Entering New Markets: Formulate your Go-to-Market Strategy

Through blood, sweat, and tears you’ve stood up your company and are booking revenues. Fantastic! Now new markets await for further expansion and growth. You already know your business inside and out. It’s a product that addresses a universal pain point. It feels like a straight forward plan: go find some new customers in a new market. 

And yet… you’ve heard enough nightmare stories of companies flailing as they attempt to enter a foreign market. So where to start? 

Prepare a go-to-market (GTM) strategy. While it may seem like overkill, the discipline of considering all the factors involved, prioritizing key decisions, and identifying the action items needed to execute will all pay off.

Understanding the Core Components

At its heart, a robust GTM strategy is about creating a precise alignment between your product's unique value proposition and the specific needs of your target market. This requires a multifaceted approach that goes beyond simple marketing tactics.

1. Market Research and Customer Insights

The foundation of any successful GTM strategy is deep market understanding. Honestly, you can probably spend months on this. And it will likely be an ongoing and evolving process. Start with the things you can find out and identify critical areas you need to understand: 

• Who are the customers, what are their needs, and what are their behaviors?

• Who are your potential competitors and how are they positioned?

• Who are some other stakeholders, ecosystem players, and potential partners?

• What local environmental factors including market norms and regulatory considerations need to be understood?

2. Value Proposition

You likely have a good sense of your value proposition in your market. But consider how your value proposition is impacted by the differences in the new market:

• Is the problem/pain point you solve for different in any way in this market? How?

• Will your prospective customers perceive the benefits of your product in the same way? 

• Are the alternatives to your solution the same in this market? Anything different or new?

3. Pricing and Positioning Strategy

This is a big one. Your pricing and positioning are relative to the factors at play in the particular market. Your home market’s pricing and positioning should be completely reviewed in the context of the new market:

• Competitive pricing analysis

• Value-based pricing approaches

• Potential pricing models (subscription, one-time, tiered)

• Psychological pricing considerations

• Flexibility for market adaptation

4. Distribution Channel Selection

Getting this right can be the difference between success and long-suffering frustration. Once again, consider the following with the differences of the local market in mind:

• Direct sales channels

• Online and offline marketing platforms

• Partnership and reseller opportunities

• Channel-specific customer acquisition costs

• Scalability of distribution methods

• Leverages both digital and traditional marketing tactics

5. Sales Enablement and Support

Create robust support mechanisms:

• Develop comprehensive sales training

• Create clear sales collateral

• Establish customer support infrastructure

• Design customer onboarding processes

• Implement feedback and iteration mechanisms

Key Strategic Considerations

Successful go-to-market strategies are not static documents but living frameworks that require:

• Continuous market monitoring

• Willingness to pivot and adapt

• Data-driven decision making

• Agile response to market changes

• Regular strategy reassessment

Final Thoughts

A well-crafted GTM strategy is your business's navigation system. It provides direction, helps manage resources effectively, and increases the likelihood of market success. Remember that strategy is as much about what you choose not to do as what you decide to pursue.

By approaching your GTM strategy with depth, flexibility, and strategic thinking, you transform market entry from a challenge into an opportunity for sustainable growth.