{ "meta": { "title": "GTM Vocabulary Ontology", "description": "A deep working vocabulary of go-to-market, assembled from the venues where GTM is actually discussed: RevOps and sales-ops glossaries, demand-gen and marketing-ops references, PLG communities, advisory frameworks (GTM Partners, Winning by Design), and the canonical sales-qualification and positioning methodologies. Each term is an entity with a category, plain definition, and cross-links. Built for ingestion into a world model.", "built": "2026-05-30", "schema": { "id": "stable snake_case identifier for joins/graphs", "term": "canonical human-readable name", "aka": "synonyms / acronyms (string)", "category": "one of the category keys", "def": "plain-language definition", "links": "flat list of related term names (convenience; superset of relations)", "relations": "typed edges: broader (parents), narrower (children), contrasts (opposites), related (lateral)", "metric": "for computable metrics only: formula, inputs, unit, orientation, optional benchmark", "note": "optional nuance, debate, or practitioner usage" }, "categories": { "strategy": "Foundational strategy building blocks", "market": "Market sizing and segmentation", "icp_targeting": "Who you sell to", "positioning": "How you frame what you sell", "pricing": "How you capture value", "motion": "How you sell (the engine type)", "channel": "Where you reach buyers", "funnel": "Buyer-journey stages and lead lifecycle", "demand": "Demand generation and marketing execution", "sales": "Sales process, roles, and qualification", "revops": "Revenue operations, systems, and data", "metrics": "Measurement primitives", "plg": "Product-led growth specifics", "abm": "Account-based motion specifics", "framework": "Named methodologies and models", "stack": "Tooling categories", "meta": "Rules-about-the-rules / governing concepts", "execution_agent": "Agentic execution: the agent loop, governance, orchestration, and cost" }, "version": "2.1", "language": "en-US", "changelog": [ "v1.0: 179 terms, 17 categories, flat `links`, fully connected.", "v2.0: +16 terms (PMF, GTM Fit, JTBD, Time to Value, North Star Metric, Cohort Analysis, Win/Loss Analysis, Rule of 40, Magic Number, Forecast Accuracy, Multi-Threading, Mutual Action Plan, Territory Management, The Challenger Sale, CQL, PLG CRM). Added stable `id` per term; added typed `relations` (broader/narrower/contrasts/related) alongside `links`; added `metric` sub-objects (formula/inputs/unit/orientation/benchmark) to the 28 computable metrics.", "v2.1: +24 agentic-GTM terms (Sense-Reason-Act-Learn, Agentic GTM, GTM OS, Task-to-Role Matrix, Human-in-the-Loop, Escalation Path, Guardrails, Data Quality Gate, Audit Logging, Compounding Failure, Agent Cost Profile, Agent FinOps, Context Engineering, Workflow Orchestration, Subagent, Learning Loop, Next-Best-Action, Agentic ABM, Signal-to-Revenue, Signal Taxonomy, Outer Flywheel, GTM AI Maturity Ladder, Phased Rollout, Coefficient Compression). New category execution_agent. Sourced from Apollo, Poexis, Wyzard, LangChain agentic-GTM material. Rewired existing CAC/ABM/Intent/RevOps/Funnel links to new nodes." ] }, "terms": [ { "term": "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy", "aka": "GTM", "category": "meta", "def": "A cross-functional plan aligning product, marketing, sales, and customer success around how to deliver a differentiated value proposition to a specific market and turn pipeline into revenue.", "links": [ "Marketing Strategy", "GTM Motion", "ICP", "Positioning", "GTM Operating System" ], "note": "Marketing strategy lives INSIDE GTM, not the reverse. It is an alignment tool, not a marketing plan with a fancier name.", "id": "go_to_market_gtm_strategy", "relations": { "narrower": [ "GTM Strategy vs Tactics", "Go-to-Market Fit", "Marketing Strategy", "Product-Market Fit" ], "related": [ "GTM Motion", "ICP", "Positioning", "GTM Operating System" ] } }, { "term": "Marketing Strategy", "category": "meta", "def": "The plan for how you create demand and reach buyers through messaging, content, channels, and campaigns. A subset of GTM strategy.", "links": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy", "Demand Generation" ], "id": "marketing_strategy", "relations": { "broader": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy" ], "related": [ "Demand Generation" ] } }, { "term": "GTM Strategy vs Tactics", "category": "meta", "def": "Strategy answers HOW you compete (market, ICP, value prop, positioning, principles). Tactics are WHERE strategy meets execution (a specific outreach sequence, a campaign budget, a discount threshold).", "links": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy" ], "id": "gtm_strategy_vs_tactics", "relations": { "broader": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy" ] } }, { "term": "GTM as a System", "category": "meta", "def": "The principle that GTM components operate as one interdependent machine: segmentation informs messaging, positioning reinforces value prop, channels reduce friction, enablement supports velocity, pricing supports CAC. Missing one component becomes a gap that surfaces in execution.", "links": [ "Sales-Marketing Alignment", "Revenue Operations" ], "id": "gtm_as_a_system", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales-Marketing Alignment", "Revenue Operations" ] } }, { "term": "Sales-Marketing Alignment", "aka": "smarketing", "category": "meta", "def": "Uniting sales and marketing around shared objectives, shared lead definitions, data visibility, and accountability. Where most launches actually fail — at the handoff seams, not the components.", "links": [ "MQL", "SQL", "SLA", "RACI / DRI", "Lead Handoff" ], "id": "sales_marketing_alignment", "relations": { "related": [ "MQL", "SQL", "SLA", "RACI / DRI", "Lead Handoff" ] } }, { "term": "RACI / DRI", "aka": "Responsible-Accountable-Consulted-Informed / Directly Responsible Individual", "category": "meta", "def": "Decision-rights frameworks that assign clear ownership of GTM deliverables, so that a launch has owners rather than just meeting attendees.", "links": [ "Sales-Marketing Alignment" ], "id": "raci_dri", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales-Marketing Alignment" ] } }, { "term": "4 Ps", "aka": "Product, Price, Place, Promotion", "category": "framework", "def": "The classical marketing-mix abstraction sitting beneath the GTM build sequence. Useful for messaging-level decisions but not a substitute for full GTM strategy.", "links": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy", "STP" ], "id": "4_ps", "relations": { "related": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy", "STP" ] } }, { "term": "STP", "aka": "Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning", "category": "framework", "def": "Classical framework: break the market into segments, choose the most attractive ones, then position against them. Feeds ICP definition.", "links": [ "ICP", "Positioning", "Market Segmentation" ], "id": "stp", "relations": { "related": [ "ICP", "Positioning", "Market Segmentation" ] } }, { "term": "TAM / SAM / SOM", "aka": "Total / Serviceable / Serviceable-Obtainable Addressable Market", "category": "market", "def": "Nested market-sizing measures. TAM = total demand if you owned 100%. SAM = the slice your model can actually serve. SOM = the slice you can realistically capture near-term.", "links": [ "Market Opportunity", "ICP" ], "id": "tam_sam_som", "relations": { "related": [ "Market Opportunity", "ICP" ] } }, { "term": "Market Opportunity", "category": "market", "def": "The size and attractiveness of the opportunity plus the competitive landscape — how big is it and who else is serving it.", "links": [ "TAM / SAM / SOM", "Competitive Positioning" ], "id": "market_opportunity", "relations": { "related": [ "TAM / SAM / SOM", "Competitive Positioning" ] } }, { "term": "Market Segmentation", "category": "market", "def": "Dividing the market into groups (by firmographics, behavior, need) so messaging and motion can be targeted rather than sprayed.", "links": [ "STP", "ICP", "Firmographic Data" ], "id": "market_segmentation", "relations": { "related": [ "STP", "ICP", "Firmographic Data" ] } }, { "term": "ICP", "aka": "Ideal Customer Profile", "category": "icp_targeting", "def": "A precise definition of the companies most likely to buy, succeed with, and stay on your product. Built from firmographic, technographic, and behavioral data. The root node most GTM decisions derive from.", "links": [ "Buyer Persona", "Firmographic Data", "Technographic Data", "MQA", "TAM / SAM / SOM" ], "note": "If the ICP is weak, everything