🕵🏻‍♂️ GTM Strategy 2024

Dear Trencher,

We recently delved into the minds of our fellow marketers in the Trenches Community and guess what? The struggles are real! 

From the classic "What’s our unique value proposition?" to the head-scratcher "Who on earth is our ideal customer?" or even “Which market segments should we focus on as we can serve multiple industries?”— we heard it all.

It’s like everyone’s wrestling with the same marketing demons! 

Turns out, these puzzles all point to one big bad wolf: the lack of a clear go-to-market strategy. 🌪️

In today's newsletter, we're revealing a foolproof, step-by-step GTM strategy that Vlad and Andrei have been using at Fulfunnel.io.

Get ready to soak in wisdom on:

🌟 The Boiler Room Strategy ;

🚀 The ultimate launchpad for crafting your go-to-market strategy ;

💎 The insider's guide to the core elements of a marketing strategy.

Let’s dive in. 

THE BOILER ROOM STRATEGY

• THE BOILER ROOM SALES STRATEGY

If you haven't watched the Boiler Room movie, I highly recommend you do it (and thank me later). 

This movie is the perfect illustration of the common mistake most B2B companies make: having a company-centric mindset. 

They believe having a top-notch product is the golden ticket to success. The script they follow? "We're the best, and everyone should know it. No need for all that marketing, branding, and positioning jazz. Our product speaks for itself."

As such, they do massive outreach, send the prospects to account executives, and then... cue the fiasco.

See, in the B2B space, the real star is not your product; it's your audience. Shouting from the rooftops won't cut it. And sending prospects to account executives without a clear strategy is the perfect recipe for disaster.

• THE BOILER ROOM MARKETING STRATEGY

The boiler room marketing is all about hitting sales quotas through gated content and webinars that often feel more like product demos in disguise.

You sign up for what promises to be an insightful event, only to find yourself in the middle of a sales pitch for a product you never signed up to explore.

It doesn’t stop there.

After the event, the marketing team passes the so-called “leads” to the sales team which starts sending out generic sales emails. Result? A BIGGER FIASCO.

Here’s an example.

It's time to redefine what a "lead" means. These aren't just names on a list; they're potential connections waiting to happen. Potential deals to close.

Instead of automated and generic sales emails post-event, focus on personalized interactions.

Understand your audience's specific needs, tailor your communication, and build relationships that go beyond a one-time transaction. Turn every interaction into a genuine connection, not just a sales pitch. 

It's about more than hitting quotas; it's about forging authentic connections and ensuring that every interaction adds genuine value. 

Now let's look at the step-by-step guide to developing a go-to-market strategy. 

WHAT IS A GTM STRATEGY?

If you ask 10 different people what a marketing strategy is, chances are you will get 10 different responses. 

But in its simplest form, a marketing strategy is a clear path from point A (where you are now) to point B (desired outcome) with required resources (people, tech stack, funds, etc.). 

Think of it as your strategic battle plan but without the cryptic war language. We're talking about a clear, actionable path to success in the B2B marketing arena.

More details on this image.

What is the starting point for developing your go-to-market strategy?

The temptation to dive straight into tactics and best practices is real, but trust me, until everyone—your execs, sales champs, and marketing teams—align with the same goals, your GTM strategy is likely to fail.

Picture it as a strategic ballet; everyone needs to be on the same beat for that flawless performance.

So, here's your power move – 03 simple questions to get everyone aligned.

1. What’s the end game?

Defining the finish line from the get-go is crucial. What are we striving for? This will help you set your eyes on the prize.

2. How do we get there?

This isn’t just about the destination; it's the roadmap. Time to plot out the roadmap, and identify the milestones. Who does what? Where do we deploy our marketing ninjas? This is the nitty-gritty that turns your vision into action.

3. What obstacles might block our path, what could throw us off course, and how do we dodge the curveballs?

Reality check time.😎 Anticipate the challenges. We know there will be hiccups, but let’s predict them, tackle them, and turn setbacks into comebacks.

Why is this last question important? Let’s keep it real, no plan survives contact with reality unscathed. It’s the unpredictables that keep us on our toes. Knowing this upfront prevents any rosy illusions – so none of you wears pink glasses and thinks everything will be linear and seamless.

Furthermore, that question won’t just shape Plan A; it’s your backstage pass to Plans B and C. Flexibility is the name of the game.

