Case Study: Sweetfish

Creating the marketing foundations that carry a niche software product from first contact to the point of sale.

In summary

Sweetfish is a technically innovative software product serving a specialised veterinary niche. We explored how its value spoke to each of the different people involved in a buying decision, and drew out a proposition that resonates with every audience. From there, I mapped the customer journey and created the essential set of marketing materials they needed to make the right impression, from a first approach on LinkedIn or a partner introduction through to the point where their own team takes the lead in the sale.

Support for early-stage software

I was first approached by one of the directors of Sweetfish before their software was ready for general release. They were discussing a trial with a regional director at a large veterinary group. This prospective customer saw the potential but needed more from Sweetfish to sell the idea to his colleagues.

Although they had a website, the business benefits were not clear and got lost within all the information about the product and its capabilities. We agreed that this potential customer needed a short document to share with his colleagues, which would be informative rather than glossy, explaining the issue in financial terms, setting out the cost of doing nothing and demonstrating the expected ROI along with supporting information.

The Sweetfish team understood their target market and their customers’ issues very well. But being so close to the subject meant they struggled to explain it all quickly and clearly. We also recognised that within veterinary groups there can be conflicting values and priorities across clinical and commercial roles, which need to be balanced very carefully.

I worked with them to draw out the context of veterinary business, the uncomfortable truths behind misbilling and the implications in financial and operational terms. We collected real human stories that make the problem relatable and illustrate why it is so hard to solve. I helped them to draw out simple metrics from an earlier product trial, which put real numbers against the cost to the business and the likely returns the software could deliver.

From this I developed the propositions for the key audiences and established a hierarchy of messages for use on the website and in sales conversations.

Developing the marketing proposition

The sales literature and website that you created for our software get right to the heart of our customers’ challenges. They are clear and persuasive and have already played a key part in securing a major contract.
Judy Walker, CEO, Sweetfish

Creating core marketing materials

We worked together to map out the most likely customer journeys, from initial referral or LinkedIn conversations, through information gathering, face-to-face demos and sales negotiations.

We agreed a simple content plan that enabled me to work with their web and design agency to create the core set of content without over-stretching their budget. This included a new website, product demos and templated sales presentations.

The real test of a proposition is whether other people can sell with it. With clear, focused messaging in place, both the Sweetfish team and their partners could take it to market and make it their own.

With highly focused and persuasive marketing content, their CEO had the materials and confidence she needed to reach out to targeted sales prospects on LinkedIn.

I also worked with their platform partner, Provet, to give them the insight and content they needed to run their own promotions and enable their salespeople to identify and bring in qualified opportunities.

Supporting direct and partner sales

Marketing that does the product justice

Sweetfish set out with a technically strong product and a genuine understanding of their customers, but a value that was easy to miss. By drawing that value out and expressing it clearly, we created marketing that does the product justice: a proposition sharp enough to open conversations, materials credible enough to carry it through to a sale, and a foundation solid enough for their own team and their partners to build on.