How to Assess Your SaaS Go To Market Strategy

Founders in Enterprise SaaS face a pivotal decision early: will you pave new paths as a category creator, or will you challenge established players with an innovative product? Category Creators are trailblazers developing new solutions for unaddressed problems or needs, thereby establishing a new market category. Category Challengers, on the other hand, enter a market with established players, aiming to offer superior products or value. Recognizing whether you're a category creator or a challenger is crucial, as it dictates very distinct go-to-market strategies. For category creators, early demand gen revolves around customer education. They must experiment to discover the best channels to connect with the target audience, and may find success with events, webinars, PR, and even analyst relations relatively early. Pricing requires careful iteration since there may not be established reference points. But the willingness to pay can be high if you solve a meaningful customer problem. With category creation, things can take a while to take off, and it’s crucial to stay lean and nimble in the early days. For category challengers, once a beachhead is established, speed becomes paramount. Category challengers can often see strong results early on from established channels such as SEO, paid search, outbound, and review sites. Innovative and efficient execution with these channels is key. Pricing structures may already be established, so the focus may be on providing better value or bundling. Sales dynamics for these modes can be very different. Category creators initially face longer sales cycles due to the lack of established budgets and prior purchase intent. Creating a wide top of the funnel, consultative selling, and broad evangelization within prospective organizations are paramount. For category creators, creating buyer urgency can be a major challenge. Qualification criteria may need to be adapted for the nuances of category creation. POCs and land-and-expand may be crucial, allowing customers to start small and see value before making a bigger investment. For category challengers, sales cycles can be shorter, thanks to established budgets and customer intent, but competition may lower win rates. Customers often have RFP processes. Lengthy POCs may not be needed. A clear understanding and articulation of differentiation, especially in unmet customer needs, is essential. Once traction is gained with a differentiated offering, incumbents will take note and may replicate your messaging, and eventually, features. Creating network and community effects, continuous innovation, and sharp execution can be key. Many startups find themselves on a spectrum between these two modes, requiring a blend of strategies. And after successful category creation, you may see more competition and formal buying processes as the market matures, necessitating a strategic pivot in product and GTM efforts. What are your experiences with this? #saas #gtm #startups

Your go-to-market strategy isn't failing. It doesn't exist. After looking at 50+ startup GTM plans this year, I've noticed something concerning: most founders confuse "doing marketing stuff" with having a strategy. Here are 3 signs you're operating without a real GTM strategy: 1. You're running "random acts of marketing" → LinkedIn ads one month → Content marketing the next → Then suddenly "trying" TikTok You're just throwing tactics at the wall. 2. You can't answer "Why this customer, why this solution, why now?" If your team members give different answers to these questions, you're missing core strategic alignment. 3. Your metrics are all over the place No clear north star. No defined success metrics. Just vibes. Here's your GTM Strategy Framework: 1. Customer Layer • Define your ICP (Ideal Customer Profile) • Map their pain points • Document their buying journey • Identify their decision criteria 2. Solution Layer • Clear value proposition • Competitive differentiation • Pricing strategy • Product positioning 3. Execution Layer • Channel strategy • Marketing tactics • Sales process • Success metrics I know what you're thinking: "That seems like a lot. I'm not sure I have time for that. I'll just wing it." Good luck! The fastest way to waste resources is by running random tactics without strategy. Quick reality check: Recently, a startup founder walked me through their "GTM strategy" → It was just a list of marketing and sales tactics → $50K spent on random activities → Zero strategic framework → Zero measurable results Don't be that founder. Strategy before tactics. Frameworks before execution. Planning before spending. Question: What's the biggest GTM challenge you're facing right now? #B2BMarketing #StartupStrategy #GTMStrategy

Using TAM/SAM/SOM to build your go-to-market strategy is a mistake. (especially for horizontal markets) 💢 Because B2B markets are incredibly fragmented. (especially for horizontal products) Sure, those 3 circles with generic definitions might have helped you raise money… But those definitions are nowhere near good enough to develop efficient marketing programs. Check out the image to see what Calendly’s market actually looks like. ⚫️ Investor Market Breakdown (Left image) 3 basic definitions of who might buy a meeting booking tool. This is a drastic oversimplification of what the market looks like. 🟣 GTM Breakdown (Right image) This is a more accurate depiction of a market — a complex collection of sub-markets (and could actually have a lot more detail). It factors in the nuances that drive different customer behavior: → different industries → different company types → different teams → different situations → different needs ———— 🔥🔥 So, what does a more realistic view of markets mean for startup founders? 1️⃣ Build better GTM strategies No more blindly following a TAM/SAM/SOM as your market map. Instead, your sales and marketing motions will be rooted in something closer to reality — resulting in campaigns that are: → more targeted → more effective → more predictable 2️⃣ Identify more growth opportunities Even in saturated markets, there will always be underserved segments. You just have to be willing to look for them — and then get specific with your message to reach them. 3️⃣ Less likely to prematurely scale When founders raise money, they feel that they are on their way to becoming a large company. So they start doing “big company things”: ⛔️ Broad ambitious marketing campaigns ⛔️ Moving up-market to chase enterprise deals ⛔️ Starting to build new products Embracing the reality of complex markets will give founders some pause before making these mistakes. ——— So, when planning your GTM strategy… Ditch the TAM/SAM/SOM slide from your pitch deck. And lean into the fragmentation of B2B markets. #startups #gtmstrategy #b2bmarketing