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How we used System-Driven Word of Mouth to Break $30m Revenue

The inbound funnel, customer reference squad, and review email copy behind vFairs' growth from $1.7M to $30M+

Muhammad Younas · vFairs

Published September 1, 2022
About this resource

In two years, vFairs went from $1.7m in revenue to over $30m. Their secret?

A killer system to drive word of mouth referrals.

Muhammad Younas, CEO of vFairs breaks down exactly how they did it, 100% bootstrapped. Get the inside story of how they:

- Optimized their inbound funnel

- Scaled repeatable success

- Created a “reference squad”

Plus, the exact email copy they used to get over 1,000 reviews on G2.

Format
Founder500 Austin 2022
Length
16 min video
Inside
10 key moments
Read the full transcript

Explore the lesson. Sign in to access the slide download.

What you’ll learn

Muhammed Younas explains how vFairs grew with a measurable inbound funnel, detailed customer research, event-day customer support, and a referral engine driven by customer experience.

Read the source passages

Key moments

Find the ideas you need and go straight to the source.

Measure the inbound funnel

“those of you who don't know about vfares vfares is all in one events platform up until pandemic we have been helping companies out doing online events doing virtual events um companies of all sizes use V fair so again whether it's a startup company mid-sized company and then in most cases an Enterprise company they would run a conference or trade show a job fair an open day using a vfares platform and then you know post covet this year we also launched a couple of other”
Watch at 01:28

Research customer demand

“and that has helped us get 60 of our traffic so almost 58 to 60 percent of all of our traffic comes from those hundreds and thousands of keywords that we go and we research through the 750 plus interviews that we do every single month and again that has been the single biggest contributor to our growth over the years just because we had been doing this for the past five years you know ever since we launched back in 2016-17 the very first customer who came to us”
Watch at 04:48

Support event-day customers

“attending it and when it's virtual the stakes are even higher because then everything is happening online in your platform people are networking in your platform people are having fun on your platform the entertainment the sessions the exhibitors the speakers everything is on your platform so we knew from day one that we want to make sure that people who are using our platform they are being taken extremely seriously you know not just as a SAS vendor but also as a again you know just we just”
Watch at 08:12

Track customer sentiment

“virtual event is it X number of attendees what is that the core kpi that they're trying to achieve using our software can we help them achieve that end metric uh so that you know not only they just love that software but they also see that the software helps them be successful in whatever they're trying to do we actually documented each one of those things and every time we work with any customer we agree with what is their end goal of why they're they have signed up with the software”
Watch at 11:05

Turn customers into growth

“one we have been obsessed about customer support and our customers know that how much we care about uh their their feedback once once that particle event is over most of these customers then go ahead and would also give us video testimonials again you know we have we have a template for that as well that we use uh but you know with time what we have seen is that even without us asking them for that just because from day one in the very first onboarding call we would tell them that you know what okay here are things”
Watch at 14:30

Started career at IBM after UT Austin

“Started career at IBM after UT Austin”
Read slide 2

Our Actual June 2022 Results

“Our Actual June 2022 Results”
Read slide 8

3- Use this copy to get more

“3- Use this copy to get more reviews”
Read slide 20

That’s how we’ve grown vFairs :)

“That’s how we’ve grown vFairs :)”
Read slide 26

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Resource files

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  • How to set up funnel that drives $30m ARR

  • How we used System-Driven Word of Mouth to Break $30m Revenue - Slide Deck

About the speaker
Muhammad Younas

Muhammad Younas

CEO & Founder · vFairs

LinkedIn

As the CEO and founder of vFairs, Muhammad Younas is on a mission to provide innovative and scalable solutions to businesses around the world and help vFairs become the world’s most loved technology to power events. With over 15 years of experience in the technology industry, he has a proven track record of building successful products and businesses that drive growth and innovation.

Company revenue
$34M
Team size
222

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Slide by slide

Each slide with a short explanation of what it shows. Open the slide text for its exact wording.

27 passages

vFairs and the word-of-mouth premise

  1. Slide 1Open deck
    Slide text

    Muhammad Younas CEO of vFairs Founder500, Sept 2022 How we used System-Driven Word of Mouth to Break $30m Revenue … without hiring any outbound sales team (and 100% bootstrapped!)

  2. Slide 2Open deck

    Career path into vFairs

    Younas’s career moved from IBM to a revenue leadership role at Bayt and then CEO of vFairs. The timeline connects his earlier technology and sales experience to taking the helm in 2016.

