Go-to-Market Strategy
Frameworks for selecting sales channels and building go-to-market motions.
Channel Selection Matrix
| Channel | Best For | CAC Range | Time to Revenue | Complexity |
|---|
| Outbound | High ACV ($10K+), defined ICP | $500-2K | 3-6 months | Medium |
| Inbound | Searchable problem, content fit | $200-800 | 6-12 months | High |
| PLG | Simple product, quick value | $50-200 | 3-9 months | High |
| Partners | Ecosystem play, trust transfer | Varies | 6-18 months | Medium |
| Events | Relationship-driven, enterprise | $1K-5K | 6-12 months | High |
| Community | Developer/prosumer products | $100-500 | 12+ months | Medium |
ACV-Based Motion Selection
| ACV | Recommended Motion | Team Structure |
|---|
| < $5K | PLG or Marketing-led | Growth + self-serve |
| $5K-$25K | Inside sales + Inbound | SDR > AE |
| $25K-$100K | Outbound + Account-based | SDR > AE > CSM |
| > $100K | Enterprise sales + Partners | Named AE > SE > CSM |
Sales Motion Archetypes
Founder-Led ($0-$1M ARR)
Founder does everything:
- Prospecting → Discovery → Demo → Close → Onboard
Focus: Learning what works, documenting wins
Goal: Find repeatable motion before hiring
First Sales Hire ($1M-$3M ARR)
Hire: Full-cycle AE or SDR
Split: Founder handles enterprise, AE handles SMB
Focus: Can someone else close deals?
Goal: Prove non-founder can sell
Sales Team ($3M-$10M ARR)
Structure: SDR team → AE team → CSM
Specialization: Hunting vs farming
Focus: Repeatability and predictability
Goal: Quota attainment without founder
Capacity Planning Model
Revenue Target ÷ ACV = Deals Needed
Deals Needed ÷ Win Rate = Opportunities Needed
Opportunities ÷ SQL→Opp Rate = SQLs Needed
SQLs ÷ MQL→SQL Rate = MQLs Needed
MQLs ÷ Marketing Conversion = Traffic Needed
For Outbound:
Deals Needed ÷ Win Rate = Meetings Needed
Meetings ÷ Meeting Rate = Contacts Needed
Contacts ÷ Contacts/Rep/Month = Reps Needed
Multi-Channel Strategy
| Channel | Percentage | Purpose |
|---|
| Primary | 60-70% | Main revenue driver |
| Secondary | 20-30% | Diversification + experimentation |
| Exploratory | 10% | Future growth bets |
Rule: Don't spread thin. Dominate one channel before adding another.
GTM Launch Phases
Phase 1: Validation (0-3 months)
- Manual outreach to ICP
- Founder-led demos
- Goal: 10 paying customers
Phase 2: Repeatability (3-6 months)
- Document winning process
- First sales hire
- Goal: Non-founder closes deals
Phase 3: Scale (6-12 months)
- Add SDR/AE capacity
- Layer in marketing
- Goal: Predictable pipeline
Channel-Specific Playbooks
Outbound Playbook
- ICP list building > Sequence automation > Meeting booking > Demo > Close
- Key metric: Meetings/SDR/month (target: 15-20)
Inbound Playbook
- Content > SEO/Ads > Lead capture > Nurture > MQL > Demo > Close
- Key metric: MQL-to-Customer rate (target: 5-15%)
PLG Playbook
- Free trial/freemium > Activation > Engagement > Upgrade trigger > Expansion
- Key metric: Free-to-Paid conversion (target: 2-5%)
GTM Health Metrics
| Metric | Healthy | Warning | Critical |
|---|
| Pipeline coverage | 3-4x | 2-3x | < 2x |
| Win rate | 20-30% | 15-20% | < 15% |
| Sales cycle | On target | +25% | +50% |
| CAC payback | < 12 mo | 12-18 mo | > 18 mo |
