Breaking into GTM

How do I write the one line that says what category we are in?

The short answer

Write it as a comparison, not a description. The formula that works is simple: who it is for, what kind of thing it is, and why it beats the alternative that person is using today. Say the category noun out loud (billing platform, testing platform, help desk) so nobody has to guess, then earn the right to a qualifier in front of it. If your line could sit on a competitor's homepage without anyone noticing, it is not positioning, it is decoration.

Go deeper, your way

5 hand-picked resources, 1 India-specific, 4 link-checked. Pick how you want to dig in.

📰 Newsletter
✓ Link checked Freemium Intermediate

Why we picked it Kramer's four product types (vertical solution, new way, 10x better, buy versus build) tell you what you are positioning against before you write a word. She is also blunt that most positioning docs are research with no answer at the end.

The MKT1 Guide to Positioning

From MKT1 Newsletter by Emily Kramer 20 min read

  • Most teams overdo the research and never produce the actual answer, the positioning statement itself.
  • Positioning fills three blanks: who is it for, what is it, why is it better.
  • Nearly every B2B product fits one of four positioning types: 10x better, new way, vertical solution, or buy vs build.
  • If you are selling a new way, early competitors usually help you grow the category rather than steal from you.
Open newsletter.mkt1.co →
📄 Article
✓ Link checked Free Beginner

Why we picked it The clearest short explanation of why market category is one of five interdependent positioning pieces, with a real repositioning story attached. It is also where Dunford makes the case that most companies should not invent a category.

A Quickstart Guide to Positioning

From aprildunford.com by April Dunford 12 min read

  • Positioning has five components: competitive alternatives, differentiated features, value, target segment, market category.
  • Always start from competitive alternatives, or you get positioning that sounds good internally but is not differentiated.
  • 90 percent of tech companies that IPO'd in the past five years were positioned in existing markets, not new ones.
  • Dunford's own repositioning took a product from under 2M dollars to close to 80M dollars in 18 months.
Open aprildunford.com →
🛠️ Tool
✓ Link checked Paid Beginner

Why we picked it Their public teardowns and positioning strategies are the fastest way to see the same product framed four or five different ways. Steal the framing patterns even if you never buy the sprint.

FletchPMM: Homepage Positioning for B2B Software Startups

From fletchpmm.com by Anthony Pierri and Robert Kaminski Browse

  • Fletch delivers 4 to 6 positioning options ranked by risk, drawn from your site, demo, sales calls and competitors.
  • The output is a 6 slide internal positioning deck plus a homepage wireframe with production ready copy.
  • The engagement asks about seven hours of your team's time over two weeks.
  • They deliberately skip customer interviews, arguing the founding team is already the expert on its customers.
Open fletchpmm.com →

The same ground, at another level

How category design reads from a different seat.

How do I test whether a category name lands before we commit the whole website to it? Put the words in front of real buyers before you put them in a headline. Run the line past twenty people who match your ICP and ask them what they ... Doing the work 4 resources → When is category creation the right call for us, and when is it just an excuse? It is right when your buyer feels a real pain that no existing category addresses, and when the existing frame is actively making senior people ign... Leading a GTM team 4 resources → How did Gong actually create revenue intelligence, step by step? Gong started life as conversation intelligence and found that senior revenue leaders heard that phrase and mentally filed it under sales enablement... How the best do it 3 resources →

People also ask

What does category actually mean in go-to-market, and why does everyone keep telling me to pick one? A category is the mental shelf a buyer puts you on before they judge anything else about you. The moment someone hears what you do, they reach for ... Breaking into GTM 3 resources → Should we create a new category or just say we are a better version of something that already exists? For almost everyone at the start, the answer is the existing category. April Dunford's own count is that around 90 percent of recently public tech ... Breaking into GTM 5 resources → Buyers keep comparing us to a big incumbent. How do I even respond in a first call? Do not dodge it and do not claim you beat them everywhere, because the buyer knows you do not and you lose credibility instantly. Name the incumben... Breaking into GTM 4 resources → How do I test whether a category name lands before we commit the whole website to it? Put the words in front of real buyers before you put them in a headline. Run the line past twenty people who match your ICP and ask them what they ... Doing the work 4 resources → We named the problem instead of the product. Is that a positioning mistake? It is usually the right instinct, badly executed. Naming the problem is what makes a category feel inevitable, because the buyer recognises the pai... Doing the work 4 resources → Our competitor's category is bigger and better funded. How do I carve out a segment we can actually win? Find the buyer who feels one specific pain more sharply than anyone else and build the whole story around them, even if that shrinks your addressab... Doing the work 5 resources →

Also in Starting Up

The same ground, over in Brand, web & content, our Starting Up track.

How do I come up with a good name for my startup? Pick a name you can spell out loud once and have someone type correctly. Short, easy to say, and not a clever misspelling beats 'meaningful but con... 3 resources → What should actually go on my startup's landing page? Above the fold: a clear headline saying what you do, a subheadline saying how, a visual of the product, social proof, and one call-to-action. Below... 2 resources →

Also in D2C

The same ground, over in Find your idea & build the brand, our D2C track.

Should my brand name be a made-up word, or should it actually describe what I sell? Made-up or arbitrary names (Kodak, Apple-for-computers) are the strongest legally and scale best across categories later, but they need real market... 3 resources → Who counts as my competitor - only brands selling the exact same product, or more than that? Track three tiers: direct competitors (same product, same customer), indirect competitors (different product solving the same customer need - a mea... 3 resources →
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