Case Study

How Zscaler Added $35.5 Million to their pipeline with an average deal size of $200K

Client

Serving enterprise security teams

Target market: Zero trust, cloud security, and ransomware protection initiatives across large enterprises with CISO/IT Director–led teams.

Challenge: SDRs spent 70% of time on unqualified calls (no budget, authority, or need), driving poor conversion and inconsistent pipeline.

Key KPI Achieved

$35.5M

Pipeline with 68% qualification rate

Average deal size of $200k for 135 opportunities

197 meetings generated 135 qualified opportunities with 68% qualification rate, $202,074 average deal size, and $35.5 million total pipeline including strategic enterprise deals.

Meetings with budget holders and urgent initiatives, not tire-kickers.

70% of the time spent qualifying calls that led nowhere

Zscaler’s internal SDR teams were burning through lists, taking meetings that felt productive in the moment, but when they looked at the numbers, conversion rates were abysmal. They were talking to people who had no budget, no authority, and frankly, no business evaluating a solution like Zscaler's.

For solutions providers, the cybersecurity market today is brutal. Everyone's shouting about zero trust, cloud security, ransomware protection. The noise makes it nearly impossible to break through with traditional outbound. Zscaler's reps were spending 70% of their time on qualification calls that led nowhere, and pipeline quality was inconsistent at best.

What really hit them was the realization that they were competing on volume, not value. They'd built a $1.6B company by solving complex security challenges for enterprises, but their prospecting felt like throwing darts in the dark. The gap between their market position and their lead generation reality was getting uncomfortable.

Zscaler needed meetings that mattered — with CISOs and IT Directors who actually had ransomware incidents, compliance mandates, or cloud migration deadlines. Not exploratory conversations with people who were "just looking around”; decision-makers who were ready to take action today.

Leveraging precision to get enterprise-ready conversations

TechnologyMatch didn't just replace Zscaler's volume approach — they rebuilt their entire qualification framework. Instead of casting wide nets, they implemented surgical targeting based on company triggers, technology stack analysis, and verified budget authority.

The shift was immediate. Where Zscaler's internal teams were booking meetings with anyone who'd take a call, TechnologyMatch enforced strict BANT qualification (budget, authority, need, timeline) before any handoff. Company size, security maturity, active initiatives, and confirmed decision-maker access became non-negotiables.

They also introduced an education-first approach that changed how prospects perceived these conversations. Instead of leading with product features, the outreach focused on industry challenges, current cybersecurity threats, and strategic frameworks. By the time prospects reached Zscaler's sales team, they were already thinking strategically, not just tactically.

The feedback loop was crucial. Every meeting was analyzed, every conversion tracked, and every failed qualification became data for refinement. Zscaler wasn't just getting more meetings, they were getting smarter about who they should be talking to in the first place.

Zscaler went from scattered conversations to $35.5 Mil in pipeline 68% qualification rate that was never achieved before

The quality shift was undeniable. Zscaler went from hoping someone in the room had budget to knowing exactly who controlled the security budget and why they were evaluating solutions now. Their sales team started saying things like "This prospect actually understands their problem" and "They're asking the right questions."

197 meetings turned into 135 qualified opportunities — a 68% qualification rate that their internal teams had never achieved. More importantly, these weren't just any opportunities. Average deal size jumped to $202,074, and their completion rate hit 90%. When someone agreed to meet, they showed up prepared and engaged.

A strategic $3 Million deal

The Canon U.S.A. deal exemplifies what became possible when the process and pipeline improved. A $3,000,000 ransomware protection initiative that came through TechnologyMatch's targeted outreach to their CISO. This wasn't a relationship Zscaler had or a lead they would have found through traditional methods. It was pure precision targeting that identified a Fortune 500 company with active security concerns and budget allocated for solutions.

What made this deal special wasn't just the size, it was the speed. The qualification was so thorough that by Zscaler's first call, Canon already understood their problem, had evaluated alternatives, and was ready to discuss implementation timelines. No six-month education cycle. No convincing them they needed to act.

