From 30,000 connection requests to a network that replaces sales outreach

A one-person consultancy with a product that needs explaining: the question of what happens to a company when the owner is suddenly unable to run it. Nobody actively searches for this topic — it has to be raised proactively. Classic cold calling failed because the target contacts were simply not reachable by phone. The LinkedIn network stood at just under 2,800 contacts and barely grew. Without any sales staff, every hour spent on outreach was an hour not spent consulting — and therefore less revenue.

Managing directors, owners and founders of companies with 1–50 employees in Germany. Over four years, 77 target-audience lists were built and continuously sharpened: Phase 1 (2022) — broad regional searches, for example tradespeople nearby. Phase 2 (2023) — segmentation by federal state (North Rhine-Westphalia, Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, Hesse, Saxony, Berlin), excluding multipliers such as coaches, consultants and lawyers. Phase 3 (since 2025) — consistent focus on a single niche: managing directors of IT companies, additionally filtered by company size (1–50 employees), LinkedIn activity in the last month, and no prior contact.