gtm-strategy

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

• .forge/prd.md and .forge/competitive.md read before starting
• ICP names a specific title and company profile, not a market segment
• Wedge is one feature, not the whole product
• Pilot has specific success criteria with numbers
• ROI calculator uses conservative estimates
• At least 2 sales channels mapped with specific motions
• Case study template includes quantified before/after
• .forge/gtm.md written