SaaSMQL Case Study - Side

Hey Jessica, thank you for chatting with me today.

Yeah, absolutely, happy to.

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself, introduce what's your role at Side and what, what are you focused on?

Sure, um, so I am the Senior Demand Generation Manager at Side. And what that means in this particular company is I'm basically responsible for end-to-end campaign execution. So figuring out, you know, what types of campaigns we're going to invest in, what the KPIs and key drivers and outcomes are there, and then figuring out all the logistics from end to end, from basically dreaming it up all the way through proving it out and looking at why.

That's quite a busy role, especially in a newly unicorn company like Side.

It is a busy role.

For the people that don't know who Side is, can you share us some information?

Sure. So Side's a little bit different. We actually are a real estate brokerage, but not at all like the traditional brokerages that you've seen. So what makes us different is Side only partners with the very top producing agents. So that would be people doing millions of dollars in transactions every single year. And the thing that really sets us apart is we are structured to support agents that are doing that volume of business, which is something just very different than you see out in the industry. So clearly, you know, we have a very niche market. We've got a very specific client that we're looking to partner with, and that is what we do. We provide all of the operational support, and then the agents who partner with us actually own their own business. So they're doing business as their own brand, and they're able to then differentiate themselves in the real estate world by promoting and owning their own brand, which is really unique.

And this seems to be an extremely hot space. In fact, you guys are growing in a, in a phenomenal, at a phenomenal pace. And in March, I believe you raised $150 million at an evaluation of over a billion dollars. So it's really impressive.

Yeah, absolutely. And we're just seeing tons of validation across the industry as far as, you know, who's investing inside. We're seeing leaders from the ex, you know, president of Zillow. We've got people who have a lot of sway and a lot of understanding of space that are really validating what we're doing out there. So it's great to see, you know, we're on to something, and it's really exciting to be a part of.

And, you know, the story between SAS and QL and you guys aside goes back to, to 2019. That's when we first started working together, and we started developing this, this pilot program at the beginning with the, with the account-based marketing. Can you tell us what you guys were looking to achieve when we started working together?

Yeah, so I think for us, you know, one of the biggest challenges that we face is when you're trying to get the attention of someone that is extraordinarily busy, it's incredibly difficult. You have to be really creative in the ways that you're reaching out, and we needed to execute on a campaign that could cut through the noise. You know, we knew that just standard emails and phone calls weren't going to cut it. These agents are so heavily recruited, not only from brokerages, but from various software tools and all kinds of other solutions that are designed for them. So it's, it can be really difficult to get that first meeting scheduled. And then when we, you know, kind of learned about SAS MQL and how you guys are operating by doing these direct mail campaigns that are really multi-touch and across, go across different mediums, We were curious, you know, we're curious whether that would be effective in cutting through the noise for us.

And I remember we started with a smaller pilot just to test and validate that the concept could work for your particular industry specifically. Can you tell us, I remember we started with, I think it was 150 accounts and contacts and 3 reps, 3 ambassadors as you guys define it. How did they go from there?

No, right off the bat we could see that we were on to something. We were getting good responses, we were getting good open and reply rates to the email campaigns that we were running alongside the direct mail push. Being able to send something tangible and include sort of a value proposition in with that gift was a great like foot in the door for us to get those first meetings set. That was so long ago, I honestly don't remember the specific metrics, but I do know that, you know, at the end of that initial beta round, we're like, okay, we need to explore this and really dig in and see what we can do here.

And yeah, so your program, just to give some context, is, you know, we're doing this multi-touch, is heavily focused on email and direct mail, right, kind of combination of a sequence. And then we are also doing some, some, some ads on LinkedIn. What it helps from, from your point of view and side is you have a very defined target list. Like, you know, you're very niche, but also is, is very specific how you guys are growing and scaling, which helps then really target the right people.

Yeah, absolutely. And, you know, that's been kind of a double-edged sword for us a little bit. It's, it's interesting having kind of that specific subset that you're going after. And I think one thing that's been really valuable in working through these multi-tiered approach campaigns is we're able to get creative and we're able to go through iterations and even have people go through multiple times. And often we'll see the conversion point happens after the second time they've gone through a campaign. Um, so we're able to work with your team and really develop some unique messaging and some unique setup to be able to make that effective.

And I'll be— I have to be honest, your direct mail offer is probably one of the best that we have done in general. Like, you guys are saying, uh, really focus on, uh, sending super premium packages to this, to this, uh, prospect and accounts. I, I wish I would receive one of those, of those boxes. Um, I know we'll try different things and different messaging, different different creative as well. Can you share a little bit about the, the type of direct mail touches that we've done so far? Those that you remember?

Yeah, so we've done a few different things that have all been pretty different, just to kind of to get a feel for what is going to be the most well received and to test some things out. So I know early on we tested out like a champagne gift package, which was like a celebrate you sort of tone to it. And it was really meant to be like, um, a care package, really, you know, something where people would just be excited to open it up and they'd see all the goodies inside and be able to do a little cheers. And that was our initial, one of our very early tests. Um, since then we've always been very cognizant and thoughtful of our prospects sort of day to day. So we try to make the messaging and positioning match kind of just their hustle, right? They, they're very busy, they've got a lot going on. So one of the campaigns that we set up is a Rise and Grind package. So it's coffee, right? Everybody loves coffee, keeps you going. And then a great motivational book by Damon John, also titled Rise and Grind. And then we have like a nice value proposition flyer in there, as well as a travel coffee mug. Agents are often working out of their cars, so just again, being very cognizant of kind of what their day-to-day look like— looks like, and then providing a gift that is going to match, um, what they're out doing. And then the messaging, of course, is fun and playful and ties into that whole message. Um, and then most recently we started testing Rocketbooks, which was a suggestion that your team came up with, and I was like, love it, perfect. Productivity tool is always a hit with agents, so being able to really position that as you know, this is something that's going to help you be more efficient, always goes over well. And the response from that has been really great. People are curious about it, you know, they're like, what is this gadget? I gotta have one, let's see how it works. So the intrigue behind just the magic of the Rocketbook, which you can, you know, write in with pen and then upload to the cloud and erase your notes, it's been a big hit. So that's been a great one for us.

