The constraint
Playbook builds The Company AI, a platform that lets organizations automate their rules, workflows, and compliance processes, trusted by brands like Deloitte and Laborie. Behind it: a company of about 25 people led by founder and CEO Dr. Nikolai Wessendorf.
The gap was not the product. It was that outbound did not exist. Growth leaned entirely on inbound and referrals, right when the company wanted to push aggressively into a new market: South Africa's MedTech, Pharma, and Biotech startup ecosystem. No prospecting system, no sequencing tools, no outbound muscle, and a team too lean to afford months of trial and error.
What we built
Outbound from zero, in four steps.
The stack: data collection feeding Clay for enrichment and segmentation, with Instantly running the campaigns. A toolkit the team could operate from day one, not a science project.
The message: offers developed together with Playbook, where the winning move was writing to prospects in their native language and leading with the compliance bottlenecks Playbook removes. A subtle touch that created instant trust.
The launch: campaigns live within weeks rather than over-engineered for months, then iterated on copy and segments, with weekly check-ins against goals with Playbook's leadership.
The handover: built as a system, not a stack of templates. Playbook's team learned to monitor performance, adjust targeting, and keep the pipeline healthy on their own. Over nine months it became, in their words, a well-oiled machine.
Results
| Metric | Result |
|---|---|
| Opportunities from launch | 20 in the first 20 days |
| Positive replies | 300+ |
| Pipeline | Qualified MedTech and Pharma startups in the target market |
| Who runs it today | Playbook's own team |
"The ColdIQ team is everything you'd want in a consulting partner - true experts with both strategic insight and hands-on execution. They took us from zero to a fully built, high-performing cold outreach engine. From weekly check-ins to goal tracking, they guided us every step of the way."
Dr. Nikolai Wessendorf, founder and CEO, Playbook
What this means for you
Entering a market where nobody knows you is exactly when outbound earns its keep, and starting from zero is not the handicap it looks like: there are no bad habits to unlearn. With the right system, the first opportunities can arrive in weeks, and the system stays yours after we leave.