    Slide text

    Quick Intro Muhammad Younas Started career at IBM after UT Austin Grew up ranks at Bayt to Chief Revenue Officer Took reins of vFairs as CEO in 2016

  3. Slide 3Open deck

    A three-part growth playbook

    The talk links growth without outbound sales to an inbound funnel, customer success, and customer advocacy. It previews tactics for generating leads, improving the customer experience, and turning customers into reviewers and references.

    Slide text

    Over the next 20 minutes: No outbound outreach I’m going to show you $0 TO $30M CS PLAYBOOK 1,000+ REVIEWS Inbound marketing practices we used How we optimized the inbound funnel How we defined a 7-star experience How we scaled repeatable success Referral Program Copy we use to get reviews How to get customers to do video You need a reference squad

  4. Slide 4Open deck

    An event platform with support

    vFairs combines virtual, hybrid, and in-person event software with hands-on customer support. Product screens illustrate event spaces, attendee tools, and live sessions.

    Slide text

    What We Do At Setting The Context Event platform that powers virtual, hybrid & in-person events with white-glove customer support.

  5. Slide 5Open deck

    Revenue climbed to $30 million

    The chart shows revenue rising from $110k in 2016 to $30m in 2021, with the steepest increases in 2020 and 2021. The intermediate labels are $650k, $1.1m, $1.7m, and $18m.

    Slide text

    vFairs Revenue Growth

Building the inbound funnel

  1. Slide 6Open deck

    Inbound funnel section

    This section introduces the inbound funnel and sets up the sources and conversion stages behind the company’s growth.

    Slide text

    Laying Down an Inbound Funnel Section 1

  2. Slide 7Open deck

    Paid and owned channels feed sales

    Paid search and owned or earned media feed an acquisition-to-sale funnel. The slide ties that process to $30 Million in overall bookings.

    Slide text

    Inbound Funnel at vFairs PAID MEDIA Google Ads / Bing OWNED/EARNED MEDIA Organic / Content / Social ACQUISITION INQUIRY DEMO SALE $30 Million In overall bookings

  3. Slide 8Open deck

    June funnel converts 72 customers

    In June 2022, 82,362 web sessions fed 752 inquiries, 486 demos, and 72 paying customers. The slide labels the inquiry, demo, and payment conversion rates as 1%, 65%, and 15%, and reports $1.1 Million in new ARR bookings at an average $15k ACV.

    Slide text

    Our Actual June 2022 Results PAID MEDIA Google Ads / Bing OWNED/EARNED MEDIA Organic / Content / Social ACQUISITION INQUIRY DEMO SALE 82,362 Web Sessions 486 65% Take Demo $1.1 Million New ARRBookings (avg $15k ACV) 752 1% Inquire 72 15% Pay $30 Million In overall bookings June 2022 June 1st-June 30th

Paid and organic acquisition

  1. Slide 9Open deck

    Paid and organic split lead generation

    Paid media accounts for 42% of lead generation and organic for 58%. The slide pairs paid search controls with SEO, long-form guides, topic clusters, and event backlinks, while the adjacent charts show organic traffic and keyword growth.

    Slide text

    Kept it Simple: Paid + Organic Paid Media 42% of lead gen Minimum $10K/month Brand-protecting KWs Targeting direct/indirect competitors Negative Keywording Organic 58% of lead gen SEO from Day 1 Long-form guides Topic Clusters/Pillar Pages Backlinks from our events Most popular long form guide: Hybrid Event Guide (2022)

  2. Slide 10Open deck

    Organic views reached a new high

    The headline reports organic views hitting 20,000 last month. The traffic chart stays relatively low for several years, then rises sharply from 2020 and trends upward through 2022.

    Slide text

    Organic Views hit 20,000 Last Month

  3. Slide 11Open deck

    Organic keywords grew over time

    The keyword chart shows a low, gradual baseline through the earlier years, followed by a sharper rise from 2020 onward. Growth accelerates further across 2021 and 2022.

    Slide text

    Organic Keywords

  4. Slide 12Open deck

    Paid search focuses on efficient demand

    The paid search plan sets a minimum monthly budget and focuses on brand-protecting terms, competitor targeting, and negative keywords. A campaign dashboard provides an example of the activity behind that approach.

    Slide text

    Paid is 42% of our lead gen Minimum $10K/month Brand-protecting KWs Targeting direct/indirect competitors Negative Keywording Most popular long form guide: Hybrid Event Guide (2022)

  5. Slide 13Open deck

    Organic supports most lead generation

    Organic contributes 58% of lead generation, supported by SEO, long-form guides, topic clusters, and event backlinks. The charts show traffic and keyword growth, while the Hybrid Event Guide is highlighted as a popular long-form asset.

