Go-To-Market Strategy template
Ayoa’s Go-To-Market Strategy template should be used by businesses when they launch a new product or service, so they can determine the most effective way to bring it to market and define the best plan of action going forward.
What is a go-to-market strategy?
A go-to-market strategy is a multiple-step framework that businesses should use when bringing a new product or service to market, making it particularly useful for companies that are still in the ‘startup’ phase. Your go-to-market strategy (also called a GTM strategy) is a detailed plan that outlines the actions you will take when bringing your new offering to market by utilizing any internal and external resources you have available.
Using our Go-To-Market Strategy template will also help you determine the most appropriate markets to target by defining your unique value proposition and your competitive advantage. The framework is made up of the following steps:
- Provocation
- Discovery
- Diagnostic
- Design
- Recommendation
Although a go-to-market strategy will be different for every company, product and service (and your plan will be determined by the different opportunities and threats presented by your target market), they should all outline who your ideal audience is and what your marketing and sales strategy will be. For this reason, it can be useful to consider your value matrix, buyer’s journey, and whether you will be targeting a new market or one you already operate in.
One of the most common uses of a GTM strategy is to define the most attractive markets when launching a new product or service. However, our Go-To-Market Strategy template can also be used when rebranding or launching an entirely new company.
Why should you use our Go-To-Market Strategy template?
As the name suggests, using the go-to-marketing strategy framework will allow you to be more strategic in your planning, so you can ensure that everything you do as a business will have an impact. For this reason, your plan should be shared with every team in your organization (such as marketing, sales and development) to align their goals and make sure that every action they take contributes to them working towards your overarching aims as a business.
By ensuring your teams are on the same page, you can save essential resources (such as time and money) and have the best chance of getting a return on your investment. This is particularly vital for startups who may be lacking in these resources and will need to consider which actions will give the best impact when launching a new product or service in a competitive market.
Our Gap Analysis template is set out in the format of a colorful collaborative whiteboard that is already organized into the sections you need to conduct your gap analysis. You can then add any information to the template using sticky notes – as if you were brainstorming ideas on a physical whiteboard!
How to use our Go-To-Market Strategy template
Our Go-To-Market Strategy template is already organized into each step of the framework and includes helpful prompts to help you get started. Discover how to use our template to create an effective GTM strategy below.
To access the template, sign up to Ayoa. Once you've signed up, navigate to the homepage to create a new whiteboard, mind map or task board and choose this template from the library.
As you will see when you open the template, it already includes dedicated sections to take you through each stage of the GTM strategy framework. These sections also contain sticky notes with questions and other prompts to help guide you through the process. To add your own information to the template, edit the text on the existing sticky notes or drag and drop new sticky notes onto your desired section.
You should work through the main categories of the template in the following order: Provocation, Discovery, Diagnostic, Design and Recommendation. For each of these categories (or steps), fill in the sections titled ‘Key Questions’, ‘Focus’, ‘Input/Tasks’ and ‘Outcomes’ in that order.
PROVOCATION. In this stage, you will prepare to bring your new product or service to market by setting goals and objectives and gathering useful data, then using these to create a project plan. With the resources your company has access to, consider exactly what you want to achieve and how you will do this.
In each section, use sticky notes and lists to answer any questions (such as ‘what do we want to accomplish?’) and add notes to help you create your GTM strategy. In some of the sections, you may find it useful to attach files and links to other boards within Ayoa.
For example, you might have used a mind map to brainstorm ideas or outlined the tasks you’re going to complete in a dedicated task board for the project and may want to easily access them from this template.
DISCOVERY. In this stage, consider your potential markets. Ask yourself; what does your dream market look like? What are the qualities of desirable markets for you to target? How will you define your buying process?
Again, work through each section for the ‘Discovery’ category, adding notes and answers to key questions using sticky notes and lists.
DIAGNOSTIC. Carry out the same process for this stage of creating a GTM strategy. However, this time you will need to ask yourself; where should you compete? What do you need to deliver? How can you win in your chosen market?
The aim of the ‘Diagnostic’ stage is to help you to determine how you can differentiate your company or product from your competition and create a competitive advantage.
DESIGN. Now that you’ve examined your potential markets and defined the qualities of the most attractive ones to target, it’s time to decide what the best go-to-market approach will be for your product or service. This will involve identifying and assessing your channel options, choosing partners, clarifying your offering, and defining your positioning for your target markets.
RECOMMENDATION. Finally, it’s time to start putting your plans into action. In this stage, you will need to decide how you will measure results and determine whether you’ve been successful, as well as develop your recommendation for your chosen GTM approach.
You can then share your completed Go-To-Market strategy template with relevant teams within your business. This will ensure that everyone’s goals are aligned and everyone is clear on what needs to be achieved going forward.
