Ever felt like your go-to-market (GTM) campaign plan was set in stone, only to realize that it needs to be as dynamic as the market itself? If so, this episode of the Marketing Smarts Live Show is a must-watch.
Featured guest Pam Didner talks with host George B. Thomas about the intricacies of building a successful GTM campaign plan.
Let's dive in!
A Living, Breathing GTM Plan
Pam Didner compares planning a GTM campaign to writing a book. Just as a book consists of chapters that describe the progression of the plot, a marketing plan should be structured similarly—as a "living" entity that changes and develops continuously, affected by your research and audience monitoring.
In short, planning a GTM campaign is not for the short-sighted. It's a dynamic process that requires constant updates and flexibility.
The Scope is Always Changing
Pam emphasizes that a six-month GTM plan can look entirely different by the end of the six months. Why? Because the product is still being developed, and its features are constantly changing.
Action Item: Keep an eye on product development and be ready to adapt your GTM plan accordingly.
It's Not Done Just Because You've Started "Plotting"
Pam says the plan has to be a living thing. It's not set in stone the moment you start "plotting" it out.
Action Item: Regularly update your GTM plan based on new research and audience feedback.
The Importance of Positioning and Messaging
Changes in product features will influence the positioning and messaging of your GTM plan. Pam stresses the need for flexibility here.
Action Item: Revisit your positioning and messaging strategies whenever there are changes in product features.
Next Steps
Pam Didner's insights provide a road map for anyone looking to build a successful GTM campaign plan.
Your next steps:
- Watch the full episode, below, for a deeper understanding.
- Implement the action items listed above to make your GTM plan more dynamic.
So, are you ready to make your GTM campaign plan a living, breathing entity? Get plotting!
Make sure you don't miss any future episodes: Subscribe to the Marketing Smarts Live Show on YouTube. And to catch up on all previous episodes, check out the full playlist on YouTube.
Episode Details, Guest Information, and Referenced Links
Episode No. 52
- Live date: October 9, 2023
- Episode link: youtube.com/live/eSX77Mh3GNA
- Original podcast episode: How to Build a Successful Go-to-Market Campaign Plan: Pam Didner on Marketing Smarts [Podcast]
Guest's social media profiles:
- Twitter: @PamDidner
- LinkedIn: Pam Didner
MarketingProfs resources referenced in the show:
- How to Avoid Six Common Pitfalls of the Launch Process
- How to Craft 'Compelling Reason to Buy' Messaging
"In B2B News" article referenced in the show:
"From the #mpb2b Community" links referenced in the show:
- Tweet by @atdata
Want access to exclusive training and education resources?
Get started with a MarketingProfs PRO membership!
Transcript: How to Build a Successful Go-to-Market Campaign Plan: Pam Didner
Hello to all my Marketing Smarts Live viewers today. I'm super excited to bring you episode 52 of the Marketing Smarts Live show.
This week's topic is all about How to Build a Successful Go-to-Market Campaign Plan.
So, if you're ready to get your learn on, buckle up and let's get ready to rock and roll.
Hey, I'm your boy George B. Thomas, speaker, trainer, catalyst, and host of this here show, the Marketing Smarts Live show, as well as the Marketing Smarts podcast found on your favorite podcast app.
Our guest clips today are brought to you by none other than Pam Didner.
Pam Didner, a B2B marketer, speaker, author, and podcaster.
Her expertise is in strategic planning, B2B marketing, Sales and Marketing alignment, content marketing, Sales enablement, and more.
Pam has written three books: Effective Sales Enablement, The Modern AI Marketer, and Global Content Marketing. She also has a podcast and YouTube channel, B2B Marketing and More.
Now, remember the clips of Pam Didner today are pulled from the full Marketing Smarts podcast episode, and if you want to listen to the full interview with Pam Didner and myself, make sure to tune into the Marketing Smarts podcast; link to the full show will be in the description below after the live show ends.
Now, in this episode, again, I'm talking with Pam Didner about How to Build a Successful Go-to-Market Campaign Plan.
In this episode of the Live show, I'm doing things a bit differently!
Listen, building a go-to-market campaign plan can be difficult so today, I'm starting with the hurdle question!
That's right, I asked Pan what hurdles she has seen get in the way of marketers in the past.
Here's what she had to share.
Pam: There are several because it does take six to eight months to build a go-to-market plan in general. Let's assume you are a small team, you don't have a lot of budget, and you create it in a very short period of time. That can happen, too. In general, one of the hurdles tends to be time. Do you give yourself enough time to actually put the plan together? That's number one.
Number two is lack of budget. I know a lot of management folks will say, "Marketing, we need to launch this product. We need to do go-to-market," but they say it without actually giving additional budget for the marketing people to actually do that. For anyone creating a go-to-market plan, here's my number one advice. If you have one takeaway from this, don't do a go-to-market plan unless you have budget, you're going to fail. I hate saying that.
There's only so much you can do organically. There's only so much you can do with your small team. There's only so much you can do to reach out to influencers to give you freebies. No budget, no go-to-market, it's that simple. I'm not trying to be cynical. I'm just stating the fact. Lack of budget, go fight for your budget. This is very critical. B2B marketers are all nice people, we don't like to fight, but you have to go present it and appeal, and get your budget. That's number one.
Number two is because you have six to eight months and then you're working through your go-to-market plan, but in the meantime the product is still being developed, the product is not finalized. Some features are added, some features are not added. There's a constant changing of the features that will impact the positioning and messaging of your go-to-market plan. That frustrates the heck out of many go-to-market marketing managers. They just hate that. I need to change that again? Did we just say that we are going to have that as our key features and key talking points? Then three weeks later, it has changed. That's one thing.
In addition to that changing, another thing that changes all the time is the dates. They pull in, they push out. The push out, I worry less. It's the pulling in. You're like the launch date is in October. No, wait, the launch date is the first week of September. Ugh.
Are you giving yourself the right time to get your plan together?
Do you have the budget? Or are you lacking the budget?
Listen, I don't think Pam was being cynical. I agree fighting for your budget is a crucial step.
Ladies and gentlemen, there is only so much you can do! So, make sure you are setting yourself and the company up for success.
Marketing Smarts Live viewer, have you fallen prey to any of these go-to-market hurdles?
Put the answer to that in the chat pane or let me know on Twitter using the hashtag #mpb2b and, of course, tag me using @georgebthomas.
We'll get back to Pam Didner and her thoughts on How to Build a Successful Go-to-Market Campaign Plan. But first, I have to ask...
Are you part of the MarketingProfs community? If not, become part of the MarketingProfs community by heading to mprofs.com/mptoday - That's mprofs.com/mptoday.
Now, it's time for one of my favorite sections...
In The B2B News. Where we talk about breaking B2B news or essential tips we find on the Google news tab related to you and your B2B business. This week, the title is...
How Marketers Are Rewriting Their B2B Playbooks to Win Over a New Generation of Decision-Makers, found on digiday.com
"The need for B2B companies to differentiate themselves in the eyes of prospects and clients has never been greater, and the data-driven marketing tools to do so have never been more robust. However, legacy B2B mindsets, protocols and practices can take a lot of work to break, resulting in a sea of sameness regarding messaging and tactics within many B2B categories.
"As a new generation of decision-makers takes the helm, B2B organizations must fundamentally rewrite their marketing playbooks, starting with the data that powers them.
"The B2B organizations that thrive in the near future will be the ones that innovate around company structure, preferred channels, and how they communicate with buyers."
Want to keep learning more? Then, follow the link in the description after the live show ends.