Cobalt (now Refold AI) built a genuinely differentiated integration platform but couldn't articulate how they differed from competitors. In 45 days, we defined "Embedded iPaaS" as a distinct category, created a complete GTM foundation, and restructured their website around buyer outcomes.
Cobalt (now Refold AI) is an embedded integration platform (embedded iPaaS) built for B2B SaaS companies. It is an infrastructure that lets SaaS companies build integrations directly into their product instead of relying on third-party tools.
In a space filled with players with Unified APIs (data aggregators) and traditional iPaaS (workflow and connector tools), Cobalt introduced a solution (embedded iPaaS) designed for product teams who need scalable, reliable, in-app integrations.
The Problem
Every integration platform seemed to promise the same thing: faster connectivity, less code, better developer experience. But internally, Cobalt's team knew they were building something fundamentally different—an infrastructure layer that let SaaS products own integrations natively inside their app.
The product showed strong promise, but their story had three critical gaps:
No clear category position
The market understood "Unified APIs" and "traditional iPaaS," but had no language for embedded integration infrastructure. Without category clarity, prospects compared Cobalt against whoever they'd evaluated first, regardless of fit.
Messaging that didn't match the buyer
Product managers, engineering leaders, and founders each cared about different outcomes (speed vs. control vs. differentiation), but Cobalt's messaging spoke to all of them generically.
Technical architecture buried business value
The homepage led with how the platform worked instead of what problems it solved. Prospects bounced to competitors with clearer positioning before understanding Cobalt's differentiation.
We want to define this category before someone
else does
Jugal Anchalia
Co-Founder & CEO, Cobalt (now Refold AI)
The urgency was clear: help articulate who they are, how they're
different, and why the category matters.
Create a clear, consistent GTM foundation that would help Cobalt define their category and stand out in a crowded market. Specifically:
Define Cobalt's distinct position between Unified APIs and traditional iPaaS, establishing "Embedded iPaaS" as a recognized category
Create a messaging framework that unifies how different personas (product, engineering, sales, marketing) talk about Cobalt's value
Build a conversion-driven homepage and feature pages that immediately communicate differentiation to technical and business buyers
Equip teams with repeatable frameworks for sales conversations, content creation, and campaign execution, reducing dependency on external resources
These objectives guided every decision, ensuring we built clarity before creating any tactical assets.
1. Discovery & Category Analysis
JTBD mapping showed each persona had different motivations to use an Embedded iPaaS.
Each persona needed Cobalt for different reasons, but existing messaging treated them as one undifferentiated audience. This fragmentation was killing conversion.
2. Category Definition & Positioning
We created a three-way comparison that showed exactly where Cobalt fit in the market:
This comparison accomplished three things:
Acknowledged real trade-offs instead of claiming superiority everywhere (credibility)
Showed where each approach makes sense (not just "we're better")
Positioned Cobalt for a specific buyer (product teams building native integrations as features)
We coined the positioning statement:
"Cobalt is the Embedded iPaaS for B2B SaaS companies building native, scalable, secure integrations end-to-end."
This phrase separated Cobalt from data aggregators and workflow automation, establishing "Embedded iPaaS" as a distinct category. It became our north star—every asset, every page, every conversation would reinforce this distinction.
3. Messaging Hierarchy
With category clarity established, we built a messaging framework that connected persona-level jobs to specific product capabilities:
Brand Promise: Own your integrations end-to-end
Positioning: An embedded iPaaS that combines the control of in-house builds with the scalability of managed infrastructure
Three Core Benefits:
Each benefit mapped directly to a persona's job-to-be-done, giving sales a repeatable way to tailor conversations based on who they were speaking with.
4. GTM Asset Creation
To make the category distinction tangible in sales conversations and marketing materials, we created repeatable frameworks:
a. Integration Lifecycle Framework
A before/after comparison showing how Cobalt transforms each stage of the integration lifecycle:
Stage
Objective
Before Cobalt
After Cobalt
Build
Create stable integrations quickly
Manual data mapping, authentication issues, inconsistent field structures, long development cycles
Pre-built connectors, unified schema, dynamic field mapping, 5–10× faster setup
Deploy
Launch and test integrations
Manual staging, error-prone deployment, limited observability
Automated staging, monitoring tools, rollback controls
Maintain
Keep integrations updated
Ongoing API changes, brittle code, repeated QA cycles
Managed updates, fault tolerance, 70% reduction in maintenance load
Govern
No unified dashboards, limited security monitoring
Ensure reliability & visibility
Centralized logs, user-level access control, observability dashboards
This table became a core sales conversation tool, prospects could immediately identify where their current approach was breaking and see how Cobalt solved it.
b. Use Case Reference Story
We built a concrete example: A Sales Intelligence Platform (like Apollo) integrating with HubSpot.
This scenario demonstrated Cobalt's value without technical jargon:
Requirement templates save 2-3 weeks of scoping and documentation
Visual workflow builder eliminates back-and-forth with engineering teams
Built-in monitoring catches errors before customers report them
Automated updates handle HubSpot API changes without manual intervention
Sales teams could now walk prospects through a relatable scenario instead of explaining abstract infrastructure concepts.
c. Competitive Positioning Frameworks
Using detailed competitive analysis, we mapped Cobalt's differentiation against Merge, Paragon, Workato, and Pandium across:
Feature comparison (what each platform actually offers)
Messaging tone (how competitors position themselves)
Technical depth (level of control and customization available)
These frameworks gave sales clear, honest answers when prospects asked "how are you different from X?"
5. Website Restructure & Design
Step
Purpose
Content
1. Lead with Problem
Create tension
Integration debt slows product velocity and creates maintenance burden
2. Introduce the Shift
Define category
Embedded infrastructure vs. external tools
3. Show the Payoff
Quantify value
Speed (5-10x faster), Reliability (70% less maintenance), Native experience (embedded in product)
4. Prove It
Build credibility
Lifecycle comparison, use case walkthrough, customer testimonials
"
Flip HQ helped us bring structure and language to something we’d been trying to explain for months. Their work didn’t just improve our website, it changed how we talk about our product internally.
Abhishek kumar, Jugal Anchalia | Founders
Cobalt (now Rrefold AI)
