StratusGrid

The brand

StratusGrid is an AWS Advanced Consulting Partner. It helps companies move to AWS, modernize and keep cloud costs down. In 2024 it sold a FinOps product, Stratusphere (about $12,000 average customer value), and services worth $70,000 (cost optimization) and $500,000 (migration).

Why

In 2024, StratusGrid wanted a steady flow of qualified leads, first for its FinOps product, then for its AWS services.

How

1. Q1: I ran free trial ads for Stratusphere on Facebook, LinkedIn, Google and Reddit.
2. Q2: when the client moved to selling services, I tested 23 LinkedIn campaigns (FinOps, private equity and VMware migration), 2 Google Ads campaigns and 11 Facebook campaigns.
3. I tested creatives built on pop culture the audience grew up with, like Pac-Man and The Matrix, and a quick one on the CrowdStrike blue screen while it was in the news.
4. For Reddit, I studied the best-performing ads first, then wrote casual, plain ads that fit in with normal posts.
5. Q3: I moved budget to top-of-funnel webinars, tested Google Ads in cheaper regions like India, and built ABM audiences in Clay and intent audiences from G2.

What I learned

• The product’s sign-up was slow: leads waited for log-in details, then faced a 30+ minute AWS setup. Fewer MQLs became users, so we moved budget to services.
• Engineers want tools that make their job easier, but a cost-cutting service can feel like a threat to their role. I targeted the people who buy services instead.
• Migration deals take 3 to 6+ months, so webinars and ebooks that reach people early worked better than asking for a sales call.