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🎰 I BEAT THE HOUSE | Ex-CPO & 3X Founder | I Can Build & I Can Sell Ex-CPO & 3× SaaS founder — I do the critical thinking work that others hand off to AI. Like Danny Ocean in Ocean’s 11, I'm drawn to impossible problems — beating the house always seemed more interesting than playing it safe. Most consultants optimize for vanity metrics; I uncover the true drivers that compound into growth. The stuff that you need to know to beat the house. (The house being the algorithms, brands with damn near unlimited funding, competitors jockeying your every move.) THREE THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW 1. I'm a 3x founder — I've started companies from scratch, raised capital, and lived the zero-to-one grind. But I've also been Lead PM and CPO at venture-backed startups (HOFr - $15M raise, myKaarma - $1.1B+ payments, RepairSmith - Daimler-backed). I know what it's like to build with someone else's money and my own. 2. At RepairSmith, we burned $100K/month on ads getting 20-21 leads but only 1-2 converted. I didn't optimize the ads. I rebuilt the funnel, the CRM, and the entire customer journey. Long story short -- they went from dumpster fire to successful acquisition. 3. Neuroscience degree from USC. When I design a flow, I'm asking: Does this click trigger dopamine or decision fatigue? Does this copy reduce loss aversion or amplify it? Most designers are guessing. I'm not. HERE'S WHAT I KNOW ABOUT YOU You're spending money on something that's not working. Maybe it's ads that don't convert. Maybe it's a product users don't stick with. Maybe it's a funnel that leaks at every step. Maybe you're a pre-revenue company with no clue how to position or story-tell going into fundraise. You've tried fixing it. You've hired people. You've read the articles. And you're still here, on Upwork, looking for someone who actually gets it. I get how stressful it is. I've hired on Upwork before — mid-project, my contractor got kicked off the platform. I never got the deliverable. That sucked. I had to tell my client, and I saw the disappointment in their eyes. They questioned whether this platform was worth using at all. I've been on that side, which is why I care more about doing a great job than collecting a check. I'm building my Upwork profile right now, so you're getting CPO-level thinking at freelancer pricing. If I can help you solve your problem and make your stress vanish — let's talk.

I'm a product and marketing strategist with over 20 years of experience across consumer apps, e-commerce platforms, and enterprise software, including director-level roles at companies like T-Mobile, where I worked on the flagship consumer app serving millions of users. I also own and operate a retail franchise store that consistently ranks among the top performing locations in Washington state, and I run all of its marketing across Meta ads, SEO, TikTok, Whatnot, and in-store events. That combination of corporate product experience and real-world business ownership shapes how I think about every engagement. I care about revenue, margins, and what actually works. I work best with teams and business owners who need someone who can own both the strategic and execution sides without requiring a lot of hand-holding. What I typically help with: - Marketing, product, and business consultation - Product roadmapping and prioritization - Go-to-market strategy and launch planning - Multi-channel marketing, brand strategy and execution - Growth and conversion optimization - Data analysis to identify what is driving or hurting performance - Stakeholder alignment across engineering, marketing, and business I'm based in the Pacific Northwest, work async-friendly, and communicate directly. Let's talk.

