----|-------|-----|
| Product launch | New product to market | Full GTM; see product-launch for launch execution |
| New market entry | New geography or segment | Full GTM; different buying behaviors, competitors, regulations |
| Repositioning | Shift who you serve, what you solve | Messaging, ICP, channel alignment; not just rebrand |
| Feature launch | New capability in existing product | Tiered by impact; T1 (revenue) = full planning; T2/T3 = lighter |
GTM vs product launch: GTM is the strategy; product launch is the execution phase. GTM applies to multiple scenarios—not just new products.
GTM Modes
| Mode |
When to Use |
ACV |
Buyer |
| Product-led (PLG) |
Value in minutes; self-evaluate; simple adoption |
<$10K |
Buyer = end user |
| Sales-led (SLG) |
Multi-stakeholder; complex procurement; implementation |
>$25K |
Enterprise; negotiation |
| Marketing-led (MLG) |
Content, SEO, paid drive awareness; market education |
Varies |
Demand gen focus |
| Hybrid |
PLG for acquisition; sales for expansion |
Common |
Self-serve → sales handoff |
Decision factors: ACV, product complexity, buyer profile, how customers want to buy. Target LTV:CAC ≥3:1; CAC payback <12 months.
90-Day Execution Framework
| Phase |
Weeks |
Focus |
| Market analysis |
1–3 |
Validate demand; competitive landscape; TAM; buying signals |
| Strategy design |
4–6 |
ICP, personas; positioning; pricing; GTM mode; channels |
| Execution build |
7–9 |
Messaging, content, sales playbook; tech stack |
| Launch & iterate |
10–12 |
Go live; measure; iterate |
Key: Connect plan to real buying activity within 90 days—not disconnected strategy documents.
ICP vs Buyer Persona
| Type |
Level |
Defines |
| ICP |
Company |
Which organizations deliver best unit economics; firmographics (industry, size, revenue), technographics, problem intensity |
| Buyer persona |
Individual |
Decision-makers within target companies; roles, goals, pain points, objections, preferred channels |
ICP impact: Defined ICPs → ~68% higher conversion, ~50% lower CAC, ~30% shorter sales cycles. Include negative profiles (explicit disqualifiers) to protect pipeline quality.
Market Analysis
| Element |
Purpose |
| TAM |
Total addressable market; named account lists; primary TAM, serviceable TAM, accounts with buying signals |
| Competitive landscape |
Customer bases, strengths, weaknesses, positioning claims |
| Buying patterns |
Replace assumptions with data; customer pain points; decision criteria |
Enterprise / High-ACV Challenges
| Challenge |
Mitigation |
| Customization |
Product modularity; professional services; clear scope |
| Data security / private deployment |
On-prem or private cloud; compliance; security certifications |
| Procurement cycles |
Multi-stakeholder alignment; champion building; long sales cycles |
| Buy vs SaaS |
Total cost of ownership; flexibility; ongoing value |
Use: When GTM targets enterprise or high-ACV—expect longer cycles, procurement, and security requirements.
New Market Entry
~70% of international market entries fail within two years—often from overestimating demand, underestimating execution, spreading resources thin.
| Entry model |
Trade-off |
| Organic expansion |
High control; slower; capital-intensive |
| Strategic partnerships |
Faster access; shared risk; reduced control |
| M&A / Acquisition |
Immediate presence; high integration risk |
| Asset-light (EOR, outsourcing) |
Fastest; minimal upfront; market testing |
| Pilot testing |
Lowest commitment; validation |
Critical: Domestic playbook won't transfer. Buying behaviors vary (self-service US vs consultation-heavy Europe vs relationship-driven APAC); competitive landscapes shift; regulatory complexity multiplies (GDPR, data localization).
Repositioning
Repositioning = Strategic shift in who you serve, what problem you solve, where you play. Rebranding = Visual/verbal expression (logo, voice). Repositioning ≠ rebrand.
| When to reposition |
Avoid |
| Moving upmarket (SMB → enterprise) |
Quick fix for missed quarters |
| New geography with different dynamics |
Leadership boredom |
| ICP fundamentally changed |
|
| Major pivot, launch, or acquisition |
|
Success factors: Research-driven (customer discovery, market analysis); cross-functional alignment (sales, marketing, product, clinical); sharp differentiation.
