You have a product?

Great!
Wheres the market?
Vinod Harith
Founder and Director
CMO Axis Marketing Outsourcing
www.cmoaxis.com

Introductions
Name
Title
Company
Product or service
Key marketing challenge

What is go-to-market?

Go-to-market process is the

Strategic and tactical aspects of delivering and supporting a product or

service offering in the marketplace

This includes product specification, pricing, distribution, marketing

communications, sales, after-market support, and customer experience
management

What we will cover

Defining a market (what really is a market?)

Fundamental concepts of marketing

Sales vs. Marketing, the fundamental difference

Choosing the channel
Some key frameworks

Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning

Differentiation, Competitive Advantage and Value proposition

SIVA model
Blue Ocean strategy
Core and extended product

Knowing the ecosystem your customer does not buy in isolation

When does the marketing of the product start?
The immutable laws
Some zero-cost marketing tools to get started
Case study discussions

What we will NOT cover

What really is a market?

A place where forces of
demand and supply operate

Market research?
Remember, next time you
have a gut feel, it could just
be your ulcer!

What will MR do?

Provide you with overview of the industry, opportunity and

customers with respect to your product. EXISTING OPPORTUNITY

Information on customer preferences and needs. This will help in

planning your product portfolio, diversifications etc., POTENTIAL
OPPORTUNITY

Insights on how customers buy and why they buy. INSIGHTS

Essentials of market research

What is the size of the market?

What unique need does your GENRE of product/ services meet?
How much are customers willing to pay for this product/ service (top/
bottom/average)?
Is this a price sensitive/ commodity product or premium product?
Who are the other key players?
What is the gap un-serviced by current players?
What is the REAL available market for you?
How is your product different from competition?
What is your playing field? (premium/ general/ price warrior)
What share of this can you reasonably expect to get?

You always dont need an MR agency

Talk to the ecosystem

o Buyers
o Users
o Analysts

Industry media
o Competitors
o VCs

Where can you find them?

o Your peer network
o Linked-in/ Facebook
o Online communities
o Events and conferences

Fundamental concepts: SegmentationTargeting-Positioning

Who are we?

Who is our product relevant to?
Why buy us?/ why not to buy competition
Where to play
How to win

Definition

Market Segmentation:

Dividing a market into distinct groups with distinct

needs, characteristics, or behavior who might require
separate products or marketing mixes.

Segmenting Business Markets

Demographic segmentation
Industry, company size, location
Operating variables
Technology, usage status, customer capabilities
Purchasing approaches
Situational factors
Urgency, specific application, size of order
Personal characteristics
Buyer-seller similarity, attitudes toward risk, loyalty

Segmenting International Markets

Geographic segmentation

Economic factors

Population income or level of economic development

Political and legal factors

Location or region

Type / stability of government, monetary regulations,

bureaucracy, etc.

Cultural factors

Language, religion, values, attitudes, customs, behavioral

patterns

Requirements for Effective

Segmentation

Measurable

Accessible

Large and profitable enough to serve

Differentiable

Can be reached and served

Substantial

Size, purchasing power, and profile of segment

Respond differently

Actionable

Effective programs can be developed

Sample Segmentation
Small Cars

Santro, Alto

Getz

Sedans

Verna,
Esteem

SUVs,
MUVs

Scorpio,
Safari

Innova

Endeavor,
Pajero

Segment

Value buyer

Lifestyle
Buyer

Niche Buyer

BMW, Benz,
Toyota

Target Marketing
Target

Market

Consists

of a set of buyers who share common

needs or characteristics that the company
decides to serve

Target Marketing
Evaluating

Market Segments

Segment

size and growth

Segment structural attractiveness

Level of competition
Substitute products
Power of buyers
Powerful suppliers

Company

objectives and resources

Target Marketing
Selecting Target Market Segments
Undifferentiated (mass) marketing
Differentiated (segmented) marketing
Concentrated (niche) marketing
Micromarketing (local or individual)

Company

Company

Shampoo
Shampoo

for dry hair, long hair etc

Shampoo with natural ingredients
Hair salons

Company

Choosing a Target Marketing

Strategy
Considerations
Company

include:

resources
The degree of product variability
Products life-cycle stage
Market variability
Competitors marketing strategies

Positioning
Positioning
The

term 'positioning' refers to the consumer's

perception of a product or service in relation to
its competitors.
Positioning is all about 'perception'.
Perception differs from person to person,
market to market
e.g what you perceive as quality, value for
money, etc, is different to my perception

