AI GTM PLAYBOOK

Find Your Bullseye

"Your job is not to do all the channels. Your job is to find the ONE that works."

The Framework

25 GTM channels exist. Most founders try 3-4 randomly. Winners test systematically, then focus ruthlessly on ONE.

Outer Ring
Brainstorm all 25

Middle Ring
Test top 3-5

Bullseye
Focus on ONE

This course covers 6 categories + skill check:

1. Community & Product (6 channels)
2. Content & Brand (6 channels)
3. Paid Acquisition (2 channels)
4. Targeted Acquisition (3 channels)
5. Ecosystem & Partnerships (5 channels)
6. Physical & High-Touch (3 channels)
7. Find Your Bullseye (synthesis)
8. 🎯 Skill Check (7 questions)

PRODUCT-CHANNEL FIT > PRODUCT-MARKET FIT. THE CHANNEL IS THE STRATEGY.

Module 1 / 7

Community & Product

"The best marketing doesn't feel like marketing."

❌ Wrong Approach

Treat community as a broadcast channel. Spam Discord with product updates. Gate all value behind paywalls.

✅ Right Approach

Make the product so good people can't stop sharing. Community becomes a flywheel, not a megaphone.

6 Channels

PLG — Perplexity

Community — LangChain

Waitlist — Robinhood

Eng as Marketing — Together

Viral Marketing — Groq

Viral Loops — Gamma

PLG Economics Calculator CHALLENGE

Perplexity gives away powerful search free, converts to Pro. Calculate if your free tier makes sense.

Free Users

Cost/User/Month ($)

Conversion Rate (%)

Paid Price/Month ($)

THE FREE TIER IS YOUR CAC. CALCULATE IT OR DIE.

Module 2 / 7

Content & Brand

"Teach, don't sell. The best content makes the reader smarter."

❌ Wrong Approach

Chase vanity keywords. Write about features. Give a sales pitch on stage.

✅ Right Approach

Target high-intent keywords. Write about customer problems. Teach valuable insights, earn trust.

6 Channels

SEO — Jasper

Content Mktg — DeepMind

Short Video — Blotato

PR — Anthropic

Unconventional PR — Bolt

Speaking — LangChain

Keyword Intent Classifier CHALLENGE

High-intent keywords signal a problem to solve. Score your keyword ideas.

Enter a keyword

Search Volume

Purchase Intent

INTENT > VOLUME. 100 BUYERS BEAT 10,000 BROWSERS.

Module 3 / 7

Paid Acquisition

"Paid channels are a tax on not having product-market fit."

❌ Wrong Approach

Scale spend before understanding unit economics. Target broad audiences. Optimize for impressions.

✅ Right Approach

Know your CAC:LTV before scaling. Obsessively narrow targeting. Optimize for conversions.

2 Channels

SEM (Search) — Captures existing intent
Example: Writesonic bidding on "AI content generator"

Social/Display Ads — Creates new demand
Example: Copy.ai targeting writers on LinkedIn

CAC:LTV Viability Check CHALLENGE

Rule of thumb: LTV should be 3x+ CAC for paid to work long-term.

Ad Spend/Month ($)

Customers Acquired

Avg Monthly Revenue ($)

Avg Customer Lifespan (mo)

SEM = CAPTURE DEMAND. SOCIAL = CREATE DEMAND. CHOOSE YOUR BATTLE.

Module 4 / 7

Targeted Acquisition

"The founder closes the first 10 deals. Then you hire sales."

❌ Wrong Approach

Hire sales before founder-led selling. Send generic blast emails. Skip personalization.

✅ Right Approach

Close 10-15 deals yourself first. Send behavior-triggered, personalized emails. Research before outreach.

3 Channels

Sales — Glean (high ACV enterprise)

Email Marketing — Rewind AI (waitlist nurturing)

Targeting Blogs — beehiiv (niche creator outreach)

Sales vs PLG Decision Matrix CHALLENGE

High ACV + complex sale = sales team. Low ACV + simple = PLG. Where do you fit?

Expected ACV ($)

Sales Cycle (weeks)

Decision Makers

Implementation Complexity

FOUNDER-LED SALES FIRST. ALWAYS. NO EXCEPTIONS.

Module 5 / 7

Ecosystem & Partnerships

"Partner with companies your size first. Big fish come later."

❌ Wrong Approach

Chase Microsoft partnerships on day one. Dictate creative to influencers. Build shallow integrations.

✅ Right Approach

Start with peer-sized partners. Trust influencers with their audience. Build native-feeling integrations.

5 Channels

Cloud Marketplaces — Pinecone (AWS/GCP listing)

Influencer/Creator — Runway (AI artists as evangelists)

Biz Dev — Mistral (Microsoft Azure deal)

Affiliate Programs — AssemblyAI (developer commissions)

Existing Platforms — Ollama (VS Code, Docker)

Partnership Readiness Score CHALLENGE

Big partnerships require traction. Check if you're ready.

We have 100+ paying customers

We have case studies/testimonials

Our product is stable (no major bugs)

We have bandwidth to support partner

Partner's audience overlaps with ours

GREAT INTEGRATIONS FEEL NATIVE. SHALLOW ONES GET IGNORED.

Module 6 / 7

Physical & High-Touch

"A booth without booked meetings is just expensive decoration."

❌ Wrong Approach

Scan badges and call it success. Host events without clear goals. Run offline ads with no CTA.

✅ Right Approach

Book qualified meetings for next week. Define event goals (recruiting? leads? feedback?). Measurable CTAs only.

3 Channels

Trade Shows — Together AI (enterprise conferences)

Offline Events — Luma (community meetups)

Offline Ads — Scale AI (SFO airport billboards)

Conference ROI Calculator CHALLENGE

Is that $20K booth worth it? Do the math.

Total Cost ($)

Expected Meetings

Meeting → Opp Rate (%)

Opp → Close Rate (%)

Average Deal Size ($)

TRADE SHOWS ARE FOR BOOKING MEETINGS. EVERYTHING ELSE IS NOISE.

Module 7 / 7

Find Your Bullseye

"The channel you focus on is more important than all the channels you try."

The Process

1. Brainstorm — One idea for each of 25 channels

2. Rank — Score by your constraints (cost, effort, fit)

3. Test — Run cheap experiments on top 3-5

4. Focus — Go all-in on the ONE that works

Channel Prioritization Matrix SYNTHESIS

Select your constraints. We'll recommend channels.

Business Model

Budget

Team Size

Time to Results

PRODUCT-CHANNEL FIT IS EVERYTHING. FIND IT. THEN SATURATE IT.

SKILL CHECK

Test Your Understanding

"7 questions. One from each module. No guessing."

Progress

0/7 answered

Score

0/7 correct

Q1 — Community & Product Unanswered

In a PLG model, what is the "free tier" effectively acting as?

Q2 — Content & Brand Unanswered

Which keyword type should you prioritize for content that converts?

Q3 — Paid Acquisition Unanswered

What's the minimum LTV:CAC ratio for sustainable paid acquisition?

Q4 — Targeted Acquisition Unanswered

When should a startup hire their first salesperson?

Q5 — Ecosystem & Partnerships Unanswered

What's the right approach to working with influencers/creators?

Q6 — Physical & High-Touch Unanswered

What's the primary goal of a trade show booth?

Q7 — Bullseye Framework Unanswered

What does "Product-Channel Fit" mean?