How to Create a Go-to-Market Strategy for Startups
Every month, over 500,000 new businesses are registered in the U.S. For B2B startups, simply having a great product or service isn’t enough; you need a strategic approach to stand out, thrive, and capture market share.
You need a solid go-to-market strategy.
What is a Go-to-Market Strategy?
A go-to-market (GTM) strategy is a comprehensive roadmap a business develops to introduce new products, features, or services to the market. It outlines how to position your product, identify and reach your ideal customers, and differentiate yourself from the competition.
For B2B startups, an effective GTM strategy is crucial for navigating complex sales cycles and establishing a strong market presence.
A GTM team is usually a cross-functional group that brings together members from the marketing team, salespeople, product team, and customer success reps to develop a unified launch strategy.
Who needs a GTM strategy?
Every startup needs a GTM strategy from the moment they’ve nailed down product-market fit.
* Product-market fit means your product solves a real problem for your target audience—it’s something people actually want and are willing to pay for.
Think of product-market fit as the foundation, and the GTM strategy as the plan that helps you build on it to grow and scale.
But a GTM strategy isn’t just for early-stage startups. Any business introducing new core features, expanding into new markets, going through a merger, or offering new services will benefit from a solid GTM strategy.
One more thing to note: a GTM strategy isn’t the same as a regular marketing or sales strategy. A GTM plan is short-term, focused on bringing a specific product to market, while marketing and sales strategies are ongoing efforts aimed at long-term growth.
Why Startups Need a Strong Go-to-Market Plan
As tempting as it is to jump into the market with your new product, it’s smarter to wait until you’ve got a solid GTM strategy. Why?
Without one, you’re basically throwing spaghetti at the wall—nothing’s going to stick, and you’ll have a mess to clean up later. On the other hand, with a good GTM strategy, you will:
Avoid Costly Mistakes
Startups, by nature, have limited time, budget, and manpower. That’s why many go all in on revenue-driving efforts right away—like hiring a sales team or launching expensive marketing campaigns—just to start making money as quickly as possible.
If this approach really worked, startups wouldn’t be failing because they run out of cash, as almost half of them do now.
A strong GTM strategy helps minimize that risk. It takes a more thoughtful, data-driven approach by letting you test and validate your assumptions before you invest heavily in a specific marketing channel or team.
Time the Launch for Maximum Impact
Poor timing is one of the top 5 reasons startups fail globally.
Your product launch is a key moment that can shape how people perceive it for a long time, so timing is critical and needs to be a top priority in your GTM strategy.
Some startups think launching early is better—trying to beat the competition by entering the market while product development is still in full swing. That often backfires when competitors release a more polished product just a few months later, leaving you behind.
On the flip side, launching too late can mean the market is already saturated with similar products, making it tough to stand out.
A solid GTM strategy helps you get the timing right by assessing market readiness and keeping an eye on competitors. This way, you can identify the perfect moment to launch and make the biggest impact.
Reduce the Risk of Failure
Having a great product doesn’t guarantee success, but having a solid plan may.
As we’ve mentioned earlier, nearly half of startups fail because they run out of money—which usually comes from poor resource allocation from the start.
A clear GTM strategy helps reduce the number of unknowns and unpredictable situations from the start. With it, you can make better forecasts, prioritize your spending, and allocate your limited resources where they’ll make the most impact.
7 Key Elements of a Successful Go-to-Market Strategy
Every GTM strategy stands on the following pillars:
1. Target audience segmentation
By now, you should have a clear understanding of who your target audience is (after all, you wouldn’t have achieved product-market fit without it, right?). But when building a GTM strategy, you’ll need to get even more specific and zoom in on a particular segment, usually based on demographic characteristics.
Example: As an AI-powered sales automation platform, we at Artisan could've broadly targeted "tech startups." But that’s too general. Instead, we’ve narrowed it down to early-stage B2B SaaS companies with 10-50 employees, $1-5M in annual revenue, and a focus on outbound sales, who are looking to streamline their sales processes with AI solutions like our SDR, Ava.
2. Market positioning
This is where you figure out what sets your product apart from others, a.k.a. your value proposition.
A value proposition is the unique benefit your product offers that solves a specific problem or fulfills a need better than competitors. It’s a key element that informs your market positioning.
