gtm-strategy

name	gtm-strategy
description	Build go-to-market strategy with channel selection, motion matching, and capacity planning for sales teams.

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→Customer rate (target: 5-15%)

PLG Playbook

• Free trial/freemium → Activation → Engagement → Upgrade trigger → Expansion
• Key metric: Free→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