Go-to-market Research

Give your launch the best chance of success by investing in thorough go-to-market research. Get powerful insights about your clients, competitors and the market to inform your strategy and avoid mistakes.

Join the organizations who have already found success

Go-to-market research services and capabilities

NewtonX go-to-market research gives you verified data to help you mitigate risk as you bring your new product or service to the market. There are so many factors that influence launch success and you’re accountable for every cent of the budget. While there are no guarantees, robust go-to-market research gives you evidence on which to build a solid strategy.

Go-to-market research reveals business critical insights that boost the chance of launch success, such as:

Client understanding: What’s their current user experience? Get to know their needs, aspirations, pain points, behaviors and buyer motivations. This can inform the refinement of your product or service roadmap, especially if you test it and fix any glitches before your full launch.
Competitor awareness: Get granular understanding of how your offering compares to your competitors. Then your value proposition and communications won’t just strongly resonate with your prospects, they’ll clearly demonstrate your points of difference in the market.
Market knowledge: Taking stock of the broader market potential allows you to see the size and growth potential of your new product or service. Go-to-market research often highlights exciting gaps in the market and trends that are perfect for your new offering.

Your go-to-market research insights help plan the details of your overall strategy. It can answer questions about when to prioritize the introduction of key features. You can iron out any onboarding or initial usability issues before the full launch, avoiding the associated client churn. By deepening your client understanding, you’ll be able to target your promotional activities at the right audience segment, in the right place, at the right time. This ensures a higher ROI on your marketing and advertising budget.

Go-to-market research to deliver both scale and specificity

Our technology reaches across 140+ industries to give you the scale of a panel combined with the depth of an expert network. From professionals en masse to niche, hard-to-find audiences, the NewtonX Knowledge Graph can find the exact people to deliver the business insights you need. We’re the only customer loyalty research agency that’s developed proprietary research technology to keep up with market demands. Here’s just a sampling of who we pinpoint, for everything from 5,000+ participant surveys to curated groups of in-depth interviews.

140+

industries

Cryptocurrency specialists advising on hedge fund projects
Advertising professionals overseeing brand spend
Reddit users that visit Reddit for NSFW content
IT decision-makers evaluating cloud software services

NewtonX helps industry innovators turn inquiry into impact.

How NewtonX scouted 5,000 life insurance professionals for product-market fit

NewtonX delivered extremely rapid results to help a leading professional services consultancy unlock future growth opportunities for their client.

How insights from insurance underwriting professionals developed a successful go-to-market strategy

NewtonX sourced the most qualified insurance professionals to inform our client’s market entry strategy.

How a leading cloud software company focused on furious innovation

Deep data insights from NewtonX enabled a top cloud software firm to boost customer acquisition and retention.

What is go-to-market (GTM) research?

A go-to-market research strategy is a comprehensive launch plan for any new product or service. Go-to-market research informs this plan with the aim of mitigating the many risks and giving your launch the best chance of success. Go-to-market research aims to deepen understanding of clients, competitors and the market so that the many levels of business critical decisions are based on a foundation of reliable research.

When to perform go-to-market research

Determining the right time to conduct go-to-market research is essential for maximizing its effectiveness. Here are some scenarios and considerations for when to initiate GTM research:

New Product Launch

One of the most common situations for GTM research is when you’re preparing to launch a new product or service. Conducting research before the launch helps you understand the target market, competitive landscape, and customer preferences.

Market Expansion

If your company is planning to enter a new market or expand into different regions or demographics, GTM research can provide valuable insights. It helps adapt your strategies to meet the specific needs and preferences of these new audiences.

Major Business Changes

When your organization undergoes significant changes, such as mergers, acquisitions, or strategic shifts, GTM research can guide the transition. It ensures that your market strategies align with the revised business objectives.

Rebranding or Repositioning

If you’re considering a rebrand or repositioning of your products or services, GTM research helps in understanding how these changes will be received by your audience and whether they align with market trends.