Example: Our AI platform doesn't just automate outbound emails; it acts as a digital sales representative that handles everything from lead generation to closing deals. This sets Artisan apart from traditional sales tools that only focus on specific tasks.
3. Brand messaging
Here you turn your value proposition into appealing messaging. Mind that it’s not just about coming up with a catchy slogan or writing copy for a campaign. Crafting brand messaging is an in-depth process, from finding the right angle to nailing down the exact words you’ll use across all your future campaigns.
Example: Artisan AI uses messaging that positions Ava as a digital team member, not just a tool, emphasizing collaboration between AI and humans. Phrases like "automate the mundane," "focus on what matters," and "let AI handle the heavy lifting" resonate with sales teams overwhelmed by administrative duties. While many sales automation tools emphasize increasing outreach volume, our messaging focuses on freeing up your sales team's time to build meaningful relationships.
4. Pricing
How you price your offer can make or break your entire strategy. While you’ll likely adjust your pricing a few times after launch, the price you’re entering the market with will play a huge role in shaping how people perceive your brand over the long haul.
Example: Artisan offers tailored solutions based on key features like email deliverability, sales automation, AI sales playbooks, full agency management, and lead discovery and enrichment. By inviting customers to request quotes, we provide personalized pricing that aligns with their specific needs and budget. This approach makes our product accessible to more startups of various sizes and stages.
5. Sales and marketing channels
Choosing the right sales and marketing channels is just one part of your GTM strategy—not the whole picture. But like all the other components, it’s a decisive factor in the success of your launch.
There are countless channels and tactics out there, including direct sales, partnerships, trade shows and events, and many more. The combination of these channels in your strategy is called GTM motions.
💡 Eighty-six percent of startups put the most strategic effort in outbound sales motions. The approach involves proactively sourcing leads and running outreach campaigns to directly connect with potential customers. Tools like Artisan make the sales process a breeze, automating up to 80% of the workload thanks to its extensive B2B lead database and AI capabilities. Artisan handles everything from lead research and personalization to emailing and follow-ups.
Don’t waste your resources on spray-and-pray channels. Let Artisan connect with your customers directly.
Later in the article, we’ll tell you about different types of GTM motions.
For now, just keep in mind that the channels you’ve been using until this moment might not be the best fit for your new product or market. For example, if you’ve had success with digital ads in the past, that doesn’t guarantee it will work just as well this time around.
Example: Considering Artisan’s target audience, collaborating with incubators and startup communities has become the most effective approach to amplify our reach and credibility. Alongside using our own Ava to connect with potential clients at scale, our GTM team has been focusing on direct relationships and word-of-mouth referrals.
6. Budget and resource allocation
This part can be tough, but it’s super important. You need to take the time to forecast your spending for the GTM campaign. Things often take longer than you expect, and you’ll want to plan for that in your budget.
And while going for a slow and steady approach might seem like a smart choice, but it’s not always that straightforward. Sometimes, it makes sense to invest a bigger chunk of your budget right at the start to create a strong launch.
Only by being strategic and realistic from the get-go, you can allocate your resources the right way early on.
Example: When launching Artisan's AI sales assistant, we needed to allocate our budget strategically to maximize impact. Instead of investing heavily in broad advertising campaigns that may not effectively reach your niche audience of early-stage B2B startups, Artisan’s GTM team has focused resources on high-impact activities—such as targeted outbound sales efforts and strategic partnerships.
7. Strong processes
The final component of your GTM strategy is putting this all together into a consistent process. It involves assigning responsibilities, mapping out repeatable workflows, setting up reporting schedules, etc.
With a solid framework in place, your team can concentrate on what really matters—launching your product effectively—without getting bogged down in inefficient processes.
Example: One of the processes involved in Artisan’s GTM strategy is handing off high-ticket customers from the sales team to dedicated account executives (AEs). To provide AEs with full knowledge of the client’s requirements, we’ve got to set clear standards for what information salespeople should document and how they should pass it along.
Step-by-Step Guide to Building Your Go-to-Market Strategy
You know what you need to build your GTM strategy. Now, let’s figure out how you do it.