Cross-Functional Alignment
- RACI: Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed—clarify roles across teams
- Shared timelines, tools, accountability
- Consistent messaging across all channels
Output Format
- Scenario (product launch, new market, repositioning, feature)
- GTM mode (PLG/SLG/MLG/Hybrid) recommendation
- 90-day phase plan
- ICP and persona (or link to project-context)
- Market analysis checklist
- Launch execution → see product-launch
Related Skills
- product-launch: Launch execution; channels, timeline, checklist; implements GTM for product launch
- pmf-strategy: Validate PMF before scaling GTM
- cold-start-strategy: First users; differs from full GTM (0→1 vs commercialization)
- rebranding-strategy: Domain change, 301, announcement; when repositioning includes rebrand
- localization-strategy: New market entry; i18n, multilingual
- paid-ads-strategy: Ad channel for GTM
- website-structure: Pages needed for GTM
- branding: Positioning, differentiation; GTM messaging foundation
1---2name: gtm-strategy3description: When the user wants to plan go-to-market strategy, GTM framework, or market entry. Also use when the user mentions "GTM," "go-to-market," "market entry," "new market," "repositioning," "PLG," "sales-led," "product-led," "marketing-led," "ICP," "buyer persona," "GTM motion," or "market expansion." For launch checklist, use product-launch.4---5----|-------|-----|6| **Product launch** | New product to market | Full GTM; see **product-launch** for launch execution |7| **New market entry** | New geography or segment | Full GTM; different buying behaviors, competitors, regulations |8| **Repositioning** | Shift who you serve, what you solve | Messaging, ICP, channel alignment; not just rebrand |9| **Feature launch** | New capability in existing product | Tiered by impact; T1 (revenue) = full planning; T2/T3 = lighter |1011**GTM vs product launch**: GTM is the strategy; product launch is the execution phase. GTM applies to multiple scenarios—not just new products.1213## GTM Modes1415| Mode | When to Use | ACV | Buyer |16|------|-------------|-----|-------|17| **Product-led (PLG)** | Value in minutes; self-evaluate; simple adoption | <$10K | Buyer = end user |18| **Sales-led (SLG)** | Multi-stakeholder; complex procurement; implementation | >$25K | Enterprise; negotiation |19| **Marketing-led (MLG)** | Content, SEO, paid drive awareness; market education | Varies | Demand gen focus |20| **Hybrid** | PLG for acquisition; sales for expansion | Common | Self-serve → sales handoff |2122**Decision factors**: ACV, product complexity, buyer profile, how customers want to buy. Target LTV:CAC ≥3:1; CAC payback <12 months.2324## 90-Day Execution Framework2526| Phase | Weeks | Focus |27|-------|-------|-------|28| **Market analysis** | 1–3 | Validate demand; competitive landscape; TAM; buying signals |29| **Strategy design** | 4–6 | ICP, personas; positioning; pricing; GTM mode; channels |30| **Execution build** | 7–9 | Messaging, content, sales playbook; tech stack |31| **Launch & iterate** | 10–12 | Go live; measure; iterate |3233**Key**: Connect plan to real buying activity within 90 days—not disconnected strategy documents.3435## ICP vs Buyer Persona3637| Type | Level | Defines |38|------|-------|---------|39| **ICP** | Company | Which organizations deliver best unit economics; firmographics (industry, size, revenue), technographics, problem intensity |40| **Buyer persona** | Individual | Decision-makers within target companies; roles, goals, pain points, objections, preferred channels |4142**ICP impact**: Defined ICPs → ~68% higher conversion, ~50% lower CAC, ~30% shorter sales cycles. Include negative profiles (explicit disqualifiers) to protect pipeline quality.4344## Market Analysis4546| Element | Purpose |47|---------|---------|48| **TAM** | Total addressable market; named account lists; primary TAM, serviceable TAM, accounts with buying signals |49| **Competitive landscape** | Customer bases, strengths, weaknesses, positioning claims |50| **Buying patterns** | Replace assumptions with data; customer pain points; decision criteria |5152## Enterprise / High-ACV Challenges5354| Challenge | Mitigation |55|-----------|------------|56| **Customization** | Product modularity; professional services; clear scope |57| **Data security / private deployment** | On-prem or private cloud; compliance; security certifications |58| **Procurement cycles** | Multi-stakeholder alignment; champion building; long sales cycles |59| **Buy vs SaaS** | Total cost of ownership; flexibility; ongoing value |6061**Use**: When GTM targets enterprise or high-ACV—expect longer cycles, procurement, and security requirements.6263## New Market Entry6465~70% of international market entries fail within two years—often from overestimating demand, underestimating execution, spreading resources thin.6667| Entry model | Trade-off |68|-------------|-----------|69| **Organic expansion** | High control; slower; capital-intensive |70| **Strategic partnerships** | Faster access; shared risk; reduced control |71| **M&A / Acquisition** | Immediate presence; high integration risk |72| **Asset-light** (EOR, outsourcing) | Fastest; minimal upfront; market testing |73| **Pilot testing** | Lowest commitment; validation |7475**Critical**: Domestic playbook won't transfer. Buying behaviors vary (self-service US vs consultation-heavy Europe vs relationship-driven APAC); competitive landscapes shift; regulatory complexity multiplies (GDPR, data localization).7677## Repositioning7879**Repositioning** = Strategic shift in who you serve, what problem you solve, where you play. **Rebranding** = Visual/verbal expression (logo, voice). Repositioning ≠ rebrand.8081| When to reposition | Avoid |82|--------------------|-------|83| Moving upmarket (SMB → enterprise) | Quick fix for missed quarters |84| New geography with different dynamics | Leadership boredom |85| ICP fundamentally changed | |86| Major pivot, launch, or acquisition | |8788**Success factors**: Research-driven (customer discovery, market analysis); cross-functional alignment (sales, marketing, product, clinical); sharp differentiation.8990## Cross-Functional Alignment9192- **RACI**: Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed—clarify roles across teams93- **Shared timelines, tools, accountability**94- **Consistent messaging** across all channels9596## Output Format9798- **Scenario** (product launch, new market, repositioning, feature)99- **GTM mode** (PLG/SLG/MLG/Hybrid) recommendation100- **90-day** phase plan101- **ICP** and **persona** (or link to project-context)102- **Market analysis** checklist103- **Launch** execution → see **product-launch**104105## Related Skills106107- **product-launch**: Launch execution; channels, timeline, checklist; implements GTM for product launch108- **pmf-strategy**: Validate PMF before scaling GTM109- **cold-start-strategy**: First users; differs from full GTM (0→1 vs commercialization)110- **rebranding-strategy**: Domain change, 301, announcement; when repositioning includes rebrand111- **localization-strategy**: New market entry; i18n, multilingual112- **paid-ads-strategy**: Ad channel for GTM113- **website-structure**: Pages needed for GTM114- **branding**: Positioning, differentiation; GTM messaging foundation
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