When you work on your commercial strategy for your startup, you can facilitate this conversation with using the Marketing Canvas (more on the canvas here). Please find below 10 steps you should follow:

Marketing Canvas Web Banner Templates.png

KEY QUESTIONS TO BE ASKED

What is your goal? Big Idea? Define a question that will clarify your projected future like How can we achieve 1M€ after one year of operation? How can we generate 5% growth next year? How can we differentiate our brand in a digital world where predictive technologies driven by AI will become a standard?
What is the problem you are trying to solve? Clarify the job to be done for your customers.
Who is our buyer and user? Define your persona.
If not you who else? Define the category where you are playing and what are the alternatives for your buyer.
How do you want to be remembered? What people will say about you? Your BRAND
What is your answer to the problem your buyer has? What is your value proposition? Do you have USP, ESP, Clear Pricing and Proofs?
What experience people will have with you? Will it generate sales and engagement? JOURNEY
How do you discuss with your buyer? Do you have conversations? Do you listen? Do you have content, stories, influencers? Which media do you use?
Does it make any financial sense? What is your Marketing Budget and Revenue?
If you don't think it all works, iterate one more time

PROCESS FOR ZERO APPROACH

As a startup, you should define your strategic hypothesis. It is slightly different than an existing business because you are starting from a white page.

Part 1- Target, Positioning

Define your key customer target (JTBD, ASPIRATION, PAINS & GAINS). As you are starting your business, you have no information on ENGAGEMENT.

Define your Brand strategy (PURPOSE and POSITIONING) and explain how you will differentiate your brand versus competitors. Explain what could be the VALUES of this brand and your IDENTITY strategy.

Define your Value Proposition (FEATURES, EMOTIONS and PRICING). Describe core, differentiated and unique features/emotions to support your Brand Strategy, matching your customer target and helping you to achieve your financial objectives. Do you have any PROOFS supporting your value proposition?

Part 2- Go To Market

Define your go to market approach and more specifically: Describe funnel journey (pre and post purchase) for your go to market: MOMENTS, EXPERIENCE, CHANNEL and MAGIC. Don't forget to align this with your brand strategy.

Describe your conversation strategy for your go to market. LISTENING, CONTENT, MEDIA and INFLUENCERS if any.

Part 3 - Metrics

Define your hypothesis in terms of metrics for your business: ACQUISITION (speed of acquisition), ARPU (average spending for each customer on the 12 months), LIFETIME (your churn assumption) and BUDGET (amount of € needed for supporting your strategy).

ASSESS YOUR ZERO APPROACH WITH YOUR TEAMS

Use the canvas and answer to these questions using all dimension while asking the same question:

Will my .... help me to achieve my goal?

RED: Not at all; GREEN: Definitely

Visualise your Commercial Strategy on Marketing Canvas

RED dimension must be reviewed or mitigated because that are not helping you to achieve your goal.

Interested in the Marketing Canvas, you can find more information here.

Resources

Startup Failure Rate Statistics To Take In [2020] - https://hustlelife.net/startup-failure-rate-statistics/
Steve Blank - Startup Tools - https://steveblank.com/tools-and-blogs-for-entrepreneurs/

The tool has been designed for facilitating the discussion when designing your strategy.

High-level process is:

You start from an ambition/question (like increase revenue by 5%, have more digital transactions, be more meaningful, ...)
You discuss using the 28 dimensions asking:
- What's blocking you to achieve your ambition? (brakes)
- What's helping you (Accelerator)?
- You can support this rating using any information, knowledge you have but it works also if you only rely on qualitative information.
Then you map your answer on the Canvas. Red are brakes; Green are accelerators.
Then you try to analyse these brakes/accelerators and understands what cause them, what are the correlation.
Then you start ideating (brain-writing, co-create, ...), find crazy or impossible ideas) on what you could do (magic diamond, do things better, do different things).
Then you prioritise your ideas.
If you can you test it.
Then you have your action plan.