Step 1: Understand your target market
As we mentioned earlier, you should already have your ideal customer profile (ICP) laid out at this stage. But let’s be real—things don’t always go by the book, right?
If you haven’t nailed down your personas yet, now’s the time to dive in and gather detailed data about your target audience of the offering you’re about to launch.
Here’s what you need to know about the audience segment you’ll be pursuing:
Demographics. This is where you look at the characteristics that matter most to you. Think age, gender, company size, funding stage, location—whatever is relevant to your product.
Pain points. What challenges or problems does your audience face that your product or feature aims to solve?
Buying behavior. How do your target customers like to shop? Do they prefer buying online or meeting face-to-face? Are they swayed by reviews or recommendations?
Market trends. Stay informed about any industry trends that could impact your audience’s preferences. This might include tech advancements, regulatory changes, or shifts in consumer attitudes.
Where should you be looking for this information? Definitely not just in your head! The best way to gather insights is by talking directly to your “ideal customers.” But since you may not have active clients for the product or service you’re launching, you’ll most likely need to venture out and find potential users who are willing to share their thoughts.
Warning: When you connect with these individuals, focus on gathering their feedback and don’t try to pitch. Demonstrate your offer so they can share their opinions, experiences, and preferences without any pressure to buy.
Once you’ve got a solid understanding of your buyer persona, shift your focus to the competition.
Who are they targeting?
What gaps exist in their strategies that can become your competitive advantage?
Can you enrich your personas by using the insights you gather from your competitor analysis?
This will deepen your understanding of your target audience and help you identify a sweet spot for your own offering in the market.
Step 2: Define your Unique Value Proposition (UVP)
Hold on a second before you wrap up that competitor analysis.
Now that you've zeroed in on your target segment, think about positioning your product in that space. You’ve already started laying the groundwork by looking at your competitors' strategies, so now, pay specific attention to the gaps in their offerings that your product could fill.
This will be your unique value proposition (UVP). The good news is it doesn’t have to be something out of this world. Take, for example, how we made AI scribing software stand out just by tweaking the messaging from “software that boosts productivity” to “software that improves practitioners’ quality of life.”
Your differentiator could be as simple as having a better grasp of what your audience really needs.
It also could be that you’re the first to expand to this market, and your competitors aren’t doing anything to appeal to this particular segment. That’s both an opportunity and a challenge. You’ll have the advantage of being first, but you won’t have anyone to compare yourself against.
Tip: Whether you’re entering an existing market or creating one, it’s best to test your UVP before going all in. For example, you could create two versions of your landing page, each showcasing a different UVP, and run a paid ad campaign. Analyze the performance of each version to see which one attracts more interest and engagement—this will be your winner.
Step 3: Build your pricing model
Think of pricing as part of your product’s positioning. If your price is too high for the value you’re offering, you’ll scare off potential buyers. Too low, and people might think your product isn’t worth much or question its quality. So you’ve got to strike the right balance between what your audience is willing to pay and what makes sense for your business goals.
Before you determine the price, you first need to choose the right pricing strategy for your product.
Let’s break down your options:
Freemium is a great way to attract users who might be hesitant to commit. You offer a basic version of your product for free and charge for premium features. This model works well for SaaS companies and apps. The key is to offer just enough in the free tier to entice users, but not so much that they never feel the need to upgrade.
Subscription-based pricing involves charging customers on a regular basis—monthly, annually, etc.—for access to your product. It’s great for things like software, streaming services, or any product that delivers continuous value over time.
If you’ve got a product that’s more of a one-and-done type of deal—like a physical item or certain types of software—a one-time payment model might make sense.
With a pay-per-use model, customers pay based on how much they use the product or service. It’s common in industries like cloud computing or utilities, where usage can vary widely.
You’ll also want to consider such a thing as penetration pricing for your GTM strategy. This is where you set a super attractive price—maybe even at a loss—to draw in customers and grow your base quickly. Once you’ve built up your brand and established yourself in the market, you can gradually raise prices for new customers.
Step 4: Map out your sales and marketing funnel
It’s finally time to build an action plan for marketing and sales.
First off, you need to map out the journey your potential customers will take—from discovering your product to becoming paying customers. This is your marketing and sales funnel.
