In the world of scaling a business, particularly in SaaS and cybersecurity, one of the biggest challenges is not just acquiring customers but acquiring the right customers. In a recent session, Richard Blundell, co-founder of Venture and a former executive at MessageLabs, shared hard-earned lessons from his experience scaling businesses, including MessageLabs’ remarkable journey from startup to a $695 million acquisition by Symantec.

Cybersecurity startups often struggle with customer segmentation, trying to sell to everyone instead of focusing on the right audience. In a Cyber Runway: Scale session, Richard Blundell, ex Communications Director of MessageLabs (bought by Symantec and rebranded as Messaging Security, and then purchased by Broadcom and subsequently rebranded as Email Security) and Founder at Vencha, discussed how refining ideal customer profiles (ICPs) can accelerate sales, marketing efficiency, and product-market fit. Hosted by Plexal in partnership with the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology, the discussion explored how cybersecurity startups can use data-driven approaches to pinpoint their most valuable customers. I attended on behalf of Cyber Tzar, the Enterprise Supply Chain Risk Management platform, learning how precision targeting enhances go-to-market success.

Contents

Founder Led Sales with Richard Blundell Thursday 30th January 2025

This video is publicly available on the Plexal YouTube playlist for the Cyber Runway programme.

The Costly Mistake of Selling to Everyone

Many startups, eager to generate revenue, take a broad-brush approach to sales—trying to appeal to as many potential customers as possible. Blundell called this the “machine gun” approach, where companies “hose down” the market, hoping something sticks.

The problem? This wastes time, money, and resources.

Instead, successful scaling demands a sniper approach, targeting the 50, 100, or 500 companies most likely to benefit from your product. By focusing on the ideal customer, startups can increase sales efficiency, reduce churn, and create a foundation for strong word-of-mouth growth.

Defining the DNA of Your Ideal Customer

To achieve this precision, Blundell outlined a structured approach to defining what makes a perfect customer. He broke it down into four key elements:

1. Demographics

• Industry vertical: Which sectors benefit most from your product?
• Company size: What employee count aligns with your product’s best use case?
• Revenue: Does your pricing model fit within their budget constraints?

2. Geographics

• What regions make the most sense for your initial focus?
• Is there a market density that allows for efficient expansion?
• Are language or legal considerations a factor?

3. Psychographics

• What values and priorities define your target customers?
• Do they have a strong security focus? A history of innovation?
• Are they early adopters, eager to implement cutting-edge technology?

4. Behavioral Traits

• What is their buying process like? Do they have a procurement team that slows decision-making?
• How long is their average sales cycle?
• Do they respond to inbound marketing efforts or require direct sales outreach?

This level of granularity helps a company narrow its target and craft highly effective sales and marketing strategies. Rather than pushing a generic sales pitch, the business can tailor messaging, outreach, and pricing to fit a well-defined audience.

From Data to Action: Building a Market Map

Once a company has defined its perfect customer, the next step is mapping the market. Blundell outlined a process to create a hotlist of 500 ideal companies, which can be further refined to 100 prime targets.

To build this list, companies can leverage:

• Data providers like ZoomInfo, Apollo.io, and Lusha for firmographic data.
• Company websites and LinkedIn to research leadership changes, strategic priorities, and key decision-makers.
• Google searches and industry news to understand pain points and market trends.

With this research in hand, teams can build detailed account plans, complete with insights into the key decision-makers, recent company developments, and the most effective ways to approach them.

Crossing the Chasm: Selling to the Right Audience at the Right Time

Blundell also revisited Geoffrey Moore’s Crossing the Chasm framework—a well-known model in tech adoption.

According to this model, there are five types of customers in any market:

1. Innovators – The earliest adopters, eager to try new tech.
2. Early Adopters (Visionaries) – Willing to take risks but need evidence that a product works.
3. Early Majority (Pragmatists) – Risk-averse; won’t buy until they see proven success.
4. Late Majority – Conservative buyers, only adopting once a product is mainstream.
5. Laggards – Resistant to change, unlikely to ever adopt new solutions.

For startups, the challenge is getting from early adopters to the early majority—a phase where many companies fail. Pragmatists won’t buy unless they see proof from early adopters. That’s why building traction with innovators and early adopters first is critical.

Why Startups Struggle with Channel Sales

Many startups look to channel partners and resellers as an easy way to scale. However, Blundell warned against relying too heavily on this model.

The challenge? Resellers have their own agendas.

Many large systems integrators and cybersecurity firms prefer to develop their own competing solutions rather than push third-party products. They may also prioritize their own margins over your success, cutting your solution from deals if it benefits them.

Instead of putting all efforts into channel sales, Blundell recommended a balanced approach:

• Keep control of key accounts and engage customers directly.
• Carefully select channel partners that are genuinely motivated to sell your product.
• Create a clear agreement defining mutual success—if a partner doesn’t deliver sales within a set timeframe, move on.

The Sales Hiring Sequence: When and How to Expand the Team

For early-stage companies, founders should stay involved in sales for as long as possible. Customers are often investing in a vision, not just a product, and want to speak to the people behind it.

However, as the company scales, strategic hiring becomes necessary. Blundell suggested the following hiring sequence:

1. Customer Success Manager (CSM) – Retains early customers, gathers insights, and strengthens relationships.
2. Revenue Operations (RevOps) Manager – Ensures CRM systems, outreach sequences, and automation are set up correctly.
3. Sales Development Representatives (SDRs) – Focuses on outbound lead generation and appointment setting.
4. Fractional Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) – A part-time sales leader who brings expertise without the full-time commitment.
5. Full-time CRO – When inbound demand is overwhelming, a full-time CRO can optimize and scale sales operations.

Many companies make the mistake of hiring sales reps too early, before they have enough leads. This often results in wasted costs, unmet quotas, and high turnover. The best time to hire salespeople is when inbound demand exceeds internal capacity.

Lessons from a $695M Exit

Blundell concluded by reflecting on what made MessageLabs successful:

1. Deep understanding of their ideal customer – They knew exactly who to target.
2. A sniper approach to sales – Rather than spreading themselves thin, they focused on 500 key accounts.
3. Adapting go-to-market strategy – After initial failures, they pivoted to channel partnerships first, then expanded direct sales.
4. Avoiding the trap of selling to everyone – They built credibility in a specific market before expanding.

Final Takeaways

For any startup looking to scale, these insights provide a clear roadmap:

• Define your perfect customer in detail before spending on marketing or sales.
• Use data-driven tools to build a precise market map rather than guessing.
• Target early adopters before moving to mainstream buyers to build credibility.
• Balance direct and channel sales—don’t rely solely on resellers.
• Hire strategically—bring in salespeople only when inbound demand justifies it.

Ultimately, growth is not about selling to everyone—it’s about selling to the right people, in the right way, at the right time. By taking a disciplined, research-driven approach, startups can scale more efficiently, avoid costly mistakes, and build a foundation for long-term success.