Competitive Analysis

Regular GTM research can be valuable to keep tabs on the competition. It allows you to monitor the activities and strategies of competitors and make adjustments to maintain your competitive edge.

Customer Feedback

If you’ve been receiving feedback from customers regarding their changing needs, preferences, or pain points, it might be time to conduct GTM research. This helps you validate and act on customer insights effectively.

Sales Performance Concerns

If your sales team is struggling to meet targets or encountering challenges in the market, GTM research can identify obstacles and provide actionable solutions.

Product or Service Enhancements

When you’re planning significant updates or improvements to your offerings, GTM research can help gauge customer reactions, preferences, and potential adoption rates.

Marketing Strategy Review

Regularly reviewing and refining your marketing strategies is vital in today’s dynamic business environment. GTM research can provide insights into the effectiveness of your current strategies and inform necessary adjustments.

Continuous Improvement

GTM research doesn’t need to be a one-time effort. Many successful companies incorporate ongoing research into their business processes to stay agile and responsive to changing market dynamics.

What are the benefits of go-to-market research

Engaging in go-to-market research offers numerous benefits that can significantly impact your business strategies and outcomes. Here are some of the key advantages:

Market Understanding

GTM research provides valuable insights into your target market’s dynamics, including customer preferences, behaviors, and pain points. This understanding allows you to tailor your strategies to meet market demands effectively.

Competitive Intelligence

By analyzing your competitors and their strategies, GTM research helps you identify gaps in the market and opportunities to differentiate your offerings. It enables you to stay ahead of the competition and make informed decisions.

Optimized Product Development

Researching customer needs and expectations early in the product development process ensures that your offerings align with market demands. This can lead to more successful product launches and reduced development costs.

Enhanced Marketing Strategies

GTM research aids in creating more effective marketing campaigns by uncovering the most compelling messaging, channels, and tactics to reach your target audience. It ensures that your marketing efforts resonate with potential customers.

Risk Mitigation

Understanding market dynamics and customer sentiment can help you anticipate potential challenges and mitigate risks associated with entering new markets or launching new products. This proactive approach minimizes costly mistakes.

Improved Sales Performance

Sales teams benefit from GTM research by gaining deeper insights into customer needs and preferences. They can tailor their pitches and strategies to align with customer expectations, leading to higher conversion rates.

Data-Driven Decision-Making

GTM research provides data-backed insights that guide strategic decision-making. It reduces the reliance on guesswork and intuition, allowing organizations to make informed choices that lead to better outcomes.

Resource Allocation

By identifying the most promising market segments and opportunities, GTM research helps allocate resources more efficiently. It ensures that investments in sales, marketing, and product development are focused on areas with the highest potential for success.

Increased Revenue

When you align your strategies with market needs and preferences, you are more likely to attract and retain customers. This can lead to increased sales and revenue growth over time.

Customer-Centric Approach

GTM research places the customer at the center of your business strategies. This customer-centric approach enhances customer satisfaction, loyalty, and long-term relationships.

Adaptability

In a constantly evolving business environment, GTM research provides the agility needed to adapt to changing market conditions and customer expectations. It enables organizations to stay responsive and relevant.

Maximized ROI

By reducing risks and optimizing strategies, GTM research can lead to a higher return on investment (ROI) for your business initiatives. It ensures that your resources are invested wisely.

Sales vs product led go-to-market strategy

Target Market Preference

In the realm of go-to-market strategies, two prominent approaches stand out: sales-led and product-led. Each strategy has its own set of characteristics, advantages, and considerations.

Sales-Led Go-to-Market Strategy: This approach places sales teams at the forefront of customer acquisition. It is well-suited for products or services that require a consultative sales process, involve multiple stakeholders, or have a longer sales cycle. Sales representatives build personal relationships with customers, customize solutions, and negotiate terms. However, it often comes with higher customer acquisition costs due to labor-intensive sales efforts.

