| name | gtm-strategy |
| description | Use when user says "go to market", "GTM", "how do we sell this", "find customers", when planning a launch, when defining the ideal customer profile, when designing a pilot program before broad launch, or when a structured sales motion needs to be documented. |
GTM Strategy
Overview
Read .forge/prd.md and .forge/competitive.md to produce .forge/gtm.md — a concrete go-to-market plan. The output must be specific enough that a sales team can execute it without verbal briefing. ICP is a named persona, not a market segment.
When to Use
.forge/prd.md exists and the product is approaching market readiness- User asks "how do we sell this" or "who do we sell to first"
- Competitive analysis is done and positioning is clear
- Need a pilot program design or ROI framework
When NOT to Use
- No PRD exists — run
spec-driven-development first
- Product is pre-idea — run
idea-griller first
- User wants to refine the product, not sell it — use
spec-driven-development
Common Rationalizations
| Thought | Reality |
|---|
| "Our ICP is SMBs" | That's a market segment, not a person. Name the title, company size, and daily pain |
| "The product sells itself" | No product sells itself. Name the channel, motion, and first touchpoint |
| "We'll figure out pricing later" | Pricing shapes positioning. A free tool and a $500/mo platform attract different buyers |
| "ROI is hard to quantify" | If the buyer can't calculate ROI, they can't justify the purchase internally |
| "We don't need a pilot — just launch" | Pilots generate case studies. Case studies close deals. No pilot = no proof |
Red Flags
- ICP is a market segment ("SMBs", "enterprises") instead of a named persona
- Wedge feature is the entire product (not a wedge — it's the whole door)
- Sales channel is "inbound" with no specifics on content strategy or distribution
- ROI calculator uses aspirational numbers instead of conservative estimates
- Pilot has no success criteria or timeline
- Case study template doesn't include quantified before/after
Core Process
Step 1: Define ICP
Name the person, not the market:
- Title: specific role (e.g., "VP of Sales at a 50-200 person B2B SaaS company")
- Daily pain: what frustrates them this week, not abstractly
- Current solution: what they do today (the status quo from competitive analysis)
- Budget authority: can they sign a check, or do they need approval?
- Where they hang out: conferences, communities, publications, Slack groups
Step 2: Identify the wedge
The wedge is the ONE feature that gets you in the door. Not the whole product — the single capability that makes the ICP say "I need this today."
Rules: the wedge must solve an acute pain (not a nice-to-have), be demonstrable in under 5 minutes, and be usable without the rest of the product.
Step 3: Design the pilot program
- Duration: typically 2-4 weeks
- Success criteria: specific metrics the pilot must hit (not "they liked it")
- Pilot scope: what's included, what's explicitly out
- Support model: how much hand-holding during pilot
- Conversion trigger: what happens at pilot end — auto-convert, sales call, or expire?
Step 4: Map sales channels
For each channel, specify:
- Channel: outbound, inbound content, partnerships, PLG, community, events
- Motion: exact sequence (e.g., "LinkedIn post → DM → demo → pilot → close")
- Volume: how many touchpoints per week to generate pipeline
- CAC estimate: approximate cost per acquisition through this channel
Step 5: Build ROI calculator
Create a formula the buyer can use to justify the purchase:
- Cost of problem: hours wasted × hourly rate × frequency
- Cost of solution: your pricing
- Net savings: conservative estimate (use 50% of theoretical max)
- Payback period: months until ROI positive
Step 6: Create case study template
Structure for capturing pilot results:
- Company profile (size, industry, role of champion)
- Problem before (quantified)
- Solution implemented (which features, how long to deploy)
- Results after (quantified — same metrics as "before")
- Quote from champion
Step 7: Define success metrics
- Pilot conversion rate target: what % of pilots should convert?
- Time to close: expected days from first touch to signed deal
- Expansion signal: what behavior indicates upsell opportunity?
Output
Write .forge/gtm.md with all sections above. Prepend a forge:meta header (generated_by: gtm-strategy, generated_at: <ISO 8601 UTC with Z>, depends_on: [.forge/prd.md, .forge/competitive.md] — paths only, never hashes, generated_from: {.forge/prd.md: <hash>, .forge/competitive.md: <hash>} — each upstream's content_hash AT generation time, content_hash: <sha256 first 8 of THIS file's body>). See forge-dependency-graph.
After writing: "GTM strategy written to .forge/gtm.md."
Verification
