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Rotessa was searching for a channel that could unlock their next phase of growth.
They had already experimented with:
- Search: Drove high-intent traffic, but volume was limited.
- Paid social: Good for awareness, but didn’t deliver the conversion efficiency needed to scale.
- Organic referrals: Came in sporadically, but lacked predictability (and thus scalability).
As a FinTech product handling sensitive financial data, Rotessa also required customers to share banking details and pass strict Know Your Business (KYB) and Know Your Customer (KYC) checks.
This meant that Rotessa didn’t just need more reach. They needed a channel that could scale trust and turn it into predictable, profitable growth.
The Strategy
After a full-funnel audit, partnerships emerged as the highest-impact path for Rotessa, both in terms of scalability and fit with their business model.
This approach was well-suited to Rotessa because:
- They play a long game, prioritizing sustainable growth.
- Their high retention and strong LTV made partnerships a profitable channel.
- The conversion rate from sign-up to paying customer was significantly higher with partnerships (unsurprising given the trust required and the friction involved in onboarding)
I saw an opportunity to accelerate sales cycles, improve close rates, and reduce CAC by enabling trusted partners already embedded in the buyer journey to actively drive acquisition
Teaming up with Canadian partnerships expert Lauren Helstab (x-Shopify and Sendle, founder of More than One Way), we built a growth play around what was already working, then scaled it intentionally.
The Process
Rotessa already had signs of partner momentum, but lacked the system to support or scale it. Here’s how Lauren and I helped them build a structured, scalable partner-led growth engine.
1. Doubling down on the right partner type (IPP)
We started by evaluating all potential partner segments and scoring them by effort vs strategic return. This included channel resellers, integration partners, and financial institutions.
The standout opportunity? Accountants and bookkeepers.
Rotessa had assumed they had 200–300 of these professionals in their user base. But our discovery process revealed the real number was over 600: 3x higher than expected and a clear signal to focus here first.
2. Grounding the strategy in user insight
To build a program that resonated, we went straight to the source. We interviewed:
- Accountants and bookkeepers, to understand what drives referrals, how Rotessa fits into their workflows, and what they want from a partner relationship.
- Small business owners, to learn how they discovered and adopted Rotessa – and where partner influence played a role.
These conversations helped refine both the partner value proposition and the messaging to end users.
3. Building a program that could scale
With clarity on audience and positioning, we refreshed Rotessa’s partner program and delivered a 12-month roadmap designed to scale efficiently.
Co-marketing as an early activation lever
We launched a webinar program to re-engage existing partners and identify net-new ones. The results:
- 30% of existing partners signed up
- A third of registrants were not yet in the program
- Nearly 50% attendance rate – well above average
Enablement to drive repeatable impact
We built out core partner assets to help advocates promote Rotessa confidently and consistently: email flows, pitch guides, landing pages, and one-pagers.
Data to support decision-making
We helped the team stand up the right reporting framework to track referrals, monitor partner performance, and guide investment decisions.
Internal capability uplift
To ensure long-term success, we trained the team on core partner motion principles, from activation playbooks to performance levers, so they could confidently scale the channel in-house.
The Results
With a focused strategy and repeatable partner motion in place, Rotessa is now set up to scale through a channel that aligns with their strengths: high trust, strong retention, and a loyal user base.
The program is already driving new revenue while reinforcing their position at the centre of the accounting and bookkeeping ecosystem.
