go-to-market

What this skill does

# Go-to-Market Strategy

You create comprehensive go-to-market strategies for product launches, feature releases, market expansions, and repositioning efforts. You research market context, competitor GTM approaches, pricing benchmarks, and channel benchmarks yourself — do not ask the user for data they would need to look up. Only ask the user for decisions and confirmations.

This skill complements `competitive-analysis` (which maps competitive landscape), `customer-segmentation` (which defines target segments), `market-sizing` (which quantifies opportunity), and `vision-crafting` (which defines product vision) by translating insights into an actionable launch strategy.

| Metadata | Value |
|---|---|
| **Primary category** | `planning` |
| **Secondary category** | `generation` |
| **Output mode** | `human_readable` |
| **Mixins** | `diagram-rendering`, `autonomous-research` |
| **Version** | `1.0.0` |

## Phase 1 — Setup

### Input handling

Follow shared foundation S7 — interview mode. When input is missing or insufficient, interview to gather at minimum:

| Dimension | Required | Default |
|---|---|---|
| **Product/feature/initiative** | Yes | -- |
| **Launch type** | No | Auto-detect from context |
| **Target market/audience** | No | Will research |
| **Competitive analysis output** | No | Will research independently |
| **Customer segmentation output** | No | Will research independently |
| **Market sizing output** | No | Will research independently |
| **Vision crafting output** | No | Will research independently |

**Exit interview when**: Product/feature context is clear enough to define ICP and positioning.

### 1. Collect input

Accept one of:
- A product or feature description
- A file path to a business case, competitive analysis, segmentation, or market sizing report
- Pasted content (product brief, launch plan draft, market research)
- No input or vague input -> enter interview mode

### 2. Detect launch type and scope

From the input (or interview results), identify:
- **Product/feature/initiative**: What is being launched
- **Launch type**: New product | Feature launch | Market expansion | Repositioning/rebrand
- **Domain**: Industry, regulatory context
- **Import sources**: Any available outputs from competitive analysis, customer segmentation, market sizing, vision crafting

### 3. Confirm scope

```
**Product/Feature**: [name]
**Launch type**: [detected type + rationale]
**Import sources**: [list of available imports or "none — will research independently"]
**Target market**: [identified or to be defined]
```

Ask the user to confirm or adjust. Ask diagram render mode and output path per the `diagram-rendering` and `autonomous-research` mixins.

## Phase 2 — Research

Use WebSearch and WebFetch per the `autonomous-research` mixin.

### 2a. Market context research

Research the market landscape for this product/launch:
- Market size, growth rate, and maturity stage
- Key trends affecting the category
- Buyer expectations and purchasing patterns
- Regulatory or compliance requirements

### 2b. Competitor GTM research

Research how competitors go to market:
- Competitor pricing models and tiers
- Competitor channel strategies (PLG, SLG, partner)
- Competitor positioning and messaging themes
- Recent competitor launches and market moves

### 2c. Pricing benchmarks

Research pricing norms for this category:
- Pricing models common in the space (per user, per seat, usage-based, feature-gated)
- Price ranges by tier and segment
- Free trial vs freemium prevalence
- Expansion revenue patterns

### 2d. Channel benchmarks

Research channel effectiveness for this category:
- Typical customer acquisition channels
- CAC benchmarks by channel
- Conversion benchmarks (trial-to-paid, demo-to-close)
- PLG adoption rates where applicable

## Phase 3 — Market & Customer Definition

### Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)

Define the ICP with these dimensions:

| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| **Company characteristics** | Size, industry, geography, tech stack, growth stage |
| **Pain points** | Top 3-5 problems the product solves |
| **Buying triggers** | Events that create urgency (funding round, compliance deadline, team growth) |
| **Disqualifiers** | Characteristics that make a prospect a poor fit |

### Buyer vs User Personas

For each key persona (2-4):

| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| **Role** | Job title/function |
| **Type** | Buyer (economic decision-maker), Champion (internal advocate), User (daily user), Influencer (shapes opinion) |
| **Goals** | What they care about (mapped to product value) |
| **Objections** | Likely concerns or blockers |
| **Activation trigger** | What makes them take action |

### Buying Process Stages

Map the typical buying journey:

| Stage | Buyer activity | Product touchpoint |
|---|---|---|
| Problem aware | Researching the problem | Content, SEO, community |
| Solution aware | Evaluating options | Landing page, comparison, demo |
| Decision | Selecting vendor | Trial, POC, sales call |
| Purchase | Procurement/approval | Pricing page, contract, security review |
| Onboarding | Getting started | Onboarding flow, docs, CS |

## Phase 4 — Positioning & Messaging

### Category claim

Define where the product sits:
- **Category**: The market category the product competes in
- **Subcategory** (if applicable): Niche within the category
- **Frame**: How the product reframes the category (e.g., "the first X that Y")

### Competitive positioning

| Dimension | Our position | Key competitor A | Key competitor B |
|---|---|---|---|
| [dimension 1] | ... | ... | ... |
| [dimension 2] | ... | ... | ... |

### Messaging hierarchy

Three-level hierarchy, one message set per persona:

**Level 1 — Core positioning statement** (one sentence):
"For [ICP] who [pain point], [product] is a [category] that [key differentiator]. Unlike [alternative], we [unique value]."

**Level 2 — Value propositions with proof points** (3-5 per persona):

| Value proposition | Proof point | Persona relevance |
|---|---|---|
| [benefit statement] | [data, case study, capability] | [which persona] |

**Level 3 — Channel-specific copy** (adapt per channel):

| Channel | Message focus | Tone | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Website hero | Core positioning | Aspirational | 10-15 words |
| Email outbound | Pain-specific | Direct | 2-3 sentences |
| Ad copy | Differentiator | Punchy | 5-8 words |
| Sales deck | Full value prop | Consultative | Slide-by-slide |
| Product Hunt / launch | Category disruption | Exciting | 50-word tagline |

## Phase 5 — Pricing & Packaging

### Pricing basis

Select and justify the pricing model:

| Model | Best for | Signal |
|---|---|---|
| Per user/seat | Collaboration tools, team products | Value scales with team size |
| Usage-based | Infrastructure, API, data products | Value scales with consumption |
| Feature-gated | Platform products, multi-persona | Different needs at different levels |
| Flat rate | Simple products, SMB focus | Predictable, low friction |
| Hybrid | Complex products | Multiple value vectors |

### Tier structure

| Tier | Target | Key features | Price range | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free / Freemium | Individual users, evaluation | Core functionality | $0 | Acquisition, PLG entry |
| Starter | Small teams, early adopters | Team features, integrations | $[range] | Conversion, time-to-value |
| Pro / Growth | Scaling teams, mid-market | Advanced features, analytics | $[range] | Revenue, expansion |
| Enterprise | Large orgs, regulated | SSO, audit, SLA, custom | Custom | High ACV, strategic |

### Entry model

| Model | Conversion path | Best when |
|---|---|---|
| Free trial (time-limited) | Trial -> Paid | Product needs guided setup |
| Freemium (feature-limited) | Free -> Paid tier | Product has self-serve value |
| Reverse trial | Full features -> Downgrade | Show full value upfront |
| Demo/sales | Demo -> POC -> Contract | High ACV, complex product |

### Competitor pricing benchmark