...do you have a have a startup idea that you need to validate & build? ...or an existing business that you need to fine tune with research & development, to be Go To Market Ready? Hello I'm Elissa & thank you for visiting my profile! I am a 5★ UpWork Expert Vetted All-In-One startup and business consultant from Arizona, United States, and in the past 15+ years, I've have partnered with over 250+ founders around the world to achieve startup success in various stages of development: DISCOVER, PLAN, LAUNCH & GROW STAGES. No matter where you are in your startup journey, I provide all resources from A-Z. ***Let's set up a free (15-min) call to discuss your needs, and set up a game plan*** MY EXPERTISE AT A GLANCE: ★ Market Research & Feasibility Analysis: Actionable insights to validate and refine your business ideas. ★ Startup MVP Development: From concepting to wireframing, ensuring your product meets market needs. ★ Strategic Business Planning: End-to-end business plans, financial modeling, and investor-ready pitch deck presentations. ★ Branding & Positioning: Unique strategies that make your brand stand out in competitive markets. ★ Go-to-Market Strategy: Execution plans tailored to target demographics, including customer journey optimization. HIGHLIGHTS OF SUCCESS: ★ $10M+ investor funding unlocked for various clients with market-ready business plans. ★ Led 250+ startups to success, including SaaS, tech, healthcare, and consumer brands. ★ Empowered WIN Energy Drink to refine its buyer personas, optimize feasibility studies, and craft an investor-winning pitch deck. ★ Partnered with LocalFarmOK to build a robust urban farm event business plan, attracting new markets and investors. CLIENT FEEDBACK SPEAKS VOLUMES: “Her business plan and market insights transformed our pitch deck into a winning tool. Within months, we secured our first round of funding!” – Local Farm OK, Founder “Elissa's guidance on scaling our MVP saved us six months of trial and error. A game-changer for our operations.” – WIN Energy Drink, CEO WHY CHOOSE ME? ★ Over 15 years of startup experience and entrepreneurial excellence ★ Expert Vetted by UpWork, having coached over 250+ startups worldwide ★ "Quality and professional" work is the core standard for all deliverables ★ Proven ability to drive long-term growth while mitigating risks ★ Transparent, collaborative, and committed to your success HOW CAN WE START? Book a free (15-min) consultation call today to discuss your business goals. Together, let’s: ★ Solve your most pressing challenges. ★ Align your vision with a data-backed strategy. ★ Create results that make your startup thrive. Ready to elevate your business? Let’s start now.

Thank you for visiting my Upwork "Top-Rated" profile. I'm a 3x founder and 3x Senior Executive at publicly-traded companies with deep experience across Growth/GTM, Finance, Product Management, and Strategy. I help companies launch and scale market-dominating products. I work with companies on: - Growth/Go-to-Market Strategies - Product Roadmaps/Strategy - Technical Writing (business plans/go-to-market playbooks/feasibility studies) Although I have a lot of experience in investor fundraising (I'm an angel investor myself and ran due diligence for a large angel syndicate) I do not offer investor introductions, outreach, or success-fee-based fundraising, since founders should generally do this work themselves. I engage with clients through: - Fractional leadership (CPO, COO, CFO) - Growth Audits I'm always happy to hop on a call if your project is well structured and you are ready to be collaborative/coachable. Please check out the already established projects I offer for quick ways to get started working with me.

🎯 I turn raw ideas into AI-powered products investors back & users love • Ex-Google & NGINX engineer, • Top-1% Upwork "Expert-Vetted" freelancer, • AI / full-stack architect with 100 + shipped products powering 1 M+ monthly users and helping founders raise $30 M+. 🚀 RESULTS * SaaS platforms & mobile apps that closed $50 M+ in VC rounds * AI agents & RAG chatbots saving 1000s of staff hours monthly across law, procurement, healthcare & finance * Digital products delivering 1 M+ monthly active users and 7-figure ARR growth 🤝 WHY FOUNDERS HIRE ME * Investor-ready builds - Planning to raise? I understand what it takes to impress VCs - from demo-day-ready UX to scalable architecture that holds up under due diligence. * Battle-tested delivery – 10 + years of experience with Google, NGINX/F5 & high-growth startups * Speed without chaos – Lean scope, fast reliable launches, clear milestones, weekly demos, * no-surprise invoices. * Built-in AI edge – Ship smarter products faster with AI agents, RAG, fine-tuned LLMs, and vector search - without hiring a separate ML team. * True partnership – Aligned with your business goals: product strategy, UX polish, post-launch optimization, and VC + go-to-market support (AI-driven SEO, ChatGPT/Google/Bing indexing, ads, directories) – not just coding. 🗺️ MY PROVEN PROCESS TO BUILD SAAS 1. Discovery → AI opportunity mapping & success metrics (BRD, wireframes, technical architecture) 2. Clickable Prototype → Investor-ready demo in 7-14 days 3. Incremental Build → Weekly value drops with real-time staging links 4. Launch & Iterate → Observability, A/B tests, cost & latency tuning 📞 NEXT STEP Ready to turn your vision into reality? Invite me to your job or drop a message for a free strategy call. Let's build something investors fund and users rave about -together. 🔧 TECH STACK React / Next.js • React Native & Flutter • Python, FastAPI • Prisma & tRPC • PostgreSQL, Supabase • AWS Bedrock, GCP Vertex • OpenAI GPT, Anthropic Claude • LangChain, LangGraph, LlamaIndex • Pinecone, Weaviate • WebGPU & WASM • MCP, A2A, n8n, Clawdbot, Make . com automations • Docker & Kubernetes

