Breaking the Mold: How an Untapped Market Became a Blueprint for Growth

Background: A Narrow Focus, A Flat Pipeline

In 2017, eMedia’s growth was stalling. Revenue heavily depended on renewing and expanding existing SaaS clients. Other industries—like manufacturing—were overlooked entirely, deemed “non-ICP,” and ignored in outbound efforts.

New business within the ICP was hard to come by, and sales reps were stuck chasing the same pool of prospects with diminishing returns.

But I saw an opening.

Challenge: Untapped Demand Outside the ICP

I had already experienced success selling neglected portfolio products, such as digital advertising, to overlooked customer segments. That gave me confidence there was more opportunity outside the ICP—we just weren’t looking.

Through a relationship from REDACTED, I was introduced to a global metals and materials company—one of the largest in the world. Their agency had issued an RFP, and I saw a path to position eMedia uniquely.

Their problem?
Marketing was under pressure to generate more Marketing Accepted Leads (MALs) to feed the direct sales funnel. But they lacked the time, resources, and confidence to do it in-house—especially with accountability on the line.

Execution: Repositioning for Relevance

While most reps would have walked away from a manufacturing lead, I leaned in.

I worked closely with both the agency and the end client to co-author their RFP response, helping them structure a program around what we did best: delivering MALs at scale using customer-generated content.

To build trust:

  • I shared examples from SaaS programs we had successfully run

  • I provided custom quotes with detailed audience breakdowns

  • I clearly outlined the risk-mitigation measures built into our delivery model

The agency saw we weren’t just a vendor—we were a partner. That trust gave them the confidence to pitch us hard to the client.

Results: A Win Worth Replicating

✅ Closed a $60K deal over 3 months
✅ Secured one of the largest non-SaaS wins in company history
✅ Opened the door to a repeatable playbook for engaging high-volume lead buyers outside the ICP

This win redefined how we thought about the addressable market. It gave the company permission to think bigger—and it all started with being willing to challenge the status quo.

Takeaway

ICP isn’t everything.
By solving a real problem for a non-core vertical and backing it with execution, we broke into a new market—and created a roadmap for future growth.