Spear Growth

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the founder of SuperTokens (YC S20). SuperTokens is an open-source alternative to Auth0 that enables adding secure, hassle-free authentication to your app in 1 day. We enable startups to launch quicker and focus better on their core product offering.

For what projects/services did your company hire Spear Growth?

SEO consultancy - technical audit, backlink analysis, content strategy etc

How did you select this vendor?

Considering how critical this was for us, we wanted to partner with someone who had proven expertise with respect to SEO for SaaS. We had a lot going on internally, we needed someone who could scale with us as needed. On the call with Spear Growth, we observed that their team really cared about doing SEO right.

They had previous experience working with SaaS companies similar to us, even those selling to developers, which was a big plus for us. And their no lock-in clause was an added bonus! We got to speak directly with their core team which was really helpful to us throughout

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

This was the scope of the project that we agreed upon:

1. SEO Strategy Consulting and Enablement.
2. SEO Content strategy Roadmap.
3. Content Review & basic SEO Training.
4. Technical & Backlink correction Roadmap.
5. Technical change validation.
6. GA Goal tracking.
7. Basic backlinking.
8. Website Migration - SEO support

• Pre-migration (Jan): We started with the content strategy & goal tracking and continued to do it throughout the project.
• Migration: We did the migration and the SEO team helped us with redirects, backlink changes, analyzing traffic drop, etc.
• Post-migration: This is where team SG helped us with a bulk of the work, including backlinking and technical roadmap. The technical roadmap was especially in-depth and easy to work on. They were also able to deliver this within 3 weeks."

What was the team composition?

We worked directly with their SEO Lead (Sourajit) and the founder (Ishaan). I believe, they also involved their internal content and marketing ops team from time to time.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

1. Back to initial daily impression within 8 weeks post migration, which is 88% of pre migration daily avg.
2. Clocking 90% of pre migration daily avg traffic within 8 weeks of post migration.
3. 85% of pages re-indexed within 8 weeks.
4. Almost 100% of the content created from their recommendations have generated clicks. We've just started to build out the content and implement the tech changes so we should start seeing an uptick in traffic and conversions soon.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The team at Spear Growth was always connected to us through Slack, we also had weekly catch up calls. They were diligent with their communication and responded to our queries and doubts without delays. We always had clear visibility into the progress of the project. We got a content strategy for 12 weeks (Including new conversion funnels) and an easy to implement to-do for our tech team within 3 weeks.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They cared about all the details, were very diligent and thorough about all the technical aspect about SEO. They always turned in deliverables within deadline and never let the project go off-track. When it came to guidance, they never hesitated to go above and beyond, even on things that were outside the project's scope. They did their research and clearly communicated the why, what and how. This helped us understand and align with the content strategy they presented to us.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

None

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Director, Sales at DhiWise, a developer-centric app builder platform that helps you build clean, scalable and customizable code.

We're focused on intuitive app-building approaches like Figma UI-to-Code conversions, lesser boilerplate dependence, minimal code writing, better control over the app’s actions, UI, and database, and integrated security safeguards. I am responsible for Sales and Marketing at my company.

For what projects/services did your company hire Spear Growth?

We wanted to launch our marketing initiatives. Spear Growth helped us with everything from customer interviews, positioning, setting up tracking and CRM, launching our performance marketing.

How did you select this vendor?

1. We didn't want generalist agency but someone who understood what is needed for SaaS startups

2. We needed experts who could guide us with strategy and budgeting. Then execute it flawlessly.

3. Someone who had clear processes and could show how they can help us in such a technical niche.

4. Someone who understood how to coordinate with our sales team.

5. We're big on culture. We wanted a team who matched our energy.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

Stage

1 - Creating a Strategy:

a) Devised an MoM strategy after conducting extensive research and customer interviews.

b) Set up accounts and analytics.

c) Set up the HubSpot CRM and other tools. Stage

2 - Going Live & Conducting Experiements:

a) Launched ads on Google, Facebook/Instagram, LinkedIn, Carbon Ads, and Stack Overflow.

b) Waited for results and optimized the ads platform-wise.

c) Set up email workflows to convert and nurture the leads.

Stage 3 - Scaling

a) Got to predictable growth and lead numbers across our channels

b) Set processes for coordination between different stakeholders - Especially Sales, marketing & finance

c) Had proven systems to push users to take the desired actions after they've signed up.

d) Made a major pivot in our strategy as we prepared for scale - New positioning, projections, and approach. "

What was the team composition?

Our main POC was their Head of Marketing Strategy. They also provided copywriters, designers, media buyers, market researchers, marketing operations, email marketers. It was a team of 5-10 people working with us as needed.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Here are some outcomes:

1. Increased our userbase from 0 sign-ups to 10,000+ sign-ups in 4 months.

2. Drastically reduced our cost per MQL by 92%

3. Built and optimized our entire marketing funnel (Ads, Landing pages, Marketing Automation, etc.)"

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We had weekly calls to discuss the progress, optimizations, and the next steps. They were always on track with the deadlines, if any at all, and were very responsive on emails as well. They were just like a part of our team!

