EchoSign's Jason Lemkin on Using B-to-B Direct Marketing Tactics to Enter the Real Estate Vertical

The stack of paperwork involved in buying a house sometimes can seem as tall as the dwelling itself. And that's not just from the buyer's perspective. So Jason Lemkin, CEO of Palo Alto, Calif.-based EchoSign, knew that as an online signature software provider, his company could help everyone involved in the real estate vertical. The only question left was how to approach these people.

In summer 2009, EchoSign used direct marketing channels to approach realtors about its product that allows e-mail senders to customize contracts with areas for recipients to electronically initial and sign documents, then click to return them to the senders.

As of press time, the real estate vertical already is accounting for nearly 4 percent of EchoSign's revenue.

Target Marketing: What role does direct marketing play in EchoSign's overall marketing mix?
Jason Lemkin: EchoSign is still in "education mode" in the marketplace. Although the ESIGN [Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce ] Act was adopted almost 10 years ago, it's only been in the past three to five years that electronic signatures have started to make their way [into] mainstream business. So EchoSign's direct marketing includes an educational component, with a significant emphasis on brand name reference accounts, to foster credibility. The bulk of the marketing budget is spent on lead gen and includes such initiatives as SEM/SEO, direct e-mail, promotion to Salesforce.com customers (promotion on the AppExchange and sf.com trade shows), list purchase, etc.

TM: When EchoSign decided to enter the real estate vertical, what role did direct marketing play? How did EchoSign acquire customers?  
JL: The real estate market is one of the few markets that has a certain maturity when it comes to electronic signatures. For many real estate agents, it's a matter of using the best service, as opposed to a need to be educated on the benefits of electronic signatures. In mid-2009, product enhancements made EchoSign an alternative, viable choice in the real estate market. So EchoSign has focused marketing efforts in this vertical only in the past two quarters. EchoSign has a strong viral component, which allows ... marketing to focus on nurturing the customer that may not have been acquired through direct marketing. In the real estate market, EchoSign partnered with key, influential sites (i.e., ActiveRain, Real Estate Connect) to expose the market to [the product].

Currently, real estate is a small but quickly growing vertical for [us]. In '09, 8 percent of our free accounts from SEM/SEO initiatives are real estate companies/agents. Direct marketing to these free accounts includes five informational/promotional e-mails spaced over 60 days. The objective of the direct e-mails is to convert the free account to a paying account. In addition to the direct e-mails, about 15 percent of the free accounts are given a "check-in" phone call.

TM: How is EchoSign improving its direct marketing strategy, going forward?
JL: In 2010, our strategy will continue to focus on enterprise departments and new verticals. In the enterprise, we'll further penetrate sales organizations and other internal departments such as HR, finance, legal, procurement. In vertical markets, we'll focus on telecom, insurance and real estate by establishing key partnerships with trusted resources in these verticals.

TM: What role does social media play in EchoSign's direct marketing strategy?
JL: Social media is a growing sector for [us] and is primarily used as a vibrant way to "listen to the customer" and tap into customer trends and requirements. EchoSign is active on Twitter (@fromEchoSign), and we use the channel to listen and engage with our customers. We also have a company blog ... and much of the topics we blog about come from paying close attention to what our customers, prospects and the industry are buzzing about on Twitter. Since we are ... still in "education mode," we have found this to be an effective strategy to deliver content that increases awareness and drives adoption.

In addition, [our] novel Twitter integration allows sales teams worldwide to "ring the bell" on Twitter the moment a deal is signed and closed. Good-natured competition and bragging rights about closed deals has long been part of the fun, and hunt, of the sales rep.

EchoSign-for-Twitter takes that to the next level by allowing sales reps and sales teams to auto-tweet the moment a deal is signed, and to auto-tweet how quickly they've closed a deal (contents of the deal are excluded).  

TM: What sort of results is EchoSign seeing from its direct marketing efforts in the real estate space?
JL: ... Currently real estate accounts for 3 [percent] to 4 percent of EchoSign's revenue. So while very small, it has risen to 3 [percent] to 4 percent in less than six months. So it is a fast-growing segment of the business.

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