Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech’s most innovative B2B founders. In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Dan Rua, CEO of Admiral, a visitor relationship management platform that has raised $28 Million in funding. Here are the most interesting points from our conversation: - Creating a New Martech Category with Visitor Relationship Management (VRM): Dan shares Admiral’s mission to help websites build visitor relationships amid the rise of privacy regulations and ad blockers, moving from ad-centric to relationship-centric digital experiences. - Founding Admiral from a Key Industry Shift: After observing the challenges facing publishers due to ad blockers, GDPR, and data privacy regulations, Dan and his team launched Admiral to provide media publishers with a tool for direct, valuable visitor relationships. - Insights from Early Adoption: Securing partnerships with major clients, such as PGA Tour, helped Admiral validate its VRM approach. Dan describes the importance of targeting early adopters who deeply understand the value of long-term audience relationships. - Building Flexibility for Publishers: Recognizing the diverse needs of audiences, Admiral created a flexible, modular approach to VRM, allowing publishers to choose modules—such as adblock recovery or subscription paywalls—to best meet the needs of various user segments. - Prioritizing a Land-and-Expand Sales Model: Inspired by HubSpot’s modular growth strategy, Admiral focuses on starting with one pain point solution and then expanding into other VRM modules once trust is established with customers. - Leveraging Analytics and AI for Automation: Dan explains that future development for Admiral centers on AI-driven automation to optimize visitor engagement, promising an “easy button” solution that intelligently manages visitor journeys to maximize value without complex manual intervention. // Sponsors: Front Lines — We help B2B tech companies launch, manage, and grow podcasts that drive demand, awareness, and thought leadership. www.FrontLines.io The Global Talent Co. — We help tech startups find, vet, hire, pay, and retain amazing marketing talent that costs 50-70% less than the US & Europe.  www.GlobalTalent.co