Define ideal customer profile for targeting:

Analyze existing customers (top 20% by LTV)
Identify common firmographics (size, industry, revenue)
Map technographics (tools, maturity, integrations)
Document psychographics (pain level, motivation, risk tolerance)
Define 3-5 buyer personas (economic, technical, user)
Validate against sales cycle and churn data
Score prospects A/B/C/D based on ICP fit
Validation: A-fit customers have lowest churn and fastest close

Firmographics Template

Dimension	Target Range	Rationale
Employees	50-5000	Series A sweet spot
Revenue	$5M-$500M	Budget available
Industry	SaaS, Tech, Services	Product fit
Geography	US, UK, DACH	Market priority
Funding	Seed to Growth	Willing to adopt

Buyer Personas

Economic Buyer (signs contract):

Title: VP, Director, Head of [Department]
Goals: ROI, team productivity, cost reduction
Messaging: Business outcomes, ROI, case studies

Technical Buyer (evaluates product):

Title: Engineer, Architect, Tech Lead
Goals: Technical fit, easy integration
Messaging: Architecture, security, documentation

User/Champion (advocates internally):

Title: Manager, Team Lead, Power User
Goals: Makes job easier, quick wins
Messaging: UX, ease of use, time savings

ICP Validation Checklist

5+ paying customers match this profile
Fastest sales cycles (< median)
Highest LTV (> median)
Lowest churn (< 5% annual)
Strong product engagement
Willing to do case studies

Positioning Development

Develop positioning using April Dunford methodology:

List competitive alternatives (direct, adjacent, status quo)
Isolate unique attributes (features only you have)
Map attributes to customer value (why it matters)
Define best-fit customers (who cares most)
Choose market category (head-to-head, niche, new category)
Layer on relevant trends (timing justification)
Test with 10+ customer interviews
Validation: 7+ customers describe value unprompted

Positioning Statement Template

FOR [target customer]
WHO [statement of need]
THE [product] IS A [category]
THAT [key benefit]
UNLIKE [competitive alternative]
OUR PRODUCT [primary differentiation]

Value Proposition Formula

Template: [Product] helps [Target Customer] [Achieve Goal] by [Unique Approach]

Example: "Acme helps mid-market SaaS teams ship 2x faster by automating project workflows with AI"

Messaging Hierarchy

Level	Content	Example
Headline	5-7 words	"Ship faster with AI automation"
Subhead	1 sentence	"Automate workflows so teams focus on what matters"
Benefits	3-4 bullets	Speed, quality, collaboration, cost
Features	Supporting evidence	AI automation → 10 hrs/week saved
Proof	Social proof	Customer logos, stats, case studies

Competitive Intelligence

Build competitive knowledge base:

Identify tier 1 (direct), tier 2 (adjacent), tier 3 (status quo)
Sign up for competitor products (hands-on evaluation)
Monitor competitor websites, pricing, messaging
Analyze sales call recordings for competitor mentions
Read G2/Capterra reviews (pros and cons)
Track competitor job postings (roadmap signals)
Update battlecards monthly
Validation: Sales team uses battlecards in 80%+ competitive deals

Competitive Tier Structure

Tier	Definition	Examples
1	Direct competitor, same category	[Competitor A, B]
2	Adjacent solution, overlapping use case	[Alt Solution C, D]
3	Status quo (what they do today)	Spreadsheets, manual, in-house

Battlecard Template

COMPETITOR: [Name]
OVERVIEW: Founded [year], Funding [stage], Size [employees]

POSITIONING:
- They say: "[Their claim]"
- Reality: [Your assessment]

STRENGTHS:
1. [What they do well]
2. [What they do well]

WEAKNESSES:
1. [Where they fall short]
2. [Where they fall short]

OUR ADVANTAGES:
1. [Your advantage + evidence]
2. [Your advantage + evidence]

WHEN WE WIN:
- [Scenario where you win]

WHEN WE LOSE:
- [Scenario where they win]

TALK TRACK:
Objection: "[Common objection]"
Response: "[Your response]"

Win/Loss Analysis

Track monthly:

Win rate by competitor
Top win reasons (product fit, ease of use, price)
Top loss reasons (missing feature, price, relationship)
Action items for product, sales, marketing

Product Launch Planning

Plan launches by tier:

