Scaling your GTM motion in 2025

Actionable insights to sharpen your GTM strategy

Hi there,

Welcome to the very first issue of GTM Weekly!

Every Sunday, I’ll share practical tips, insights, and strategies to help GTM professionals and sales leaders like you navigate challenges, drive growth, and stay ahead in the game.

Thank you for subscribing—I’m excited to have you on board!

Let’s get started,

Haris

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Evolve GTM Metrics Beyond Meetings

Hannah Ajikawo outlines key lessons from 2024 and actionable shifts for 2025 in her article, urging leaders to evolve metrics, empower teams to educate, embrace micro-events, and integrate AI thoughtfully.

Success hinges on trust, experimentation, and adapting strategies to align with buyer behavior and preferences.

Key Takeaways for Sales Leaders and GTM Pros:

1. Redefine outbound metrics Move beyond booking meetings as the sole measure of success. Start tracking engagement signals like content interactions and event attendance to reflect true buyer intent.
2. Focus on education over hard selling Equip your team to act as educators, not just sellers. Buyers want relatable, credible experts—not just influencers or external creators.
3. Put sales reps in the spotlight at micro-events Reps should lead hybrid or virtual events to build trust and showcase expertise. Empower them with training and resources to succeed.
4. Leverage AI for deeper insights AI can uncover buyer intent, enrich contact data, and identify meaningful metrics. Use it to move beyond outdated KPIs like activity volume.
5. Adopt digital sales rooms (DSRs) With buying committees more distributed, DSRs simplify deal management by offering buyers a single portal for all content and communication.
6. Rethink SDR goals Shift from purely booking meetings to driving attendance at educational events. These engagements build stronger buyer alignment and better pipeline quality.
7. Invest in proprietary research Publish “State of” reports and gather real-time buyer insights to differentiate your GTM strategy and create relevance in every conversation.
8. Hire thoughtfully, upskill intentionally Growth remains cautious. Prioritize strategic hires and invest in training to maximize existing team performance.
9. Collaborate through partnerships Expand beyond tech partnerships. Build networks with communities, consultants, and influencers to grow smarter and faster.
10. Anchor innovation in trust Experiment boldly with AI and new strategies, but build trust through consistent actions and meaningful buyer value. Trust will be the ultimate differentiator.

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Why Big Goals Make Better GTM Strategies

Maja Voje explains in her newsletter how to set meaningful goals and metrics to guide your GTM strategy in 2025.

She highlights the importance of choosing bold, measurable objectives, leveraging a North Star Metric (NSM) for long-term alignment, and ensuring your metrics connect directly to customer value and business growth:

• Think big when setting goals: Don’t settle for incremental improvements. Define objectives that excite your team, like achieving 10x growth, and break them into actionable steps for the year or quarter.
• Start with a One Metric That Matters (OMTM): Early-stage companies should focus on one immediate metric—like sales or leads—that keeps the lights on while laying the foundation for growth.
• North Star Metric drives alignment: The NSM captures the core value you deliver to customers. For example, "weekly active users" might reflect customer engagement and satisfaction.
• Balance ambition with practicality: Big visions are great, but map them to clear, measurable actions you can execute now. Document your objectives to keep everyone aligned and accountable.
• Choose metrics that reflect your business model: Whether your product focuses on attention (engagement), transactions (sales), or productivity (tasks completed), your NSM should align with how you deliver value.

A Real Example from Maja’s Strategy

When launching her GTM Strategist book, Maja’s mission-critical goal was selling 2,000 copies in the first month to hit Amazon’s bestseller threshold. This clear, measurable objective aligned her team and ensured focus. After achieving it, she shifted to a long-term NSM: helping 10,000 businesses annually adopt her GTM methodology.

Steps to Define Your North Star Metric

1. Identify the value you deliver: Ask, "What is the single most important way we help customers succeed?"
2. Link it to measurable outcomes: Ensure your NSM connects to financial metrics like revenue or retention.
3. Use analytics for validation: Tools like Amplitude can help you refine and track your metric over time.