downstream sprawls.", "id": "icp", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Buyer Persona", "Firmographic Data", "Technographic Data" ], "related": [ "MQA", "TAM / SAM / SOM" ] } }, { "term": "Buyer Persona", "category": "icp_targeting", "def": "A profile of an individual buyer (role, goals, pains, objections) within a target account, used to guide messaging. ICP describes the company; persona describes the person.", "links": [ "ICP", "Buying Committee", "Economic Buyer", "Champion" ], "id": "buyer_persona", "relations": { "broader": [ "ICP" ], "related": [ "Buying Committee", "Economic Buyer", "Champion" ] } }, { "term": "Buying Committee", "aka": "buying group, DMU (decision-making unit)", "category": "sales", "def": "The set of people inside an account who collectively influence a B2B purchase — economic buyer, champion, technical evaluators, end users, procurement, legal.", "links": [ "Economic Buyer", "Champion", "Buyer Persona", "MEDDIC" ], "id": "buying_committee", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Champion", "Economic Buyer" ], "related": [ "Buyer Persona", "MEDDIC" ] } }, { "term": "Firmographic Data", "category": "icp_targeting", "def": "Company-level attributes used for targeting: industry, size, revenue, location, structure.", "links": [ "ICP", "Technographic Data", "Intent Data" ], "id": "firmographic_data", "relations": { "broader": [ "ICP" ], "related": [ "Technographic Data", "Intent Data" ] } }, { "term": "Technographic Data", "category": "icp_targeting", "def": "Data on the technology stack a company uses — current tools, integration needs — used to qualify fit.", "links": [ "ICP", "Firmographic Data" ], "id": "technographic_data", "relations": { "broader": [ "ICP" ], "related": [ "Firmographic Data" ] } }, { "term": "Value Proposition", "aka": "value prop", "category": "positioning", "def": "The unique, measurable benefit you deliver and how it differs from the status quo. The promise around which messaging is built.", "links": [ "Positioning", "Messaging Framework", "Why Now" ], "id": "value_proposition", "relations": { "related": [ "Positioning", "Messaging Framework", "Why Now" ] } }, { "term": "Positioning", "category": "positioning", "def": "The slot you claim in the customer's mental market map — the category you occupy and how you compare. Strong positioning includes proof points, competitive differentiation, and a 'why now'.", "links": [ "Value Proposition", "Competitive Positioning", "Category Design", "Messaging Framework" ], "note": "April Dunford's work (Obviously Awesome) is the canonical reference: positioning = context that makes your value obvious to the right buyer.", "id": "positioning", "relations": { "related": [ "Value Proposition", "Competitive Positioning", "Category Design", "Messaging Framework" ] } }, { "term": "Competitive Positioning", "category": "positioning", "def": "How you differentiate against alternatives — not just listing features, but framing why competitors look like compromises.", "links": [ "Positioning", "Market Opportunity" ], "id": "competitive_positioning", "relations": { "related": [ "Positioning", "Market Opportunity" ] } }, { "term": "Category Design", "aka": "category creation", "category": "positioning", "def": "Defining and owning a new market category rather than competing inside an existing one — shaping the frame buyers use to evaluate.", "links": [ "Positioning", "Why Now" ], "id": "category_design", "relations": { "related": [ "Positioning", "Why Now" ] } }, { "term": "Messaging Framework", "category": "positioning", "def": "The structured articulation of positioning — specific enough to be useful, flexible enough to adapt across channels and audiences. Carries proof points, differentiation, and urgency.", "links": [ "Positioning", "Value Proposition", "Proof Points" ], "id": "messaging_framework", "relations": { "related": [ "Positioning", "Value Proposition", "Proof Points" ] } }, { "term": "Proof Points", "category": "positioning", "def": "Evidence (data, customer outcomes, references) that substantiates a claim, so messaging persuades rather than merely asserts.", "links": [ "Messaging Framework", "Case Study" ], "id": "proof_points", "relations": { "related": [ "Messaging Framework", "Case Study" ] } }, { "term": "Why Now", "category": "positioning", "def": "The