Distribution always looks like some people have found the secret formula to exponential growth, while others struggle finding where to start. Until I read an article humbly named “The secret formula to Go To Market”, and it stuck with me for my past 4 years of GTM.
The crazy part is there is no secret formula. But one framework you need to start with when thinking about distribution.
In my case, it helped me find creative GTM strategies, and evaluate if common strategies were adapted to my use case.
Distribution = Environment + Incentive
Let’s explain.
What’s distribution?
Distribution is not about outbound, inbound, etc.
Distribution is understanding that you have a product and your customer has a life. You need your product to become part of their life. That’s it.
Distribution is about finding a way to push your product (or service) within your customer’s life environment.
Understanding the formula
Pushing the doors of your customer’s environment and forcing your way in is not a “distribution strategy”.
Distribution is about finding an effective (and if possible scalable) way to promote your product in your customer’s environment, so your customer can find / use / buy you.
Distribution = Environment + Incentive
Everyone and everything in your customer’s environment can become a promoter, as long as you provide the right incentive.
And incentives can either be financial or non-financial.
Some examples of incentives:
You can pay Google to promote your webpage. That’s financial distribution.
Or you can provide Google with high quality articles and get promoted natively by Google. Google’s incentive is providing its users with high quality answers and content. That’s non-financial distribution.
Or:
You can pay influencers to promote your product. That’s financial distribution.
Or you can become so cool influencers can’t avoid talking about you. That’s non-financial distribution.
Sending free access / gifts / merch is either financial or non-financial based on your accountant. The idea remains the same: they are incentives.
When should I use the formula?
You have to see this formula as a first principle in your Go To Market strategy.
Inbound, outbound, creator-led, content… those are just names given to Distribution.
1. Audit your current acquisition model
Are you targeting your customer using their environment, or are you investing in the wrong channel?
Outbound won’t work if your customer never checks their emails.
SEO won’t work if your customer never uses Google.
Take every “Marketing” and “Sales” action you are doing and ask yourself: is it really impacting my customer’s environment?
2. Find new acquisition channels
When you want to find a new GTM strategy, don’t use templates or ready-to-use strategies.
Start with mapping your customer’s environment: from waking up to going to sleep. What’s their environment?
Let’s take a 50-year-old accountant you want to target.
He starts the day driving his kids to school, he meets his colleagues and shares coffee with them, he scrolls Facebook and LinkedIn (not Instagram nor X), he watches soccer and enjoys going to his profession’s forums.
You could pay for social media ads, but mapping the environment makes you wonder: what about paying for a billboard? So he sees you when he drives his kids home.
You could sponsor the profession’s forum. But what about sponsoring the coffee every accountant buys to take away in the morning? With branded cups.
You could pay for ads on LinkedIn. But what about providing a “Certificate” for your SaaS that every user can showcase on LinkedIn?
Mapping the environment shows you every touchpoint worth the try.
And a creative GTM starts with finding the right touchpoint, and applying the right incentive to leverage it.
What’s next?
A working Go To Market is not only about distribution. It starts with finding the right “Prospect” and having the right Message.
But this will be part of another article.