Growth Automated

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of estaie

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

The 1st AI-native extended-stay booking platform focused on the Middle East is scaling globally.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Growth Automated to accomplish?

• Partners lead generation
• B2C lead generation
• email Automation

SOLUTION

How did you find Growth Automated?

Manual

Why did you select Growth Automated over others?

Founders to founder agreement

How many teammates from Growth Automated were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

We engaged Growth Automation to implement and manage a fully outsourced outbound lead generation program for estaie. The objective of the engagement was to generate qualified inbound interest from potential customers and partners through automated email and LinkedIn outreach campaigns.

The scope of work presented by their team included the following key components:

1. Outbound Lead Generation Infrastructure

Growth Automation was responsible for building and managing the technical infrastructure required for cold outreach campaigns. This included:

Purchasing and configuring sending domains
Setting up outreach inboxes and email infrastructure
Running a 14-day email domain warm-up process to build sender reputation
Integrating the sending infrastructure with their internal outreach systems
This setup phase was presented as a critical technical foundation to ensure deliverability and prevent emails from landing in spam folders.

2. Campaign Strategy and Audience Targeting

Their team was responsible for identifying and building target audiences aligned with our ICP. This included:

Prospect list creation based on firmographic targeting (industry, company size, geography, seniority, etc.)
Audience segmentation for both B2C and B2B angles
Creation of lookalike audiences based on our ideal customer profile
The target markets discussed for outreach included the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and other relevant international markets.

3. Email and LinkedIn Outreach Campaigns

Growth Automation is committed to designing and executing outbound campaigns across both email and LinkedIn.

Deliverables included:

Development of email messaging and outreach sequences
Creation of multiple campaign variations to test different messaging angles
AI-based personalization of emails based on prospect profiles
Automated sending of outreach campaigns through their email infrastructure
They indicated that the campaigns would reach approximately 10,000 email contacts and 1,600 LinkedIn contacts per month under the Growth plan.

4. Lead Generation and Qualification

The central deliverable of the engagement was the generation of qualified leads.

According to the proposal shared before signing, the commercial structure was tied to a lead volume expectation, with an initial target of generating 40+ human-qualified leads per month, including a guaranteed minimum of 35 leads.

Leads were defined as prospects who replied positively to outreach and expressed interest in the service.

Their team’s responsibility was to:

Generate initial interest from prospects
Forward positive replies to our team
Provide a centralized lead tracking sheet and campaign dashboard
Our internal team would then handle the follow-up and closing of those leads.

5. Campaign Monitoring and Optimization

Growth Automation was also responsible for monitoring campaign performance and optimizing outreach over time. This included:

Monitoring response rates and deliverability metrics
Testing different messaging angles
Adjusting targeting and campaign segments based on performance data
Periodic review calls and reporting were expected as part of the ongoing optimization process.

Summary of Key Deliverables

The engagement was structured around a fully managed outbound lead generation service with the following core deliverables:

Email outreach infrastructure setup and domain warm-up
Target audience creation and segmentation
Email and LinkedIn campaign development and execution
AI-personalized outbound messaging
Lead generation through positive prospect replies
Lead tracking dashboard and reporting
Ongoing campaign monitoring and optimization
The primary objective of the engagement was to generate a consistent flow of qualified leads for estaie through automated outbound outreach.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

⭐ 1 Star

Our experience with Growth Automation was very disappointing.

The engagement was sold to us with clear founder-level messaging around lead volume expectations and performance-based outcomes. However, once the campaigns launched and results fell significantly short of what had been presented during the sales process, the position changed completely.

Instead of addressing the gap between the promised outcomes and actual performance, the team relied solely on the contract's narrow wording and rejected any commercial remedy.

So the problem was not just underperformance. It was the difference between the expectations used to sell the service and the reality of delivery once payment had been made.

Outbound campaigns can always require iteration, but transparency and accountability are essential in partnerships.

Based on our experience, we would not work with this company again and recommend that other founders ensure every performance claim or guarantee is clearly written into the signed agreement before committing.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Project management throughout the engagement was inconsistent and fell far short of the expectations set during the sales process.

From the beginning, the timeline presented to us did not match the actual delivery. The initial plan communicated by their team stated that the process would follow a clear sequence: a 14-day domain warm-up period, followed by campaign launch and lead generation shortly thereafter. However, in practice, there were repeated delays and communication gaps that extended the timeline without clear accountability.

For example, after signing the agreement and completing onboarding requirements, our team repeatedly had to follow up to understand when the campaigns would actually begin. Several weeks passed, and we requested updates on launch dates, tracking mechanisms, and campaign readiness, but did not receive clear timelines. Multiple reminders had to be sent on our end before we received confirmation that the setup was complete.

Even after the technical setup was supposedly finalized, the campaigns were not launched immediately as expected. Communication during this phase was sporadic, and updates often arrived only after we escalated or requested clarification. In several instances, the team confirmed that launch was imminent, only for additional delays to occur.

Another concern was the lack of operational transparency. Early in the engagement, we requested clear tracking mechanisms such as UTM links or measurable attribution so both teams could monitor campaign performance in real time. These requests were declined, with the explanation that such links could impact email deliverability. As a result, visibility into campaign performance and lead attribution remained limited.

Once the campaigns eventually went live, the communication around performance and expectations also shifted significantly. Initially, the engagement had been presented with clear expectations regarding lead volume and results. Later, the team acknowledged in writing that the originally discussed lead numbers were “highly unrealistic” under the current plan. This admission came only after the engagement had already been running.

