You're probably wondering why I'm writing this article. After all, you've heard me talk about scaling before. You know that scaling is the key to success in any business - and that it's something we need to do more of! But what if I told you there was a better way? What if I told you that instead of spending money on marketing campaigns and going after new customers with beguiling sales messages, we should focus on making sure our product has solid go-to-market strategies built around actual customer needs? Well, here we are...

Before that, if you want to brush up on what a GTM strategy actually is, click here!

Your go to market strategy isn't your sales process.

Your go to market strategy is a plan for how you will reach your customers, and it's important to understand the difference between the two so that you can make sure they're aligned. Your sales process is what comes after you've figured out who your customer is and what problems you can solve for them, possibly utilizing methods like the SDR Accelerator Program for efficient outreach. This can be through referrals, channel partners, outbound or inbound. Your GTM strategy precedes your sales process, incorporating elements like Go-To Market Services for a comprehensive approach.

Let's say you're a new cloud provider who is going against the likes of Amazon and Microsoft. If you start with hiring a VP of Sales first to set up your sales engine, that would be a gross mistake. Understanding the market through Customer Needs Analysis, particularly if you're entering a crowded space like Amazon Product Selling, gives you a clearer direction. If you start spending on marketing like the biggies, you're probably going to burn out in less than a year. So, what do you do?

You need to understand your customer before you can market to them.‍

It's important to understand your customer before you can market to them, diving deep into their Customer Pain Points.

1. What are their pain points?
2. What are their needs?
3. How can you help them by providing a unique Unique Business Proposition?

For example, let’s say a company wants to sell its product on Amazon. Conducting a thorough Customer Conversion Rates analysis can inform the Pricing Strategy to compete effectively. They might then look at the competition and see that there are other options available for the same kind of product. This gives them an idea of what their customers want in terms of features or price point so that they have an advantage over their competitors when it comes time for advertising campaigns etc.

Your value proposition needs to be clear and concise - focus on one message.

This is a tricky one for most people, because you want your company and products to be as unique as possible, but it's also important that you don't oversimplify or lie about what makes your business different from others in the market. Utilizing services like Leadle Consulting can help in crafting and refining this message.

A good way of testing this is by reaching out to a specifically chosen pool of prospects from an even smaller subset of accounts to see how much they understand what your product or service means when applied to solving a problem specifically to their industry segment. If they're confused by any aspect of what's being said, then chances are there might be room for improvement on both sides!‍

Solidify your buyer persona, product-market fit and channels before spending money on marketing spend.

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If you're not sure who your buyer persona is, how do you know what to say? Aligning your efforts with a Go-To Market Strategy can illuminate the path ahead. How about if you don't know the market for your product and there's no sign of product-market fit.

If you don't have a clear picture of these things before diving into any marketing spend, it'll be hard to make an impact on customers. This is where AB Testing and Failing Fast in Marketing can be particularly beneficial, allowing you to refine your approach without substantial Marketing Spend.

This means that instead of spending money on ads or paying for influencer campaigns (which often don't work anyway), invest in creating personalized content that aligns with their needs and interests through Personalized Content Marketing.

Don't expect product-market fit with first use of a new channel.

The most important thing to know before you scale is:

1. Your market. Before you can launch a new channel, you have to understand who your customers are, their Customer Understanding, and what they need. When it's time for your go-to-market strategy, focus on those factors instead of just selling more stuff through strategies like Leadle's SDR Accelerator Program.
2. Your value proposition. Understanding how much value each customer gets out of using your product or service—and why they would want more! This guides where in the sales cycle someone should be positioned as part of an overall strategy. It also helps set expectations around pricing based on these factors.

Use tests that are as close to the real thing as possible, like RevOps and Appointment Setting to gauge effectiveness before Scaling up Business.

It's a good idea to test your product with a small sample of your audience. This will give you a better idea of what works and what doesn't for them, enhancing overall Customer Conversion Rates.

If you're going to try out new messaging, test that too—you should be able to see if the new message is more appealing than the old one in terms of conversion rates and overall satisfaction levels.

Similarly, if you're about to make changes in pricing or promotions, run an A/B test on both versions and see which one performs best by seeing how many customers convert into paying customers during this period.

It's often cheaper to fail fast by testing rather than paying marketing costs!

If you're not sure what to do, it's often cheaper to fail fast by testing rather than paying marketing costs. This demonstrates the importance of Testing Marketing Strategies without spending a lot of money yet still learning valuable information about your market and product.

Testing is also a good way for companies to validate assumptions about their customers and their products through direct feedback mechanisms, potentially saving considerable amounts in misguided Marketing Spend.

In short, don't just focus on getting new customers, focus on understanding who they are and what they need. Build a solid go-to-market strategy that addresses these needs, including personalized approaches like Influencer Campaigns if appropriate, and you'll be sure to make a lasting impact. And remember, before you scale, make sure you got the perfect date set up - because no one wants to go on a blind date with a product that doesn't fit their needs!