Qubole: From 19 Customers to a National Name
ICP & Positioning
From 19 Customers to a National Name
Four years in market with only 19 customers and a thin budget. We ran as the interim marketing team for ~18 months: rebuilt the ICP, messaging, and analyst positioning.
Key Results
- 5x increase in customers in three quarters
- Sales grew 600% YoY (per VP of Sales)
- $30M raise at step-up valuation
- CNBC Top 50 Disruptor
- No. 127 on Inc. 5000 (3,165% three-year growth)
The Challenge
In early 2015 The Artesian Network was recruited as the interim marketing team at Qubole. The company had been in market for four years with only 19 customers. Competitors outspent Qubole on outbound marketing by five orders of magnitude. The product’s positioning was confused within the analyst community. The sales team was blanketing the market indiscriminately, stretching a thin budget to breaking point.
What We Did
We developed a targeted “baited hook” approach: (1) Developed a carefully crafted Ideal Customer Profile. (2) Adjusted messaging and positioning. (3) Clarified company positioning with analysts. (4) Ignored prospects outside the ICP, conserving resources. We built a data model ranking the top 5,000 companies in North America, identifying 400 that matched the 25 variables of the ICP.
The Outcome
Changes from messaging and positioning were visible within four months. Sales inflected almost immediately. In just three quarters, the company closed the year with a 5x increase in customers. In 2017, Qubole placed No. 127 on the Inc. 5000 with three-year sales growth of 3,165%. The company became one of the most awarded in its industry, including CNBC’s Top 50 Disruptor alongside Spotify, Uber, and AirBnB. In January 2016, Qubole closed $30M in financing at a multiple of previous valuations. With a full-time marketing team recruited, The Artesian Network concluded its engagement in September 2016.