urgency component of positioning — the reason a buyer should act now rather than later. Without it, messaging sounds like every other product in the category.", "links": [ "Positioning", "Critical Event" ], "id": "why_now", "relations": { "related": [ "Positioning", "Critical Event" ] } }, { "term": "Pricing & Packaging", "category": "pricing", "def": "How you capture value: the pricing model, tier structure, and packaging of features. Pricing signals positioning, affects which channels are viable, and shapes the sales motion.", "links": [ "Positioning", "GTM Motion", "ACV", "Freemium", "Free Trial" ], "note": "A $15/mo product and a $150K/yr product require fundamentally different GTM even if they solve similar problems.", "id": "pricing_and_packaging", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Free Trial", "Freemium" ], "related": [ "Positioning", "GTM Motion", "ACV" ] } }, { "term": "GTM Motion", "aka": "go-to-market motion, sales motion", "category": "motion", "def": "The primary engine by which you acquire and expand customers. Motions are composable (different motions for different segments) and selected largely by deal size (ACV).", "links": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Sales-Led Growth", "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led", "Outbound-Led", "Channel/Partner-Led", "Community-Led", "Hybrid Motion", "ACV" ], "id": "gtm_motion", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Channel/Partner-Led", "Community-Led", "Ecosystem-Led", "Event-Led", "Hybrid Motion", "Land and Expand", "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led", "Outbound-Led", "Paid-Led", "Product-Led Growth", "Sales-Led Growth" ], "related": [ "ACV" ] } }, { "term": "Product-Led Growth", "aka": "PLG, product-led", "category": "plg", "def": "The product is the primary driver of acquisition and expansion; users self-serve via freemium or trial and experience value before talking to sales. Bottom-up adoption.", "links": [ "Freemium", "Free Trial", "Activation", "PQL", "Bottom-Up Adoption", "Self-Serve", "Hybrid Motion" ], "note": "Best for simple, intuitive products; rarely exists in pure form — usually collapses into a broader customer-experience motion.", "id": "product_led_growth", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "contrasts": [ "Sales-Led Growth" ], "related": [ "Freemium", "Free Trial", "Activation", "PQL", "Bottom-Up Adoption", "Self-Serve", "Hybrid Motion" ] } }, { "term": "Sales-Led Growth", "aka": "SLG, sales-led", "category": "motion", "def": "Human sales reps drive growth through relationships and structured processes. Fits complex, high-ACV enterprise products needing customization.", "links": [ "Account Executive", "MEDDIC", "Field Sales", "Pipeline", "Hybrid Motion" ], "id": "sales_led_growth", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "contrasts": [ "Product-Led Growth" ], "related": [ "Account Executive", "MEDDIC", "Field Sales", "Pipeline", "Hybrid Motion" ] } }, { "term": "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led", "category": "motion", "def": "Pull demand via content, SEO, and organic channels so leads arrive already trusting the brand; sales engages later.", "links": [ "Demand Generation", "Inbound", "Content-Led", "SEO" ], "id": "marketing_led_inbound_led", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "narrower": [ "Content-Led" ], "contrasts": [ "Outbound-Led" ], "related": [ "Demand Generation", "Inbound", "SEO" ] } }, { "term": "Outbound-Led", "category": "motion", "def": "Proactively reach prospects who have not discovered you, via cold email, calls, and sequences. The hardest execution layer; bad data and generic messaging kill it.", "links": [ "SDR / BDR", "Cold Email", "Sales Sequence", "Sales Engagement Platform", "GTM Engineer" ], "id": "outbound_led", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "contrasts": [ "Inbound", "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led" ], "related": [ "SDR / BDR", "Cold Email", "Sales Sequence", "Sales Engagement Platform", "GTM Engineer" ] } }, { "term": "Channel/Partner-Led", "aka": "channel sales", "category": "motion", "def": "External partners (resellers, VARs, integrators, alliances) source, influence, and close deals on your behalf, tapping their existing trust