may flop in Southeast Asia.

• Teaching customers how to win with your product is a growth lever.

6. Solving the Cold Start Problem: Think Like a Detective

"We’d go on LinkedIn and track down who might be using a tool, then ask them to review it."

To grow traffic in underdeveloped categories, G2 had to overcome a chicken-and-egg problem—no reviews meant no traffic, and no traffic meant no reviews.

What worked:

• Manual review seeding: They tracked down users on LinkedIn and invited them to review.

• Category focus: They picked categories with a large vendor base but weak review presence to gain early traction.

Founder Takeaways:

• Don’t wait for user-generated content—seed it manually to get the flywheel moving.

• Niche categories with low competition can become power plays if you move early.

• Growth in B2B starts with unscalable work.

7. What Makes a Great First Sales Hire

"The best reps follow process. But they also let their personality come through."

Chris had to build the APAC sales team from scratch. His ideal early reps were hybrids—part strategist, part closer.

What worked:

• Process + personality: He looked for people who could follow a playbook, but adapt it.

• Curiosity > charisma: Chris prioritized curiosity. Curious reps dig deeper, learn faster, and close better.

• Market-aware: Reps had to understand not just the product, but the ecosystem (e.g., shifts like cookie deprecation).

Founder Takeaways:

• Don’t hire closers—hire thinkers who can also close.

• Early salespeople need to love the problem, not just the pitch.

• Your first hires will shape culture. Hire slow, and hire curious.

Final Thought: Distribution Is the Real Differentiator
Chris didn’t win APAC by outspending the competition—he won by understanding the market better, building trust through education, and using every small advantage strategically.

For founders, especially in underdog positions, the lesson is clear: Growth is not about more tools, more ads, or more hires. It’s about making smarter bets with the resources you already have.

If this strategy speaks to you, double down on clarity, relevance, and focus. It’s not about how loud your startup is—it’s about how useful it is.

For more content like this, follow us on LinkedIn, X and Youtube!

Until next time,
Maven Club