Automatic Recovery

In 2008, Steve Allen had hefty hopes for his company, Clearwater-based iDatix. He forecasted growth but instead was cut down by the onset of the recession.

Two years of flat sales followed. As a “propeller-head,” Allen knew the intricacies of his company's software, which specializes in helping companies go paperless, manage documents and automate processes. But he admits he needed help with marketing his firm's products in a crowded IT market.

“I have no business background,” Allen says. “Can you imagine someone with no knowledge of marketing leading a company?”

Instead of commiserating with his fellow CEO friends — which they are doing less of lately — Allen hired Jonathan Beaton as marketing director.

Beaton, 25, is a University of Tampa graduate with experience as an Internet marketing specialist for a Tampa-headquartered weight loss clinic.

Allen explains the firm was previously relying on referrals and word-of-mouth networking for sales. “We brought Jonathan on and started real marketing,” he says.

The new marketing approach leans heavily on digital promotion, including efforts such as investing in search engine optimization to make iDatix more prominent in Internet searches and holding webinars that help showcase its offerings.

Allen says since beginning its new marketing strategy, iDatix has seen increasing leads for more lucrative contracts. The firm went from clients seeking $35,000 contracts to those who spend in excess of $95,000.

The new marketing has also triggered standoffs with much larger IT companies such as Oracle and IBM — some of which iDatix has won.

A major perk of being a technology firm is taking advantage of its own services. iDatix uses the systems it implements for clients for its own needs, making it more efficient, Beaton says.

iDatix isn't just efficient in its operations, it has played the market with acumen. One of its largest clients was Netbank, which was one of the first banks shut down by the FDIC. The bank was broken into fragments, which iDatix signed to contracts.

The collapse in the banking sector did prove detrimental to iDatix, for it dropped from $3.2 million in revenues in 2008 to $3 million in revenues in 2009. But it signed a major foreclosure firm and captured sales from the sinking housing market, Allen says.

Although this client helped the firm survive the downturn, its growth was minimal, with revenues hovering at just more than $3 million in 2010.

Enter Beaton.

Allen says Beaton's passion for the technological aspect of marketing is key in the company's future growth. The company nearly doubled revenues in 2011, and Allen expects iDatix's revenues to more than double in 2012, reaching close to $12 million. To reach this target, Allen is also looking for a vice president of sales.

Allen says attracting new, larger clients has been key for growth — iDatix recently scored a contract with Lockheed Martin Corp., for instance. “People are running on old solutions and we're taking those and replacing them,” Allen says.

Although the new emphasis on marketing has iDatix present in more conversations, Allen says its software's ease of use and limited programming needs after implementation help close the deal on contracts. But he laments not focusing on marketing sooner.

“I look back and I built a $6 million company,” Allen says, “it should be $60 [million].”