AMA: Qualia VP of Marketing, Charlene Wang on Go-To-Market Strategy

Successfully operationalizing messaging for all go-to-market teams means giving these teams consistent messaging that effectively communicates the value of your product or service, while specifically engaging different target audience segments. Here are some steps that I take to do this: 1. Develop a core messaging framework: Start by creating a comprehensive messaging framework that outlines key value propositions, target audience segments, and competitive differentiators. This framework should serve as a centralized and consistent resource for all teams involved in the GTM process. There are several messaging frameworks available, and I personally like to start with a simple and clear core positioning statement and a messaging house that ties product capabilities back to value messaging that customers and prospects care about. Make sure to involve representatives from each GTM team in developing the messaging. This collaborative approach ensures that diverse perspectives are considered, creating messaging that resonates with both internal stakeholders and external audiences and has strong cross-functional buy-in. 2. Create different versions of messaging based on the audience and use case: Once you know your core messaging, make sure to tailor the messaging to different segments, buyer personas, and use cases. This may involve crafting versions of messaging that speak to the unique needs, pain points, and preferences of various target audiences. You will also need to develop a variety of assets and collateral that can be used with buyers at different stages of the buying process. 3. Provide training and resources to drive messaging adoption & consistency: Offer training sessions and provide resources to educate all GTM teams on the messaging framework and how to effectively use it. This could include workshops, documentation, and role-playing exercises to reinforce messaging understanding and adoption. To make it easier to digest and use the new messaging, you can also implement centralized tools and platforms, such as a Learning Management System or a shared content management system, to facilitate easy access to training and messaging assets for all teams. This ensures consistency in messaging across different channels and touch points. 4. Gather messaging feedback to continuously iterate and improve: Establish a feedback loop to gather input from frontline teams, such as sales and customer support, on the effectiveness of messaging in real-world scenarios. Make sure to regularly check-in with representatives from each GTM team to review and discuss messaging updates, gather feedback, and address any challenges or inconsistencies. You can also review recordings from Gong or other platforms used to observe sales effectiveness throughout the buyer journey. Use this feedback to iterate and refine over time so that your messaging continues to stay relevant and effective.

Strategy is generally made without a complete knowledge of whether it will work or not. Sometimes you will need to pivot your strategy based on the results. Here are a couple of steps to help you pivot: 1. Dive into the data to troubleshoot whether it's truly an issue with your strategy: Strategy requires a certain amount of time to succeed and many companies give up too early. I would first ask if your strategy is not working, or if you have not given it enough time yet. Make sure to compare performance against benchmarks, expected timelines, and historical data to determine if the lack of results is short-term or a persistent issue. 2. Determine the underlying causes: Seek input from sales, marketing, customer success, operations, and other teams to understand their experiences and challenges with executing the current strategy. I would also conduct a thorough analysis of the data on pipeline growth, customer momentum, ACV, ARR, etc. to identify underlying trends and patterns. Try to consider factors such as seasonality, market dynamics, and the competitive landscape when interpreting the data. 3. Get alignment with key stakeholders: It is especially important to get buy-in from major stakeholders for any pivots to strategy. Try to facilitate discussions with key stakeholders across departments to ensure a shared understanding of the challenges and opportunities. Clearly lay out the issues with the current approach, the data that you're looking at, and assumptions you're making. Try to foster a discussion of what's happening and where pivots need to occur. It's important that key stakeholders walk away with a shared understanding of the "why" behind any decisions so that they can communicate this to their teams. 4. Define the new approach and a set of goals and KPIs: Now that you've discussed the new strategy, make sure to clearly lay out the revised GTM strategy based on the discussion with stakeholders, especially calling out any changes made and why. Establish measurable goals and KPIs to track the performance and effectiveness of the new approach and a cadence of check-ins to hold yourself and all teams accountable to whether the new approach is working. 5. Continue iterating and refining: Encourage continuous improvement and learning throughout these regular check-ins, making sure to reflect the feedback and insights to inform future iterations of the GTM strategy. Since the market, product, company, and people change over time, try to remain flexible and adaptable in response to evolving conditions and customer needs, iterating on the strategy as needed based on what's working for the organization today and into the future.

