The company:
StageZero Technologies is an AI company and innovator of the ground-breaking MicroTasks technology used for ethical data creation – on a mission to accelerate the AI revolution by making training data more affordable and available to companies everywhere.
It’s always a great pleasure to sit down with the fabulous Lesley Kiernan, Business Development Director at StageZero, and catch up on how the team has been applying Zaplify to their daily operations.
The Challenge:
Before you decided to search for a lead generation tool, what difficulties were you encountering?
We struggled a lot with the terminology people traditionally use within the field of AI. The field that we operate in is still fairly new (AI), because of this, there’s no unified language yet. So when it comes to SEO and attracting the right kind of inbound customers, it’s very complex because the terminology quickly becomes repetitive.
We understood that outreach was going to be important for us, but noticed the same issues in reverse. What is our decision maker’s job title? We didn’t know how our direct buyers were titling themselves in this new field of expertise which obviously made it difficult for us to start any type of conversation with a new lead. At first, we tried purchasing fixed lists from smaller lead generation companies, but the conversation rate was very low. Then we found Zaplify and through your keyword search we were able to identify prospects who fit our buyer persona. This was a game changer for us.
When you made the decision to pursue a tool, what were the primary factors you were seeking?
Privacy and compliance were two critical factors that had to be 100% clean according to the latest GDPR regulations as our business is fundamentally grounded in ethical data creation. We have to be scrupulous in every detail of the process of dealing with AI for our clients. Ethics and privacy are such a hot topic at the moment (rightfully so), our prospects won’t even start a conversation with us unless every supplier we work with is fully GDPR compliant. Privacy will continue to be important for us and Zapify is by far the most comprehensive tool that delivered on our requirements within this field.
We felt safe working with you because you guys understood the importance of this in regards to how critical it is within our core business. This made it easy for us when speaking to our customers if we received questions around this.
What kind of tools did you use before?
Initially, our approach involved leveraging LinkedIn Sales Navigator in addition to procuring lists from other small-scale enterprises. However, it was only after we established our commercial team that we recognized the necessity of a more comprehensive solution.
How did you find out about Zaplify?
Google. We saw that you guys were in Europe which increased the probability that you were following GDPR regulations.
What made you decide that Zaplify was worth the investment?
We were able to do some preliminary searches with your team which confirmed the veracity of the data provided. We were particularly impressed with the efficacy of your keyword functionality, as it enabled us to pinpoint the appropriate decision-makers precisely. Since our search queries extended beyond mere job titles, we required a more comprehensive approach to identify the ideal clientele.
The Solution
How has Zaplify helped you solve the challenges you had?
One challenge that had not previously been recognized, but which Zaplify brought to light, was the immense volume of outreach Zaplify could do in like seconds, literally seconds!! As opposed to spending a couple of hours each morning emailing prospects, I was now able to set up a campaign in less than 5 minutes and focus on other work while Zaplify was reaching out to hundreds of people. Zaplify was actually able to reduce our operational costs, as you saved us from having to hire another salesperson.
Thanks to Zaplify’s time-saving capabilities, I have been able to redirect my efforts toward other essential business functions and upskill in areas previously inaccessible to me. By investing more time with the product team, I have gained a greater understanding of our product’s capabilities and limitations, enabling me to provide more insightful contributions to our business strategy. In addition to this, Zaplify has helped me grow my LinkedIn network which has opened up new avenues for revenue generation. I never thought your impact on our operations would go beyond automating our processes, but also, transform the way we operate – enabling us to achieve more with less.
Who uses Zaplify in your team?
It’s me and our CEO, Thomas Forss. Neither of us have time to do outreach so it’s a perfect tool for both of us.
What results have you achieved with Zaplify?
At our current stage, we’ve encountered 2 major problems: achieving product market fit and having sufficient sales capacity to execute on our outreach efforts. The outreach doesn’t work if the product market fit is wrong. We’ve found this with Zaplify which has been a knock on effect where it’s a win-win situation.
In fact, at one point, Zaplify generated as many as 25 meetings in a week for us which stretched my available bandwidth to its limits. I had to reduce the length of my discovery calls to half because I wasn’t able to keep up with all of the leads coming through the tool.
How has your overall experience been with Zaplify?
Amazing – honestly, great. I’m actually super glad that you asked this question because I truly love your team. Your people are by far your biggest asset. It’s been an absolute pleasure dealing with you guys. Dynamic, energized and supportive. It’s been easy for us to give honest feedback. Every time Zaplfy has changed something to suit our request, it’s been incredible – we’ve made some ambitious requests. You always have solutions available. At one point, Alexandra was writing my emails. The changes she pointed out were accurate and increased our success rate. Attention to detail, always. We speak about her at the office sometimes, she’s a legend here.
Would you recommend Zaplify? If so, what would you say?
YES! I have actually recommended it to quite a few people. It’s the perfect tool for people who work in commercials or startups. I don’t only recommend it for the benefits of the company, but also for your personal development. Especially if you’re working in a field with a very specific customer profile they’re trying to target, Zaplify really helps to curate the targeting in a detailed way.
Thank you for an incredible chat, Lesley – we love working with you and your team.
