How a cybersecurity startup cut through 43,000 attendees at RSA to book 85+ qualified meetings
85+ qualified meetings across 2 events
Description
A 200-person Series B cybersecurity company was spending mid-six figures on major events like RSA and Black Hat — but converting less than 2% of badge scans into opportunities. Luminik's pre-event intelligence turned their biggest events into their most efficient pipeline channel.
Industry
Cybersecurity
Company Stage
Series B
Persona/Role
VP of Marketing
CRM Used
Salesforce + HubSpot
Outbound Stack
Outreach
Problem
This 200-person cybersecurity automation company (Series B, $100M raised) was running 25+ events per year — from a diamond booth at Black Hat to tabletop exhibits at regional cybersecurity summits across the country.
The events team was one person. One marketer managing all prep, execution, and follow-up for 25+ events, supported by a VP of Marketing who was stretched across demand gen, messaging, and field marketing.
At their largest events — RSA Conference (43,000+ attendees) and Black Hat (20,000+) — the team was capturing 1,500+ badge scans per show. But fewer than 2% converted to opportunities. The other 98% went into a HubSpot nurture and disappeared.
"We'd scan 1,500 badges at Black Hat and create maybe 20 opportunities. That's a mid-six-figure investment with a 1.3% conversion rate. The problem wasn't the event — it was that we had no idea who to talk to before we got there."
— VP of Marketing
Reps showed up without target lists. Follow-up timing depended on individual AE discipline. And the VP of Marketing couldn't tell the CEO which events were worth repeating — because pipeline attribution didn't exist.
Approach
Pre-event attendee intelligence: Luminik pulled attendee and exhibitor data 4–6 weeks before RSA and Black Hat, identifying CISOs, SOC leaders, and security architects from target enterprise accounts
ICP scoring across 43,000+ attendees: Every attendee was matched against the company's ideal customer profile — so the team of 9 AEs knew exactly which 200 people mattered out of 43,000
Pre-booked executive meetings: Outreach sequences went out 3–4 weeks before each event, securing meetings with qualified buyers before competitors could reach them on the expo floor
Regional event playbook: The same system that worked for RSA was applied to regional cybersecurity summits ($7K–$8K each) — turning small events into efficient pipeline generators
Real-time Salesforce sync: Every booth interaction was captured and matched to pre-event intelligence, giving AEs full context for same-day follow-up
Results
85+ qualified meetings booked across RSA Conference and Black Hat — before the expo floor opened
Lead-to-opportunity rate improved 6x — from 1.3% to 8% at major events
$2.4M in pipeline attributed to 3 major cybersecurity events
9 AEs received pre-event briefings with ICP-matched target lists and meeting schedules
Follow-up time cut from weeks to same-day — with context from pre-event outreach carried through to post-event sequences
Regional events became profitable: $7K tabletop exhibits started generating 3–5 opportunities each when reps arrived with pre-booked meetings
"The difference between walking into RSA blind and walking in with 40 qualified meetings already on the calendar — that's the difference between hoping for pipeline and knowing it's coming."
— VP of Marketing
