Notes from the field.
Thirty essays from the Blacksmith team, written across the last seven months. Security GTM, scoring craft, deliverability, channel, AI in outbound, and the deals we cannot stop thinking about.
These are the field notes from the Blacksmith team while we build — opinionated essays on physical security GTM, deliverability, scoring craft, and the deals we cannot stop thinking about. Newer pieces, signed by Joshua, arrive as we approach launch. If you want them in your inbox the day they land, join the waitlist.
Looking ahead: what we are betting on for 2027
A short and necessarily speculative post about the few bets we are willing to make on what physical security GTM looks like next year.
Why our scoring model dropped 40 points after recalibration
A transparent product post about the most uncomfortable model adjustment we have ever shipped, and the reason it made the product better.
Federal grants for school security and deadlines you cannot miss
A clean reference for the major federal pots that fund K-12 security upgrades, with the dates that actually matter this year.
New construction vs retrofit: which territory to chase first
A short and opinionated guide to the most consequential strategic decision a new integrator makes in their first eighteen months.
The quiet permit: how a 240k sqft warehouse turned into a $1.4M camera deal
Anatomy of a single signal, from city permit filing to signed walkthrough in eleven days.
Replacing trade show booths with field intel
A practical guide to converting your old show budget into a year-round field intelligence program that actually generates pipeline.
Pricing security work against tariffs and supply shocks
Hardware costs moved more in 2025 than in the previous five years combined. A short essay on quoting durably in a noisy market.
Domain reputation: a year in numbers
We tracked the deliverability behavior of 38 customer sending domains across 2025. Here are the numbers that actually mattered.
LinkedIn outreach for security: the slow path that scales
A patient, low volume LinkedIn practice produces better meetings than any cold email channel we have measured. The reason is simple.
Designing for the second screen: why operators want quiet software
A short note on why the dashboard you live in all day should fade into the background, and what we built to make that possible.
Inbox triage when ten replies come at once
A boring operational essay about something that quietly breaks a lot of sales teams. What to do, and what to never do, when the inbox lights up.
The end of spray and pray: specificity as defense
Volume outbound is finally over for our category. Here is what is replacing it and why specificity is the new moat.
Why permit data goes stale faster than you think
A short technical essay on freshness, latency, and why a 48 hour delay is enough to lose a deal in this category.
From rep to operator: the team-of-three GTM
A small structural change that helped a 35 person integrator triple outbound pipeline without hiring a single new salesperson.
Walking the site: how a 20 minute visit closes
A short essay on the most underrated sales motion in our category. It is shockingly simple and shockingly effective.
Insurance-driven security upgrades: a new motion
Premiums went up. Carriers got specific. A surprising number of buyers are now budgeting upgrades to satisfy underwriters, not threats.
Permits are not leads. They are context.
A short manifesto on the difference between a list of facilities and a list of decisions worth making this week.
The 200,000 sqft signal: anatomy of a deal
A single permit, eleven internal touches, twenty three days from first contact to signed contract. Here is the play by play.
Building a partnership channel with electrical contractors
The most underrated lead source for any integrator. Quiet, consistent, and almost no competition for the relationships.
Why your CRM is the wrong layer for buying signals
CRMs were built to record outcomes, not detect them. A short essay on the architectural mistake nobody seems willing to name.
Tax credit windows and the urgency math no one runs
A surprising number of security projects move because of a tax deadline, not a threat event. Here is how to read the calendar.
What we got wrong about AI-written cold email this year
We shipped four versions of an AI email generator. Two failed. Here is what failed and why, and what we will do differently in 2026.
Cannabis dispensary security: the vertical no one wants to talk about
A high-margin, fast-cycle vertical with weird politics and a calendar that does not match anything else.
Hiring your first BDR at a 25-person security integrator
The hire that breaks more integrators than any other, and how to do it without setting fire to your training time.
School district contracts and the timing of grant windows
A vertical that frustrates most integrators because the cycles are weird. Here is the calendar that actually drives the work.
Designing a scoring rubric that survives Q4 calibration
How to write a lead scoring rubric simple enough that your AE will actually use it, and durable enough to outlast a quarter end.
Three quiet reasons trade shows stopped working for us
Not a hot take, not a eulogy. Just three observations from running booths for the last six years and what we are doing instead.
Multi-domain sending: a survivor's guide for 2026
Inbox providers got smarter this year. Here is what is still working, what stopped working in spring, and what we expect by summer.
The first 90 days of cold outreach for a 20 person integrator
A field guide for the first quarter you take cold seriously. What to build, what to ignore, and what to expect.
Why we left HubSpot data for permits
A short founding story about quitting enriched lists and learning to listen to public records instead.
Field notes, never marketing.
One short essay every few weeks. We only publish when there's something specific to say.
Summit seats are limited and allocated to qualifying founding members. Perks subject to final terms.