Unlocking Hidden Retention Risks

An early-stage B2B services company had paying customers and strong early signals — but needed real buyer evidence before raising capital. Proven conducted 8 targeted interviews that transformed their strategy.

Industry

B2B Services

company size

10 employees

Major outcome

3 Partnerships Identified

The Challenge

An early-stage company in a fragmented services industry had paying customers and strong early signals — but no structured evidence that its market would support real scale. The founder was preparing to raise and needed more than a pitch built on assumptions.

Our Approach

Conducted 8 independent interviews with prospective partners and buyers — industry associations, regional networks, and enterprise buyers.

Each interview followed a structured scorecard covering market need, competitive landscape, willingness to engage, and strategic fit.

Analyzed responses to uncover hidden opportunities and positioning gaps.

Delivered clear, actionable insights with specific buyer context and priorities.

Key Insights

Average scorecard across interviews: 9.0/10 — strong market demand confirmed.

Largest industry association was actively looking for a new data and insights partner.

National network in adjacent segment needed exactly the reach the platform provided.

Competitor perception gap: Prospects described the main competitor as transactional and impersonal.

Results & Outcomes

The founder rewrote her fundraising materials, replacing assumptions with evidence from actual buyer interviews.

Identified 3 specific partnership targets by name, including who to contact and what each needed.

Re-sequenced go-to-market to focus on the highest-urgency segments first.

Within 6 months, two of the three targeted partnership conversations were active.

“I went in hoping to confirm there was a market. I came out with three specific partnership targets and a completely different go-to-market sequence.”

Founder & CEO

B2B Services