Product-Led Go-to-Market Strategy: In contrast, a product-led strategy focuses on creating self-explanatory and user-friendly products or services. The emphasis is on simplicity, accessibility, and scalability. Users can adopt the product independently, and viral growth is encouraged through word-of-mouth and referrals. This approach typically has lower customer acquisition costs and is commonly found in consumer and SMB markets.

When deciding between these strategies, consider factors such as product complexity, target audience, available resources, competitive landscape, and market dynamics. Your choice should align with your product’s nature and the preferences of your target market, and a hybrid approach may also be effective in reaching diverse customer segments.

How to build a go-to-market strategy

Building a go-to-market strategy involves a comprehensive approach that aligns your product or service with your target audience and market conditions. Here’s a streamlined overview of the steps involved:

Market Research

Begin by conducting thorough market research to understand your target audience, competition, and industry trends. Identify gaps and opportunities in the market.

Customer Segmentation

Divide your target market into segments based on demographics, psychographics, needs, and behaviors. This allows for more personalized marketing and messaging.

Value Proposition

Develop a compelling value proposition that highlights what makes your product or service unique and valuable to customers. It should address their pain points and needs.

Pricing Strategy

Determine the appropriate pricing strategy based on market analysis, competitive positioning, and your product’s perceived value.

Distribution Channels

Choose the right channels to reach your audience effectively. Consider direct sales, online platforms, partnerships, or a combination of these.

Sales and Marketing Plan

Create a detailed plan for sales and marketing activities. Define key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure success.

Product Development

Ensure your product or service is ready for market launch, with necessary features, quality, and scalability.

Launch Plan

Develop a comprehensive launch plan that outlines timelines, responsibilities, and promotional activities. Consider a phased or pilot launch for testing.

Sales Enablement

Equip your sales team with the tools, training, and resources they need to effectively sell the product or service.

Monitoring and Optimization

Continuously monitor the performance of your GTM strategy. Collect feedback, analyze data, and make necessary adjustments to improve results.

Feedback Loop

Establish a feedback loop between sales, marketing, and product teams to ensure ongoing alignment and improvement.

Scaling

Once your GTM strategy proves successful, scale your efforts to reach new markets or expand your customer base.

How to measure go-to-market research success

Costs vs Revenue

Measuring the success of your go-to-market (GTM) strategy is essential to ensure that your efforts yield the desired results. This involves a holistic assessment of various key performance indicators (KPIs) aligned with your GTM goals. A critical metric to monitor is revenue growth, reflecting the financial impact of your strategy, including sales increases, market share gains, and overall revenue generated.

Customer acquisition and retention rates provide insights into your ability to attract new customers and maintain satisfaction among existing ones, with a growing customer base and high retention rates signaling a successful GTM approach.

Besides quantitative metrics, qualitative factors are crucial. Customer feedback and satisfaction scores offer valuable insights into how well your product or service meets customer needs, identifying areas for improvement and informing strategic adjustments.

Market penetration and share metrics measure the effectiveness of your product or service in the target market and its share compared to competitors, showing steady growth as a sign of success.

Additionally, assessing return on investment (ROI) is essential. ROI evaluates the profitability of your GTM strategy by comparing implementation costs to revenue generated. A positive ROI indicates a strong financial return.

Sales and marketing performance metrics, including conversion rates, lead generation, and marketing attribution, help evaluate the effectiveness of your sales and marketing efforts.

To capture the full scope of success, consider customer lifetime value (CLV), quantifying the long-term value of a customer, and net promoter score (NPS), measuring customer loyalty and advocacy. These metrics provide a comprehensive view of your strategy’s impact on both financial outcomes and customer satisfaction.

Regularly analyzing these metrics and KPIs, alongside continuous feedback from customers and your sales and marketing teams, allows you to gauge the effectiveness of your GTM strategy. Keep in mind that the assessment process should be ongoing, enabling you to adapt and optimize your approach as market conditions evolve.