Differentiators
Identifying

possible
competitive
advantages

Differentiation can be based on

Products
Services
Channels
People
Image

Competitive Advantage

Choosing the right

competitive advantage

Which differences make for a

competitive advantage?
Criteria include
Important
Distinctive
Superior
Communicable
Preemptive
Affordable
Profitable

Value Proposition
Choosing

a
positioning strategy

Value propositions represent

the full positioning of the brand
Possible value propositions:

Saves Money, Effort,

Time
More for More
More for the Same
More for Less
The Same for Less
Less for Much Less

Choosing the channel

Choose
Direct

the right sales channels

sales, Online sales, Distributors/ VARs

Alliance

marketing

Technology

GTM

alliances, product alliances

partnerships

Align

with complementary brands for joint go-tomarket

Sales vs Marketing

Sales
Individual influence on buyer
Knows the customer and their
specific pain points
Initiates, manages and closes
the sale
Funnels ground knowledge of
customer needs, competitor
offerings to help marketing in
better product management
and value articulation

Marketing
Collective influence on the
buyer segment
Knows the customer segment,
their ecoystem of influence
and what their collective pain
points are
Reduces time and cost of sale
through effective product/
service differentiation and
value articulation
Helps command a price
premium through effective
brand management

The SIVA Framework

ProductSolution
PromotionInformation
PriceValue
PlacementAccess

The four elements of the SIVA model are:

Solution: How appropriate is the solution to the customer's problem/need?
Information: Does the customer know about the solution? If so, how and
from whom do they know enough to let them make a buying decision?
Value: Does the customer know the value of the transaction, what it will
cost, what are the benefits, what might they have to sacrifice, what will be
their reward?
Access: Where can the customer find the solution? How easily/ locally/
remotely can they buy it and take delivery?

The Blue Ocean Strategy

The existing space, occupied
by firms is called the red ocean
because the competition
makes it bloody

The blue ocean, on the other

hand:
is unexplored territory
has wider scope
has greater potential
can offer cost reduction and
value adds
relies on the value-add
theory

Core and Extended Product

Core

product what direct need does it

meet?
Extended product what psychological
need does it meet
Core product: MP3 Player
Extended product: Lifestyle
product, style icon, in-withthe-times

Working the ecosystem

Expert Channels
Financial and industry Analysts,
Media & Deal advisors

Marketing Channels
Demand generation, industry events
Promotions, Brand programs
Direct marketing

Advocates
Alliance Marketing, Awards and
Rankings, Industry associations

Social Channels
Advisory Boards, Customer council and forums,
Employee branding, Blogs, Facebook

Thought Leadership
White papers, Points of view,
Speaking opps, research,
academic partnerships

Identifying your unique

ecosystem helps you
maximize touch points,
improve effectiveness
and reduce cost of
outreach
Leverage existing
partnerships,
relationships and best
practices

Sample Ecosystem - Helpdesk

Target Events

Analysts

Blogs

Media/
Journalists

Forums/ Associations

ITIM conference

Aberdeen Group

Datamation

Informationweek

ITIM Association

IT EXPO

AMR Research

Techrepublic

Computer world

HDI, Americas and Europe

Services and support
professionals
association

Frost and sullivan customer contact

Butler Group

It Toolbox

Network world

PacRim

Datamonitor

Gartner

CIO

Gartner symposium

EMA

ITIM blog

TechTarget

HDI Annual conference

Forrester

techtarget

Silicon

Gartner

Forrester

Ovum

Yankee

IDC

Sample Themes - Helpdesk

Help desk optimization

Help desk to strategic service desks
Smart service desk management - leveraging knowledge base
Help desks - from supporting to partnering
Smart service desk - Lowering TCO
Tools, people, process - delivering collaborative service desks

Why thought leadership?

Because customers now control the buying process

Why thought leadership?

Simple. Because your customers are looking for it

And 4 of the top 5 effective marketing vehicles AS RANKED BY
CUSTOMERS have to do with thought leadership

Why thought leadership?

And customers pay a lot of attention to thought leadership

Why thought leadership?