The first step is generating demand and building awareness. Unlike a traditional marketing funnel, which might rely on customers identifying their own problems and searching for solutions, a GTM strategy requires you to be more proactive. You need to get in front of your audience before they even know they have a problem.
Once prospects are aware of the problem and how your product can help, they’ll move to the evaluation stage. Here, they’ll want to compare your offer to others—whether it's on price, features, or overall value.
Finally, there’s the purchase stage that may or may not be followed by brand loyalty. Even if a customer thinks your product is the best fit, they’ll need a smooth buying experience to actually complete the purchase. And after that, a positive customer experience is key to retention and brand advocacy.
Depending on your product, this process could take anywhere from a few minutes to several months. But no matter the timeline, customers typically move through each stage, and your sales and marketing plan should be designed to guide them every step of the way.
Step 5: Choose your GTM motions
Your distribution channels (a.k.a. GTM motions) should be tightly interlinked, working together to drive brand awareness and convert prospects within the shortest timeframe.
These motions generally fall into six main categories:
Outbound motions involve actively reaching out to potential customers through cold emailing, calls, or advertising, allowing you to guide prospects from awareness to purchase directly.
Partner-led motions involve collaborating with other businesses or influencers to expand your reach, pool resources, and access new customer segments.
Inbound motions are aimed at attracting customers through self-service initiatives, like content marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), and social media, where users find your product on their own (or at least so they think).
Community-led motions rely on building a community around your product, through user-generated content, forums, and podcasts to foster connections and advocacy.
Product-led motions use your product itself as the main driver of customer acquisition, often through freemium models or free trials that allow users to experience value firsthand.
Event-led motions employ events, webinars, or trade shows to connect with potential customers and showcase your product in action.
Many startups lean on outbound sales to gain traction and beyond. It lets you guide prospects through the entire customer journey—from first hearing about your product to becoming a paying customer—without losing sight of them. Plus, it helps you grow your customer base quickly.
With outbound sales, you get full control over who sees your product, making sure you’re always targeting the right audience and not wasting time or budget on leads that won’t convert.
But here’s the best part: you can automate the entire process. With sales automation tools like Artisan, you can have software find your ideal buyers and send personalized messages, warming them up before your sales team even steps in.
Automate your outbound-led GTM motion and claim your share in the market. Try Artisan now.
Step 6: Set KPIs for your GTM strategy
There’s no such thing as one-size-fits-all key performance indicators (KPIs) for GTM teams. There are motion-specific KPIs, but even those will vary based on your specific tactics.
Here are just a few examples to give you a sense of metrics you may want to include in your dashboard:
Example KPIs for inbound motions: website traffic, lead generation rates, sales-qualified leads (SQLs), conversion rates, etc.
Example KPIs for outbound motions: the number of leads, response rates, the number of meetings, etc.
Example KPIs for community-led motions: community engagement, audience size, leads generated, etc.
Example KPIs for partner-led motions: referrals, qualified opportunities, conversion rates, etc.
Example KPIs for product-led motions: product engagement, free trial signups, conversions to paid accounts, etc.
Example KPIs for event-led motions: event attendees, post-event engagement, booked meetings, etc.
Regardless of your chosen GTM motions, B2B startups should consistently track these critical KPIs: conversion rates, customer acquisition cost (CAC), customer lifetime value (CLTV), and monthly recurring revenue (MRR) growth rate.
Step 7: Monitor and optimize your GTM strategy
You’ve got everything ready to launch your GTM strategy, but hold on a second. Before diving in headfirst, run a pilot launch or target a smaller group of potential customers first. This approach helps you identify gaps in your strategy and make data-driven refinements before committing significant resources.
For example, if you’re focusing on outbound motions, start your outreach with a small audience. This approach allows you to test the effectiveness of your messaging, confirm your ideal customer profile, and assess the scalability of your outreach processes.
Once you see things starting to click and everything feels on track, you can confidently scale up.
Build a GTM Strategy That Sets you Apart
You’re now equipped to create a go-to-market strategy that will effectively position your startup for success. Ready to get started? Artisan is there to help you win over your audience.
Automate your outbound-led GTM motion with Artisan and build a customer base for your new offer, faster than ever. Try Artisan now.
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