Empowering a deep-tech CEO: Building a sales & marketing engine from scratch.
A case study on translating complex technology into a clear, compelling sales narrative.
15+ hours
CEO’s time saved weekly
100%
Sales toolkit delivered
From 0 - 1
First marketing engine built
The client
A deep-tech SaaS startup using complex machine learning to help bus operators in major cities optimise their networks, making public transport more efficient and reliable.
The challenge
The founder’s ‘curse of knowledge’.
The company, founded by brilliant academics, had developed world-class technology over eight years. However, the CEO, who was also the sole salesperson, was so entrenched in the technical complexity that he struggled to explain what the product did in a simple, accessible way.
The challenge was multi-layered:
A complicated sale: They had to sell to Business Owners that reported into C-level executives who weren't tech-savvy, while also convincing the tech experts who influenced them, and ensuring the end-users (bus drivers) would find the interface simple and want to use it.
Academic vs. business language: All existing materials were written in a dense, academic style that was less accessible to a commercial audience.
No cohesive sales assets: The CEO was wasting dozens of hours building sales presentations from scratch for every new meeting, with no consistent messaging or branding.
The solution
Our one-month intensive strategic roadmap & marketing foundation project.
Over a one-month freelance contract, I acted as their first-ever marketing resource. My goal was to build a complete, foundational toolkit that would empower the CEO to sell more effectively and efficiently.
Brand & messaging overhaul: I simplified their core value proposition down to a single, powerful sentence. I overhauled their brand visuals and established a clear, consistent, and accessible business-focused tone of voice across all materials.
Building the sales enablement toolkit: I designed and built a comprehensive library of essential sales assets from the ground up, including:
A professional, flexible slide deck template.
A bank of pre-written slides with clear copy, case studies, and compelling imagery.
A central Digital Asset Library to eliminate time wasted searching for logos and images.
Drafted press releases for announcing major international partnerships.
Creating a sustainable plan: I developed a simple, repeatable 3-month marketing plan that could be executed by a non-marketer. This ensured the company could maintain momentum long after my contract ended, without needing a full-time marketing hire.
The results
Delivering efficiency, clarity, and empowerment.
This project wasn't measured in immediate ROI, but in the creation of foundational assets and the empowerment of the CEO.
Dramatically increased CEO sales efficiency: I saved the CEO countless hours of administrative work, freeing him up to focus on high-value conversations and closing deals.
A lasting asset library: The sales and digital asset libraries I created became a core, long-term resource for the entire company.
Empowered the team to sell: The new system gave the CEO the confidence and the tools to communicate his vision clearly. The simple marketing plan enabled other team members to support sales efforts without prior marketing experience.
My key takeaway
"For any company, the biggest marketing challenge is often translation. Brilliant products or services are not enough if your customers don't understand their value. This project highlighted the importance of building the foundational language and tools first. By creating a simple, compelling narrative and a robust sales toolkit, you empower a founder to move from being the 'chief technician' to being the 'chief storyteller', and that's what truly drives growth."
Enough about other startups.
Let’s talk about yours.
My approach is collaborative, hands-on, and focused on results. If you're a purpose-driven founder obsessing over growth but not sure how to get it, I'd love to hear your story and help.