Agree – A Startup Case Study: Simplifying Contracts, Payments, and More

Agree

Agree is a next-generation platform integrating e-signatures, contract management, invoicing, and payments into a seamless workflow. Founded by industry veterans, it aims to revolutionize the often-fragmented world of business agreements with AI-powered automation.

Founding Year: 2024

Headquarters: San Francisco, California, USA

Industry: Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

Status: Active

Business Model

Model Type: B2B, One-sided, Product

• Clients: Freelancers, small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs), and large enterprises, particularly those in transaction-heavy industries where contracts and payments are closely linked. Key customer segments include contractors, startups, venture capital firms, photographers, videographers, designers, and CPAs.

It’s Like: DocuSign but with Integrated Payments and AI-powered contract Management

• DocuSign focuses primarily on e-signatures, while Agree offers a more comprehensive platform that streamlines the entire agreement lifecycle, from creation and signing to invoicing and payment.
• Agree leverages AI to automate tasks like contract drafting, revision suggestions, and payment term extraction, going beyond the basic e-signature functionality of DocuSign.
• Agree integrates directly with accounting software and offers payment processing capabilities, simplifying financial management for its users, which DocuSign does not provide as a core feature.

Key Challenges

• Businesses often rely on disjointed tools and manual processes for managing agreements, leading to inefficiencies and wasted time.
• Traditional contract management often involves separate systems for e-signatures, invoicing, and payment processing, creating a fragmented workflow.
• Manual tasks, such as payment term extraction and invoice creation, can be time-consuming and prone to errors.
• The lack of integration between agreement platforms and financial systems can result in payment delays and difficulties in tracking financial obligations.

Key Features

• Unified Platform: Agree provides a single platform for managing the entire agreement lifecycle, from creation and signing to invoicing and payment.
• AI-Powered Automation: Leverages AI for contract drafting, revision suggestions, payment term extraction, and automated invoice generation.
• Integrated Payments: Offers built-in payment processing capabilities, allowing users to collect payments directly within the platform.
• Seamless Accounting Integration: Synchronizes financial transactions with major accounting software, simplifying financial management.

Founding Story

When and How Founded: Agree was founded in 2024 by Marty Ringlein, Will Hubbard, and Evan Dudla.

Founders’ Problem Experience: Ringlein and Hubbard, as early-stage investors themselves, experienced firsthand the frustrations of fragmented contract signing and payment processes.  They observed organizations resorting to piecing together disparate tools and workflows, highlighting a need for a unified solution.

Founders’ Backgrounds:

• Marty Ringlein (Co-founder & CEO): Serial entrepreneur, designer, and venture capitalist with successful exits from companies acquired by Twitter, Brex, and Eventbrite. Former White House Presidential Innovation Fellow.
• Will Hubbard (Co-founder): Engineering background, founder of Niche (acquired in 2020), experienced in building and scaling tech platforms.
• Evan Dudla (Co-founder): Extensive engineering and technical leadership experience, former CTO at multiple companies, previously worked with Ringlein.

Why They Started: Their experience revealed a significant market need for a streamlined agreement and payment solution.

Team Formation: They brought in seasoned FinTech professionals with expertise in accounting, banking, compliance, cybersecurity, and fraud solutions.

Problem-Solving Approach: Developed an all-in-one platform integrating e-signatures, contract development, invoicing, and payment processing into a single workflow.

Challenges:

• Navigating a crowded market with established players like DocuSign.
• Building trust and attracting customers as a new company.

First Results:

• Developed a prototype in January 2024.
• Launched a beta platform in early 2024, focusing on early-stage founders and venture capitalists using SAFE agreements.

Innovation/Technology for Success:

• Seamless integration of traditionally separate processes.
• Leverage AI and OCR for enhanced collaboration, automated invoicing, and real-time payment tracking.
• Free e-signature offering as a disruptive market strategy.

Key Growth Milestones

• January 2024: Development of the initial prototype focused on facilitating e-signatures.
• Early September 2024: Launch of the beta platform, initially targeting early-stage founders and venture capital firms for SAFE agreements.
• September 2024: Secured $3 million in pre-seed funding from notable investors.
• May 2025: Raised $7.2 million in seed funding, bringing total funding to $10.2 million.
• May 2025: Achieved over 40,000 users and processed more than $10 million in payments.

Market & Competition

Target Market

Current Market:

• Mid-sized Companies: Agree primarily targets mid-sized companies with revenues typically ranging from $5 million to $20 million annually. These companies have outgrown manual contract and invoicing processes, but may not have the resources for large-scale enterprise solutions.
• Specific Industries: While targeting a range of mid-sized businesses, Agree sees particular potential in traditionally conservative industries with lagging digital adoption rates, such as interior design and wedding photography.