When concerns were raised about the gap between the original commitments and the actual results, the team's responses became increasingly contractual rather than solution-oriented. Instead of working collaboratively to address the issues or adjust the commercial structure, the conversation was redirected toward a strict interpretation of the signed agreement.

Timeliness of Deliverables

Several deliverables were delayed compared to what had been communicated during the onboarding process, including:

Campaign launch timeline following the warm-up period
Clear visibility into tracking and performance metrics
Consistent operational updates during the setup phase
Many updates were only provided after our team proactively followed up multiple times.

Responsiveness

The responsiveness was inconsistent. While the team eventually responded to emails, many responses came only after repeated follow-ups from our side requesting clarity on timelines, launch status, and performance expectations.

Overall, the experience reflected a gap between the structured, data-driven process described during the sales stage and the actual project execution once the engagement began.

What was your primary form of communication with Growth Automated?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

To be candid, there was nothing in the engagement that we found particularly impressive.

The company positioned itself as a highly structured outbound growth partner with advanced automation, strong campaign management, and predictable lead generation outcomes. In practice, the delivery did not reflect those claims.

Communication was inconsistent, timelines slipped multiple times, and the campaign results fell significantly short of the expectations set during the sales process.

Overall, the experience did not demonstrate any unique capability or differentiating strength compared with other vendors in the outbound lead generation market.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Growth Automated could have done differently?

Areas for Improvement

There are several areas where Growth Automation could significantly improve its service.

1. Align sales promises with contractual terms

The most important improvement would be to ensure that the expectations communicated during the sales process align with the final contractual framework. In our case, the commercial discussion was clearly framed around lead volume expectations and performance outcomes. However, once the engagement began and results fell below expectations, the position shifted to a strict interpretation of the contract that excluded those earlier commitments.

If performance expectations or guarantees are discussed during the sales phase, they should either be clearly written into the agreement or not presented as part of the commercial proposition at all. Alignment between what is promised and what is contractually enforced is essential for trust.

2. Set realistic expectations before signing

During the engagement, their team later acknowledged that the originally discussed lead numbers were “highly unrealistic” under the current campaign capacity. This type of assessment should happen before signing a client, not several weeks into the engagement. Clear and realistic expectations at the beginning would prevent unnecessary frustration for both parties.

3. Improve project management and launch timelines

The setup and launch process took significantly longer than expected, and communication during this phase was inconsistent. Clients should not have to repeatedly follow up to understand when campaigns will start or what the current status is.

A more structured onboarding process, clearer milestones, and proactive updates would greatly improve the client experience.

4. Increase transparency around performance tracking

One operational challenge was limited visibility into campaign tracking and attribution. While some limitations in cold email infrastructure are understandable, clients should still have clear, reliable ways to measure campaign performance and understand how leads are generated.

Improved reporting, clearer dashboards, and stronger data transparency would help build confidence in the process.

5. Focus on partnership rather than contractual positioning

When performance concerns were raised, the conversation quickly shifted toward legal language rather than collaborative problem solving. In growth partnerships, especially with early-stage companies, a solution-oriented approach tends to build stronger long-term relationships than strictly contractual responses.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Director of Marketing of Credit Canada

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Credit Canada is the first and longest-standing non-profit credit counselling agency in the country.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Growth Automated to accomplish?

• Explore AEO

SOLUTION

How did you find Growth Automated?

Referral

Why did you select Growth Automated over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me

How many teammates from Growth Automated were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

We worked with Rahul at Growth Automated to explore opportunities to enhance our AEO strategy, and we found the experience valuable. He brought a smart, forward-looking perspective on how search is evolving, with a strong focus on Answer Engine Optimization and visibility beyond traditional SEO. He used an analytics platform called Peekaboo to evaluate our performance and provide insights.

Rahul provided clear strategic guidance, helped kick-start our Reddit approach (including partner connections), shared a practical Wiki page guide, and outlined actionable opportunities to improve discoverability. Our team is already implementing several of the quick wins he recommended.

Growth Automated is thoughtful, collaborative, and generous with insights. I’d recommend Rahul to organizations looking to explore or advance their AEO efforts, test emerging channels, or strengthen their overall search and visibility strategy.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Actionable insights.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Raul was timely and highly responsive.

What was your primary form of communication with Growth Automated?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

I was impressed with their enthusiasm for the content.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Growth Automated could have done differently?

None.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the VP of operations and marketing for a company that owns and operates various businesses in sports, education, home building, and real estate.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Growth Automated to accomplish for your business?

We wanted to get an immediate handle on where we were at, why our SEO was failing, and how AEO could help us succeed and leverage what we already had in place for future success.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Growth Automated has assessed our website against AEO metrics. The team has quickly returned a video walkthrough of where our site is losing traffic, how old SEO tactics are no longer creating leads or conversions, and provided a path toward data AEO applications. This has articulated what is needed and generated a critical corporate budget toward the new AEO efforts.

What is the team composition?

We've worked with one teammate from Growth Automated.

How did you come to work with Growth Automated?

Someone referred Growth Automated to me. I chose them over other options because their pricing fit our budget, they were a great culture fit, and they offered good value for the cost.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Growth Automated in October 2025, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Growth Automated moves fast, and we require quick responses. The team has provided a website assessment with clear lists and explanations of where we're failing. Growth Automated has also recommended tools and tactics. The biggest early impact is being able to communicate the current reality with the executive team, secure budgets, and rally a plan.

How did Growth Automated perform from a project management standpoint?

Growth Automated delivers on time. The team is quick, attentive, and keen. We communicate via in-person and virtual meetings.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It's hard to find any experts in this emerging AEO space, and Growth Automated is in rare air. The team combines that with professional deliveries regarding timing and communication.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There's nothing Growth Automated could improve on.