5 Successful Go-to-Market Strategies for Technical Products

Any business can be based on a great idea, but only a few are ever based on a great strategy. The numbers don’t lie: more than 90% of startups will fail on the open market. Almost 10% close their doors within the first year. While there are countless reasons why a business might crumble, none should be due to your go-to-market (GTM) strategy.

A GTM strategy guides your actions, measures your outcomes, and ultimately gives your business purpose and direction. It aims to present yourself to audiences in the best ways possible with minimal roadblocks. The success or failure of each strategy depends on several factors, including your KPIs and overall growth metrics.

For B2B businesses with complex growth cycles, selecting the right GTM strategy is crucial. B2B market research is your best friend in narrowing your strategy to meet specific needs. Let’s explore five successful B2B go-to-market strategies for technical products, along with their pros, cons, and key considerations.

Strategy 1: Content Marketing

SEO-driven content strategies are excellent for growing startups and are used by nearly 90% of all B2B marketers. Inbound methodology works by creating valuable content—blogs, ebooks, technical tutorials, etc.—that channel leads through the B2B marketing funnel. As these leads discover new pain points and search for solutions, your keyword-driven content may be one of the first things they see, eventually leading to a sale.

Pros

• Long-Term Value: Content continuously generates value. Older posts can be regularly updated to provide additional reach and relevance.
• Low Cost: Content is one of the most affordable types of marketing material to create, especially written blogs or articles.

Cons

• Slow to Start: It may be difficult to delegate writing tasks to pre-existing team members, especially if you’re scaling a business. It may take several months to create a calendar with ready-to-post content.
• Requires Depth: Good technical writing requires specialized knowledge and writers. You may need to hire a freelancer or agency such as Hire a Writer o create material at scale.

Strategy 2: Paid Ads

If you’re interested in reaching a target audience through adaptable advertisements, an ads strategy might be ideal. Use advanced targeting to reach audiences across devices and platforms, and personalize your content accordingly. Loop in happy customers with retargeting ads or use display ads linked with landing pages to direct traffic toward specific products or services.

Pros

• Immediate Results: You can start seeing the results of your paid ads almost immediately, sometimes within two weeks or less.
• Easily Measurable: It’s easier to track the KPIs of a PPC campaign than a content campaign, making it a good choice for those who want simple, trackable growth.

Cons

• Expensive: Paid ads can become costly over time. Expect to pay up to $10,000 in monthly revenue just for PPC.
• Short-Term: Ads are only relevant for a certain period. Unlike content, they will eventually grow stale and need updating.

Strategy 3: Sales and Cold Outreach

For B2B companies focusing on slower growth, scaling with cold outreach could be a complementary tactic. Sales teams and marketing departments may locate viable leads on platforms like LinkedIn and make cold outreach calls and emails that address pain points with personalized scripts.

Pros

• Great Networking: Even if your email isn’t a good fit for one person, it may be forwarded to another person in their network, boosting reach and awareness.
• Stronger Personalization: Cold calls and emails are great for personalization. Tailor messages to individual pain points, professions, industry types, and more.

Cons

• Additional Training: Keeping your sales teams aligned requires additional training. Create documentation and host regular meetings to maintain coordination.
• Smaller Growth: The success rate of cold outreach is less viable than other strategies. Less than 24% of cold emails are ever opened, with an average response rate of 1% to 5%.

Strategy 4: Referrals

Interested in highly qualified leads? Referrals from existing customers could be a great option. Create incentives for referrals (money, freebies, or other giveaways) that build up social proof in your target market.

Pros

• Higher Retention: Referred customers are more likely to stick with your B2B over time, with a retention rate 37% higher than non-referred customers and an 18% reduction in churn.
• Cost-Effective: Unlike PPC clients that require active prospecting, referred clients come to you on their own accord, increasing overall profits by 25%.

Cons

• Less Control: There’s no way to control business growth with a referral strategy. Traffic may fluctuate according to whim and chance.
• Limits Change: Changing elements of your business model (prices, plans, or tiers) while leveraging word-of-mouth can be challenging. Broadcast changes well in advance to avoid losing referrals.

Strategy 5: Partnerships

Turn your third-party relationships into a marketing success flywheel by formalizing your partner and vendor relationships. Help prospects choose between multiple vendors by positioning yourself as a leader with more to offer.

Pros

• Credible: B2B businesses with more partners are seen as more credible by potential clients, helping to seal deals with more prospects.
• Well-Rounded: Clients appreciate businesses equipped to address their needs, including various facets of their pain points.

Cons

• Cluttered UVP: Ensure your universal value proposition remains clear. Clients may struggle to understand what makes you different if partnerships overshadow your unique value.
• Volatile Market: Partnerships can end suddenly according to changing needs, which might affect your GTM strategy. Currently, 70% of business partnerships fail.

Picking the Right Go-to-Market Strategy

Choosing the right go-to-market strategy is crucial for your business success. Understand your company, product, and target market well before implementation. Ask yourself:

• How much growth can you handle? Does the GTM strategy have a contingency plan?
• Is the growth strategy scalable for your industry? Will you have everything needed to grow?
• What resources are necessary to kick start the growth strategy?

A thorough understanding and thoughtful discussion with your team are essential. When considering a content-oriented go-to-market strategy, we can help.

Hire a Writer develops technical marketing content for software startups worldwide, bringing company voices to life with technical tutorials, value-driven blogs, and relevant content. We’ve helped 150+ companies launch and maintain their startup GTM strategies with subject-matter experts, facilitating quality content that’s built to impress.