Market Size and Growth:

• The global digital signature market was valued at approximately $7.61 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach $118.88 billion by 2032, exhibiting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 40.9%.
• In India, the digital payments market is expected to grow from $3 trillion in 2022 to $10 trillion by 2026, indicating a significant global trend towards digital payment solutions.

Potential New Markets:

Large Enterprises: The company plans to develop its platform to cater to the needs of larger companies. This expansion could involve more complex integrations, advanced automation features, and customized solutions.

Growth Trends:

• Increased Digitalization: The ongoing trend of digital transformation across industries is driving the adoption of solutions like Agree.
• Demand for Efficiency: Businesses are increasingly seeking tools that streamline processes, reduce manual work, and accelerate payment cycles.
• Focus on Automation: The use of AI and automation to improve contract management and payment processes is a growing trend that Agree is well-positioned to capitalize on.

Competitor Landscape

Agree operates in a competitive market with established players and emerging startups offering various digital agreement and payment solutions.

• DocuSign: A market leader in e-signatures and contract management, serving a wide range of individuals, SMBs, and enterprises.
• Adobe Sign: Integrated into the Adobe ecosystem, Adobe Sign offers e-signatures and document management solutions, particularly strong in PDF integration.
• Stripe: A major player in payment processing, known for its developer-friendly APIs and a comprehensive suite of payment solutions for businesses of all sizes.
• PayPal: A widely recognized payment processing platform with a massive user base, serving both consumers and businesses.
• Icertis: Specializing in contract lifecycle management (CLM), Icertis focuses on AI-powered contract analysis and caters primarily to large enterprises.
• PandaDoc: Offers e-signatures, proposal software, and features a strong emphasis on templates, document analytics, and CRM integrations, primarily targeting SMBs and sales teams.

Marketing & Sales

Main Positioning Values: Time & Variety

Website & Socials

• According to SimilarWeb, Agree.com receives around 54.5K monthly visits, with over half of the traffic coming directly.
• The primary traffic sources are direct, referral, organic, paid search, social networks, and ads.
• Most visitors come from the US, the UK, India, and Canada.
• Social media referrals mainly originate from X (formerly Twitter), with smaller shares coming from LinkedIn and Facebook.

Media Coverage

• Business Wire: Announced Agree’s $3 million pre-seed funding round led by Better Tomorrow Ventures, highlighting the platform’s integration of e-signatures, invoicing, and payments.
• Fintech Global: Covered Agree’s $7.2M seed funding and its plans to expand AI-powered workflows and accounts receivable automation.
• Finance Yahoo: Reported on Agree’s initial funding round and its mission to streamline business agreements.

Marketing Strategies

• Target Audience: Agree primarily targets individuals and businesses heavily reliant on contracts linked to payments. This includes freelancers, solopreneurs (e.g., photographers, videographers, designers, CPAs), startups, venture capital firms, and SMBs, with plans to expand to larger enterprises.
• Customer Acquisition:
  • Product-Led Growth: Leveraging a freemium model, offering free e-signatures to drive adoption and encourage organic growth within organizations.
  • Direct Engagement: Employing unconventional tactics like visiting co-working spaces and offering incentives to introduce the platform.
  • Strategic Targeting: Focusing on transaction-heavy use cases where the integration of contracts and payments provides the most value.
  • Value Proposition: Positioning as a cost-effective alternative to established players, emphasizing integrated payments and ease of use.
• Demographics:
  • Age: Primarily targeting professionals aged 25-54, with the largest segment being 25-34.
  • Gender: Skewing towards a male audience.
  • Geography: Primarily targeting the US market, followed by the UK and India.
• Marketing Channels:
  • Content Marketing: Utilizing website resources (articles, legal templates) to educate and attract potential customers.
  • Social Media: Active presence on LinkedIn (3k Followers) and Twitter (X) (3k followers) for company updates and engagement.
  • Public Relations: Leveraging press releases and media coverage to announce milestones and build credibility.
  • Targeted Advertising: The company has successfully utilized newsletter advertising through platforms like beehiiv, resulting in rapid user acquisition and increased brand awareness.

Product & Innovation

• All-in-one Solution: Agree’s primary innovation lies in its seamless integration of e-signatures, contract management, invoicing, and payment processing into a single platform.
• AI-Driven Efficiency: The platform utilizes AI to automate key tasks, such as contract drafting, revision suggestions, and payment term extraction, streamlining the agreement process and reducing manual effort.
• Free E-Signatures with Integrated Payments: Offering free e-signatures lowers the barrier to entry for users and strategically positions Agree’s integrated payment processing capabilities as a key differentiator.

