The Challenge

In the realm of high-growth firms, establishing a successful go-to-market discipline is both ubiquitous and arduous. Its implementation can be make-or-break, with far-reaching consequences that can reverberate. This was precisely the predicament faced by a mid-market PE-backed regulatory technology firm, as it underwent a rapid succession of acquisitions within a short timeframe. Absent an operationalized go-to-market strategy and a proficient product marketing function, the firm lacked the necessary leadership to effectively bring its products to market.

Pain Points

As the company cemented its leadership position in various market segments through recent acquisitions, it faced a unique landscape. One of its acquired brands catered specifically to the needs of small-to-medium-sized businesses, embodying a B2C approach. Meanwhile, another brand established itself as a mid-market to enterprise solution in a fully B2B approach. In addition to these core business lines, the company expanded its portfolio to include consulting and managed services, as well as education offerings (B2C) and IT infrastructure offerings (B2B).

Amidst rapid growth, the company encountered the dual challenge of introducing new offerings and leveraging enhanced capabilities while consolidating and assessing market fit. With a diverse range of services and messaging tailored to different personas and firm types, finding optimal market fit became a pivotal objective. The management team faced the task of determining the most effective approach to navigate the sometimes overlapping and disparate offerings, ensuring each resonated with the target audience. To do this, the management team needed:

• A product marketing function skilled at translating complex offerings and lines of business to a sophisticated audience

• Cohesive frameworks to follow, inclusive of processes, defined roles, and timelines to support go-to-market launches

• Systemized and automated platforms to connect the work product was doing to the commercial efforts across quota-carrying roles

• One company value proposition for the delineated lines of business, aligned per target segment

The Solution

Upon recognizing the absence of formalized frameworks, processes, and necessary change management protocols, swift action was taken to address the situation. An immediate action plan was devised to empower management to:

Level up the existing marketing team and skillsets via new leadership, A new leadership approach was implemented. By prioritizing increased transparency and establishing key performance indicators (KPIs), the team gained valuable insights and a clearer direction. Additionally, proactive information sharing regarding upcoming product launches became a pivotal practice along with increased stakeholder engagement. Product marketing and product management became a unified team.

Institute and evangelize a go-to-market framework, process, and discipline under the newly formed one-company brand. Under the new operational framework, the teams were able to crystalize task management and workstreams to streamline by integrating added accountabilities from CRM entries to user story curations through commercial activities. Workstreams were defined by role and function to address pricing and packaging, brand and positioning, sales enablement, contracting, customer experience and post-sales, as well as systems integrations and mapping - all within the very short sprint cycles.

Leverage real-time insights and existing technology for added transparency and checkpoints. By instituting additional discipline of data governance and hygiene, a philosophy that “if it’s not in Salesforce it didn’t happen”, and added accountability across organizations to use issue and project software,

Better articulate the company’s overall value proposition and the markets it serves with crisp positioning and clearly defined Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs. Through customer interviews, in-depth market research, financial services industry expertise, and newly formed ICPs and competitive intelligence motions, management was able to align all enablement and strategic messaging in a more cohesive and easily digestible manner.

Key Benefits

The go-to-market motion formed a solid foundation, bringing together previously fragmented teams following the acquisitions, and charting a clear and manageable path forward. Within a remarkably short span of nine months, the teams achieved the following milestones:

• Both commercial and product functions gained a deeper understanding of product-to-market fit, enabling the formulation of robust go-to-market strategies. This alignment ensured that solutions and messaging resonated with the identified Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs), maximizing their effectiveness.

• A strategic roadmap was articulated, and meticulously aligned with customer needs and pain points. By prioritizing customer-centricity, the teams were able to address key challenges and deliver solutions that precisely met the requirements of their target audience.

• Through meticulous planning and the implementation of repeatable frameworks, time to market was significantly reduced. Sound planning methodologies and streamlined processes allowed for accelerated product launches, shortening the time frame by multiple quarters.