She answered a Random Facetime Call That Led to Co-founding The Yelp for Finance.

When Kimi Green left her corporate tech job in oil & gas, she didn’t exactly plan to co-found a directory for financial professionals. But after a side hustle with croissant donuts, a promising run club project, and a single FaceTime from Sam Parr, Sam’s List was born.

Today, the “Yelp for financial pros” has helped 300+ firms connect with business owners and high-net-worth clients, and has brought over $200K in revenue with $0 ad spend. I sat down with Kimi to hear how it all started, and why she’s betting big on SEO and relationships to take Sam’s List to $100M+.

1. Who are you and what do you do?

I’m Kimi Green, co-founder of Sam’s List. It’s basically Yelp for financial professionals. Business owners and high-net-worth individuals use it to find accountants, bookkeepers, fractional CFOs, and financial advisors.

2. What’s your backstory? How did you get here?

My career had nothing to do with Sam’s List. I started in tech within the oil & gas industry in Texas, climbing the corporate ladder and dreaming of becoming a CMO. Then COVID hit, and I realized I didn’t want to be 50 and miserable like everyone around me.

So I took an 80% pay cut to help a friend franchise his croissant donut business. That didn’t scale, but it taught me how to build something from scratch.

Next came a fractional real estate investing company, where I did analytics and investor relations. Around that time, I started tinkering with side projects: a women’s sports newsletter and a directory for run clubs.

Then Sam Parr tweeted he needed an accountant. The tweet blew up, and a few days later he FaceTimed me: “What if this became a business?”

We weren’t CPAs, but people were clearly desperate for good accountants. So we launched Sam’s List.

3. How did you meet Sam?

Two years earlier, I applied to be a researcher for his podcast. I made it to the final three but didn’t get the job. Later, I even applied to work at Hampton with a ridiculous 60-second video. They never saw it. Now I’m running his company with him. Funny how life works.

4. How did you get your first paying customers?

We had 100+ firms listed from our vetting process. I emailed six that stood out with and basically said, “Thanks for being on Sam’s List. We’re now monetizing. First come, first served. Lowest price we’ll ever offer. Pay here.”

Four signed up via PayPal that night. I literally cried when I saw the first payment hit.

5. What’s worked for attracting and retaining customers?

Results. We charge firms $5K for 20 leads. Many are seeing $50K+ in new client revenue from that, sometimes way more when you factor in LTV. Even clients who only close one lead often stick around because of the ongoing pipeline and referrals.

6. How’s the business doing today?

We’ve done $200K in revenue, all organic, no paid ads. But traffic is our bottleneck. To grow, we’re doubling down on SEO, content, and partnerships.

We’re also rolling out a tiered subscription model and premium $10K profiles, think G2-style pages that humanize firms with origin stories, podcasts, and team highlights. The goal is to make Sam’s List feel like a trusted word-of-mouth referral, at scale.

7. Will you ever run paid ads?

Maybe, but not yet. We’re focused on organic growth for now. If traffic and revenue grow like we hope, we’ll consider cranking it up later.

8. What’s the biggest misconception about your industry?

People think “accountant” means “tax person.” That's wrong. Most firms on our site don’t even want to do taxes unless you’re a high-net-worth individual or a business owner.

Accountants can handle bookkeeping, strategy, advisory, even act as your fractional CFO. But most people don’t know that because they’ve only ever met two accountants in their lives. I’ve met 300+ at this point, and even Big Four CPAs are shocked by what boutique firms offer.

9. Favorite tools?

We’re on Bubble (don’t recommend for SEO btw). Airtable runs our daily ops. Loops for email. Replit for lead magnets. And I just started exploring N8N for workflows. 

10. If you started a new business today, what would it be?

I’d fix the Black hair salon experience. Finding a stylist is an exhausting experience. I’d probably create a “Sam’s List” for hairstylists: a trusted directory where you can find high-quality professionals, see their work, and book online. It’s a massive, underserved market, and I already know tons of stylists struggling to market themselves online. 

11. What content are you loving right now?

I’m hooked on the Hot Smart Rich podcast. It’s full of founders breaking down how they built their businesses and the deals they’re working on. I also admire Emma Grede (Skims, Good American) and Erica Nardini (ex-Barstool). Both are strong, no-BS women operators who remind me to lead authentically.

And for some balance, Tim Keller’s “The Meaning of Marriage”. Not business-related, but it’s taught me a lot about relationships and staying grounded. Lessons I can bring into my work, too.

12. Best advice for entrepreneurs?

Just start. Stop overthinking and take the first step.

Also: stay grounded. This world is fleeting. On good days and bad days, I anchor myself in scripture to avoid getting lost in vanity metrics.

Final Takeaways

1. You don’t need the perfect background to start. Kimi went from oil & gas to donuts to directories.

2. Start scrappy: a simple email and PayPal link landed her first four customers.

3. Focus on results: their 20% conversion rate keeps customers coming back.

4. Know your bottleneck: Kimi’s obsessed with traffic because it’s the key to scaling.