and reach.", "links": [ "VAR", "Ecosystem-Led", "Co-Marketing", "Partner Enablement" ], "id": "channel_partner_led", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "related": [ "VAR", "Ecosystem-Led", "Co-Marketing", "Partner Enablement" ] } }, { "term": "Community-Led", "category": "motion", "def": "Customers, fans, and builders drive awareness, acquisition, and expansion. Instead of marketing TO an audience, you create space for them to market WITH you.", "links": [ "Word-of-Mouth", "Advocacy", "Ecosystem-Led" ], "note": "Works best with passionate users and creator/developer audiences (e.g. Figma).", "id": "community_led", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "related": [ "Word-of-Mouth", "Advocacy", "Ecosystem-Led" ] } }, { "term": "Ecosystem-Led", "aka": "ELG", "category": "motion", "def": "Growth driven by integrations, marketplaces, and ecosystem partners that make the product more valuable inside partner workflows.", "links": [ "Channel/Partner-Led", "Community-Led", "Marketplace" ], "id": "ecosystem_led", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "related": [ "Channel/Partner-Led", "Community-Led", "Marketplace" ] } }, { "term": "Content-Led", "category": "motion", "def": "A content engine (SEO pages, tutorials, thought leadership) creates organic demand and captures search intent over time.", "links": [ "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led", "SEO", "Thought Leadership" ], "id": "content_led", "relations": { "broader": [ "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led" ], "narrower": [ "SEO" ], "related": [ "Thought Leadership" ] } }, { "term": "Paid-Led", "category": "motion", "def": "Paid media generates awareness and traffic quickly through targeted media buying; fast and scalable but stops when spend stops.", "links": [ "PPC", "Retargeting", "CAC" ], "id": "paid_led", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "related": [ "PPC", "Retargeting", "CAC" ] } }, { "term": "Event-Led", "aka": "event-led growth", "category": "motion", "def": "In-person and virtual events are the primary channel for pipeline generation and engagement.", "links": [ "Webinar", "Co-Marketing" ], "id": "event_led", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "narrower": [ "Webinar" ], "related": [ "Co-Marketing" ] } }, { "term": "Hybrid Motion", "aka": "PLG+SLG, product-led sales (PLS)", "category": "motion", "def": "Blends self-serve adoption with sales-assist: the product drives initial adoption and qualification; sales steps in when complexity, deal size, or expansion justifies it. The realistic norm for most software.", "links": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Sales-Led Growth", "PQL", "Revenue Operations" ], "note": "Puts the most pressure on RevOps — orchestrating self-serve → sales-assisted transitions without breaking momentum.", "id": "hybrid_motion", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "related": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Sales-Led Growth", "PQL", "Revenue Operations" ] } }, { "term": "Bottom-Up Adoption", "category": "plg", "def": "Traction starts with individual users or small teams, then expands to broader organizational adoption — the classic PLG land pattern.", "links": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Land and Expand" ], "id": "bottom_up_adoption", "relations": { "related": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Land and Expand" ] } }, { "term": "Self-Serve", "category": "plg", "def": "A buying path where customers sign up, onboard, and pay without sales involvement.", "links": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Freemium", "Activation" ], "id": "self_serve", "relations": { "related": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Freemium", "Activation" ] } }, { "term": "Channel Strategy", "aka": "distribution strategy", "category": "channel", "def": "Choosing the small set of primary channels where your ICP actually is and how they prefer to buy — deliberately, rather than being everywhere.", "links": [ "ICP", "GTM Motion", "Critical User Journey" ], "id": "channel_strategy", "relations": { "related": [ "ICP", "GTM Motion", "Critical User Journey" ] } }, { "term": "Critical User Journey", "aka": "buyer journey, customer journey", "category": "funnel", "def": "The