CRM challenger · B2B software
87% ARR increase for Zendesk in EMEA
Driving Zendesk’s growth from $700M to $1.3B through region-specific EMEA campaigns, contributing 29% of global revenue.
The challenge
By 2020, Zendesk, a CRM provider founded in 2007, had achieved impressive results with $680 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR) and 160,000 customers. However, their sights were set even higher. The company aimed to reach a billion dollars in ARR within a year and significantly boost growth in the EMEA region, where they faced a weaker market presence and a more complex market. Recognising the limitations of their global anchor campaigns, Zendesk sought a fresh strategy to fuel this ambitious growth.
The approach
Zendesk had successfully enhanced its product portfolio with new enterprise capabilities and established a specialised professional services team. Our recommendation was to focus on specific, high-conversion industry verticals to enhance relevance for key buyers.
Initiating the vertical strategy. We launched a pilot programme in the Financial Services sector within the UK, identified as the most promising initial market. This strategy was designed to move Zendesk upmarket, targeting higher Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) per customer with the aim of achieving sustained growth (‘Win bigger, grow faster’). Given the market dominance of Salesforce and ServiceNow in the enterprise space, Zendesk’s core objective was to build awareness in EMEA by communicating a distinctive, approachable and contemporary brand vision.
Brand positioning and thought leadership. To position Zendesk as an agile and innovative CRM provider—the ‘Champions of customer service’—we focused on thought leadership and public relations. This involved creating compelling PR articles and syndicated content disseminated through leading business journals and reputable, vertical-specific newsletters across the region. The goal was to demonstrate that Zendesk’s solution transcended traditional support functions and integrated across core CRM processes.
Campaign execution and amplification. A comprehensive, six-month multi-touch campaign was structured around a series of six high-visibility webinars, which served as the primary driver for the sales pipeline. This central effort was supported by paid media, email marketing, social promotion, whitepapers, blog content, Account-Based Marketing, channel partner initiatives and dedicated nurture activities. Regionally relevant data from Zendesk’s CX research, Innovate Finance studies and local customer success stories maximised resonance in the UK.
Campaign amplification used interactive social content about regional CRM trends, a major PR series in tier-one media including The Guardian and the Financial Times, content syndication and key partnerships such as Innovate Finance. We also developed specialised sales-enablement materials detailing industry-specific solutions, competitive differentiators and core messaging.
The impact
The programme established Zendesk as a key Financial Services CRM competitor. The model expanded from the UK into France, DACH, the Nordics and LATAM.
- Total MQLs: 345
- Total sales pipeline of $795K against an initial target of $500K
- Total opportunities: 82
- 1,775 webinar registrations; 810 live attendees and 280 on-demand attendees
- 280–350% increase in organic new users year on year for four key EU languages, with 170% growth in MQLs through organic traffic
- Share of voice: top three CRM brand in UKI, Germany and France; top five in Benelux
- 25% increase in media coverage and 64% increase in the regional thought-leadership audience
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