Background

Brevo, formerly known as Sendinblue, had established a strong presence in the French market, but was virtually unknown in North America. Brevo hired a new North American GM and brought on Karbo to establish awareness for the brand in the US and Canadian markets. The company sought to become the leading Customer Relationship Management (CRM) suite designed to efficiently build meaningful customer relationships at scale. They target SMBs to mid-market companies, giving them a unified view of the customer journey in one easy-to-use platform to grow their business with intuitive marketing and sales tools such as Marketing Automation, Marketing Campaigns over Email, SMS, WhatsApp, Chat, and much more. 

Karbo established Sendinblue/Brevo as a leading player in the US market and the CEO credits PR as helping to drive US sales. Today, more than 500,000 businesses across 180 countries, including Sodexo, Louis Vuitton, Carrefour, eBay, and Michelin. Brevo reached the coveted Centaur status with $100M ARR in January 2023, and has more than 800 employees globally. 

Objectives

• Position Brevo as the leading CRM suite for growing businesses 
• Create awareness for Brevo’s strengths in the market and accelerate business growth in North America with a sharpened focus on mid-market companies
• Secure strategic coverage of the company, product and leadership team in top-tier business, vertical and tech outlets 
• Clearly and effectively differentiate Brevo from competitors
• Expand brand awareness in new market verticals: sales, customer service 
• Establish Brevo’s core executive team as thought leaders and pursue strategic media, award and speaking opportunities

Execution

Karbo partnered with Brevo to develop and execute a comprehensive communications strategy to drive success in the U.S. market. At the beginning of the partnership, Karbo strategically positioned Brevo as a fast-growing player with its Series B funding announcement, which marked the highest Series B round for any company in Brevo’s market. 

Following the company’s Series B funding announcement, Karbo continued the momentum by inserting Brevo’s CEO into timely conversations focused on data privacy, small business challenges, and digital marketing. The agency identified pressing issues impacting small business owners and marketers, such as COVID lockdowns and Apple IDFA, and offered the CEO as a source to offer guidance on how to overcome these challenges. Through high impact bylines in top-tier marketing, business outlets, such as Inc. and Adweek, Brevo’s CEO effectively reached the brand’s desired audiences and was viewed as an expert in his field. The agency also pursued and secured high impact awards and speaking opportunities to further position the company as a strong leader in the U.S. market. Following the agency’s success with the speaking program, the CEO was invited to participate at invite-only events. 

To further position Brevo as a go-to source for small businesses and marketers, Karbo recommended executing a global survey identifying top trends and issues facing small businesses and marketers. As part of this effort, Karbo conducted a comprehensive competitor audit to identify topics that have not been covered by the press previously. Following the comprehensive audit, Karbo worked closely with the Brevo team and third-party research firm to identify the themes, questions, and timeline to ensure strong media and marketing results. 

As Brevo expanded its product portfolio through strategic acquisitions, Karbo secured M&A coverage in top-tier business and marketing publications, such as Fortune, Axios, Reuters, and more. A year into the partnership, the CEO was granted the title CEO of North America and VP of Corporate Development after leading the planning and execution of each company acquisition. This provided a unique opportunity for Karbo Communications to position him as an expert in M&A activity, resulting in strategic podcast and byline opportunities. The agency also expanded its analyst efforts to brief key analysts on each acquisition and secure feedback on the customer journeys and strategies. 

In preparation for Sendinblue’s rebrand to Brevo, Karbo crafted compelling messaging to appeal to existing and potential stakeholders, retaining the brand equity they built over a two year period, while incorporating new elements into the company narratives. Karbo also led Brevo’s rebrand media strategy, and secured coverage in marketing publications, such as MediaPost, DestinationCRM, and Solutions Review, targeting Brevo’s key audience. 

Over the course of a three year partnership, Karbo helped Brevo grow from an unknown brand in the U.S. to category leaders and brand name among press, marketers, small business owners, and analysts.

Results

Karbo increased Brevo’s visibility in the North American market by inserting the CEO into timely conversations with top-tier business, tech and marketing press, and strategically securing coverage of company announcements, including acquisitions, new executive hires, and product news. The agency was responsible for increasing Brevo’s share of voice by over 35% within the first year of working together. Karbo also secured speaking opportunities for the CEO at top marketing events such as DigiMarcon, Digital Marketing World Forum, and more. 

Throughout the course of the partnership, Karbo executed an aggressive thought leadership program and secured 50+ byline and commentary opportunities in publications like Inc., Fortune, MediaPost, Adweek, TODAY, and VentureBeat. Karbo also secured 80+ top-tier placements (Fortune, Axios, Forbes, and more) covering Brevo’s acquisitions. In total, Karbo secured 50+ proactive briefings and 400+ placements, generating 10B+ impressions in marketing, business and vertical publications that directly reach Brevo’s target audiences. 

Earned analyst efforts led by Karbo resulted in Brevo’s listing as a major player in IDC’s omnichannel marketing platforms report. 

Karbo secured various award wins, which recognized company and executive strengths, such as Stevie Awards for Sales & Customer Service, Sales and Marketing Technology Awards for CRM Product of the Year, Best in Biz Awards for Small or Medium Business Service of the Year, The Drum Future 50, Webby Awards, SaaS awards, and MarTech Breakthrough Awards.