When it comes to sales and marketing, one of the most exciting projects is the go-to-market campaign.

These campaigns launch, re-launch and expand product portfolio’s and work to disrupt markets, all in the search for pipeline and revenue. In a competitive world, innovation makes the difference, and go-to-market campaigns are where marketers innovate.
Bringing new products and services to market or re-launching existing products involves many areas of a business. Each area has its own priorities and often a different view of when the solution is ready. A product/service is only available when functionality and support are complete, and an organisation can communicate what the product/service’s value is.

So, what is involved in this exciting form of marketing? The Digital Connection Agency (The DCA) approaches go-to-market campaigns like this:

What is the Solution Proposition?

How Long is the
Potential Sales Cycle?

Market
Context

Understanding
the Customer

Preparing
the Launch

Considering
Content

What is The Solution Proposition?

Different parts of a company have different thoughts about what the solution is for, what it does, and which customers should buy it and why. The starting point is to ensure that there is only one proposition and that the whole business buys into it. To do that, start with the following:

  1. What is the customer-facing name of the solution?
  2. Is the name right for the task ahead?
  1. What does the solution do?
  2. What are the main features?
  3. What benefit do the features offer the customer?
  1. What does the solution do better than the competition?
  2. What features deliver the standout advantage?
  1. What is the pricing model for the solution?
  2. What is the sale worth to the business, year 1? Over its lifetime?
  1. How does it fit with existing solutions?
  2. Is the solution ever bundled with others?
  3. Is it a lead sale, or an add on sale?

Answering these questions builds a proposition that can align the business. Allowing the company to deliver one succinct product or service.

How Long is The Potential Sales Cycle?

This section The DCA is going to look at B2B sales. Mainly, because it tends to be a more complicated and longer sales cycle. B2B prospect nurturing can take up to 18 months, and lead conversion can take up to four years! So, there’s no point in running a two-week campaign for something that takes two years to sell.
To get to the bottom of this, try to answer these questions:

  • What changes over time happen that makes a buyer want this product/service?
  • What are the needs of this new situation?
  • How long does it take for the buyer to go through this process?
  • How long does it take for the buyer to evaluate their options?
  • How quickly can the sales team expect a prospect to resolve all their concerns?
  • Who, how and when makes the decision?
  • What are their demands when it comes to implementation?

It takes, experience of the industry, product and the current sales processes at the company to answer these questions. Especially when it is a new product/service as there is no history. If a company can consistently and accurately accomplish this stage, success is only a matter of time.

Market Context

No matter how exciting the new solution is, it must be viewed through the eyes of the customer. Sometimes the product development team believe they’ve developed a world-beater, however, if the competition has similar offerings it’s not always the case. Understand what the dynamics of the market are to ensure no parties are unaware of the challenges faced. When thinking about the market context, try to answer these questions:

  1. Is the brand known in this market sector?
  2. How strong is it?
    1. How do non-customers see the company?
  3. Is the company leading with the corporate brand or the solution brand?
  1. Is the solution a new product category or a new entrant into an existing category?
  2. Is the solution completely new, or a new iteration of an existing solution?
  3. If not entirely new, how long has a version been around? What is its history?
  1. How is the market changing and how fast?
  2. What are the drivers for change?
  3. How might that threaten sales of the solution?
  1. Who are the main competitors in this sector?
  2. What sort of market share do they have?
  3. What are their strengths and weaknesses?
  4. What does the company estimate they are spending in this sector?
  1. How will the solution be positioned? Best? Cheapest? Unique?
  2. Does the company’s positioning answer the demands of the market?
  3. Can the company genuinely support that positioning in the short and medium-term?

Understanding the Customer

Today it’s rare that a single individual is responsible for the entire buying process. The decision involves many individuals whose involvement changes
during the buying cycle.
Understand who the initiators, specifiers, influencers and decision-makers will be for the solution. For each target organisation, there will be a pool of 10-15 prospects that need to be considered in the sales process. Look at these aspects of the customer:

  1. How aware are prospects of the organisation generally?
  2. How aware are the prospects of the company’s expertise in this market sector?
  3. How aware are the prospects of the solution?
  4. How aware are prospects of their need for the solution?
  1. What type of organisation is the solution aimed at?
  2. Can the company segment by sector? Size? Existing customer? Prospect?
  3. If there has been any previous history, what is it?
  1. Which job titles are involved in the buying process?
  2. What were the job titles involved in the sale of similar solutions?
  3. Can the company define initiators, specifiers, influencers and decision-makers?
  1. What are the main concerns for target organisations?
  2. What are the main concerns and issues facing prospects?
  3. How do the issues differ between the various segments?
  4. What similar activities have been run previously with these customers?

