Go-To-Market Strategies in the Face of the Global Pandemic

While many businesses across the globe continue to struggle in the face of the coronavirus slump, many innovative companies are taking it as an opportunity to reach their customers in new ways.

By engaging with them across a range of channels and going to market in better ways, they are creating meaningful connections that will last for a long time once the pandemic is a thing of the past. In this article, we discuss market strategies you can use right now and how to deal with the new world era we are all now living in.

What Is a Go-To-Market Strategy?

A go-to-market strategy is an action plan that outlines the steps needed to succeed in a new market or with a new customer.

It involves identifying a business case that explains why you are launching and what you hope to gain and pinpointing where your product will be placed in the market. Your go-to-market strategy will also address how you will tell users about your product, how to convey your value proposition to them (i.e. what makes you different from the competition), and what your positioning is.

This is important because, for example, are you offering a luxury alternative to something or another base-user solution? Are you a must-have item or a high-end, upscale product? You need to tell your customers about your product so they get the right idea about what it is and do not misconstrue it for something it is not.

Your go-to-market strategy will also take into account sales and/or marketing resources needed, as well as systems or processes for gathering the customer journey information you need to be able to properly understand what users want and what they look for in products similar to what you are trying to sell.

Answers to the above will help you narrow down the market strategy that would be best for you, which is what we talk about next.

Creating a Go To Market Strategy

Here is a brief outline of how you can create your own go-to-market strategy.

• Identify the problems your product solves for people, and how you have validated the need for the product (product-market fit).
• Identify who will buy the product, what you know about them, and how your strategy supports them (identifying the audience and target market).
• Identify who else is in this market and how they will react to your entry (assessing the competitive landscape).
• Know how and where you will provide or distribute the product (distribution questions).

Answering these questions will require data on the following:

• What is your price point? Do you need to focus on sales (which is important for high-ticket items) or marketing (which is usually more important for lower-priced items)?
• How big is the addressable market? Are you going for the largest buyer demographic in that market, or will you target a niche group?
• How effective is your onboarding? Can your users easily find, use, and understand your product? Are the benefits and your USPs immediately clear?
• Are you targeting B2B channels, or will B2C channels prove to be more lucrative? The former will need to be sold directly, and the latter can usually be targeted using marketing campaigns.
• How will you manage relationships? Do you have feedback mechanisms in place? How do you e know what the customer wants, where they face issues, and how to prioritize your product so you not only address pain points but quickly get new features that the user actually wants as quickly as possible?

A go-to-market strategy is not something set in stone.

It is a set of principles that can guide you with regards to reaching customers, selling better to old ones, bringing on new ones, and raising the delivery bar when it comes to giving customers the products they want (known as a product-led growth strategy) and going to market the right way (which is what go to market strategies are all about).

Go-To-Market Strategies Today

Consider all of the above in the context of the global coronavirus pandemic.

Countless brick and mortar businesses have shuttered. Many online businesses cannot obtain the resources or raw materials needed to stay open. Supply chains across the globe have been squeezed, consumer confidence has fallen, and the stock market is behaving erratically at best.

There is a great deal of uncertainty about the future, and there are many things consumers need right now to be able to make it to tomorrow. How are companies addressing these changes, most of which are unprecedented in scale?

Product-led Growth is an innovative approach to business and it can be the way to keep your growth the same during these tough times. Other than PLG GTM strategies, here are some recently used go-to-market strategies:

Connect with Customers. Offer Something Special.

This can be seen all over.

Retailers such as Walmart and Aldi have special operating hours to facilitate at-risk populations. Food delivery services and fast food chains such as KFC and Wendy’s have run campaigns stressing the fact that anything you order is prepared and handled in highly controlled environments to eliminate the risk of viral contamination.

Starbucks and many gas stations have offered free or discounted services to frontline health workers. Doing these things is an important part of connecting with customers and letting them know you are still there for them and will help them maintain some sense of normalcy in an otherwise abnormal situation.

They also make for great viral content, and publicity of this type is great for your business.

Improve PPC Advertising; Enhance Your Online Presence.

As people move more to do things online, make sure you can be found where your customers are looking.

It would pay to run an online campaign or pay for more clicks so that you can get a larger piece of a growing pie.

Prepare for the Bounce-Back. Avoid Panic Moves

This one is critical.

Many businesses, in an effort to stay afloat, slash costs, lay workers off, or limit their services. Instead, why not invest in the eventual rebound?

You can work out various cost-saving arrangements with your staff so that you have trained and qualified personnel on hand when things start returning to normal. Doing this will also help you maintain goodwill with your employees.

Also, being production-ready will place you in an ideal position to benefit once businesses open up again and consumers flock to the market and things start running routinely as before.

The competitive landscape and business environment usually determine your go-to-market strategy, but there is always something you can do to get ahead of the curve.

Think outside the box and try to preempt opportunities by reading the marketing, being ready to deliver when called upon to do so, and staying connected with your customers as we all try to get through this difficult time.