How I Approach Go-to-Market: From Acquisition to AI Launches
Over the last few years, I’ve led go-to-market (GTM) strategies across very different product environments—from building for a developer-first audience at Parcel, to launching AI-powered features with a cross-functional team at Customer.io. I’ve worked solo and now collaborate in a multi-person team. Along the way, I’ve picked up some strong opinions and even stronger convictions about how to bring products to market—especially in SaaS.
This post is a reflection on what’s shaped my GTM philosophy, how I operate today, and the practical frameworks I rely on to keep things grounded in real value.
Notable Campaigns That Shaped My Thinking
Some of the most formative launches I’ve worked on include:
Learn Email – an education-first content series for email marketers
Unpacked – a grassroots conference series unpacking the nuances of email marketing, now in its third year
AI Features at Customer.io – launching advanced AI tools across workflows, content, and recommendations
Design Studio – empowering marketers with custom component control
Parcel’s Visual Editor – introducing a visual editing layer to a dev-first audience who never asked for it
Parcel's Acquisition by Customer.io – guiding messaging, rollout, and brand alignment during the transition
Each launch came with different stakes and audiences—but all required clarity, community, and a ruthless focus on the “why.”
My Go-to-Market Core: Clarity, Community, Context
At the center of any GTM plan I build are three questions I think about:
What need are we solving for?
Why do people gravitate to us?
Who do we want to be?
To answer them, I rely on a mix of research (lots of spreadsheets), deep AI-assisted documentation parsing, and stakeholder interviews. I often start with a competitive matrix—like this one for our AI differentiators—and dig into docs, demos, and user forums using ChatGPT and Claude.
Bottoms-Up > Top-Down (Usually)
While many SaaS GTM teams default to a top-down model—targeting decision-makers with budget—I strongly believe in starting from the bottom up. Real traction comes when individuals want to use your product. That only happens when:
The product works (and works well)
Engineering and product care as much about the user as marketing does
A community or industry already exists that can help fuel organic trust
That’s why I place so much value on community, social proof, and organic education. I believe you earn your top-down motion by nailing the bottom-up experience first.
The Process: From Research to Rollout
My GTM process is always contextual and collaborative—but the rough flow looks something like:
Document the context
The what, why, and who
Community plans
Shout: Launch with urgency via social, Slack groups, newsletters
Build: Connect via 1:1s, calls, casual replies—be human
Craft positioning that avoids fluff
“Visual Editor: Use world-class code without writing a single line of it” worked because it was simple, honest, and precise
At larger companies, I find there’s often a desire to package everything under lofty umbrella headlines. But users don’t care about umbrella messaging—they care about what a feature does, not what we hope it represents.
Measuring What Matters
I measure success using a combo of Customer.io and Mixpanel. My preferred metrics ladder up like this:
Reach + Intent = Engagement
Engagement + Action = Conversion
Other key indicators:
Team adoption
We track cluster growth by domain, find our “patient zero,” and monitor internal expansion
Community impact
Who’s sharing us? Who’s building with us?
A Note on Sales Enablement
I’ll be honest: I’ve struggled with sales enablement as part of the PMM role. Not because it’s unimportant—but because if you haven’t built the right awareness and trust from the bottom up, all the enablement decks in the world won’t help.
That said, when sales is ready, I help them show up with:
Clean, value-driven messaging
Actual user success stories
Answers to real objections (not assumed ones)
A GTM Philosophy Grounded in Relationships
Marketing is about awareness, yes—but it’s ultimately about relationships.
Are we showing up in a way that builds trust?
Are we contributing to the industry, not just capitalizing on it?
Are we fostering spaces for honest feedback and connection?
I believe the best GTM plans are rooted in generosity: customer advisory boards, honest documentation, free offerings, and conversations that lead with curiosity—not conversion.
Final Thought
Product marketing isn’t just about launches. It’s about earning attention, building trust, and delivering on a promise. Whether I’m shouting about a new AI feature or rolling out a campaign like Unpacked, I try to bring it back to what matters most:
Clarity. Community. Context.