CHAPTER 4

Go-To-Market Strategy
How this chapter is organized
Introduction 99
Examples of how sellers connect with their customers 100
Developing a successful go-to-market strategy 102
Types of selling channels 102
Selecting the right selling channels 104
Customer needs and preferences influence channel selection 104
The efficiency–effectiveness trade-off 105
Should a high-touch or a low-touch channel be used to execute the
sales strategy? 108
Managing “hybrid” channels 111
The role of the sales force in connecting with customers 112
Should the company use a direct or an indirect sales force? 112
When to use an indirect sales force 113
Advantages of selling directly 116
Six go-to-market strategy insights 118
Your go-to-market strategy can be a source of competitive advantage 118
We live in a multi-channel world 119
The role of the sales force is changing 120
A sales strategy change may be necessary if star performers are
holding the company hostage 121
Technology is changing the channel structure 121
Go-to-market strategy should be reassessed at least every two years 123

INTRODUCTION
Chapter 3 presented a framework for determining a firm’s sales strategy,
including the right product and service offering and sales process for each
type of customer. Next, the firm must decide which sales and marketing
channels are best suited to deliver this sales strategy. This is the firm’s go-
to-market strategy, as illustrated in Figure 4.1.
Go-to-market broadly refers to how a firm serves its customers with a
combination of sales, financing, logistics, and service. In this book and
chapter we take a narrower view, focusing on how different parts of the
firm’s sales process such as prospecting, qualification, and closing are
performed. Successful firms make go-to-market choices that enable effi-
cient yet effective connections with their customers and prospects. Many

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A. A. Zoltners et al., Sales Force Design For Strategic Advantage

© Andris A. Zoltners, Prabhakant Sinha and Sally E. Lorimer 2004
100 Sales Force Design for Strategic Advantage

Sales and marketing channels

Agents/
Value-added Direct Tele- Advertising &
E-channels distributors/
partners sales force channels promotion
retailers

FIGURE 4.1 Go-to-market activities in the sales force design framework

industries have evolved from viewing the sales channel as consisting of a

talking tape recorder (the salesperson) and a delivery truck, and now view
the sales channel as a way to add customer value to the firm’s products and
services.
Go-to-market strategies use resources from both inside and outside the
company. Inside resources include a company’s direct sales force, product
specialists, service specialists, telesales personnel, and e-channels. Outside
resources include collaborators, co-suppliers, partners, wholesalers,
distributors, independent agents, value-added resellers, and retail outlets.
Companies creatively combine the use of internal and external resources
to execute their sales strategy in order to reduce the cost of connecting with
customers and, at the same time, to enhance customer impact. Sales forces,
whether company-owned (direct) or independent (indirect), often play an
important role in this connection.

Examples of How Sellers Connect with their Customers

The following three examples illustrate different ways that companies go
to market.
Figure 4.2 shows how a networking equipment manufacturer goes to
market. This company sells a very technical, complex, and customized
product that has high value and high risk for the customer. Thus, a highly
specialized sales force is used to serve the customers. Salespeople special-
ize both by market and by task.
Figure 4.3 illustrates how an office products supplier goes to market.
Compared with the products of the networking equipment manufacturer,
this company’s products are simpler, low risk, and do not require
customization. Thus, it is not necessary for a highly specialized sales force
to be involved in every step of the selling process. The office products
supplier uses a direct mail catalog and telemarketing to generate and qual-
ify leads. Both of these selling channels are much less expensive than a
direct sales force. Generalist salespeople participate in selling to qualified
leads and in closing sales. Product specialists are used only to sell the