Discover how Side Kick’s innovative marketing automation and sales automation strategies help online marketplace management SaaS companies in acquiring customers.

Introduction

Establishing a robust online marketplace is important for businesses who want to capitalise on the e-commerce boom. This blog is about how an online marketplace management SaaS company, powering vertical marketplace softwares from India, collaborates with Side Kick to overcome sales and marketing hurdles through simple marketing automation and sales automation workflows. We'll delve into the company’s market strategy, challenges, and how Side Kick's tailored outbound workflows will help.

About the Company

The company is known for its innovative solutions that power some of India’s largest vertical marketplaces. By offering a comprehensive dashboard similar to Amazon Seller Central, the company helps vendors effortlessly list products on merchant websites and manage orders. The company’s primary focus is on enhancing the functionality of existing e-commerce platforms through marketplace features suitable for C2C, B2C, and B2B interactions. Recently, the company has shifted its gaze towards the lucrative U.S. market, aiming to replicate its success by adapting to the unique needs and challenges of this new customer base.

Addressable Market, ICP, and Buying Personas

Addressable Market: The company targets businesses interested in launching or enhancing online marketplaces. The market segments they cater to include:

• Existing e-commerce platforms looking to add marketplace functionalities.

• New businesses aiming to establish online marketplaces.

• Sectors such as C2C, B2C, and B2B marketplaces, especially those exploring expansion into online marketplace features.

Ideal Customer Profile (ICP): The ideal customers for the company are:

• Businesses at various stages of marketplace implementation, from startups to established platforms.

• Entrepreneurs and enterprises focused on scaling their e-commerce capabilities.

Buyer Personas: Key decision-makers within these companies typically include:

• CEOs and CTOs who are pivotal in making strategic tech investments.

• Heads of e-commerce looking for scalable and efficient ecom solutions.

  
  

Sales and Marketing Challenges Faced

Conversion from Inbound to Outbound:

The company has been relying on inbound marketing strategies, which are not reliably scalable for their business model, especially as they look to expand internationally. They struggle with transitioning from an inbound model to implementing effective outbound marketing strategies, a method with which they have little experience.

Identifying and Targeting Potential Customers:

A major challenge mentioned is finding potential customers who are at the stage of wanting to build a marketplace but haven't yet committed to a technology or platform. This timing is crucial for them because once potential clients start building a marketplace, the cost and complexity of switching platforms become prohibitive.

Low Visibility in Search Engines:

The company is not performing well in terms of search engine visibility. As mentioned, they appear quite far down in search results, making it difficult for potential customers to find them unless they are directly searching for their specific solutions or find them on the Shopify app marketplace. This is affecting visibility and indirectly - lead conversion.

Customer Education and Market Awareness:

The market for building new online marketplaces is still relatively immature, and many potential clients may not fully understand the benefits or feasibility of creating such platforms. Educating the market about the advantages and potential profitability of marketplaces remains a challenge.

Dependency on a Few High-Value Clients:

They depend on a relatively small number of high-value clients, which can be risky if those clients decide to switch to competitors or if they fail to secure enough new clients to sustain business growth.

Technical Integration and Customization:

Ensuring that their platform can seamlessly integrate with a variety of other e-commerce platforms and systems presents ongoing technical challenges, particularly as they aim to support a broader range of clients with diverse needs.

Scaling Internationally:

While they are attempting to move into the U.S. market, there are substantial challenges related to international scaling such as localization, compliance with local e-commerce laws, and competition with well-established market leaders. They are unable to balance growth with competitive pricing, especially in markets like the U.S. where operational costs are high.

Side Kick’s Solution: Automated Outbound Plays and Custom Workflows

Side Kick has developed a suite of marketing automation and sales automation strategies to address their challenges:

Leverage Technographic Data:

Utilize tools like BuiltWith to identify potential customers based on the technologies they use. This can help their target companies that are already looking into or are in the process of implementing marketplace technologies.

Monitoring LinkedIn for Potential Leads:

Regularly scan LinkedIn for companies mentioning "marketplace" in their profiles or updates. This approach aims to catch companies in the early stages of considering a marketplace model, providing an opportunity to engage them before they settle on a solution.

Partnering with Agencies:

Collaborate with web design agencies and other digital service providers. These partners can recommend their platform to their clients looking to add marketplace functionalities to their websites.

Content Marketing Focused on Comparison and SEO:

Develop content that compares their offerings with those of competitors, highlighting unique value propositions and advantages. This content should be optimized for search engines to improve visibility and attract more inbound leads.

Email Outreach Campaigns:

Implement targeted email marketing campaigns to reach out to potential clients identified through LinkedIn and technographic data. These campaigns would introduce their platform and initiate discussions about its benefits.

Utilizing Google Ads and Focused SEO Strategies:

Implement Google Ads campaigns targeted at keywords related to marketplace solutions.

By implementing these marketing automation and sales automation strategies, Side Kick aims to enhance the company’s market penetration and customer engagement, ensuring their competitive edge in the evolving marketplace sector. These targeted actions not only streamline the sales cycle but also improve lead generation processes, propelling the company towards greater success in both existing and new markets.

About Side Kick

Side Kick is a marketing automation and sales automation platform that blends data extraction, intent data, and AI to automate and elevate outbound growth strategies.

Key Outcomes with Side Kick

• Reduce Sales Cycles: By extracting intent from every imaginable public and private data source, Side Kick narrows the focus to the most promising leads and opportunities.

• Increase Pipeline Velocity: Automation frees sales personnel from manual, repetitive tasks, allowing them to dedicate more attention to nurturing and converting each sales opportunity.

• Enhance ABM Engagement: Real-time identification of key events across all account based marketing accounts ensures that the sales team can take immediate, informed actions so they can build meaningful and lucrative relationships.

• Reduce SDR Dependency: Emulating what IKEA does for home building, Side Kick does for your growth strategies. The platform enables you to build your own SDR army with minimal need to hire, train, manage, or retain a large workforce.

Customizable Workflows Over 200 Ways

Side Kick offers over 200 customizable workflows to support any conceivable outbound goal, enhancing the capabilities of your sales team to:

• Target: Identify ICP matching accounts and leads with advanced data extraction and intent analysis.

• Enrich: Enhance the depth of information on accounts and leads using any public and private data source.

• Engage: Use AI to track key events and personalize outbound engagement effectively.

Scalability across Business Stages

Whether you're a startup looking to accelerate discovery, a scale-up streamlining successful strategies, or an enterprise expanding market reach, Side Kick tailors its offerings to suit your business’s specific stage and needs:

• Start-up: Accelerate discovery with controlled experiments to pinpoint and replicate successful outbound strategies for steady lead generation.

• Scale-up: Streamline your successful strategies, liberate your team from routine tasks, and amplify your ABM campaigns to unprecedented levels.

• Enterprise: Expand your market reach with advanced intent detection and streamline sales processes with direct integration into Slack/Teams, enhanced by dynamic ABM and event-driven insights.

If you're seeking scalable outbound plays for predictable growth, Side Kick is the marketing and sales automation platform that offers the tools and insights necessary to refine your strategy. By leveraging intent, automating manual tasks, and employing AI creatively, your team can focus on what truly matters—building relationships and closing deals.