A renowned creative agency used Cognism’s sales intelligence solution to:
- Achieve ROI within three months
- Close deals with enterprise companies such as Spotify, BUPA and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
- Shorten the sales cycle by 10x
- Exceed target by 60%
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The company
Founded in 2021, Unite and Create is a creative agency providing video production, animation, design, web development, virtual events and more. They connect world-class brands with top creative talent working with global brands such as Spotify, BUPA and Pladis Global.
Their core mission is to provide big agency levels of accountability with the flexibility and cost-benefit of using the freelance community.
The challenge
We interviewed Chris Hobson, Co-Founder and CEO of Unite and Create about his experience using Cognism.
Previously, Chris worked at an events management company that signed with Cognism over 3 years ago.
After having a good experience and positive results with Cognism, Chris has since gone on to start Unite and Create with his co-founder Dan Laurence. They bought Cognism to accelerate their growth.
What problem were they trying to solve?
"My old company used an outsourced telesales resource to find leads which had a small degree of success - and the leads were often low quality."
"As a result, I was hired in 2018 as Head of Sales to achieve targets that have never been hit before. The role consisted of hunting for new leads in addition to building relationships and closing deals."
"The problem was I didn’t have the revenue or time to hire anybody as I needed to be meeting clients for the majority of the week."
"The main priority was to make sales without hiring more people so I was tasked to find a solution for this."
How did they discover Cognism?
"While I was looking for a lead generation platform at my previous company, I received a cold call from a Cognism sales rep."
"I didn’t know that Cognism existed, it was so early on and a really innovative technology at the time. We signed and never looked back."
Since founding Unite and Create, what gaps were initially missing in the sales process?
"As I am the Co-Founder, Cognism provided the perfect solution to help me work more efficiently by generating leads while at the same time managing projects and running the business."
"This was integral to our success. We had to find a way to make sales operate 24/7 or the rest of the business would eventually go stale."
"Having previously used Cognism, I knew that we could concentrate on delivering high-quality work and build long-lasting relationships while the Cognism sales engine runs in the background. It's complete peace of mind."
The solution
What is their target market?
"We typically target Marketing and Communications leaders in large global brands of any industry."
How did they find using Cognism’s sales intelligence platform?
"Over the last three years, the platform has become easier and easier to navigate."
"With the help of Cognism’s customer success team, we have been thoroughly trained on how to find our ideal target market on the platform. This is vital to keeping the campaigns ticking along."
Chris explained how the tool has increased their sales efficiency.
"The automation functionality of the tool means I can be in meetings all day with clients while at the same time generating meetings with new prospects."
"I effectively have a machine that works for me five days a week while I’m focusing on closing new business. Cognism is my invisible B2B sales team. The lead cost savings on hiring that talent is enormous."
The results
How long is a typical sales cycle?
"It depends on the needs of the client. It can vary from days to two years."
"Cognism either speeds up your sales cycle by 10x or gets your foot in the door with prospects."
"For example, we acquired Spotify through Cognism and the sales cycle was very short. We also acquired the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) through Cognism. They initially responded to a video campaign and then 18 months later, we were asked to take part in a competitive tender for an events contract worth £2 million per year, which we won."
"We would never have secured the FCA or Spotify without Cognism."
Chris told us more about the enterprise deals they have closed through Cognism.
"Spotify replied to a cold email, we booked a meeting and the rest was history - they’re a great client still to this day!"
"We also won a large contract with BUPA who has become a long-lasting customer. If it wasn’t for Cognism, we wouldn’t be working with these fantastic brands."
What results have they personally seen through Cognism?
"In my last company, we went through a period of booking at least 20 leads per month. That can bring its own set of issues around quality assurance. Since then, we have refined our copy, target base and now the platform is delivering a lower volume of leads but of a higher, more consistent quality."
"A good example is Deutsche Bank, which came through this month. The best part is we're getting higher quality leads and more recurring clients."
How has Cognism helped them hit their targets?
"Within a week of using Cognism in my previous role, senior management saw the potential of the system and my target was increased by 60% - no small task! We even exceeded our target and achieved £1.7 million in that same year. Cognism helped me achieve my goal to be invited to join the board."
"At Unite, we’ve already achieved double the revenue 22 days into FY2 than we did in FY1. Cognism has a big part to play in this."
When did they start to see ROI?
"Within three months we paid for a year’s subscription. The ROI has been proved, so we would be silly not to continue using Cognism."
What’s the best result they’ve achieved from Cognism?
"Financially, there have been some big wins but for me, landing Spotify was huge. I use the platform every day and so do millions of people. To be associated with a platform like that is humbling and we’re proud every time we tell someone that we work with Spotify."
What’s the best advice to someone who is considering a platform like Cognism?
"I’ve been in sales since I was a teenager in a variety of industries. I’ve come across so many different types of software, all of which promise the earth. Cognism delivers all of its promises!"
"It helps me function as a business and lets me sleep at night knowing things are happening in the background without me having to intervene. It's extremely reassuring."
Try Cognism’s sales intelligence solution
Over 3,000 revenue teams around the world trust Cognism to:
✅ Build qualified B2B contact databases
✅ Plan and launch their outbound campaigns
✅ Power up their social selling
✅ Meet and beat their revenue targets
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