To identify the right KPIs, I would first start by defining your overall company and GTM strategic objectives. For example, do you want to increase market share, launch a new product, penetrate a new market segment, accelerate pipeline velocity, etc.? What you need to do and which KPIs you need to measure will differ greatly depending on your overall goal. These KPIs may vary widely, potentially including messaging adoption & consistency rates, brand awareness, win rates, revenue generated, pipeline or leads created, sales velocity, product adoption, customer retention / upsell / advocacy, and much more. After you define your overarching objectives, I would then break down your GTM strategy into success pillars across product, marketing, sales, customer success, and operations. From there, you can define KPIs along each of these pillars. For example, in the product pillar, metrics could include product adoption rates or customer satisfaction scores, while in the marketing pillar, metrics might include leads generated or conversion rates. It's essential that these metrics align with the overarching business goals and provide meaningful indicators of progress towards those goals. Once you've identified the KPIs, I would then set measurable targets for each and continuously monitor them to track progress and performance. This is where analytics tools and real-time dashboards can help provide timely data and insights into what's working and what's not. Be prepared to iterate and adjust your KPIs and strategies as needed based on your findings - this helps ensure that your GTM approach remains dynamic and adaptable to changing market conditions and the context of the company and products.

GTM strategy really needs to be tailored to the specifics of the company, product, and market conditions. While you will need to apply strategy in the way that makes sense for your organization, here’s a general approach to defining and executing on GTM strategy 1. Develop a deep understanding of the market and company context: It’s important to understand what’s working or not today. I like to conduct interviews with customers, potential buyers, and internal teams, comparing this information with competitor & market research and the products and services offered by the company. 2. Conduct a SWOT analysis: Armed with this information, I then take a first pass at a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats). This is a great way to lay out where the company is today and what needs to change to be successful. While Product Marketing often takes the first pass at the SWOT, it’s equally as important to circulate this for feedback and input to capture different perspectives from key internal stakeholders across sales, product, customer success, operations, etc. 3. Prioritize and make decisions: After laying out where things stand and what needs to change, I then try to pick out 1-3 guiding principles for our GTM strategy. Less is more when it comes to strategy, and it’s equally as important what you chose not to do as what you chose to do. Great strategy should be simple to explain (as if talking to a 5 year old), yet powerful enough to give every person in the organization a quick litmus test to understand if their decisions and behaviors are consistent with the strategy. This step needs to be done collaboratively to ensure buy-in and alignment. I usually conduct a workshop with all key players to lay out the benefits and trade offs of each strategic direction and give everyone a chance to provide input and discuss before we finalize anything. 4. Create the communication and execution plan: Now that the strategy is clear, each team that’s impacted needs to start executing. This is where you need to have a detailed set of next steps, goals, roles and responsibilities, deadlines, and accountability mechanisms, such as KPIs and check-in cadences. If you can provide these and assuming you got buy-in throughout the prior steps, then the organization should start to execute on the strategy. 5. Remember to revisit and revise: The market and the organization will change and some strategies will not work. Make sure to keep yourself and the organization honest about whether your strategy is working as intended and where you need to adapt or revisit. This is where having clear goals and a cadence of check-ins really helps. Make sure to give your strategy enough time to see if it’s really working or not (many organizations fail to realize their strategy since they give up too early, before it has time to start working), and if you’re still not achieving the outcomes you hoped for, that’s when you should update your understanding of they market and company context and go back though the above steps to adjust your strategy.

When deciding on the right amount of detail for Go-To-Market materials, I would start by understanding the audience and the objectives of the materials. By identifying the target audience and assessing their needs and preferences, you can tailor the level of detail to match their expertise and needs. I would also try to align the details with the objectives of the GTM campaign and specific asset, ensuring that key messages are prioritized and effectively communicated to achieve desired outcomes. The right level of detail will vary. For instance, if the target audience consists of technical decision-makers in a software company, the GTM materials may need to include in-depth technical specifications and performance metrics. However, if the audience comprises business executives seeking general information on trends and best practices, the materials may focus on strategic benefits and ROI analysis, omitting extraneous technical details. I would also consider the buyer's journey in determining the appropriate detail level for each stage of the decision making process. In the awareness stage, where prospects are just discovering the product, it's helpful to create high-level thought leadership materials that give an overview of the pain point and how the product addresses that pain point. This could for instance be a white paper on a general industry trend or a product overview infographic that highlights a list of key benefits and use cases. As prospects progress to the consideration stage, more detailed information, such as case studies or technical product data sheets, may be needed to address specific questions and showcase the product's capabilities. Seeking feedback and iterating based on results is crucial. For example, surveys or interviews with sales teams and prospects can reveal insights into the effectiveness of the detail level. You can also see how messaging is resonating based on Gong recordings or other observations of how materials are being used with the target audience. If feedback and observations suggest that prospects are overwhelmed by details, adjustments can be made to streamline the messaging. Ultimately, the right level of detail depends on the audience you're speaking to and what you're hoping to accomplish in those conversations.