Case Study: Repositioning a $100M Performance Marketing Platform for Enterprise Growth
The Problem That Needed Solving
A Series C marketing technology company was trapped in perception limbo. They'd grown to $100M ARR serving small and mid-market businesses, but their brand identity couldn't scale with their ambitions. After several acquisitions, they felt fragmented and misaligned with their growth trajectory toward $500M. The deeper problem was that they were too sophisticated for their core small business customers yet not enterprise enough to compete with billion-dollar competitors for franchise and multi-location accounts.
With a private equity acquisition closing within weeks, they needed brand messaging that could credibly position them as a $500M company while preserving the relationship-driven approach that differentiated them in the market. They couldn't just swap out language and call it done—this required systematic repositioning across every touchpoint without losing what made them successful in the first place.
The Strategic Work
I led the brand and messaging strategy for this repositioning through an agency engagement, working alongside the design team and client stakeholders including the VP of Marketing, CEO, and marketing leadership over six months.
The strategic challenge: How do you sound like a '$500M company that serves small businesses' rather than a small business itself? The messaging needed to compete with enterprise players on sophistication and credibility while maintaining the personal partnership model that drove their retention rates.
Three key strategic decisions shaped everything:
1. Systematic Language Elevation
I created a comprehensive terminology framework that repositioned the brand without losing authenticity. This wasn't about using bigger words—it was about shifting the level of conversation to match where they needed to compete.
'Campaigns' became 'performance marketing programs' 'Small businesses' evolved to 'multi-location businesses' 'Get leads' transformed to 'acquire customers' 'Marketing services' elevated to 'growth infrastructure'
Every shift was deliberate, tested against whether it would resonate with CFO-level conversations while remaining accessible to the businesses they actually served.
2. Dual-Audience Messaging Architecture
I developed a messaging system that balanced enterprise sophistication with approachable warmth. Headlines and primary messaging spoke to C-suite decision-makers with authority and financial impact, while supporting copy maintained the human-centered partnership approach that drove client retention.
The homepage hero wasn't "We run your marketing campaigns"—it was "Turn marketing investment into predictable revenue growth." Same service, different conversation level.
3. Results-Focused Value Proposition
I reframed the entire narrative from tactical service delivery to strategic business outcomes. Instead of leading with channel capabilities (direct mail, digital ads), the positioning claimed territory around measurable growth: predictable revenue, customer acquisition infrastructure, and performance optimization over time.
This shifted them from vendor to strategic partner in how they talked about themselves, which opened doors to larger accounts that needed growth systems, not just execution help.
The Deliverables
Comprehensive Brand Messaging Guidelines (60+ pages) This wasn't a PDF to file away. I built the reference document for all external communications, covering voice framework, messaging architecture, customer journey mapping, and writing examples. It established comprehensive standards including sentence structure requirements, active voice mandates, AP style formatting, and Grade 8-10 readability targets. The guidelines included persona-specific messaging and industry vertical adaptations so the team could execute consistently without losing flexibility.
Complete Website Copy Overhaul Homepage, seven about pages, four service pages, and conversion-focused landing pages all received systematic revision. I condensed existing content by 30-40% while elevating the messaging to enterprise standards—removing explanatory filler, eliminating redundant reassurances, and replacing process-heavy descriptions with outcome-focused statements.
Competitive Positioning Analysis I mapped specific gaps between their positioning and billion-dollar competitors, providing tactical recommendations for messaging adjustments, content development priorities, and visual sophistication improvements. This analysis directly informed website copy decisions and helped calibrate the appropriate level of enterprise messaging.
Industry-Specific Messaging Adaptations Created messaging frameworks for four vertical markets, ensuring the elevated positioning could flex by industry while maintaining brand consistency.
Systematic Revision Guide Built implementation frameworks enabling internal teams to apply enterprise messaging consistently across existing materials—email templates, sales decks, trade show presence, everything.
What Changed
The VP of Marketing noted that the elevated positioning successfully addressed the perception gap that had limited growth with larger accounts. This became the client's flagship deliverable to new PE ownership, representing their first major brand initiative under new leadership.
The messaging guidelines became the reference document for all external communications, with documented approval from C-suite leadership for use across the organization. Multiple stakeholder review cycles focused on precision and strategic alignment, ensuring messaging felt authentically enterprise without becoming clinical or losing the human-centered differentiation.
The Takeaway
Successful enterprise repositioning requires more than vocabulary changes. It demands a systematic approach to elevating every touchpoint while preserving authentic differentiation. The challenge is finding language sophisticated enough for CFO-level conversations while remaining accessible enough for the businesses you actually serve. When you get it right, you don't just sound bigger—you unlock access to conversations you couldn't have before.
Client name, industry specifics, and proprietary details have been modified to protect confidentiality while accurately representing the strategic approach and deliverables.
