# Go-to-market campaign for a mission-driven B2B SaaS Startup

Comprehensive GTM strategy, website redesign, SEO, content marketing, and lead generation transforming scrappy startup into mature company ready for venture capital funding.

## Project snapshot

- **Client**: Employee Cycle (B2B HR Tech SaaS)
- **Year**: 2021

### Services

- [Web Design & Development](/content/our-work#service=Web+Design+%26+Development/index.html)
- [Go-to-Market Strategy](/content/our-work#service=Go-to-Market+Strategy/index.html)
- [UX Design & Research](/content/our-work#service=UX+Design+%26+Research/index.html)
- [Search Engine Optimization](/content/our-work#service=Search+Engine+Optimization/index.html)
- [Web Analytics](/content/our-work#service=Web+Analytics/index.html)
- [Content Marketing](/content/our-work#service=Content+Marketing/index.html)

## The Background

Employee Cycle is a mission-driven B2B HR tech SaaS startup focused on making HR smarter and more data-driven. In August 2021, they approached Key Medium to help drive sales and lead generation, provide educational content for self-service discovery and thought leadership, and position the company clearly with consistent branding and messaging to boost brand awareness—all critical as they prepared for a venture capital seed round.

## The Problem

The startup faced significant challenges across multiple fronts:

**Website & UX Issues:**

- Website not optimized for conversion with unclear user journey
- Poor messaging and messaging hierarchy
- No cohesive branding and marketing collateral
- Product content outdated and not evergreen
- Product pages and features not seamlessly integrated

**Content & SEO Issues:**

- Dated, infrequent blog posts
- No taxonomy structure (tags/categories) for reader journey
- Poor SEO fundamentals and no SEO strategy
- No thought leadership content system

**Business & Go-to-Market Issues:**

- Unclear target audience and Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
- No documented go-to-market (GTM) strategy
- No content strategy or content calendar
- Dated or no style guide
- No customer success stories or case studies
- Website and business functions didn't match growing startup maturity level
- Preparing for venture capital fundraising

## The Solutions

Key Medium provided comprehensive transformation across content, design, strategy, and execution:

**Market Research & Strategy:**

- Conducted in-depth market research and customer interviews
- Planned design thinking workshops to refine offerings
- Developed clear go-to-market strategy targeting 1-2 niche segments
- Operationalized "Crossing the Chasm" framework for customer segmentation
- Crystallized paid media plan and sales development strategy
- Articulated entire client base for investor presentations

**Website Design & Development:**

- Complete website redesign with mobile-first approach
- Optimized above-the-fold messaging with clear "free demo" CTA
- Sticky call-to-action button in navigation
- Social proof optimization throughout for conversion
- Key product benefits and features highlighted clearly
- Custom interactive Lottie animations and GIF animations explaining features
- Responsive design adapting seamlessly to mobile users

**Content Marketing & SEO:**

- Re-edited and optimized nearly 200 existing blog posts for SEO
- Updated internal linking structure and taxonomy (tags/categories)
- Added CTAs for conversion within content
- Implemented recommended reads system (up to 9 posts per article)
- Published 40+ in-depth HR and HR technology subject matter blog posts
- Ghostwritten content for CEO to boost thought leadership on blog and LinkedIn
- Content strategy balancing conversion and SEO optimization

**Branding & Creative:**

- Developed cohesive brand library with reusable marketing collateral
- Art direction and creative assets for multi-year use
- Marketing graphics for campaigns and partnerships
- Professional style guide for consistency

**Lead Generation & Analytics:**

- Web analytics implementation and optimization
- Conversion rate optimization throughout customer journey
- Launched first company webinar with 330+ prospects identified
- Over 1/3 of webinar attendees converted to MQLs (exceeding goal by 300%)
- Hundreds of new Market Qualified Leads (MQLs) generated
- Successful transition to HubSpot for marketing automation

## The Results

The comprehensive transformation delivered exceptional results across all metrics:

**Traffic & Visibility:**

- **+225% increase in site visits** from HR leaders and decision-makers
- **+300% increase in search engine visibility** for tracked keywords
- **+70% increase in organic traffic value** demonstrating SEO quality improvements
- **+28.1% expansion in keyword coverage** (to 2,095 from 1,507) within 30 days
- **+45.7% keyword coverage increase** to 3,298 keywords in 4 months
- **+22% increase in daily traffic** in first month after launch
- **+20% increase in visibility** overall

**Search Performance:**

- **+19.6% increase in search positions** for target keywords
- **~300 targeted, intent-based keywords** with 212,000+ monthly search volume identified
- **46% increase in organic search** appearing in approximately 2/3 of conversion paths

**User Engagement & Conversion:**

- **-8.5% decrease in bounce rate** indicating better content relevance
- **+29.25% increase in average session duration** showing deeper engagement
- **+24.10% increase in pages per session** demonstrating more exploration
- **All key product pages showed increased traffic**
- **Increased marketing website engagement rate**
- **Improved conversion paths** with clear decision-making journey

**Lead Generation:**

- **Hundreds of new Market Qualified Leads (MQLs)** generated
- **First webinar generated 330+ prospects** with 1/3 converting to MQLs
- **300% overachievement** on lead generation goals for webinar month
- **One blog post generating $2,400/month** in SEO value vs. paid ads

**Social & Email Growth:**

- **Double-digit percentage increases** in social media audience
- **Double-digit percentage increases** in email newsletter subscribers

**Business Outcomes:**

- **Successfully raised venture capital funding** following campaign completion
- **Transitioned from scrappy startup to mature company** positioning
- **Established first customer success stories** and case studies
- **Created comprehensive marketing collateral** for ongoing use
- **Placed fractional CMO/Marketing Director** on team for sustained success
- **Trained team** on WordPress CMS and marketing processes
- **Delivered Social Selling Playbook** and technical documentation

**Timeline Acceleration:**

- First phases completed **one month ahead of schedule** with record growth

The success demonstrated how strategic positioning, cohesive branding, conversion-focused design, and content-driven SEO can transform a startup from pre-seed to venture-ready, with the website becoming a key asset for both customer acquisition and investor credibility.

## Results

+225%  
Site visits increase

+300%  
Search visibility increase

+70%  
Organic traffic value increase

+28% (45.7% in 4 months)  
Keyword coverage expansion

-8.5%  
Bounce rate decrease

+29.25%  
Session duration increase

+24.10%  
Pages per session increase

+19.6%  
Search position increase

+22% (month 1)  
Daily traffic increase

Hundreds + 330+ webinar leads  
MQL generation