• by Michael Baer , February 8, 2026

Most leaders say they have a go-to-market (GTM) strategy. And that makes sense: With growth as the mandate, GTM becomes a focal point for everyone, since it sits at the intersection of strategy, action, and revenue. And in today’s VC/PE environment, where capital is tighter and scrutiny is higher, it’s even more critical to share a credible plan for how you’ll drive revenue growth.

But in practice, most companies get GTM wrong. Too often, it’s mistaken for a product launch checklist, a sales outreach plan, or a disconnected set of campaigns. And while all of those play a role in your GTM, none of them, on their own, constitute a real GTM strategy.

Below are the most common myths I see in the field, and why they consistently hold companies back.

Myth 1: “GTM means launching stuff.” Many teams treat go-to-market as a marketing flowchart: a set of tactics to push outbound communications and content. In these instances, companies often see a short spike in activity, followed by confusion about why growth stalls again. 

A strong GTM plan instead defines who you’re targeting, what problem you’re solving, how your solution creates value, and how your teams work together to build demand. Research shows that companies with defined GTM strategies grow faster and convert more efficiently—yet less than a third of organizations say their GTM is clear and understood across teams.

Myth 2: “GTM lives with sales.” It’s not unusual, especially in smaller companies, for GTM to default to sales. The thinking goes: we have a product, now go out and sell it. Sales activities are important, but GTM isn’t something one function can or should own in isolation.

In reality, GTM is a cross-functional system that integrates the insights and input of product, marketing, sales, and customer success.

Myth 3: “Start with the product.” This myth is especially common in technology-focused companies, where the instinct is to define the GTM strategy around what the company has built. But when you begin with product, your story turns inward. The narrative leads with what you built – features, functions, differentiators – before the buyer even understands what problem you might solve for them. 

But buyers don’t care about you or your product – they care about what you do for them. That’s why successful GTM strategies are grounded in deep understanding of customer needs, problems, and motivation. Research shows that customer-focused messaging significantly outperforms product-led messaging across both acquisition and retention metrics.

Myth 4: “Everyone is our target.” The fear of narrowing leads many companies to frame their target too broadly. The thinking is: Why rule out potential buyers? But when you target everyone, your messaging becomes diluted, and your clarity evaporates.

Effective GTMs start with sharp focus. Not on “total addressable market,” but on the minimum viable audience: the segment most likely to engage, adopt, and advocate. Starting narrowly accelerates learning, improves fit, and creates a stronger foundation for growth.

Myth 5: “One GTM works across the entire buyer journey.” Even in mature companies, go-to-market often gets treated like a single, linear motion: one message, one deck, one set of assets, used everywhere. But buyers don’t move through the journey in one mindset. What creates interest early isn’t what removes risk midstream, drives preference during evaluation, or justifies budget at the end.

When teams don’t design GTM around the journey, progress along the sales cycle stalls. This isn’t just theory—McKinsey found that improving the end-to-end journey can lift revenue by 10%–15%, while reducing cost-to-serve by 15%–20%.

What a GTM Strategy Really Is—and What Happens When You Get It Wrong

When done well, your GTM is a usable operating plan that connects your product to your market.

It defines your ideal customers, positions your value in their context, outlines how you’ll reach and convert them, and aligns your teams around the steps to do so.

When companies build their GTM on flawed assumptions, they pay for it in wasted budget, confused buyers, and pipeline that never quite builds momentum.

But when you’re clear about who you serve, what they need, and how you’re going to connect with them, you can avoid these missteps. This requires discipline, insight, coordination—and a willingness to go slow early so you can scale faster afterwards.

The companies that get it right don’t just sell more. They build traction faster, earn trust earlier, and grow more predictably.