Deciding what not to do
Strategic planning here means choosing a market, in writing, and accepting what that choice excludes. I work through your segments, the buying processes inside them and the resources you actually have, and produce a plan that names the first market, the sequence after it, and the activity that follows.
From segments to a sequence
Segment mapping
Every market your technology could serve, sized by who will pay first rather than by total value.
Buying process reconstruction
Who evaluates, who approves and who can veto, for each segment you are considering.
Resource reality check
What your current headcount and budget can actually run, before the plan assumes more.
Sequencing
The order to enter markets in, and the trigger that says it is time for the next one.
Marketing objectives
Two or three numbers marketing is accountable for, tied to the commercial plan.
Review cadence
A quarterly checkpoint with a stated condition for changing course.
What you are left holding
A plan that fits on a few pages and can be argued with. If a section cannot be tested against something observable in the next quarter, it comes out.
| Output | Form |
|---|---|
| Segment map | One page, ranked |
| Market entry sequence | With triggers |
| Marketing objectives | Two or three, measurable |
| Activity plan | By quarter |
| Assumption register | What would change the plan |
| Board-ready summary | Two pages |
Signals this is the right piece of work
Your total addressable market slide is larger than the number of accounts you could name.
Two of your segments need different messages and you are sending both the same one.
The commercial plan and the marketing plan were written separately.
You cannot say which market you would abandon if you had to pick one.
Questions about strategic planning
What is the difference between strategic planning and positioning?
Planning decides which market you are in and in what order. Positioning decides what you claim once you are in it. Planning comes first, and positioning without it tends to get rewritten.
How long does a planning engagement take?
Four to six weeks for a standalone plan. It is also the opening phase of 90 Days to Market, where it feeds straight into positioning and pipeline work.
Who needs to be involved?
The founder or CEO, whoever owns commercial numbers, and one technical lead. A plan written without the technical voice tends to promise things the product does not do.
Do you produce a forecast?
I produce a pipeline model with its assumptions written down, so you can see which number breaks the plan. I do not produce a revenue forecast you cannot audit.
Which market pays first?
If you can answer that in one sentence with evidence behind it, you may not need this. If you cannot, it is the cheapest question you will ever get answered.