gtm-motions
phuryn/pm-skills
Identify and score the best GTM motions (Inbound, Outbound, Paid, Community, Partners, ABM, PLG) for your product strategy.
What is gtm-motions?
This skill helps you evaluate seven proven go-to-market approaches and design a balanced acquisition strategy. Use it when selecting marketing channels, choosing between inbound vs outbound, building your GTM toolkit, or planning cross-channel campaigns.
- Score all 7 GTM motions (Inbound, Outbound, Paid Digital, Community, Partners, ABM, PLG) for fit with your product
- Analyze product characteristics (price point, sales cycle, buyer type, complexity) against each motion's strengths
- Evaluate market conditions (competitive intensity, audience accessibility, budget, team capacity)
- Recommend a prioritized motion stack of 2-4 complementary channels
- Generate a 90-day execution plan with milestones, tools, and resource allocation
- Provide tool recommendations specific to each motion type
How to install gtm-motions
npx skills add https://github.com/phuryn/pm-skills --skill gtm-motionsHow to use gtm-motions
- 1.Define your product characteristics: price point, ACV, sales cycle length, buyer type, complexity, and target market
- 2.Assess market conditions: competitive intensity, audience location, budget availability, team size, and revenue timeline
- 3.Score each of the 7 motions on a 1-10 scale based on fit with your product and market
- 4.Select and prioritize 2-4 complementary motions (primary and secondary channels)
- 5.Design your motion stack with sequencing: which motion to start first, resource allocation, and tool requirements
- 6.Create a 90-day execution plan with quick wins, milestones, success metrics, and budget allocation
Use cases
- Selecting which marketing channels to invest in for a new product launch
- Deciding between inbound content strategy vs outbound sales motion for B2B SaaS
- Building a balanced GTM toolkit combining paid ads, community, and partnerships
- Evaluating whether to pursue product-led growth vs traditional sales for SMB market
- Planning a cross-channel campaign that combines multiple acquisition motions
- Product managers designing go-to-market strategy
- Marketing leaders building acquisition strategy and tech stack
- Startup founders planning customer acquisition approach
- Growth leaders optimizing multi-channel campaigns
- Sales leaders evaluating outbound vs inbound strategy
gtm-motions FAQ
Most successful products use 2-4 complementary motions. Start with your strongest motion and add complexity gradually. Combine inbound (brand building) with outbound (sales) for B2B strength.
PLG (Product-Led Growth) drives adoption through the product experience with minimal sales friction—best for self-service, low ACV products. Traditional sales (Outbound, ABM) involve direct engagement and are better for enterprise deals and high-value contracts.
Both serve different purposes: paid channels accelerate proven channels and drive fast results, while organic channels (inbound, community) build long-term brand value and lower CAC. Use paid to fund growth while organic builds sustainable acquisition.
Score each motion based on your product characteristics (price, sales cycle, complexity), market conditions (competition, budget, team size), and motion strengths. Your highest-scoring motions should be your primary channels.
Revisit your motion mix quarterly as your company scales. Market conditions, team capacity, and product maturity change over time, so your optimal motion stack will evolve.
Full instructions (SKILL.md)
Source of truth, from phuryn/pm-skills.
name: gtm-motions description: "Identify the best GTM motions and tools across 7 motion types: Inbound, Outbound, Paid Digital, Community, Partners, ABM, and PLG. Use when selecting marketing channels, choosing between inbound and outbound strategy, or planning cross-channel campaigns."
GTM Motions
Overview
Identify and evaluate the best go-to-market motions for your product. This skill analyzes seven proven GTM approaches with specific tools and tactics to help you build a balanced acquisition strategy.
When to Use
- Selecting marketing channels for your product
- Choosing between inbound vs outbound strategy
- Building your GTM toolkit and tech stack
- Evaluating PLG vs traditional sales motion
- Planning cross-channel marketing campaigns
The 7 GTM Motions
1. Inbound Marketing
Attract customers through valuable content and thought leadership.
- Tools: LinkedIn, SEMRush, Grammarly, HubSpot, Airtable
- Tactics: Blog content, webinars, whitepapers, SEO, email nurture sequences
- Best For: B2B SaaS, technical products, long sales cycles
- Strength: Builds brand authority and attracts high-intent prospects
- Challenge: Requires consistent content creation; slower to show results
2. Outbound Sales
Proactively reach target prospects through direct engagement.
- Tools: LinkedIn Sales Navigator, ZoomInfo, Lemlist, Apollo, Hunter
- Tactics: Cold email campaigns, LinkedIn outreach, phone prospecting, personalized demos
- Best For: Enterprise sales, high-value contracts, niche markets
- Strength: Predictable pipeline generation; control over target selection
- Challenge: Low response rates; resource-intensive; requires skilled sales team
3. Paid Digital Advertising
Reach target audiences through paid channels with precision targeting.