Preparing The Launch

After the months the product team has spent working on the project, the senior management team can be under pressure to deliver results quickly. The marketing and sales team then come under pressure to achieve sales of complex solutions within weeks, which simply doesn’t work. Launches take considerable time and effort to plan and implement correctly, and complex major ticket sales take time for customers to buy. So, it is essential to establish a shared understanding of targets and timings right from the start.

  1. What are the sales targets year 1, 2 and 3?
  2. Are they realistic? Based on a market opportunity?
  3. How many sales does that deliver?
  4. What’s the budget?
  5. What’s the ROI benchmark?
  1. Direct to the customer?
  2. Partner sale?
  3. Channel sale?
  4. Multiple channels?
  1. Complex combined product and service solution sale?
  2. Complex product sale?
  3. Commodity or simple product sale?
  1. What sales resources are dedicated to the activity?
  2. Can they achieve the numbers agreed?
  3. Are they dedicated sales or also focussed on existing customers?
  4. Do they have the sales collateral required to support the sale?
  1. What data does the company currently have and is it complete, including email, etc.?
  2. What was the source of the data? What is the age and quality of the data?
  3. Is there enough data to create a good pipeline? What percentage of the total audience does the company estimate it has?
  4. Does the data cover initiators, specifiers, influencers and decision-makers?
  5. Does the company need to consider buying data?
  1. When is the solution ready for launch across the organisation?
  2. What are the key events linked to launch?
  3. Are there any short-term sales targets? If so, should they be there?

Considering Content

Content is the part of the go-to-market campaign that everyone sees. Both B2B and B2C depend on the quality of the material being the best it can be, as well as choosing the right type of content! Think about the sales of lipsticks if it was just whitepapers like “the reason why it’s now a shade of red”.

To understand more about what types of content are best, a marketer should look at the types of marketing available. Splashcopywriters have written an article that discusses around 163 types of marketing. They wrote down everything they could think of as a strategy and anything that might qualify as a tactic. If interested, it makes a great read and an excellent place to reference when brainstorming a problem.

Content marketing reference

Click here for 163 content types!

However, where does that leave content? There are plenty of lists talking about types of content too! Take a look at “113 content types to organise with your marketing calendar” by Coschedule.

Content marketing reference

Click here for 113 content types!

Times that by 163 types of marketing and there are a lot of options. From blogposts to letters to micro-sites, each of these content types offers a range of uses. If this seems daunting and excessive, that’s because it is! However, there isn’t that much of a need to scour through and learn everything to get  started. The DCA recommends this as a barebones for B2B:

  • Website + Webpage
  • 1x Solution brochure
  • 1x Solution factsheet
  • 1x Solution video or case study video
  • 1x Solution-focused whitepaper or thought leadership piece
  • 1x Market issue focussed whitepaper or thought leadership piece
  • 3x Case studies/testimonials
  • 2x Infographics

There’s a lot here, but this provides enough content for almost all the needs of the potential prospect. After this, anything extra should be done based on previous success if the company has any!
The DCA hasn’t forgotten about the B2C market though! The DCA recommends adding these pieces of content onto the B2B list for B2C go-to-market campaigns:

  • 2x Social media accounts (whatever is the most relevant)
  • 20x Social media posts
  • 1x Influencer product review (article and video)
  • Online Q&A event (live stream etc. Preferably with an influencer)
  • 5x Press releases

Conclusion

When it comes to going to market, these are some of the things to remember:

  • What is the solution proposition?
  • How long is the potential sales cycle?
  • Market context
  • Understanding the customer
  • Preparing the launch
  • Considering content

If a marketer can remember these steps, then it means they are that much closer to a successful campaign. If a company feels like a specialist could help take this on, then feel free to let The Digital Connection Agency in to take the reins! With our experience and professional network, The DCA can deliver a go-to-market campaign that meets the company’s targets!

Let’s Get Started!

How Much Does it Cost?

The DCA Operates In Three Ways

One Last Thing!

Individual task – Billed by the day
Projects – Billed in accordance with the scope
Commitments – On retainer typically starting at £1000 per month

This is always something that everyone leaves out! Additional costs may apply depending on the services we agree, especially things like paid advertising and the tools you need. We always make sure this is completely transparent!

The DCA logo for a Go-to-market campaigns post

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