Define the One Behavior a GTM Brief Must Drive using Get Who To By
Look, most GTM briefs are just a collection of buzzwords held together by a prayer. You're trying to do everything for everyone, which is a great way to do nothing for no one. The 'Get Who To By' framework is the slap in the face your strategy needs. It forces you to pick one behavior and drive it home before your budget - and my patience - runs out. It’s about being surgical, not decorative.
The TL;DR
Stop making your GTM brief a bucket list. Use Get Who To By to pin down your target (GET), find their actual motivation (WHO), give them a brain-dead simple instruction (TO), and build the bridge to get them there (BY). One goal. One behavior. No fluff.
Why Get Who To By is Your Campaign's Best Friend
Because campaigns often spiral into a series of vague objectives and conflicting strategies - this framework cuts through the noise like a chainsaw through a poorly constructed deck.
The Four Steps
GET
Who exactly are you trying to reach?
Define the smallest, most winnable group that will actually care. And no, 'everyone with a pulse' is not an answer. If your target isn't specific enough to make you nervous, it's wrong.
WHO
What’s the critical behavior insight about them?
What’s the dirty secret of their current habits? Figure out why they aren't doing what you want them to do yet. This insight should reveal the friction keeping them from your product.
TO
What’s the message that makes action obvious?
Craft a message that screams what you want them to do. If it takes more than two seconds for a distracted person to get it, throw it in the trash and start over.
BY
How are you going to make them actually do it?
What's the hook? Whether it’s a bribe, a threat, or a piece of magic tech, make sure the mechanism for action is unavoidable and stupidly easy.
Common GTM Blunders
(Yes, We’ve All Been There)
- ×Trying to target 'everyone' because you're scared of missing out
- ×Focusing on five different behaviors at once like a headless chicken
- ×Messaging that sounds like it was generated by a corporate AI from 2005
- ×An insight that's just a demographic fact, not a behavior
- ×Forgetting to actually tell people what to do in the 'TO' section
- ×Making the 'BY' mechanism harder than a tax return
- ×Using jargon to hide the fact that you don't have a real strategy
- ×Ignoring the reality that people are busy and don't care about your brand
Avoiding these pitfalls puts you miles ahead of most campaigns that flop before they even launch.
Real Examples
B2B SaaS Launch
A campaign to get DevOps leads to switch to a new deployment tool.
GET
Burned-out DevOps leads at mid-sized tech firms.
WHO
They hate their current setup but are terrified that switching will cause a 48-hour outage and get them fired.
TO
Switch in 10 minutes without breaking a single thing.
BY
A 'no-tears' migration script that runs a simulation before touching live code.
D2C Subscription
An email campaign to boost sign-ups for a premium coffee subscription.
GET
Self-proclaimed coffee snobs who buy grocery store beans.
WHO
They talk a big game about quality but are too lazy to research roasters or leave their house for the good stuff.
TO
Stop pretending your burnt grocery store beans are 'fine'.
BY
A blind taste-test kit shipped for free with the first month of the subscription.
Enterprise Security
Promoting a cybersecurity audit to C-level executives.
GET
CISOs at companies that haven't updated their stack in 3 years.
WHO
They know they're vulnerable but can't get the budget approved because the board thinks 'it won't happen to us'.
TO
Get the report that makes your board finally open the wallet.
BY
A 1-page 'Risk Scorecard' that translates technical vulnerabilities into potential dollar losses.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I have two behaviors in one brief?
No. Pick one. If you try to drive two behaviors, you'll end up driving zero. If you have two goals, write two briefs.
What if my 'GET' feels too small?
Good. Small is winnable. You can always expand later once you've actually succeeded at something for once.
Is 'WHO' just demographics like age and location?
Only if you want a mediocre campaign. 'WHO' is about psychographics and friction. Why are they stuck in their current habit?
Why isn't there a 'Strategy' box?
Because the framework IS the strategy. If you can't explain it through Get-Who-To-By, your strategy is just a bunch of fancy words.
What if my 'BY' is just 'an ad'?
Then you've failed. An ad is a channel, not a mechanism. Your 'BY' needs to be the reason they actually click or buy.
Generate a Framework for your Product Launch Strategy
Use our framework generator to generate various Get Who To By, 4C, 4 Points Strategy, and other frameworks — all in one place and directly to editable Google SLIDES!
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