✨ Top Rated | Top 1% in Market Research & Go-To-Market Strategies on Upwork ✨ $170K+ earned on Upwork (personal + agency) | 100% Job Success | 5-Star Reviews ✨ Built SaaS from 0 → $1M+ ARR | Advanced Certified Scrum Product Owner (A-CSPO) ✨ AI Product & GTM Strategist for B2B SaaS, FinTech, and Startups I help founders and product teams answer one question: where should AI fit in your product and go-to-market — and how do you ship it without burning six months of runway? After 10+ years building and scaling products (one SaaS from $0 to $1M+ ARR in its first year) and 50+ Upwork engagements with 100% client satisfaction, I've focused on a sharp specialty: AI-era product strategy, go-to-market execution, and market intelligence for companies that want a senior operator on the call — not a deck. ═══════════════════════════════════ WHAT I DO BEST ═══════════════════════════════════ 🔹 AI Readiness Audit + 90-Day Roadmap — I assess your product, market, and team, then deliver a prioritized roadmap of where AI creates real value and where it doesn't. Built for founders tired of generic "AI strategy" PDFs. 🔹 Go-To-Market Strategy Sprints — Positioning, ICP, pricing, channel strategy, and launch plan. I've personally taken a SaaS from $0 to $1M+ ARR; I'll show you what actually works, not what sounds good. 🔹 Market Research & Competitive Intelligence — Deep competitor analysis, ICP validation, willingness-to-pay studies, and AI-augmented research that surfaces what traditional analysts miss. Top 1% on Upwork in this category. 🔹 AI Product Strategy Consultations — One-on-one calls for founders and PMs working through AI roadmap decisions, MVP scoping, or feature prioritization. 🔹 Fractional Product Leadership — Hands-on AI/PM support for early-stage SaaS: roadmaps, backlog, MVP scoping, and stakeholder alignment. ═══════════════════════════════════ HOW I'M DIFFERENT ═══════════════════════════════════ 🛠 I'm a builder, not just a consultant. I'm currently building my own B2B SaaS using AI-assisted development (Claude Code, Next.js, Supabase). I know what's hard to ship, what's hype, and what's worth your runway. 🛠 Senior delivery, no hand-off to juniors. I take every client call and own every strategic deliverable. For implementation builds, I bring a vetted technical team (AI engineers, automation specialists), so you get one accountable point of contact. 🛠 Domain depth across B2B SaaS, FinTech, EdTech, and Marketplaces. I've founded two companies (an EdTech with 1,300+ students; a 2-city robotics academy) and helped dozens of clients sharpen product-market fit. ═══════════════════════════════════ CORE COMPETENCIES ═══════════════════════════════════ - AI Product Strategy & Roadmapping - AI Integration & Readiness Assessment - Generative AI Use-Case Discovery - Go-To-Market Strategy & Launch Execution - Market Research & Competitive Intelligence - Product Management (Agile/Scrum, A-CSPO) - MVP Scoping & Feature Prioritization - ICP Definition, Positioning & Pricing - Growth Strategy & KPI Frameworks - Startup Advisory & Pitch Preparation ═══════════════════════════════════ CREDENTIALS ═══════════════════════════════════ 💡 Advanced Certified Scrum Product Owner (A-CSPO, Scrum Alliance) 💡 AI for Product Management (Pendo + Mind the Product, 2026) 💡 Bachelor's Degree in Enterprise Economics 💡 Professional Management Certificate (Tallinn School of Management) ═══════════════════════════════════ RECENT 5-STAR WINS ON UPWORK ═══════════════════════════════════ ◾ SaaS Go-To-Market Plan & Funnel Design — $3,100 — "Professional, responsive, and easy to work with throughout the entire project." ◾ Detailed Research Project — $2,352 — "You are so fantastic… the single best contract worker I have ever [worked with]." ◾ Digital Transformation Advisory — $1,950 — "Strategic skills, quality of work, and professionalism exceeded expectations." ◾ MVP Planning & Feature Scoping — $1,750 — "Sharp business acumen and clear, logical thinking." ═══════════════════════════════════ If you're a founder or product leader figuring out where AI fits in your roadmap — or if you need senior GTM judgment to launch faster — let's talk. I respond within 8 hours and offer free 15-minute scoping calls for serious projects.