Marketing Manager - KRSS
Driving marketing strategy, ecommerce growth, and CRM implementation for a scientific supplier.
At a Glance
The Context
KRSS is the UK’s leading independent provider of mass spectrometry and chromatography service and support. It operates in a highly technical niche, serving laboratories in pharma, academia, and environmental testing. When I arrived, KRSS was a successful sales-led business, but the marketing function was nascent. It was reactive, generating collateral on demand but lacking a proactive strategy to drive growth. The business relied heavily on the existing contacts of its sales team, and there was no structured mechanism for capturing and nurturing new leads outside of this network.
The Challenge
The business needed to scale beyond its "little black book." Key challenges included:
- Data Vacuum: Customer data was locked in individual sales reps' emails. There was no central CRM.
- Ecommerce Potential: The consumables/parts side of the business had huge online potential but was underutilized.
- Sales & Marketing Alignment: Marketing was seen as a "colouring-in department," not a revenue driver. I was brought in to professionalize the function, implement the underlying systems (CRM), and prove that marketing could generate net-new revenue.
Key Projects and Initiatives
CRM Implementation from Scratch
This was the foundational project of my tenure. I led the evaluation and implementation of a new CRM to centralize our customer data. I mapped out the sales process, configured the pipelines, and—crucially—trained the sales team. For the first time, KRSS had visibility of its total pipeline and could run targeted campaigns based on installed instrument base.
Ecommerce Growth Strategy
I took ownership of the online store for mass spec parts. We audited the pricing strategy to be competitive yet profitable, optimized product descriptions for SEO, and simplified the checkout process. We also implemented abandoned cart automation. These changes turned the website from a catalogue into a significant revenue stream.
Content-Led Lead Gen
We shifted from "product push" to "problem solving" content. I orchestrated a series of technical application notes and webinars. By gating this high-value content, we generated qualified leads that were previously unreachable. This provided the sales team with a consistent stream of "warm" prospects to call.
Tools and Technology
I built the tech stack from the ground up. I implemented a CRM system (evaluating Salesforce vs Zoho vs others), integrated it with our email marketing platform, and connected it to the website. I used Google Analytics and SEMRush to drive our SEO strategy and Excel/PowerBI for sales reporting.
Results and Impact
The biggest impact was the shift to a data-driven culture. The CRM became the single source of truth, removing the risk of data loss when sales reps left.
- Revenue: Ecommerce sales grew significantly year-on-year.
- Efficiency: Automated quoting workflows reduced admin time for the sales team.
- Visibility: The board had clear visibility of marketing ROI for the first time.
What I Learned
Building a department from scratch was an invaluable lesson in ownership. I learned that in a technically-led business, you have to earn respect by showing you understand the commercial reality. Implementing a CRM taught me that "people problems" are harder than "software problems"—adoption is everything.
Interested in this experience?
If you are looking for someone who can bring this level of marketing leadership and hands-on delivery to your team, I would love to hear from you.
Contact Me