The core elements of a marketing strategy

You don't need a +40-page document listing out your mission, values, and corporate stuff, to grow your company. From our perspective at FullFunnel.io, here are the core elements of our GTM strategy that delivered tremendous results.  

1. Market segmentation

All segments have different needs, different goals, and tons of different reasons to buy from you. And the truth is, not all segments are created equal. Some are revenue gold mines, while others are just, well, meh. 😂

Therefore, it is up to you to identify the segments you want to prioritize based on your set goals.

To do that, you can analyze your customers and the segments you are currently selling to. Then you can score them based on some criteria including: 

• How profitable are your current segments ;

• How easy it is for you to get in touch with them ;

• What’s your track record with them? 

One of the reasons why you want to segment your addressable market is because, in a specific segment, you’ll have a better client message fit and ultimately more conversion rates. 

So, your winning strategy begins clearly with understanding your segments inside out. 

2. Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)

You can't sell to "all startups from New Jersey that raised money recently".

The higher your product price, the more specific and personalized your targeting and marketing message should be. 

When developing an ICP for a B2B company, you need to work on two things: 

A. Ideal Account Description: including things like the revenue, the team size, and the location you’ll use for qualification and prospecting.

B. The Buying Committee: this includes 4 roles:

• The Champions: CEO, Marketer

• The Decision-makers: CEO

• The Influencers: Co-founder, partner, head of marketing, head of sales, investor, board member

• The Blockers: sales or marketing

In a recent HBR report, the average size of a buying committee is about 07 people, which means that 07 different people influence your deal.  

Then, if you want to successfully close deals, you need to address and impress each of them. But the truth is - each committee member is a universe of their own. They've got needs, KPIs, goals, challenges, and a whole bunch of reasons to either buy from you or send you packing.

So, it takes a good deal of time to properly do your homework and serve them what they need to hear.

But hey, the good news is not all customers are cut from the same cloth. Therefore, if one customer is a revenue powerhouse and can generate 20x more revenue than another customer, you focus more on them.

And that’s what most companies fail to understand. They set up one cost-per-lead target and approach everybody the same way. 

I hate to break the news but it doesn’t work like that. You should learn to divide your ICPs into 3 tiers. 

• Tier One: the companies with the highest revenue potential -which you should serve individually by running 1-on-1 campaigns. Because they're worth it.

• Tier Two: here, you personalize per role. 

• Tier Three: this is your mass-market campaign. It can be ads, general content marketing, or general outreach.

More on the image below.

3. Positioning and unique value proposition (UVP)

Positioning is important in the sense that we now live in a world of infinite supply. In the martech space only, there are now more than 8000 startups while there were about 150 back in 2011. 

That's a 5200% increase, which is crazy.

The underlying message here is crystal clear: it's no longer possible to position solely based on features, products, or technology. 

Instead, you need to adapt your message to your target segment and ICP.  

If you fail to make your ICP see your UVP, they will base their decision on features, customer reviews, and pricing.

And the truth is, the moment you start competing based on pricing, chances are you will lose, BIG.

So, the bottom line is you need to start communicating how you’re different from all the other solutions out there. Once you do that, you’ll start having fewer calls and more closed deals. 

4. Buying process

You must adapt your marketing and prospecting to the way your customers are buying. Only 3% of prospects in any given B2B market are actively buying. And if you are going to focus on those while you are not on their evaluation list, you are already late.

5. Full-funnel marketing plan

The final element is a list of campaigns and activities you are going to launch to achieve your set goals.

This includes:

• Awareness campaigns

• Demand generation.

• Demand capturing.

• Activation programs

• Client success.

• Expansion.

PS: Ready to elevate your B2B marketing game? Join our online academy and unlock the keys to B2B marketing success with our comprehensive courses.

You'll be joining a vibrant community of forward-thinking marketers driven by revenue growth.

Here's what you'll gain access to:

• 📚 All our B2B marketing courses including a 6-week ABM playbook, LinkedIn Allbound marketing playbook, and 11 more courses that aren't available to the public

• 💬 Private Slack community to answer all your burning questions

• 📋 Personalized learning plan. Unsure where to start or how to maximize your learning potential? We'll craft a tailored plan based on the time you can dedicate to your education.

• 🔍 Exclusive 'Behind the Scenes' sessions: Gain insights into what's working and what's not as we dissect real campaigns for our clients and ourselves.

• 🎟️ 30% discount for live events and bootcamps.

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See you in Trenches 😉

Adechina ODJO