Customers will even read junk mail if the message or idea is

compelling

What thought leadership marketing

delivers

Moving beyond being just a cost player with your customer

Building a strong brand thereby helping you cut cost/ time of

sale

Increasing Marketings Business Impact

Improving Competitive Positioning and Differentiation

Implementing Demand Generation Tactics that Work

Sharpening Marketings Edge

The Thought Leadership Ecosystem

Niche Identification
and Positioning
Identify the unique space
you should occupy in the
Thought Leadership space

Thought Leadership
Dissemination
Distribution of papers, PPTs, webinars
and podcasts though paid and unpaid channels

1/3rd of organizations
dont have a thought
leadership strategy and
another 1/3rd dont
communicate it

Identifying your unique

ecosystem helps you
maximize touch points,
improve effectiveness and
reduce cost of outreach

Next practices joint

thought leadership with
clients, customer councils

Thought Leadership Creation

Build in-depth research
and compelling content around
the identified topics

Thought Leadership Partnerships

Identify the right fit partners for
joint research and papers
with academia and partners

Thought Leadership
Repurposing
Convert the content into webinars,
Podcasts, speaking opps, etc

When Should You Start Marketing?

Pre-launch PR, test
marketing

Launch, building
partnerships/
channels, free trials,
offers

New features, product

upgrades/ versions,
brand and awareness
building (events,
tradeshows), comarketing

Customer loyalty,
referral marketing, PR,
communities/ user
groups, initiate
corporate branding
Move from product to
company branding,
price wars, mover
customers to new
product lines

Jack Trout and Al Ries Immutable

Laws
The

law of leadership: Is there a category where

you can be the first/ only/ #1?

First indigenous car, First small car

The

law of mindshare and perception: It is

important where you are in your customers
mind and how he/ she perceives your product/
service

Santro modern, Korean, smart, Shah Rukh, Fuel

efficient, good service
Indica indigenous, diesel, taxi, car from a truck maker,
not refined

Jack Trout and Al Ries Immutable

Laws
The

law of focus and exclusivity: What is

the one word you own in the prospects
mind?
Hamam

family soap
Pepsi drink for Gen-Y

The

law of division: Lead a category or

create a division
Mobile

phones> Music phones/ Biz (email/

internet) phones/ Touch screen phones

Jack Trout and Al Ries Immutable

Laws
The

law of singularity: What is that one

thing you do really well? Dont push your
luck
Lifebuoy>

Germ-killer or beauty soap?

The

law of acceleration: Ride a trend, not

a fad
Sugarfree

vs Pro-biotic

Jack Trout and Al Ries Immutable

Laws
The

law of resources: What kind of

resources are you putting behind your
product?
Money
Time
Partnerships
Working

the ecosystem

Zero-cost Tools

Blogs
Communities/ forums
Industry associations
Analysts, influencers
Speaking opportunities
Awards/ rankings
Targeted low cost marketing
Alliance marketing
Co-marketing
Pay-for-performance marketing tools

Go-to-Market is still evolving

Global Survey by the CMO Council and BCG involving

over 1000 marketeers and sales leaders

Only 6 percent of marketers rated their go-to-market

capabilities as "extremely good,"
Another 27 percent rate themselves as "quite
effective."
Sales executives also provided notably low selfassessments, with only 6 percent giving their go-tomarket capabilities the highest marks and 29 percent
calling themselves "quite effective.

Go-to-Market is still evolving

Short-Term over Long-Term: Most of the executives surveyed said

they were focused on selling effectiveness and account
management (43 percent), while placing less importance on longerterm capabilities such as customer-data capture, integration, mining,
and warehousing (15 percent). Improvements in channel
management (14 percent) or multifunctional selling teams (11
percent) also ranked relatively lower

Resting on the "Tried and True": Companies appear to be relying

on traditional metrics such as revenue growth (85 percent),
acquisition and retention (53 percent), market share (49 percent),
and margin improvement (47 percent) for evaluating go-to-market
performance. Input and insight from consumers, as well as from the
channel, are lower on the list of priorities.

Ideal Go-to-Market Framework

Go-to-market checklist

Clarify the opportunity

Sharpen value propositions
Engage the entire organization
Develop sharp marketing programs
Build on initial success Testimonials
Build a strong sales support mechanism
Constantly measure

CONQUER THE MARKET

Case study
Risk

Management Product

Everyone needs risk management

Risk Management beyond the bell-curve

Ecosystem

Non conventional distribution channels

Blogs and communities
Evaluation copies to experts
Tie-up with Amazon
Tie up with CPA institutes
PR more accurate event predictions

Thank You
vinod.harith@cmoaxis.com
http://cmoaxis.blogspot.com