Fueling the Growth Engine: CRO’s tactics for Driving Valuations with a GTM strategy

Implementing a predictable and scalable revenue model is a wicked struggle in today’s economy.?As CRO, you are the “Tip of the Spear” that lights the fuzz of how your company will execute in the coming year +.?Remember my last article, if you want to have a seat at the table for driving your company’s valuation, you need to be an expert at defining revenue flow from new logo, revenue growth, and upsell acquisition.?Whether you own the full gamut of the revenue chain, or part of the revenue chain, you MUST understand and be an expert as to how each strategy fits into your company’s gameplan.?Cost of Acquisition (CAC), tied to ensuring you target your ICP-Ideal customer profile by industry, and emerging markets that you want to enter, are aligned across the ENTIRE revenue teams.?From inception of a lead to the initial sale to the implementation of your product or service that ultimately leads to upsell-cross sell.?This paradigm starts with you, as the CRO.?

Here are some strategies to make your own, remember land, expand and upsell/cross sell are very fluent and requires massive internal collaboration:

Specific, Unique and Targeted Marketing Campaigns

It is extremely important to track your wins and your losses.?One idea is to ensure you embed this into your seller’s sales stage process.?You don’t get paid until you document why we won or why we lost.?HUGE for your product/marketing teams to stay “In the know” so they can help drive innovation and keep your product or service unique in the market.?Key goal is to develop marketing campaigns that are specific and align with your IDC-ideal customer profile. Try to limit, 10% or so, the sales efforts outside of your ICP.?FOCUS is key to EXECUTION.?Remember, you set the tone to leverage various channels like your CMO org to drive email marketing, social media advertising, content marketing, and search engine optimization (SEO) to reach your target audience effectively.?CPO org to get them to talk to your customers and mining your CRM to understand if your product or service is relevant.?

Value Proposition and Differentiation

Huge focus on this point.?Here is where your enablement team is your best buddy.?You must ensure that EVERY person talking to your customers AND partners can clearly articulate your value proposition.?Most importantly, highlight what sets your company apart from competitors that makes you unique. When you finally land that New Logo, sales stay aligned to your customer success team to continually monitor how your product or service continues to improve your client’s success.

Customer Success and Relationship Management

GET THEM INVOLVED EARLY.?Candidly, I see so many sales teams NOT leverage this vital org as a competitive differentiator.?Again, the easy part is landing the new logo (yes, I know, you read this twice and I fully agree it is a pain in the ass to win a new logo, but my point is, retention is the longer pole in the tent that defines your product and drives your valuation).?This is an important differentiator as you prioritize customer success in your sales cycle early.??As a sales guy, we think our customer love us, as we have those huge egos.?Trust me, I am one of those folks, but really is you’re customer success team is a HUGE competitive advantage.?If sales stays active post the sale, and you insert your CSO team successfully, the trust you will build is MASSIVE.?This will increase retention rates and gain opportunities for upselling.??

So, let’s say you have successfully driven a great new logo win rate of 60-70% of your annual target.?This is where you as a CRO, establish the magic that drives your valuation and excitement to not only you CEO and board, but future investors.?The art of Upselling and Cross-Selling!?It is paramount that your product team stays active with your customers.?Candidly, the easiest part is landing the new logo.?The hardest part is getting your clients to stay with you and continue to invest in your company.?Whether you’re selling a SaaS option, services or perpetual solution, always ensure you and you GTM know why YOUR COMPANY is unique.?New logo win rates are great, but it is hard to sustain that valuation or growth without selling additional products or services.?AS CRO, you have the fun of keeping your CMO, CPO and Partners active in the never-ending customer journey.?Your fun as CRO is to “rock the boat” with the ELT team.?By “pulsing” customer behavior and preferences helps to identify future opportunities for complementary solutions or upgrades that enhance their experience.?

Data-Driven Insights

As CRO, set the tone to have a consistent revenue with your ELT.?Top down and bottom up insights into customer behavior, preferences, and buying patterns. This drives your company to stay relevant.?

Referral Programs

The key to driving your product and solution upgrades!?Get your satisfied customers to speak up.?Customer Advisory boards are gold.?Referrals are a HUGE bonus if done properly.?Ensure you put a solid referral program in place to avoid “burning out” your clients.?Offer future discounts or have them take part in “early stage” product enhancements.?Make them feel part of your company!?

Strategic Partnerships

Huge area that you simply need to leverage and nurture.?As a CRO you need to identify strategic partners across 3 core areas.?Those who you “Sell With” those who you “Sell Through” and those who you “Sell To.”??Define your channel as they can help supply the “unbiased” voice of you and your teams.? This should fuel 25% of your "weighted" pipeline. Coupled with a major voice to the pulse of the market in terms of the sentiment to your company.

Continuous Innovation

If you master the above and have a solid line to your customers and partners, your setting the stage of long term success. Stay ahead of market trends and continually innovate your products or services. By offering new and improved solutions, you can capture the attention of existing customers and attract new logo clients who are seeking innovative options.

So, to my CRO buddies, having a healthy mix of Land and Expand takes an “art and a science” to build and sustain.?The key is to tailor to your specific industry, target audience, and not go too far out of your business model. As CRO, “Go to Market” takes a village.?If you want to have a seat at the table, data-driven decisions, collaboration will optimize your revenue from land to expand to upsell.?Remember, CRO’s, it’s much easier to sell to your friends than to strangers.?So, getting that initial new logo helps you build that "friend" community of happy customers that drive your valuations!?Stay engaged across the Lifetime of the customer journey.??