5 Secrets to Creating a KILLER GTM Strategy with David Malpass.
Most Marketers think “go-to-market” is a one-and-done launch play.
SPOILER ALERT: It’s not.
It’s a living system. Something you build, pressure test, and evolve over time.
And after seeing a lot of GTM plans, the best ones continue to build momentum, keep adapting fast, and align the ENTIRE company around growth.
And if there’s anyone who’s lived that firsthand, it’s David Malpass.
He’s led GTM at Prezi, InVision, Redkix (acquired by Meta), and Autodesk and is now running Marketing at Apollo.io, one of the fastest-growing SaaS companies in the game.
This episode was a HEATER and I’m glad David came on the pod.
Here’s what he had to say about GTM (go-to-market) in his OLEW (own-lightly-edited-words):
1️⃣. Don’t Rely on What Worked at Your Last Job. Start Fresh.
David’s Take:“Nothing that I did at Prezi worked at InVision. Nothing, not one thing.
I was like, I’ve got a playbook, I know exactly what to do, I’ve done this before. I’m 25 years old, what can I do wrong?
And… nothing worked.
So we just had to completely reinvent the wheel.”
It’s one of the easiest traps to fall into: assuming your old strategies will work in a new environment.
But David’s story proves the opposite...each product, audience, and stage demands a different approach.
Just because something worked at a fast-growing PLG startup doesn’t mean it’ll work at a sales-led enterprise tool. Copy-pasting a GTM motion is how you waste quarters chasing ghosts.
Takeaway: Treat every new role like a blank slate.
Talk to customers. Understand what’s already working and what’s broken.
Then rebuild your strategy around that reality, not the one from your last job.
Curiosity will get you further than confidence.
2️⃣. Self-Serve Only Works When Marketing Shows Up
David’s Take: “We could throw, you know, thousands of implementation people and salespeople to give one-on-one training to get these people OR we could figure out a way to do it one-to-many.
We really believe strongly in PLG, so if we can help people self-service, then we can hopefully have a much more efficient business in our go-to-market motion than if we have to go hire an army of people." You can’t scale if every customer needs hand-holding.
Plus, most customers don’t even want their hand held since 81% of them try to solve problems themselves before even reaching out to a live representative.
That’s why product-led-growth companies win. They design products people can figure out on their own WITH their Marketing teams.
Takeaway: Product-led growth isn’t just about the product.
It’s onboarding flows. Help docs. Videos. Emails. Landing pages.
If Marketing isn’t leading that charge, self-serve turns into self-stuck.
3️⃣. Your Go-To-Market Strategy Should Fit Your Product, Not the Trend
David’s Take: “We spent about a year whiteboarding, diving into product marketing, and really understanding the different ways that we could go to market.
Was it freemium? Was it a sales-led motion? What are we going to do here?
We couldn’t make the freemium thing work. So we went sales-driven.”
A lot of companies pick their go-to-market motion based on what is trending, not what actually fits their product.
But David learned that forcing a model like product-led growth only works if your product is built for it.
Some tools are simple enough to let users explore on their own. Others need hands-on onboarding and longer deal cycles. Trying to scale the wrong motion just burns resources.
Takeaway: Look at how your customers actually buy and use your product.
Is it intuitive and easy to try?
Consider a self-serve model. Is it complex, expensive, or requires trust?
You probably need a sales team. Let the product and customer behavior guide your go-to-market plan. Not the buzzwords.
4️⃣. Don’t Scale Confusion. Fix the Funnel First.
David’s Take: “Prezi was growing so fast. We got to 150 million users.
But we could not figure out activation.
People signed up, got confused, left, and never came back.
I always said it was like inviting everyone to a party, but when they showed up there was no beer.”
It’s easy to get caught chasing top-of-funnel growth. More signups. More leads. More traffic.
But if users drop off the second they enter, growth is just noise.
David watched it happen firsthand. Prezi scaled fast, but people didn’t stick. Why? Because they didn’t know what to do next.
And once a bad first impression is made, it’s almost impossible to recover.
Takeaway: Before you spend more to fill the funnel, fix what happens after people enter it. Learn that from my time in Marketing Ops.
Map the first five minutes. Simplify onboarding. Write clearer copy. Show users their next step before they ask.
Growth that sticks always beats growth that bounces.
5️⃣. Stop Chasing Perfect Attribution. It Doesn’t Exist.
David’s Take: “Stop spending 90% of your time trying to get the perfect attribution model because it doesn't exist.
You’ve got to be okay with 80%.
Directionally right is better than wasting two years and a million dollars trying to be perfect.”
It’s the marketer’s trap. You want clean data. Perfect credit. Total clarity on what’s working.
But chasing a flawless attribution model slows everything down. And worse...it kills creativity.
David learned this the hard way. At some point, you have to accept good enough and move.
Takeaway: Aim for directionally correct. Use your data to guide strategy, not to obsess over precision.
Spend less time labeling every lead and more time creating momentum.
The best marketers know when to zoom in and when to move forward.
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IN A MEME
I just started Your Friends and Neighbors and I’m still deep into Industry after my White Lotus phase.
But now I need more recs. It gives me anxiety when I don't have good show lined up.
Send me something good.
Your friend,
Daniel
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