Financials & Metrics

Revenue Sources

Agree.com employs a multifaceted revenue model:

• Transaction Fees: The platform offers free e-signatures and generates revenue by charging transaction fees on payments processed through its system. This approach positions Agree.com as a fintech solution rather than just an e-signature tool.
• B2B Subscriptions: For businesses requiring advanced features, Agree offers tiered subscription plans.
  • The “Teams” plan is priced at $25 per user per month, providing enhanced functionalities suitable for small to medium-sized businesses.
  • An “Enterprise” plan is also available, offering customizable solutions with features like CRM/ERP integrations and tailored workflows.

Metrics

• Funding and Investments: Agree.com has secured a total of $10.2 million across two funding rounds:
  • Pre-Seed Round: $3 million (September 5, 2024), Lead Investor – Better Tomorrow Ventures.
  • Seed Round: $7.2 million (May 6, 2025), Lead Investor – Pelion Venture Partners
• Employee Count: Estimated to be between 5 and 10 employees.

Structure & Culture

Leadership:

• Marty Ringlein: Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
• Will Hubbard: Co-founder and Chief Operating Officer (COO)
• Evan Dudla: Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

Other Departments include:

• Product Development
• Engineering
• Operations

Culture

Agree’s culture is centered around innovation, efficiency, and user-centric design. The company emphasizes leveraging artificial intelligence to streamline agreement processes, aiming to provide a seamless experience from contract creation to payment processing.

Impact & Success

Customer Feedback:

 Agree.com has received positive reviews from users across various platforms, highlighting its user-friendly interface and integrated features:

• Ease of Use: Users appreciate the intuitive design, making contract management straightforward.
  “I love this software. I find the digital signature aspect of it so helpful – say goodbye to scanners and printers… They’re so 2000’s.”
  — Tracey M., Digital Marketing Manager
• Comprehensive Features: The platform’s ability to handle contracts, invoicing, and payments in one place is frequently praised.
  

   “Great way to handle contracts online… It definitely makes what can be an intimidating process very approachable and easy to manage.”
  — Verified Reviewer, Owner & Photographer (Capterra)

• High Ratings: On GetApp, Agree.com holds an overall rating of 4.8 out of 5, with high scores in ease of use (4.9), features (4.6), value for money (4.8), and customer support (4.9).

Success Stories:

Agree’s growth trajectory showcases its market impact:

• Rapid User Growth: The platform onboarded 1,000 users in its first 30 days, reached 10,000 users within three months, and surpassed 30,000 users within six months.
• Product Hunt Recognition: Agree was voted Product of the Month on Product Hunt in November 2024, reflecting strong community approval.

Growth & Future

Challenges and Risks:

• Competition: Navigating a crowded market with established players like DocuSign and Adobe Sign.
• Brand Awareness: Overcoming potential confusion with other companies named “Agree.”
• Customer Acquisition: Building trust and attracting customers as a relatively new company with limited reviews.
• Scaling and Development: Potential technical challenges as the platform scales and introduces new features.

Future Plans:

• Product Expansion: Improve its enterprise offering with expanded advanced features like AR/AP Automation and API access.
• Market Focus: Continue targeting transaction-heavy use cases where the direct link between agreements and payments is most valuable.
• Team Growth: Expand engineering and product development teams.

Key Takeaways for Entrepreneurs

• Solve a Real Pain Point, Even if it Seems Mundane: Don’t underestimate the power of streamlining seemingly boring processes. Agree tackles the often-overlooked pain of contract-to-payment cycles, proving that even unsexy problems can be lucrative.
• Integrate for a Competitive Edge: In a crowded market, a unique selling proposition is key. Agree’s strength lies in its all-in-one approach, seamlessly connecting contracts, payments, and accounting. Look for integration opportunities to differentiate your product.
• Target the Underserved: While giants battle for large enterprises, niches remain ripe for disruption. Agree identifies the sweet spot of mid-sized companies, often neglected by larger players. Don’t be afraid to cater to a specific, underserved market.
• Free Can Be Your Secret Weapon: Freemium models, when strategically implemented, are powerful growth engines. Agree leverages free e-signatures to onboard users, exposing them to the value of the full platform and its paid features.
• Don’t Wait for Perfection to Launch: Agree’s success in beta, securing funding with a work-in-progress, demonstrates the power of iteration. Launch early, gather feedback, and refine your product based on real-world usage.