Driving Cold Outreach Growth Through ICP-Focused GTM Strategy

The Challenge

Receiptor AI’s biggest strength was also its biggest challenge.

Because the product can serve:

• Freelancers
• SMBs
• Non-profits
• E-commerce businesses
• Accountants & bookkeeping firms

…and can be sold globally, the question wasn’t how to run outreach—it was:

Where do we start? Who do we speak to first?

Key challenges included:

• Extremely broad potential ICPs
• Global applicability with no geographic constraint
• Different pain points across accountants vs business owners
• Risk of diluted messaging without focus

The success of the campaign depended entirely on strategic narrowing.

Our Approach

hb.lance began with market timing and behavioral research, not tools.

1. Seasonal Demand & Market Selection

We analyzed:

• Countries entering active tax seasons
• Regions where founders and SMBs are more likely to self-file taxes
• Markets with high adoption of Xero/QBO

This research led us to prioritize:

• Australia
• New Zealand

Both regions showed strong alignment between tax season urgency, accounting behavior, and product value.

2. ICP Segmentation

We narrowed the audience into two high-intent ICPs:

ICP 1: Accountants & Bookkeeping Firms

• Pain: Manual receipt chasing, cleanup work, inefficiency for multiple clients
• Messaging: Accuracy, automation, time saved per client

ICP 2: Small Business Owners (Self-managed taxes)

• Pain: Missed receipts, stress during tax filing, lost deductions
• Messaging: Peace of mind, simplicity, zero manual work

Each ICP received distinct positioning and copy.

3. Infrastructure & Data Layer

Once strategy was locked, we executed with precision:

• Cold email infrastructure built using Instantly
• Lead sourcing via Apollo, Clay, LinkedIn, and Google Maps
• Enrichment and segmentation to maintain ICP purity
• Clean, compliant outreach setup to support scale

4. Personalized Messaging

We crafted:

• Two separate email sequences, one per ICP
• Copy aligned to real, day-to-day pain points
• Personalized hooks that reflected tax season urgency and role-specific challenges

This ensured messaging felt timely, relevant, and human.

Services Provided

• GTM & ICP strategy
• Market & seasonal demand research
• Cold email infrastructure setup (Instantly)
• Lead sourcing & enrichment
• ICP-specific email copywriting
• Campaign launch & optimization support

Results

While early-stage metrics were still ramping, the campaign delivered clear qualitative wins:

• Strong message-to-market fit validated early
• High relevance and resonance across both ICPs
• Clear separation of accountant vs SMB conversations
• Outreach felt timely, personalized, and contextual
• A scalable outbound playbook built for future regions

Personalized copy + precise lead lists ensured the right message reached the right audience at the right moment.

Why This Engagement Worked

This campaign succeeded because hb.lance focused on strategy before scale:

• Market timing over volume: Tax season urgency drove relevance
• ICP clarity: No “one-size-fits-all” messaging
• Precision targeting: Narrow markets first, then expand
• System-led execution: Built to scale globally after validation