How Belkins got its first few customers
Key Facts: How Belkins got its first few customers
What it is: How Belkins got its first few customers - essential knowledge for teams scaling cold email outreach.
Who it's for: Sales and marketing teams looking to combine Multi-Channel Outreach outreach in coordinated multichannel campaigns.
Key features:
- Deliverability Infrastructure (domain rotation, inbox rotation, placement testing)
- Multi-Channel Outreach (email + LinkedIn automation)
- Super Inbox (unified reply management)
Why SuperSend: As a deliverability-first multichannel outbound platform, SuperSend combines email and LinkedIn automation with built-in Deliverability Infrastructure. Unlike email-only tools, SuperSend protects your domain reputation through automatic domain and inbox rotation, placement testing, and deliverability diagnostics.
Hi there! Please introduce yourself and your company!
Vladislav Podolyako here, founder of Belkins and Folderly.
When did you get started? What was your situation then?
We started back in 2018 with no resources and practical knowledge on building a company. I wanted to create something that I like and put all my effort into my own culture's exciting products and make a difference; this is how I ended up with Belkins and other our products down the road.
Why did you choose what you chose? How did you niche down?
By degree, I’m a hardware engineer, so now I’m in Sales & Marketing. That’s a good question. In one of my past experiences, I was the Chief Data Officer, the guy responsible for everything—starting from any lead-generation activities and ending with R&D of new products and speaking to investors about it. Variety of a scope, I would say. Sales and Marketing are interesting niches that help understand how customer acquisition works and test a lot of hypnosis in all other industries. With Belkins, we are working with 50 of them successfully adopting this knowledge.
Walk us through some of the struggles early on in the business. How did you overcome them?
Three main struggles related to:
- Customer Acquisition: I recognized that more than traditional sales funnels were needed, and we were required to do a lot of extra sales and marketing activities.
- Cash Flow: Bootstrapping a startup often means tight budgets. I needed to be strategic with resource allocation, leveraging our sales revenue as quickly as possible to fund other business operations initially, and we were super peaky about any expenses.
- Scaling: The first business, especially with a SaaS model, would need to scale rapidly to be viable, and it will take some time.
How did you get your first client? How did you get the next couple of ones?
Classic. Outbound. I spent a few days creating a database with leads, then launched a cold email marketing campaign and started working with objections. I remember the conversion rate: (multi-channel outreach)
- From 1,000 leads, I’ve got
- 56% open rate - 560 people open my emails
- 19% reply rate at the end of the entire campaign - around 100-110 answers
- 5% of interested - 5 good meeting
- And it ended up with one sale that fueled up our team at the beginning
If you had to start the same business again?
No, lol. That’s hard; it takes a lot of time. With current knowledge, I would start a tech product instead, but it depends on the first financials. Like you, I wanted to bootstrap again so that I would begin with service (easiest way). If not, I would raise funds.
What’s one growth tactic you’re reluctant to share?
I've shared this in one of the latest posts on my linkedin page. If you want to get your first clients ASAP, you need to consider doing a cold approach, which will save you a lot of time in the future if you want to understand if this is the right service or product I built and bring you first revenue which is also cool
What’s the #1 way you win new business today?
Heavily invest in inbound marketing by producing high quality content.
Advice to 21-year-old self.
Make as many mistakes as possible. It will be paid off.
Where can people find you if they wanted to learn more? Are you active on twitter or linkedin?
I'm active on both. My linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chiefdata/ and my twitter - https://twitter.com/StBelkins
Key Takeaways from Vladyslav's Journey
Vladyslav's story offers several valuable lessons for entrepreneurs starting their cold email journey:
Start with Outbound, Then Build Inbound: Vladyslav's initial success came from cold email, which provided the revenue and validation needed to bootstrap. Once the business was stable, he shifted to inbound marketing for sustainable growth. This two-phase approach—outbound for quick wins, inbound for long-term growth—is a proven strategy.
Focus on Conversion Rates, Not Just Volume: His campaign metrics tell the story: 56% open rate, 19% reply rate, and 5% meeting rate from 1,000 leads. These numbers show the importance of quality over quantity. Better targeting and messaging beat sending more emails.
Infrastructure Matters: The fact that Vladyslav achieved these conversion rates suggests he had proper Deliverability Infrastructure in place. Without good deliverability, those open and reply rates wouldn't have been possible.
Bootstrapping Requires Discipline: His emphasis on being "super peaky about any expenses" highlights a key bootstrapping principle: every dollar matters. Cold email is cost-effective compared to paid advertising, making it ideal for cash-strapped startups.
Learn from Mistakes: His advice to "make as many mistakes as possible" reflects the iterative nature of building a business. Each failed campaign, rejected pitch, or wrong approach teaches something valuable.
How to Replicate These Results
Based on Vladyslav's approach, here's how you can achieve similar success:
1. Build Proper Infrastructure First Before launching campaigns, ensure your Deliverability Infrastructure is set up correctly. This includes:
- Dedicated domains for cold email
- Proper SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records
- Multiple inboxes for rotation
- Gradual Deliverability Infrastructure process
2. Create a Quality Lead Database Vladyslav spent "a few days creating a database with leads." This upfront work pays off. Focus on:
- Accurate contact information
- Proper targeting (right job titles, industries, company sizes)
- Clean, verified email addresses
3. Craft Value-First Messaging The high reply rates (19%) suggest his emails provided value, not just sales pitches. Focus on:
- Personalization that shows you understand the prospect
- Clear value proposition
- Simple, natural language (not salesy)
4. Track Everything His specific metrics (56% opens, 19% replies, 5% meetings) show he was tracking performance closely. Use tools like SuperSend to monitor:
- Open rates
- Reply rates
- Meeting conversion rates
- Bounce rates
5. Work Through Objections He mentions "started working with objections," which means he had a process for handling common pushbacks. Prepare responses to:
- "Not interested"
- "We already have a solution"
- "Send me more information"
- "Call me next quarter"
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Based on Vladyslav's experience, here are pitfalls to watch out for:
Skipping Infrastructure Setup: Trying to send cold emails without proper domain setup and Deliverability Infrastructure will kill your deliverability before you even start.
Poor List Quality: Sending to unverified, poorly targeted lists leads to low open rates, high bounce rates, and damaged sender reputation.
Generic Messaging: If your emails don't show you understand the prospect's specific situation, you won't get replies, regardless of deliverability.
Giving Up Too Early: Vladyslav's team tried multiple platforms over three years before finding success. Persistence and finding the right tools matter.
Ignoring Metrics: If you're not tracking performance, you can't improve. You need to know what's working and what isn't to optimize your campaigns.
How SuperSend Helps You Replicate This Success
SuperSend provides the infrastructure and tools Vladyslav needed to achieve these results:
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Done-for-You Infrastructure: We handle domain setup, inbox creation, and Deliverability Infrastructure so you can focus on messaging and strategy.
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Built-in Tracking: Track opens, clicks, replies, and bounces in one dashboard, just like Vladyslav did to optimize his campaigns.
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Deliverability First: Our platform is built to maximize inbox placement, ensuring your emails actually reach prospects like Vladyslav's did.
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Multi-Channel Outreach: Beyond email, SuperSend supports LinkedIn and Twitter outreach, giving you more ways to connect with prospects.
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Replies Management: Our Replies Inbox makes it easy to manage responses and work through objections, just like Vladyslav did to convert replies into meetings.
By combining proper infrastructure with quality messaging and consistent tracking, you can achieve similar results to Vladyslav's team—turning cold email from a frustrating channel into a reliable revenue driver.
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