What Go-to-Market Strategy Is, and Why SaaS Providers Need It

What is a go-to-market strategy?

A go-to-market (GTM) strategy is a comprehensive plan that outlines how a product will enter and capture the targeted market. The GTM strategy focuses on two main aspects: 

• The “who”: Identifying the ideal target customer for your offering, whether introducing a new product to an existing market or taking an existing product to a new market. 

• The “how”: Determining the best way to get the product in front of your target users.

Unlike marketing campaigns or sales strategy, a GTM strategy is a holistic approach that unifies all business strategies and sets the groundwork for them, from product development and marketing to sales and customer success.

The three strategic "go-to-market" options for software providers

When developing a go-to-market strategy for your software product, there are three main options to consider: a fully product-led approach, a sales-led approach, or a hybrid of both. Pick an approach that suits the nature of your product and target market.

Product-led go-to-market strategy relies on the product as the main vehicle for user acquisition and expansion. It focuses on enticing users to try a product and experience its value first-hand. This approach assumes that delighted users will increase their adoption and spread brand awareness to other potential customers. Therefore, it’s also called bottom-up or user-influenced go-to-market motion.

Companies using this approach typically sell freemium models, where the basic product is free, and users can upgrade to premium versions with additional features. Since it relies on customer success stories to drive user acquisition, it requires marketing teams to continue taking user feedback and focus on messaging that highlights the product’s features and functionalities. 

Sales-led go-to-market strategy relies on a heavy focus on marketing and sales efforts to drive customer acquisition. It focuses on building a strong sales team and channel partnerships. This approach requires a deep understanding of the buyer’s business challenges, and building a business case on how the product can deliver tangible value and ROI to them. Therefore, it’s also called outcome-based or value-oriented go-to-market motion.

Software providers who offer high-end, complex products, such as enterprise software solutions, which require a more consultative approach with buyers take the sales-led GTM strategy. Marketers using this approach allocate considerable resources to promotional tactics, such as ads on software review sites, trade shows, events and advertising campaigns.

The hybrid strategy combines elements of product-led and sales-led strategies to create a comprehensive approach that leverages the strengths of both. It depends on product-led GTM tactics to drive awareness and make inroads into prospects' minds, but it relies on sales to bring most of the revenue.

Companies using this approach may offer both free and premium versions of their products but also invest in sales and marketing efforts to increase adoption. Create self-sustaining growth loops to encourage your users to become loyal customers and advocates who help bring in new customers and perpetuate the growth cycle. 

Five essential components of a go-to-market strategy

No matter which path you choose, crafting an effective go-to-market strategy relies on these five key components.

1. Identifying and targeting your ideal customers

The performance of your marketing and sales efforts is heavily dependent on a clear and well-understood market focus. Decide which segments to target by evaluating market-specific data, buying journeys and buyer personas, gaps in the competitive landscape and unmet needs.  

For example, say you’re launching a project management solution. While it can be useful for a broad range of buyers, you realize the market need is high among small to midsize businesses in the construction industry. Identifying that will get you a step closer to understanding the pain points and preferences of your target buyers. Based on this information, you can create ideal customer profiles, such as a project manager, a team lead, or a CEO.

Ask these questions: 

• Who’s the audience that will quickly say “yes” to the product?

• What factors influence these buyers, from buying and owning to renewing a product?

• Will the end users of the product also be the buyers?

2. Articulating clear value propositions

A software value proposition is a clear statement that explains how your software solves a problem or fulfills the needs of customers better than your competitors. Creating a strong value proposition requires analyzing the challenges your target audience faces, understanding the competitive advantage and assessing the potential demand for your software.

Use this simple statement to define your selling point: We help <target audience> <take action> so they can <desired result>. Then, develop it further by adding your uniqueness and differentiation. For example, the value proposition for a project management software solution might say, "We help project managers streamline communication, task management and project tracking with an all-in-one tool so they can save time on everyday management and boost productivity.”

3. Setting metrics to quantify success

Once you know who you want to sell to and what makes your product or service unique, define performance metrics that mean success to you. This means deciding on specific metrics and quantifying them, such as click-through rates, bounce rates, conversion rates, or website traffic. Jot down your goals; for example, "We want to get X number of people visiting our website within Y months." 

To do this, you'll need to work with your sales and product teams to define what those numbers look like for you. Once you arrive at a consensus on that, work with your sales team to figure out how many marketing-qualified leads (MQLs) you'll need to achieve your targets.

4. Choosing distribution channels to reach the audience

Consider which channels your audience uses most frequently and use them for marketing and promotion. There are two types of distribution channels you can target, organic and paid. Organic channels include blogs, email lists and social media, among others, which work well to reach existing customers. Paid channels, such as advertising and public relations, amplify your message and help you reach new audiences.

One channel that's worth considering for software providers is customer-review-and-rating sites. Most software buyers (86%) consider verified customer reviews as an important part of their software selection process. Use these sites both as organic (by creating a free product profile page) as well as paid (with PPL option) distribution channels. 

5. Crafting compelling content for selected channels

Develop a content marketing plan to create compelling content for each distribution channel you’ve selected to generate those valuable MQLs for you. 

For example, if your distribution channels include blogs, email campaigns and software review sites, you’ll need different versions of similar content for each channel. Blog posts will be more in-depth and informative, optimized for search engines. Email campaigns may require building a landing page and creating personalized messages based on the recipient's behavior and interests. For software review sites, create a product profile page, optimize it for visibility and request your existing customers to submit a review on them.

Also read: 8 Key Copywriting Tips for High-Converting Landing Pages

Expand into new markets with high-quality leads

Growing into new markets is a challenging but rewarding process. Once you’ve created a GTM plan you’re confident about, remember to regularly monitor your website traffic, bounce rates, conversions and other metrics and adjust your approach as necessary. 

Boost engagement with prospects you plan to target with Gartner Digital Markets’ lead generation services. Connect with a monthly visitor base of 9 million software buyers and cultivate a presence in international markets with 60+ localized sites.