The New Go-To-Market Mandate Is Here
Catherine Sadler | 10-24-2024
In late summer, I took the helm of the next issue of THE BOARD BOOK, carte blanche. As a founding Member of THE BOARD and longtime brand consultant, I was excited to explore a subject that’s vital to me and to brands today. The result is THE BOARD BOOK Special Edition – The New Go-To-Market Mandate.
Photo courtesy of Diego Uchitel
Having worked in marketing for decades, I’ve witnessed the changing tides firsthand. Early in my career, it was all about location. Then image. Then digital. Then performance. Then experience. And now?
It’s everything, all at once.
Across my clients, similar patterns have emerged. A luxury footwear brand struggling to balance aspiration with authenticity. A premium luggage brand, stretched thin by growing demand, grappling to stay bold or aligned. A big-box retailer challenged to deflect the surge of DTC brands by meeting evolved consumer expectations for quality and connection. A fitness founder with a successful subscription platform under-resourced to nurture the very community that enabled her initial growth.
“Clearly, brands today are navigating increasingly complex terrain. The old playbook is no longer enough. The New Go-To-Market Mandate calls for brands to amplify their unique “why” with authenticity, transparency, and conviction.”
Organizations must dismantle silos, realign priorities, and focus on what truly matters: values, differentiation, and point of view. They must own their space, creating a magnetic field of loyalty.
At the same time, emerging technologies are reshaping the landscape. It’s easy to get lost, but the key is to take command, leveraging new tools to speak louder, lift higher, and connect deeper. Marketers must become “citizen engineers” – not to code, but rather to know their customers intimately, to distill smarter, and engage more deftly.
Photo courtesy of Diego Uchitel
At this inflection point, every brand, no matter the size, needs to travel with their customers on a mutual journey of discovery, connection, community and loyalty. That’s the core of The New Go-To-Market Mandate.
It has been a joy and honor to collaborate with the over 30 contributors within THE BOARD community. Their thoughtful responses and willingness to be interviewed and share their conclusions is such a gift. I am thrilled to share the result.
