Bridging PLG and Sales-Assist: proving ROI on human touch with TitanX
Pure PLG is self-serve. Most healthy PLG companies still add a sales-assist layer when the data shows a real buyer is ready. OpenView’s work shows PLG and sales now operate together, and product-led sales contributes revenue on par with self-serve for many teams.
Why blend motions at all? Because activation is the wall. Even top PLG products see only about 20 to 30 percent of new users reach activation without help, so teams experiment with targeted assistance instead of blasting the whole funnel.
Choose your humans wisely. Developers often prefer docs, sandboxes, and async channels over calls. Admins, ops owners, and budget holders are more reachable and more likely to convert with timely help. Industry data and community write-ups note that developers skip sales calls and buy when trust and proof exist.
When a program needs phones, pick a tool built for connect-rate lift, not list spam. TitanX positions itself as a phone-intent platform that scores who is likely to answer and claims large increases in connect rates. Treat it as an assist layer for P1 and P2 users who have already shown value in your product, not as a top-of-funnel dial machine.
The operating model
Goal: prove that targeted human touch improves activation and revenue for specific PLG cohorts without breaking CAC.
Who to assist:
Admin users who created workspaces, invited teammates, or touched billing.
Buyers who installed your app, connected data, or crossed a usage threshold.
Developers only if they opted into talk or requested help.
Signals to qualify a call:
Product behavior that maps to PQL status.
Firmographic fit that matches ICP.
TitanX Priority P1 or P2 when phones are appropriate. P3 is long tail.
Channels to respect: start in-product nudges, email, or chat. Use phone only when the user pattern and role suggest it will help.
HubSpot build to track TitanX impact
This is attribution and governance first. It works for Salesforce too.
Properties
Contact: TitanX Number (phone), TitanX Priority (dropdown P1, P2, P3).
Deal: TitanX Deal (checkbox).
Data hygiene
Load TitanX data as enrichment. Do not overwrite the existing main phone. Keep TitanX’s number separate for attribution.
Governance
Train reps to call the TitanX number on contacts that qualify. The dialed number is stored on the call activity, so you can verify compliance later.
Workflow
Trigger when a contact has TitanX Number and TitanX Priority in {P1, P2}.
On deal creation tied to that contact, set TitanX Deal to true.
Optional: auto-associate the qualifying call to the new deal for clean reporting.
Dashboard
Report: filter TitanX Deal = true.
X-axis: Deal Created Date or Call Created Date.
Y-axis: Count of deals or Amount.
Slice by Priority, segment by role (admin vs developer) to show where human touch helps.
Proving ROI in a PLG world
Primary KPI: lift in free-to-paid conversion and activation rate for assisted cohorts vs control. OpenView’s research and PLS operators point to hybrid motions as the efficient path when you keep the assist narrow and data-driven.
Guardrails:
Limit phones to P1 and P2 only.
Respect user role and preference. Developers lean async. Admins and buyers are reachable.
Track connect compliance by checking that the call activity’s dialed number equals TitanX Number.
Monitor CAC impact at the cohort level, not the whole funnel.
Why this fits PLG:
You are not replacing self-serve. You are accelerating high-intent users who already found value, which is the core idea behind product-qualified leads and product-led sales.
Quick reality checks
PLG is not calls by default. It is product first, with selective human help where it moves the needle. The mix has shifted from either-or to combined motions.
TitanX is a fit when your buyer persona answers phones and your unit economics hold. Use it as a scalpel, not a hammer.
