Identifying new market opportunities for a rapidly growing tech innovation company
PathFindr are a UK-based tech company, creating Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) hardware and software, providing affordable solutions for both indoor and outdoor use. They are part of MISSION, a collective of creative Agencies led by entrepreneurs who encourage an independent spirit, and are primarily focused on software-enabled facilities and asset tracking technology for industry.
However, in early 2020, just as the Covid-19 pandemic was starting to pick up pace, PathFindr’s Founder and CTO Ben Sturgess was developing a new device that he felt had the potential to assist with ensuring safe social distancing in industrial settings. Ben initially approached Saline, with their broad sector knowledge and strong industry connections, to start exploring potential markets for this new Safe Distancing Assistant.
PathFindr wanted to test whether there was a potential market for their new device – both during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. Saline were asked to approach some of their own engineering clients to see if there was indeed a good product-market fit for the device, and to explore what uses it could serve. They spoke to a range of clients and discovered that yes, there was indeed a potential market for it. They then helped PathFindr to identify some key market sectors and also advised on a sales strategy and a price point for the device. But the relationship didn’t end there.
Andy Thomas, PathFindr’s Sales Director, explains:
Saline helped us to rapidly get market-ready with the device, but they also helped to start sales conversations with potential industry clients from their own trusted client portfolio, as well as with some of our own existing clients
Rather than telling Tim and the team where we thought they should be promoting and selling our new Safe Distancing Assistant, we asked them to advise us, and to start building a client pipeline for us. After all, they have a strong list of engineering clients who already know and trust them, and they have broad sector insights and knowledge that we don’t have, so it made sense for us to engage them to play to their strengths in this way.
Taking this more informed and exploratory approach to business development has been a real advantage for PathFindr,as Andy says:
Saline helped us to find new opportunities in industry sectors that we’d never have considered or focused on otherwise. Working with them allowed us to stand back, assess the broader landscape, and spot different and more efficient ways to approach the sales and marketing process.
The partnership has evolved as the client pipeline continues to grow, and PathFindr now considers Saline to be a built-in element of the business, as Andy explains:
John on the Saline team takes a mature and tactical approach to his work with us, and he is genuinely excited by the workings and potential applications of our technology. We’ve come to see him as one of our own team, and we know we can trust him to deal with our own existing clients as well as potential new ones.
Andy feels positive that the partnership has contributed to the company’s potential for growth:
I’m a believer in the notion that if you do the right things, the right things happen. Saline’s emphasis is on strong, consultative communication, and they have demonstrated how credible and tenacious they are. If they find a good use case for other sectors where they are already strong, for example in offshore, renewables or civil engineering, that’s an obvious reason to continue to partner. They have taken the time and trouble to understand our culture, and to get to know our business. For us, that’s golden.
