For years, when startups were ready to sell their product, they could turn to any number of traditional playbooks. But as with so many things, artificial intelligence is changing how companies prepare to go to market. According to Max Altschuler, general partner at GTMfund, the new reality allows businesses to do more with less than ever before.
He shared this perspective at TechCrunch Disrupt last month. The challenge for founders and operators, however, will be threading the needle. Altschuler noted that while some companies consider hiring developers to solve typical go-to-market problems, there is still a critical need for specific domain expertise. He emphasized that having great advisors allows you to learn tried-and-true playbooks, which remain relevant. A general understanding of how and why certain marketing strategies work is still necessary.
Alison Wagonfeld, vice president of marketing at Google Cloud, agrees that the craft of marketing is still essential. She stated that you certainly need AI knowledge, curiosity, and technologists, but you must also understand the purpose of marketing. This includes grasping customer insights, conducting research, and recognizing great creative work. Teams that adopt AI can move more quickly, she added. They can get to market with many more messages faster and then think more holistically about the metrics they are driving.
Marc Manara, head of startups at OpenAI, has observed that many startups have embraced AI in their go-to-market strategy. This is not necessarily with the sole focus of using fewer resources. He explained there is a movement where you can do more with less, but also be very focused in your approach. The degree of personalization and signal following achievable with AI is now truly differentiated.
He pointed to tools that help build leads with much greater sophistication than in the past. Instead of a simple database query, AI prompts can help startups find prospective customers that fit a very specific set of requirements. Manara also noted that inbound marketing has changed. The results of these prompts can be used to qualify and score inbound leads with a level of precision that was not possible before.
When it is time for a startup to craft its go-to-market strategy, Wagonfeld said it is important to consider the desired qualities in a team. She described a change in hiring perspective. In the past, hiring focused more on specialists with deep knowledge in a sub-field of marketing or sales. Now, the priority is hiring for a sense of curiosity and understanding. That quality has become the top thing to hire for.