Reference · Phase 3 — Go-to-Market & Execution
Go-to-Market, Distribution/Growth & Capability Value Chain
Load when gTM model trade-offs, channels, growth motions, capability value chain, partner scans.
Part of the Product Strategy skill · loaded on demand from SKILL.md
Part of the product-strategy skill. See SKILL.md for the workflow spine and when to load this file.
VIII. Go-to-Market Models & Trade-Offs
Purpose
Select the best route to market based on speed, control, economics, risk, and capability requirements.
GTM Model 1 — Build In-House / Own the Stack
Description
The client builds, operates, and controls the product and core capabilities directly.
Advantages
- Maximum control
- Strong brand ownership
- Direct customer relationship
- Better long-term margin potential
- More flexibility over roadmap
- Greater data ownership
Disadvantages
- Higher upfront investment
- Longer time-to-market
- More operational complexity
- Higher regulatory or compliance burden
- Requires internal capabilities
- Greater execution risk
Best When
- Control is critical
- Margins justify investment
- The client has existing capabilities
- Time-to-market is not the primary constraint
- Product is strategically core
GTM Model 2 — Co-Brand / Co-Develop
Description
The client partners with another company to jointly develop, distribute, or operate the product.
Advantages
- Access to partner capabilities
- Access to partner customer base
- Shared costs
- Faster than full in-house build
- Can improve credibility or reach
Disadvantages
- Shared control
- Profit-share
- Partner dependency
- Potential roadmap misalignment
- Brand and customer ownership complexity
- Governance burden
Best When
- Both parties bring complementary assets
- Distribution or credibility is needed
- Speed matters but some control is required
- Economics remain attractive after sharing
GTM Model 3 — Sponsored / Platform / Infrastructure Partner
Description
The client uses a third-party platform, sponsor, or infrastructure provider to launch quickly.
Advantages
- Fastest path to market
- Lower initial build cost
- Reduced regulatory or technical burden
- Access to mature capabilities
- Easier MVP testing
Disadvantages
- Vendor dependency
- Fee drag
- Roadmap constraints
- Less differentiation
- Data and customer ownership constraints
- Vendor risk and lock-in
Best When
- Speed-to-market is critical
- Licensing or infrastructure would take too long
- MVP validation matters more than full control
- The product is not yet proven
GTM Model 4 — Embedded / Partner-Led Distribution
Description
The product is distributed through another platform, marketplace, channel partner, or ecosystem.
Advantages
- Efficient customer acquisition
- Contextual distribution
- Potentially lower CAC
- Access to high-intent customers
- Scales through existing traffic or workflows
Disadvantages
- Channel dependency
- Lower direct customer ownership
- Revenue share or partner fees
- Potential brand invisibility
- Integration complexity
Best When
- Customer acquisition is difficult directly
- The product has strong contextual relevance
- Partners own high-value distribution
- CAC economics are better through partners
GTM Decision Screeners
Use the following criteria to select the GTM model:
- Required control
- Required speed
- Regulatory complexity
- Capability gap
- Investment appetite
- Margin requirements
- Customer ownership
- Brand importance
- Data ownership
- Partner availability
- Vendor risk
- Scalability
- Long-term strategic importance
IX. Distribution & Growth Strategy
Purpose
Define how customers discover, adopt, activate, and repeatedly use the product.
Key Questions
- How will customers discover the product?
- Which acquisition channels are most efficient?
- Is the motion product-led, sales-led, partner-led, marketing-led, or ecosystem-led?
- What is the activation moment?
- What drives repeat use?
- What creates retention?
- What expansion or upsell paths exist?
- What referral or network loops are possible?
Channel Options
Common channels include:
- Direct sales
- Inside sales
- Self-service digital
- Paid media
- Organic search
- Content marketing
- Lifecycle marketing
- App store or marketplace
- Partner distribution
- Affiliate distribution
- Embedded distribution
- Existing customer cross-sell
- Field or branch network
- Community-led growth
- Developer ecosystem
- Referrals
Growth Motions
Product-Led Growth
Best when:
- Product value is easy to experience
- Self-service adoption is possible
- Viral or collaborative usage exists
- Low-friction onboarding is feasible
Sales-Led Growth
Best when:
- Customers are high-value
- Buying process is complex
- Customization is needed
- Trust and relationship matter
Partner-Led Growth
Best when:
- Partners control customer access
- Product is embedded in another workflow
- Partner credibility reduces adoption barriers
Ecosystem-Led Growth
Best when:
- Multiple products reinforce each other
- Customer data or workflow integration creates lock-in
- Cross-sell and bundling are important
Growth Outputs
- Channel strategy
- Funnel model
- Acquisition plan
- Activation plan
- Retention strategy
- Lifecycle marketing plan
- Referral or growth loop design
- Sales motion
- Partner distribution plan
- Channel economics
X. Capability Value Chain
Purpose
Identify which capabilities are required to launch, operate, and scale the product.
Generic Capability Categories
- Customer acquisition
- Origination and onboarding
- Identity, verification, or eligibility
- Account or product provisioning
- Core product experience
- Payments or transaction handling
- Fulfillment or delivery
- Servicing and support
- Billing and collections
- Disputes, refunds, or issue resolution
- Fraud, abuse, or risk management
- Compliance
- Reporting
- Analytics
- Personalization
- Loyalty or rewards
- Integrations and APIs
- Data infrastructure
- Vendor governance
- Partner management
- Finance and reconciliation
- Product operations
Fintech / Payments-Specific Capabilities
Use where relevant:
- KYC / KYB
- AML screening
- Credit or eligibility
- Card or account issuance
- Processing and settlement
- Wallet / tokenization
- Network connectivity
- Chargebacks
- Disputes
- Fraud monitoring
- Regulatory reporting
- Ledgering
- Servicing
- Collections
Capability Assessment
For each capability, assess:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Capability | What is needed? |
| Strategic importance | Is it core or non-core? |
| Current maturity | Does the client already have it? |
| Gap | What is missing? |
| Build / buy / partner | Preferred sourcing model |
| Investment required | People, technology, budget |
| Time-to-build | Estimated timeline |
| Risk | Execution, regulatory, operational, vendor |
| Owner | Business, product, technology, risk, partner |
Partner Scan Templates
Potential partner categories include:
- Technology platforms
- Infrastructure providers
- Data providers
- Distribution partners
- Risk / fraud providers
- Compliance providers
- Payment processors
- Banking-as-a-Service providers
- Issuer processors
- Reward partners
- Customer support vendors
- Analytics vendors
- Integration partners
- Marketing partners
- Fulfillment partners
Partner Evaluation Criteria
- Capability fit
- Product maturity
- Time-to-integrate
- Commercial terms
- Reliability
- Scalability
- Compliance posture
- Security posture
- Data ownership
- Roadmap alignment
- Geographic coverage
- Customer references
- Vendor lock-in risk
- Exit flexibility