Tier	Scope	Prep Time	Budget
1	New product, major feature	6-8 weeks	$50-100k
2	Significant feature, integration	3-4 weeks	$10-25k
3	Small improvement	1 week	<$5k

Tier 1 Launch Workflow

Execute major product launch:

Kickoff meeting with Product, Marketing, Sales, CS
Define goals (pipeline $, MQLs, press coverage)
Develop positioning and messaging
Create sales enablement (deck, demo, battlecard)
Build campaign assets (landing page, emails, ads)
Train sales and CS teams
Execute launch day (press, email, ads, outbound)
Monitor and optimize for 30 days
Validation: Pipeline on track to goal by week 2

Launch Day Checklist

Launch Metrics

Metric	Leading (Daily)	Lagging (Weekly)
Traffic	Landing page visitors	-
Engagement	Demo requests, signups	Feature adoption %
Pipeline	MQLs generated	SQLs, pipeline $
Revenue	-	Deals closed, revenue

Sales Enablement

Equip sales team with PMM assets:

Create sales deck (15-20 slides, visual-first)
Build one-pagers (product, competitive, case study)
Develop demo script (30-45 min with discovery)
Write email templates (outreach, follow-up, closing)
Create ROI calculator (input costs, output savings)
Conduct monthly enablement calls
Deliver quarterly training (positioning, competitive)
Validation: Sales uses assets in 80%+ of opportunities

Sales Deck Structure

Slide	Content
1-2	Title, agenda
3-4	Company intro, problem statement
5-7	Solution, key benefits, demo
8-10	Differentiation, case study, pricing
11-12	Implementation, support, next steps

Demo Flow

1. Intro (2 min): Who we are, agenda
2. Discovery (5 min): Their needs, pain points
3. Demo (20 min): Product focused on their use case
4. Q&A (10 min): Objection handling
5. Next steps (3 min): Trial, POC, proposal

Sales-Marketing Handoff

Handoff	Frequency	Content
Weekly sync	30 min	Win/loss, competitive, new assets
Monthly enablement	60 min	Product updates, training
Quarterly review	Half-day	Results, strategy, planning

International Expansion

Enter new markets systematically:

Validate market demand (inbound leads, TAM analysis)
Localize website, pricing, legal
Establish sales coverage (hire or agency)
Adapt messaging for cultural fit
Build local partnerships and references
Launch localized campaigns
Monitor CAC and conversion by market
Validation: 3+ paying customers from market in first 90 days

Market Priority (Series A)

Market	Timeline	Budget %	Target ARR
US	Months 1-6	50%	$1M
UK	Months 4-9	20%	$500k
DACH	Months 7-12	15%	$300k
France	Months 10-15	10%	$200k
Canada	Months 7-12	5%	$100k

Localization Checklist

Website translation (professional, not machine)
Currency and pricing localized
Local phone number and address
Legal compliance (GDPR, PIPEDA)
Local payment methods
Sales coverage during local hours
Local case studies and references

Reference Documentation

Positioning Frameworks

references/positioning-frameworks.md contains:

April Dunford 5-step positioning process
Geoffrey Moore positioning statement template
Positioning validation interview protocol
Competitive positioning map construction

Launch Checklists

references/launch-checklists.md contains:

Tier 1/2/3 launch checklists
Week-by-week launch timeline
Launch day runbook
Post-launch metrics dashboard

International GTM

references/international-gtm.md contains:

US, UK, DACH, France, Canada playbooks
Market-specific channel mix and messaging
Localization requirements per market
Entry timeline and budget allocation

Messaging Templates

references/messaging-templates.md contains:

Value proposition formulas
Persona-specific messaging
Competitive response scripts
Objection handling templates
Channel-specific copy (landing pages, emails, ads)

PMM KPIs

Metric	Target	Measurement
Product adoption	>40% in 90 days	Feature usage after launch
Win rate	>30% competitive	Deals won vs. competitors
Sales velocity	-20% YoY	Days from SQL to close
Deal size	+25% YoY	Average contract value
Launch pipeline	3:1 ROMI	Pipeline $ : marketing spend

Quick Reference

PMM Monthly Rhythm

Week	Focus
1	Review metrics, update battlecards
2	Create assets, publish content
3	Support launches, optimize campaigns
4	Monthly report, plan next month

marketing-strategy-pmm

Marketing Strategy & PMM

Table of Contents

ICP Definition Workflow