And then Rise and Grind, yeah, was a really cool one because it ties really well with with the messaging that we were trying to go after coming out of the pandemic and people starting to go out again. And particularly for real estate brokers, it really means waking up early in the morning and go out and hustle.

Yeah, well, and so many of these folks too are, are very like structured in their day, right? So they tend to get up and just like hit it hard early. A lot of times they'll work out, meditate in the morning. So it's just kind of a nice tie-in with having that ambitious personality that's required to be a successful entrepreneur.

One of the— my favorite aspects of working with you guys is how fast we have been scaling this program. I was mentioning we started 150 accounts and 3 ambassadors, 3 reps that were volunteering to do the beta. I believe now we are past 30 or 40 reps that are included into this program, and you guys keep growing every week. Can you share something about the impact that this ABM program is having on the opportunities, on the demand generation from your side?

Yeah, absolutely. So our key driver, our key KPI is first meetings. We're looking for that first meeting. Once we get a foot in the door, we know what conversion rates we can expect. As far as being able to partner with new, um, agents at that point. So we're driving that first meeting number because that's really, um, the bread and butter of what we're doing on the demand generation side. We had a goal for the first half of the year to get 300 first meetings set, and we're currently sitting at about 320, and we've executed on our first, um, quarter and second quarter pushes so far. So we have surpassed our goal. We're seeing great impact on that. We've had over, I wanna say we're sitting at about $1.2 million in revenue generated. So the ROI on it is phenomenal. And the beauty of it is it's really scaled well with us. So, you know, when you're growing so fast, it can be incredibly painful to try and take something that you built around a small group of people and make it big. But with your guys' support, we've really been able to knock it out of the park And, you know, it's taken some patience, certainly, you know, we've, we've all kind of been going through the growing pains together a bit. But because you are so flawless in the execution and, you know, the system and, you know, your team is so great when it comes to support, we've been able to make it happen. And now we have this nice consistent engine that we're able to utilize, you know, on an ongoing basis. And it's, It's really our bread and butter on the demand generation side. Like, it's what we count on to know that we're gonna have that batch of first meetings coming in the door.

Yeah, and it's becoming very predictable. I think that's another aspect that I like is now we can easily forecast how the next 6 months are gonna pan out, basically. And I'm also glad you touched on the ROI because a lot of people ask, you know, this, this direct mail things, this type of touch, offline touch is really expensive. Um, is it worth doing it? And in your case, you know, and like any SaaS, you guys have recurring revenue. So that $1.2 million, um, that so far has been generated in revenue is hopefully obviously gonna recur. And so the, the LTV should be much higher than that. And that, you know, makes it for a really good ROI.

Yeah, and I mean, on the surface I can see the hesitation. It can be costly to pull together the gift and ship it and kit it and all that stuff. But when you look at the long term, which is really what you need to be looking at, it's a no-brainer. Like, it really, you know, it's going to depend obviously on your niche and how receptive they are. But I think in groups where you're having a hard time kind of breaking through, it can be a super effective tool because you stand out. Like, they agents aren't receiving things like this from other people. And I'm sure there's plenty of other business models out there where the same is true. It's just you can send swag and it's like, yeah, okay, great. But when it's a really thoughtful multi-touch campaign that goes across multiple channels, that's a whole different ballgame. And I think that, you know, the fact that it is unique is what makes it so effective.

Yeah, the multi-touch is probably one of the most important aspects because I know companies that just sent some packages one-off and, you know, without the rest of the sequence. What we're seeing with you guys as well is all the touches that precede and follow the shipment of a direct mailbox are crucial aspects of that program, as we work every week with you guys and you've been very involved in looking at the handoff and all the different touches.

Right. Yeah. And I mean, it's great because right off the bat, we're able to get the prospect engaged with their account executive for their area. So along the way, you know, we might be talking about something totally unrelated to what we do and they may go, you know, I'm curious about this. And then the conversation starts. So it's really great to be able to not just have it be something that's coming from marketing, as you know, the general sender, but to have it come from the specific ambassador, have that messaging come from the ambassador and establish that relationship and nurture it over time.

Yeah, and I'm super excited about, you know, your plan for growth for the next 6 months as well for next year is gonna be really exciting to continue scaling this program. So I have one more question, Jessica. Why would you recommend working with SAS MQL? If you are a SaaS company selling to enterprise and mid-market companies, why should you work with us?

So many reasons, but the main ones for me really are just the fact that you guys are so great. You're so accessible. You're so experienced in what you're doing. You really have the formula locked down. You also are really strong on the reporting component, which is huge because it makes my job easy, right? Like, I just, I can go to my dashboard, look at what's going on. If anything jumps out at me, connect and collaborate on it. You're able to share best practices and what you're seeing is effective with other clients, and that has led to some transitions in what we're doing that has helped us be more effective. And yeah, I just really enjoy working with the team. Everyone I've worked with has been wonderful and incredibly quick to respond. And I can't imagine trying to execute something like this without SAS MQL as a resource.

Thank you, Jessica. This is great to hear, obviously, from our side. And we have been enjoying working with you and Chris and the entire team aside. It's been really great, and we're looking forward to continuing scaling this and really expand this program.

Absolutely.

Awesome. Thank you so much, Jessica, for sharing this experience with us. Really appreciate it.

You're welcome. Thanks for having me.