Michael Fertman

CHALLENGE
Guidepoint was the second-largest player in the expert network space, trailing a five-times larger competitor. We discovered that we had lost several late-stage deals due to our competitor undermining Guidepoint’s compliance platform.

SOLUTION
Recognizing our superior compliance platform, we launched a comprehensive brand-building, PR, and ABM campaign to showcase Guidepoint’s compliance expertise with Enterprise compliance teams.

TACTICS
• Our general counsel delivered presentations at industry risk and compliance panels.
• We published byline articles from Guidepoint in leading risk and compliance journals.
• Our general counsel taught continuing education (CE) courses, reinforcing our authority in compliance.
• We produced an annual State of Compliance Overview document, customized for key accounts, in conjunction with an ABM campaign quantifying the value of Guidepoint’s Compliance solution.

RESULTS
Our targeted efforts established Guidepoint’s compliance expertise as unassailable, turning previous compliance gatekeepers into internal advocates. As a result, Guidepoint’s opportunity-to-deal conversion rate doubled, significantly enhancing our competitive position.

CHALLENGE
I discovered that client average spending declined by 14% after migrating to the product due to lower transaction prices. This issue was reducing overall topline revenue despite the product growing at a rate of 50% annually.

SOLUTION
Changed the product’s positioning to shift it from being perceived as a lower-value solution to a higher-value offering. Tripled the transaction prices accordingly to reflect this enhanced positioning.

RESULTS
After repositioning and price adjustment, the product continued to grow at the same 50% annual rate. More importantly, it delivered a 76% increase in client-level growth as customers migrated, reversing the decline in overall topline revenue and significantly boosting profitability.

I crafted enterprise-depth lead magnets, including a return-on-investment (ROI) calculator, a request-for-proposal (RFP) template, white papers, company-vs-competitor blog posts, byline articles, and thought leadership content. Tools and topics focused on key buyer decision points, signaling intent. For example, a build versus buy white paper and ROI calculator.

RESULTS
Seven years later, many of these pages still rank in the top 10 for their target keywords, consistently generating high-quality leads and driving engagement.

SITUATION: As VP of Product Marketing for D&B’s Marketing Data Solutions, we replatformed and relaunched our $150 million business. A key component was to rebrand and reposition with the office of the Chief Information Officer.

ACTION: We delivered a highly customized campaign, referencing past interactions, an ROI estimate based on prior activity, and half of a golf putter. The other half to be delivered upon meeting. It wasn’t my idea, but when I heard it, I knew we had to run with it!

RESULT: 125 meetings with regional sales leaders and CIOs over a 3-month period and air cover that increased our growth rate from 6% to 12%, resulting in an increase from $9 million to $18 million.