Challenge · Entering a new market

The move into a new market is planned. But where do we start?

The home market is doing well and the ambition has been voiced: next year a new country, a new sector or a new type of customer. Everyone agrees it has to happen. But as soon as it gets concrete, the assumptions turn out to differ. Sales wants to start with the contacts it already has, marketing wants to rewrite the proposition first, and leadership wants to see results in the first quarter.

A go-to-market strategy is not a thick document. It is a series of sharp choices: which customer first, with which story, through which channel, and what we leave alone. Without those choices, the new market becomes a copy of the home market, with less proof and less patience.

How do you know the go-to-market isn't there yet?

The plan for the new market consists mainly of a revenue target and a start date.
Nobody can say in one sentence which customer in the new market should buy first, and why.
The proposition for the new market is the existing proposition, translated.
Marketing and sales each make their own plan for the same market.
The budget has been set, but not what needs to be in place after six months to carry on or stop.
The first conversations in the new market mostly produce surprises about how people buy there.

Why copying doesn't work

What works in the home market works there because you are known, have references and understand the buying habits. In a new market, that falls away. A customer there doesn't know you, compares you with parties who are already present, and may buy at a different moment, through a different channel and for different reasons.

That is why a good go-to-market doesn't start with the offer, but with the choice: who are we there for first, and which problem do we solve for them better than whoever is already there? That choice determines the story, the channels and the order. Without it, every campaign is a test without a hypothesis.

The five choices of a go-to-market strategy

The ideal customer profile (ICP): which type of organisation, in which situation, has the problem most and can decide fastest?
The proposition: what do we promise that customer, in their words, and how do we prove it?
The channel: where do those customers get their information, and whom do they trust? Partners, your own sales team, online, or a mix?
The order: which segments first, and what do we deliberately leave alone until there is proof?
The yardstick: what needs to be in place after three and after six months to carry on, adjust or stop?

Five choices, on one page. That is the difference between a go-to-market and a revenue target with a date.

The STOF rhythm for a new market

Look and listen — we talk to existing customers who resemble the customers in the new market, look at what has already been tried, and map who is already active in the new market and how people buy there.
Make a sharp choice — we put the five choices on the table: customer profile, proposition, channel, order and yardstick. With an honest picture of what we already know and what is an assumption.
Align — marketing, sales and leadership make the choices together, so there is one plan, with one story and one definition of a good lead in the new market.
Follow through — a plan for the first ninety days, with owners, a small number of experiments and set moments to see whether the assumptions hold.

A good place to start

If the question is mainly “for whom, and with which story”, the Positioning sprint is the first step: in two to three weeks, the choice for the new market is made, in a story marketing and sales can tell together. Read more about the Positioning sprint.

If the question is mainly “how do we execute this with the current team”, the Growth diagnosis or a Market activation programme under Commercial strategy is a better fit. Which start suits you is something we discuss in the free introductory call.

When is STOF right for this challenge?

STOF is a good fit when the home market is established and the new market is a deliberate step, not an escape. We work with growing B2B companies of around 15 to 250 people, in the Netherlands and beyond, in Dutch and in English. Nona spent years doing go-to-market for Northern Europe (Benelux, the UK and the Nordics). If you are looking for an agency to take over execution in the new country entirely, we're not the right partner.

Also read our guides on determining your B2B positioning and building a commercial strategy: the same choices, for the market you are already in.

Cases

What that looked like at Driftawave

Driftawave

First a complete brand, then a route to market and the systems to run it every week. In two months the account database grew almost tenfold and visibility in Google more than doubled.

Frequently asked questions

Do we need to have the home market fully sorted first?

Not fully, but sufficiently. If the home market doesn't yet have a clear story and a working handover between marketing and sales, you take those problems with you into the new market. We often solve both in the same move.

Do you also work on a new country, not just a new sector?

Yes. A new country, a new sector or a new type of customer call for the same five choices. With a new country, language, buying culture and partners come into it more prominently.

How long before a new market delivers?

That differs per market and per buying cycle. That's why we agree a yardstick up front: what needs to be in place after three and after six months to carry on? That way you know sooner whether the assumptions hold, instead of only at the end of the year.

How do we start?

With a free 45-minute introductory call with Nona or Carlijn. We look at which of the five choices has already been made and which hasn't, and what a sensible first step would be.

Start the new market with a choice, not a revenue target.

In a free 45-minute introductory call, we put the five choices of your go-to-market side by side, and see which one deserves attention first.

Bring your challenge to the table