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The team at Spear Growth never hesitated to guide us on things that may be outside the scope of the project. If it wasn't for their experimentation with various marketing channels, we definitely wouldn't have got the deep insights of our market that we have today. We know exactly what works and what doesn't.

Moreover, they looked at everything from a very strategic standpoint, even the email workflows to qualify the leads. Another major plus point was that they never looked at vanity metrics. Infact, they worked with us to help define good quality conversions and reduce our cost per MQL. We just hired them for advertising, but we got an entire marketing strategy mapped out for DhiWise.

We also really liked their approach to the copies for landing pages, ads, website and the fact that there were hardly any follow-ups required! 

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

I think they make a brilliant team of individuals and the fact that they always walk the extra mile for us without even asking for it doesn't really leave any scope of improvement. They're learning every day and that's the key to their success.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Senior Marketing Associate at  a cloud-based end-to-end HR technology platform that makes HR across the entire employee lifecycle hassle-free. I am responsible for marketing operations, demand generation, and product marketing strategies at my company.

For what projects/services did your company hire Spear Growth?

We wanted a strategic presence across our teams that could boost our advertising campaigns and offer high-level guidance for our marketing channels. We hired Spear Growth to double down on these marketing initiatives.

How did you select this vendor?

1. It is difficult to find and hire the right talent. The team at Spear Growth knew their marketing and was aligned with our vision.
2. They had proven expertise in the B2B Enterprise Software space and suggested the right next steps for us at the campaign level.
3. They were more focused on bringing in high-quality MQLs rather than just looking at vanity metrics such as clicks.
4. They're driven by extensive research and insights, which is highly valuable to us given the industry we're in.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

1. Research and Strategy - They identified our goals and studied the company + industry thoroughly to identify new opportunities, followed by keyword research to understand what our target audience is looking for.
2. Going Live - We went live on Google and the team conducted multiple strategic experiments to find the right combination that would bring in the most MQLs. They also experimented with the bidding strategies, which reduced our CPAs dramatically.
3. Optimizations - They set up and improved tracking across different platforms.

With the insights gained, the team was able to provide inputs into our existing marketing campaigns and work on CRO successfully.

What was the team composition?

We worked closely with their Head of Marketing Strategy (POC) and Ads Specialists.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We saw the following key results:

• 90% increase in MQLs
• 71% increase in Conversions
• 11% increase in Conversions to MQLs
• Lower bounce rate
• Improved tracking across multiple tools
• Alignment of organic and paid search
• Increased performance into marketing

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow was very streamlined. We connected over weekly calls to touch bases and were kept in loop via emails. Not much intervention was required as they stuck to their deadlines and took complete ownership of the project, just as we wanted.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Spear Growth's team very quickly blended into our processes and culture. They learned about our company, audience, and industry. Working with them was like having a team of experts that was a part of our family.

They suggested both tactical and strategic experiments and implemented them successfully. They also effectively provided inputs into our campaign and marketing channel performance. Ever since we started working with them, we've been able to make our advertising efforts efficient, double down on critical experiments and have a higher visibility into performance

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

We are now currently trying out different platforms for paid advertising. One of them is Bing Ads. A prior understanding and expertise on the same from their team would've been better however they have picked up the channel quite fast.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a member of the founding team at Sprinto, a platform that automates the traditionally manual and tedious process of information security certifications. We focus on making the process of becoming compliant for cloud hosting companies with industry-specific standards in a hassle-free manner and 10X faster, so that organizations can not only unblock a sales deal, expand their TAM, target unexplored markets, close deals faster, and maximize revenue.

For what projects/services did your company hire Spear Growth, and what were your goals?

To launch performance marketing initiatives specifically Google Ads starting from India to Global. We wanted to launch and scale our inbound leads using AdWords

How did you select Spear Growth and what were the deciding factors?

Referral from peers. Plus the fact that they will take care of the end-to-end process for us (Including landing pages).

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and marking tools used.

Quarter 1 with Spear Growth: Set up and scaled India. 3 compliance certifications Quarter 2: 7 new regions 7 compliance certifications Next Quarter: 8 total regions and a few more certifications

How many resources from the Spear Growth team worked with you, and what were their positions?

It started with 1 performance marketer, 1 copywriter, 1 designer, and 1 strategist and quickly scaled to 2 Performance marketers, 3 copywriters, 1 designer, 1 marketing strategist.

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

Predictable lead generation Brought down per lead cost Since working with them, we've been able to confidently scale our budget to 100$K USD

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

There was a dedicated Slack channels for constant communication. Further we had weekly catch up calls to review performance and the work done. They were generally very quick to respond to our queries and doubts

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

Time to scale with many unknowns. We scaled to a massive 145 campaigns with 475 adgroups. 5581 keywords and they were able to manage it. Allows me to confidently scale further without worrying about things breaking. They were open to suggestions and always happy to extend any help.

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

Potentially, visibility into the continous work they put in. It's a lot of work involved to manage and scale a large project and without that visibility, the hard work slides under the rug. They have generally been very prompt to ask for and incorporate feedback.