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Bridging the Gap Between Founders and VPs

On the Revenue Leadership Podcast, Kyle Norton interviews ????♂? Scott Leese on aligning VPs of Sales and founders. Scott shares insights on hiring stage-appropriate talent, setting realistic goals, fostering communication, and navigating tough conversations to drive growth.

? Hiring the Right VP of Sales

Scott stresses the importance of recruiting sales leaders with experience scaling businesses at similar stages. Founders should prioritize candidates who have a proven track record of building teams and delivering results, rather than focusing solely on industry expertise.

Avoid hiring corporate executives who may lack the hands-on adaptability required in early-stage startups.

? Understanding Stage Appropriateness

Bringing in a VP of Sales too early or hiring someone accustomed to large corporations can lead to misalignment. Startups need leaders who can roll up their sleeves and handle tactical, foundational work, rather than focusing only on strategic planning.

? Clear and Frequent Communication

Strong communication between founders and VPs of Sales is key to building trust and reducing unnecessary micromanagement. Regular updates on progress, challenges, and key activities ensure alignment and foster a transparent, collaborative environment.

? Setting Realistic and Data-Driven Goals

Sales goals must be grounded in data and past performance. Founders and VPs should collaborate to create achievable targets, involving cross-functional input from marketing and customer success teams to align objectives and avoid unrealistic expectations.

? Respecting Boundaries and Work-Life Balance

Scott warns against the overwork culture often seen in startups. Setting clear boundaries and respecting personal lives leads to improved morale and performance. A supportive work culture with open dialogue encourages loyalty and long-term contributions from the team.

? The Role of Leadership

Strong sales leadership requires more than just personal success—it’s about building successors, fostering team growth, and ensuring the organization is set up for sustainable success. Founders and sales leaders must align on realistic goals and collaborate effectively to create a thriving sales engine.

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GTM SNAPSHOT

V. Frank Sondors ?? : Shifts in 2025: email templates will decline as AI delivers hyper-personalized content, AI-powered video deepfakes will dominate, major platforms will enforce stricter 2FA, and AI SDRs will become a commodity, with price driving vendor choice. [full post]

Heidi Hattendorf : Changes for 2025, including CEO-led strategies, focusing on retention, simplifying alignment, and prioritizing service for quick ROI. Success depends on breaking silos and staying agile to maintain product-market fit. [full post]

Tyler Phillips : GTM teams will demand measurable AI results, shifting toward tools that automate outbound using behavioral data and AI-driven workflows. Outcome-based pricing for AI tools will remain limited, but the focus will shift to enriched data and next-gen unstructured databases for deeper insights. [full post]

Christopher Rinaldi : Leaders in 2025 need technical skills, emotional intelligence, and adaptability. Leaders should use AI as a tool, build real connections, and act on data while staying engaged and empathetic. [full post]

Ann Neir : a strategy without execution is just theory. Success comes from combining a clear roadmap with actions like targeted market segmentation, a sharp value proposition, and aligning teams to deliver seamless customer experiences. Execution turns strategy into revenue. [full post]

Jason Reichl : 3 major shifts reshaping GTM in 2025: scalable referral networks becoming a key growth engine, specialized GTM tools outperforming all-in-one platforms due to AI, and text messaging integrating into CRM systems as a vital communication channel. Adapting quickly to these changes will give companies a significant edge. [full post]

"Optimizing GTM iteration speed isn’t optional anymore – it’s a must."

?Todd Busler [full post]

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DEEP DIVES & MUST-READS

Gururaj Pandurangi : 2025 trends - GTM will be the BIGGEST worry For Founders [full post]

Jason M. Lemkin : VP of Sales in 2025 for the first time? [full post]

Adem Manderovic / George Coudounaris : 5 Steps to Building an End-to-End Business Growth Engine [full post]

Alejandro Cremades : Building a winning GTM strategy [full post]

Ryan Staley : The 2025 GTM playbook [full post]

Jonathan M K. : Why GTM Teams Need to Understand AI Text-to-Output in 2025 [full post]

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HUMOR

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P.S. This is a brand-new newsletter—let me know how I can make it more useful for you. Simply send me a DM—I’d really appreciate it!

? Subscribe to this newsletter via email and gain access to my best resources: gtmweekly.com