- Tools: Google Ads, Meta Ads, LinkedIn Ads, Newswire, Retargeting platforms
- Tactics: Search ads, display advertising, social ads, video advertising, retargeting
- Best For: Products with clear target demographics, competitive keywords
- Strength: Fast results; scalable; measurable ROI; precise targeting
- Challenge: Can be expensive; requires continuous optimization; competitive
4. Community Marketing
Build engaged communities where customers help each other and spread the word.
- Tools: Slack, Reddit, Discord, Circle, Mighty Networks, WhatsApp
- Tactics: Community forums, user groups, events, mentorship, ambassador programs
- Best For: Developer products, communities of practice, loyal user bases
- Strength: Builds loyalty; organic word-of-mouth; valuable feedback; low CAC
- Challenge: Requires active moderation; time to build critical mass
5. Partner Marketing
Leverage partner networks to co-market and reach new audiences.
- Tools: Miro, AWS Startups, Oracle Partners, Stripe, Shopify App Store
- Tactics: Partner integrations, co-marketing agreements, channel partnerships, resellers
- Best For: Complementary products, platform ecosystems, expanding market reach
- Strength: Access to established customer bases; shared costs; credibility
- Challenge: Partner alignment; revenue sharing; dependency on partners
6. Account-Based Marketing (ABM)
Treat high-value accounts as individual markets with personalized campaigns.
- Tools: Pipedrive, Hunter, Clay, 6sense, Terminus, Demandbase
- Tactics: Personalized messaging, account-targeted content, coordinated sales/marketing
- Best For: Enterprise deals, limited target accounts, high deal values
- Strength: Higher conversion rates; larger deal sizes; strong sales-marketing alignment
- Challenge: Requires detailed account research; resource intensive; not scalable to SMB
7. Product-Led Growth (PLG)
Drive adoption through the product experience itself with minimal sales friction.
- Tools: Hotjar, Amplitude, Sentry, PostHog, Intercom, Appcues
- Tactics: Free trials, freemium models, in-app onboarding, self-serve demos, product analytics
- Best For: Self-service products, SMB market, low ACV, viral potential
- Strength: Low CAC; aligns product and growth; strong PMF signals; scalable
- Challenge: Requires excellent product experience; lower price points; longer ROI
How It Works
Step 1: Understand Your Product
Define product characteristics:
- Price point and ACV (contract value)
- Sales cycle length
- Buyer type and decision-making process
- Product complexity and learning curve
- Target market size and concentration
Step 2: Evaluate Market Conditions
Assess your market dynamics:
- Competitive intensity of your keywords/channels
- Target audience location and accessibility
- Budget availability for paid channels
- Your team size and capabilities
- Timeline to revenue generation
Step 3: Score Each Motion
Rate fit for your product (1-10 scale):
- Inbound: Content creation capability, brand building timeline
- Outbound: Prospect list availability, sales team capacity
- Paid: Budget flexibility, target audience clarity, conversion potential
- Community: Existing communities, product network effects
- Partners: Complementary products, channel availability
- ABM: Deal size and account concentration
- PLG: Product trial-ability, pricing flexibility
Step 4: Design Motion Stack
Select and prioritize 2-4 motions to execute:
- Primary motion (highest potential for your business)
- Secondary motions (complementary acquisition channels)
- Motion sequencing (which to start first)
- Resource allocation across channels
Step 5: Build Execution Plan
Create 90-day implementation roadmap:
- Quick wins and early validation
- Team and tool requirements
- Success metrics for each motion
- Optimization and scaling strategy
- Budget and resource allocation
Input Format
Use $ARGUMENTS to pass:
- Product description and positioning
- Target customer profile and market
- Price point and sales cycle
- Team size and capabilities
- Budget and timeline constraints
- Existing channels or data
Output
A comprehensive GTM motions analysis including:
- Scoring of all 7 motions for your product
- Recommended motion stack (primary and secondary)
- Tool recommendations for each motion
- 90-day execution plan with milestones
- Resource and budget requirements
- Success metrics and measurement framework
- Competitive differentiation through motion choice
Framework
Based on Product Compass GTM motion analysis. Provides a systematic approach to balancing customer acquisition across multiple channels.
Tips
- Most successful products use 2-4 complementary motions
- Start with your strongest motion; add complexity gradually
- Paid channels fund growth while organic channels build long-term value
- Revisit motion mix quarterly as company scales
- Combine inbound (brand) with outbound (sales) for B2B strength
- Use PLG to reduce CAC; use paid to accelerate proven channels
Further Reading
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