Partnership expansion that multiplied their reach

The success with direct outreach opened doors with Zscaler's channel partners that had been lukewarm before. AHEAD, ePlus, Guidepoint Security — these partners saw the quality of opportunities Zscaler was generating and wanted to replicate it in their territories.

Instead of managing multiple, inconsistent prospecting approaches, Zscaler now had a unified methodology that worked across direct sales and partner channels. Their distributors started requesting the same targeting criteria and qualification standards, creating consistency they'd never achieved before.

You don’t get a $35.5 Million pipeline without making changes

When you multiply 135 qualified opportunities by an average deal size of $202,074, you get real pipeline impact. But the number that matters most to Zscaler isn't the total — it's the quality. These aren't inflated projections or wishful thinking. These are opportunities with confirmed budget, identified decision-makers, and active evaluation timelines.

It was never just about “a good lead” but also about what it takes to convert that good lead. The Canon deal alone justified the entire investment, but it's the compound effect that changed their business. Better qualification led to shorter sales cycles. Higher-quality prospects led to larger deal sizes. More strategic conversations led to stronger partner relationships.

This wasn't luck or timing. It was deliberate, systematic precision that treated their market position like the strategic asset it is.

Zscaler isn't just filling pipeline anymore, they're building relationships with the enterprises that should be using their solutions. The difference between volume and value isn't just philosophical, it's $35.5 million in measurable pipeline impact.

Before we began our partnership, Advizex had a familiar but corrosive problem: their team had stopped trusting the pipeline. Marketing and sales were caught in a cycle of "qualified" leads that rarely matched reality. Reps grew skeptical, leadership lost credibility, and pipeline meetings became exercises in managing disappointment—not driving growth.

As Chris Miller, CTO at Advizex, put it:

"You kind of felt like people were just trying to get a Starbucks card out of it. They wouldn't show up, or they'd be nothing like the lead sheet. Eventually, you stop trusting anything in the pipeline."

Chris Miller, CTO

This wasn't just a sales problem. It was a cultural challenge—one that undermined belief in the business itself.

Our Approach: Rebuilding Trust, Not Just Filling the Funnel

We knew Advizex didn't need more leads—they needed real opportunities, and a process their people could believe in again. So we delivered:

Buyer-Initiated Connections

We built a system where IT buyers approached Advizex on their own terms, when they were genuinely ready to engage. No more chasing, no more "defensive" calls—just aligned, high-intent conversations.

Depth Over Checkbox Qualification

Our qualification process goes beyond BANT. We dig deep into business drivers, pain points, decision criteria, and stakeholder dynamics. Every lead comes with context, so reps walk into calls prepared—no more surprises.

Operational Discipline

We integrated seamlessly with Advizex's Salesforce, enforced rapid lead assignment, and instituted shared calendar and briefing protocols. Leads are assigned within hours, not days. Every interaction is tracked, measured, and improved.

The Outcome

Yes, Advizex achieved a 50% lead-to-pipeline conversion rate with us—8x the industry average. But the real story is in the transformation beneath the numbers:

Sales meetings shifted from skepticism to strategy.
Reps prepared for calls with anticipation, not dread.
Forecast accuracy improved, restoring executive trust.
The team's confidence returned—along with their ambition.

"The quality of leads we're getting is hands down the best since I've been here. Our reps say the same thing. We're winning deals we never could before, because we know more going in than anyone else in the room."

Chris Miller, CTO

Our Learning Loop

About half of all leads don't convert immediately—and that's by design. We treat every non-conversion as data, not failure. Many are long-term nurture opportunities. We analyze every outcome, refine our filters, and use feedback from the Advizex team to sharpen every future campaign. As we scale, quality doesn't slip—because we never stop learning.

Buyer-first platform: We let prospects take the lead, ensuring every conversation is wanted and valuable.
Rich, actionable insights: Every lead is more than a name—it's a story, a need, a roadmap for value.
Relentless focus on trust: We don't just deliver metrics. We help rebuild organizational belief.

"We stopped chasing. We started attracting. And for the first time in years, we trusted our pipeline."

Advizex Sales Leader

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