Lead generation for contractor management & prequalification software

155 appointments after months of none

Before Belkins, Appruv’s previous outbound partner hadn’t booked a single appointment for several months. Over the next two years, the company booked 155 appointments with safety, operations, and procurement leaders, beating its KPI by an average of 25%.

• 155 appointments from November 2021 to October 2023
• 125% average KPI
• 20,481 leads researched, with lead volume increased in July 2022 as the campaign scaled
• 7–10% average reply rate, peaking at 12%
• 25%+ average open rate, peaking at 63%

Many of Appruv’s prospects were already locked into contracts with other vendors, and the target roles in safety and compliance are narrow. Results improved once the campaign shifted from title-based messaging to industry-specific value propositions.

Challenges: A stalled pipeline and prospects already committed elsewhere

Appruv came to Belkins with three problems at once:

• Outbound had stopped working. Its previous lead generation partner had produced no appointments for several months, which raised doubts about whether Appruv’s offer could get traction in the market at all.
• The sales team was growing. Appruv was expanding its sales team and needed experienced people who could quickly understand the product and its value proposition.
• Prospects were tied to competitors. Many potential clients already used another vendor for contractor management. They saw Appruv’s value but hesitated to switch.

What Appruv needed from outbound

Appruv wanted to restore a reliable flow of appointments, with value propositions strong enough to get the attention of prospects already working with other vendors.

What did our playbook look like?

The campaign ran primarily on cold email, supported by a LinkedIn program for Appruv’s own team. It started with title-based messaging, then moved to industry-specific campaigns that delivered steadier results.

Testing title-based outreach first

The first campaigns targeted specific titles in agriculture, energy and utilities, mining, and manufacturing, with messaging built around each role. These campaigns didn’t produce the expected results, so the team changed course.

Switching to industry value propositions

The team rebuilt the outreach around industry-specific value propositions. Each industry has its own contractor safety requirements and compliance pressures, so the messaging spoke to those. These campaigns ran together with Belkins’ referral approach: emails that asked whether the prospect was the right contact or mentioned a colleague who might be. This combination performed better and became the core of the campaign.

Expanding into new regions

To reduce Appruv’s dependence on a few regions, the team extended outreach to markets the company hadn’t reached before. It prioritized prospects with the highest conversion potential and adapted value propositions to each market.

Building Appruv’s presence on LinkedIn

The team also set up a LinkedIn program for Appruv’s own team:

• Identified ideal customer profiles and wrote LinkedIn messaging sequences
• Equipped Appruv’s team with tools for outreach automation, content promotion, and reporting
• Built an editorial calendar for original LinkedIn content
• Sent weekly reports with data and insights on the program’s performance

This helped Appruv’s team turn new and existing LinkedIn connections into engaged leads.

Finding the right people in safety and compliance

The decision-makers for contractor management sit in a narrow set of roles: safety experts, contractor management specialists, and operations and procurement professionals. These titles vary widely between companies and are hard to research. The team tested different email campaigns for each title category and refined the messaging until it reached and resonated with each one.

What this campaign shows about selling compliance software

• Match the message to the industry, not just the title. Title-based campaigns underperformed; industry-specific value propositions worked, because safety and compliance needs differ by sector.
• Give a failed channel a second start. Appruv’s outbound had produced nothing for months before Belkins took over. A new approach restored the appointment flow.
• Expect to compete with incumbents. When prospects already have a vendor, the value proposition has to show what they’re missing, not just what Appruv does.

This approach fits B2B software companies selling into regulated industries, where buyers sit in specialized roles and many already use a competitor. A company with a single target industry should expect a smaller addressable market than Appruv’s four-industry mix.