    Slide text

    Kept it Simple: Paid + Organic Most popular long form guide: Hybrid Event Guide (2022) Organic: 58% of lead gen SEO from Day 1 Long-form guides Topic Clusters/Pillar Pages Backlinks from our events

The delight engine

  1. Slide 14Open deck

    Customer delight section

    This section turns from lead acquisition to the customer experience, introducing a process for defining, delivering, and sharing customer delight.

    Slide text

    Section 2 Creating the Delight Engine

  2. Slide 15Open deck

    Delight Engine DELIVER DELIGHT DEFINEDELIGHT DISTRIBUTEEVIDENCE OF DELIGHT

  3. Slide 16Open deck

    Design service around customer needs

    The team used its own events to build empathy and define a higher bar for the customer experience. The examples progress from providing technology to combining it with onboarding, then doing the work and helping customers succeed.

    Slide text

    1- Defining Delight Created Empathy: Ran our own events Asked ourselves: What would a 7-star experience look like? Give them the tech Tech + great onboarding Tech + do it for them + help them win

  4. Slide 17Open deck

    Four pillars define customer delight

    The experience rests on fast responses, custom 3D visuals, a flexible platform, and done-for-you support. A contingency protocol is included for when things go wrong.

    Slide text

    1- Defining Delight: 4 Pillars Super fast response times. Custom 3D visuals. Flexible platform. Done for You. + A protocol for when things go south

Delivering and measuring delight

  1. Slide 18Open deck

    Build processes to deliver the promise

    Each service promise gets an operating response: backend improvements for speed and flexibility, in-house 3D designers for custom visuals, and a codified process with LMS training for done-for-you service. The event setup diagram spans landing pages, environments, booths, and webinars.

    Slide text

    2- Delivering Delight Speed + Flexibility? Beefed up the Backend. Custom 3D? Hired in-house 3D Designers. Done for you? Codified Process + Train via LMS

  2. Slide 19Open deck

    Measure delight through customer feedback

    Post-event surveys and NPS provide a way to check whether the experience met expectations. The displayed NPS is 78, with the chart showing a large promoter segment.

    Slide text

    2- Delivering Delight: Measuring it How do we know we delivered? Asked Customers Post-event surveys Ran NPS (using Survicate)

Reviews and distributed evidence

  1. Slide 20Open deck

    Ask satisfied customers for reviews

    The slide recommends asking customers for G2 testimonials and shows sample outreach copy alongside review badges. It frames customer reviews as evidence to distribute after successful events.

    Slide text

    3- Use this copy to get more reviews 1,000+ G2 Reviews Asking for a G2 Testimonial =>

  2. Slide 21Open deck

    Share customer satisfaction as proof

    A vFairs profile appears in a virtual-event platform ranking, with satisfaction and support measures plus represented industries. The example shows how customer feedback can become public proof.

    Slide text

    3- Distributing Evidence of Delight

  3. Slide 22Open deck

    Request video testimonials from customers

    The outreach template asks satisfied customers to record short video testimonials, and the example includes a customer speaking on camera. The slide notes more than 200 video testimonials as evidence gathered.

    Slide text

    3- Distributing Evidence of Delight 200+ Video Testimonials Asking for Video =>

  4. Slide 23Open deck

    Turn delight into advocacy

    The playbook extends customer appreciation into awards, referrals, and a reference squad. Customer posts and an award image illustrate the public recognition used to share those relationships.

    Slide text

    3- Distributing Evidence of Delight Shower them with love Gave them awards Launched Referral Program Created a Reference Squad

  5. Slide 24Open deck

    Recap: Delight Engine DELIVER DELIGHT DEFINEDELIGHT DISTRIBUTEEVIDENCE OF DELIGHT

  6. Slide 25Open deck

    Recap the growth and customer playbook

    The closing recap groups the talk into an inbound growth engine, a customer success playbook, and customer reviews and references. It restates the themes of growth without outbound outreach, repeatable experience, and customer advocacy.

    Slide text

    In the last 20 minutes… No outbound outreach I showed you: $0 TO $30M CS PLAYBOOK 1,000+ REVIEWS Inbound marketing practices we used How we optimized the inbound funnel How we defined a 7-star experience How we scaled repeatable success Referral Program Copy we use to get reviews How to get customers to do video You need a reference squad

  7. Slide 26Open deck

    Revenue growth accelerated after 2019

    The chart shows revenue increasing from $110k in 2016 to $30m in 2021, with a sharp jump from $1.7m in 2019 to $18m in 2020. The sequence ends at $30m in 2021.

    Slide text

    That’s how we’ve grown vFairs :)

  8. Slide 27Open deck

    Thank the audience

    Younas closes by thanking the audience and identifying himself as vFairs’ CEO.

    Slide text

    Sept 2022 Muhammad Younas CEO of vFairs