mapped path a buyer takes — what they see first, what they do next, and what signals they emit at each step from awareness to adoption.", "links": [ "Funnel", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU", "Buying Signal" ], "id": "critical_user_journey", "relations": { "related": [ "Funnel", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU", "Buying Signal" ] } }, { "term": "Funnel", "aka": "marketing funnel, sales funnel", "category": "funnel", "def": "The model of buyer progression through stages of mindset: Awareness → Consideration → Conversion (→ Retention/Expansion).", "links": [ "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU", "Pipeline", "Bowtie Model", "AIDA", "Outer Flywheel" ], "id": "funnel", "relations": { "narrower": [ "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU" ], "contrasts": [ "Outer Flywheel" ], "related": [ "Pipeline", "Bowtie Model", "AIDA" ] } }, { "term": "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU", "aka": "Top / Middle / Bottom of Funnel", "category": "funnel", "def": "The three funnel tiers. TOFU = awareness (SEO, thought leadership). MOFU = consideration/nurture (webinars, comparison content). BOFU = decision (demos, pricing, ROI calculators).", "links": [ "Funnel", "Nurture", "Demand Generation" ], "id": "tofu_mofu_bofu", "relations": { "broader": [ "Funnel" ], "related": [ "Nurture", "Demand Generation" ] } }, { "term": "Pipeline", "aka": "pipe", "category": "sales", "def": "The total view of in-progress deals for a rep or team, with stages, expected value, timing, and likelihood to close. Distinct from the funnel: a single path from demand → nurture → sales.", "links": [ "Funnel", "Pipeline Coverage", "Sales Velocity", "Opportunity", "Sales Stages" ], "id": "pipeline", "relations": { "related": [ "Funnel", "Pipeline Coverage", "Sales Velocity", "Opportunity", "Sales Stages" ] } }, { "term": "Sales Stages", "aka": "pipeline stages", "category": "sales", "def": "The defined steps an opportunity moves through, e.g. identified → qualified → proposed → closed. Stage definitions must be enforced for forecasting to work.", "links": [ "Pipeline", "Opportunity", "Sales Forecasting", "Stage Definitions" ], "id": "sales_stages", "relations": { "related": [ "Pipeline", "Opportunity", "Sales Forecasting", "Stage Definitions" ] } }, { "term": "Lead", "category": "funnel", "def": "A contact who has entered the top of the funnel but is not yet qualified. The raw input to the lead lifecycle.", "links": [ "MQL", "SAL", "SQL", "Lead Scoring", "Lead Lifecycle" ], "id": "lead", "relations": { "related": [ "MQL", "SAL", "SQL", "Lead Scoring", "Lead Lifecycle" ] } }, { "term": "Lead Lifecycle", "aka": "lead lifecycle management", "category": "funnel", "def": "The tracked progression of a prospect from anonymous visitor → lead → MQL → SAL → SQL → opportunity → customer, with stage-appropriate engagement.", "links": [ "Lead", "MQL", "SAL", "SQL", "Opportunity" ], "id": "lead_lifecycle", "relations": { "narrower": [ "CQL", "MQL", "Opportunity", "PQL", "SAL", "SQL" ], "related": [ "Lead" ] } }, { "term": "MQL", "aka": "Marketing Qualified Lead", "category": "funnel", "def": "A lead that has shown enough engagement and ICP fit to be deemed worth sales attention — typically by crossing a lead-scoring threshold. A mid-funnel object.", "links": [ "Lead Scoring", "SAL", "SQL", "MQA", "Sales-Marketing Alignment" ], "note": "Definition is contested; some practitioners only count a lead as MQL once it expresses direct interest in talking to sales.", "id": "mql", "relations": { "broader": [ "Lead Lifecycle" ], "related": [ "Lead Scoring", "SAL", "SQL", "MQA", "Sales-Marketing Alignment" ] } }, { "term": "MQA", "aka": "Marketing Qualified Account", "category": "abm", "def": "An account (not an individual) that meets ICP and engagement thresholds enough to warrant sales outreach within an ABM framework.", "links": [ "MQL", "ABM", "ICP" ], "id": "mqa", "relations": { "related": [ "MQL", "ABM", "ICP" ] } }, { "term": "SAL", "aka": "Sales Accepted Lead", "category": "funnel", "def": "An MQL that sales has formally accepted for follow-up. Sits between MQL and SQL; the explicit acknowledgment that closes the handoff loop.", "links": [ "MQL", "SQL", "Lead Handoff" ], "id": "sal", "relations": { "broader": [ "Lead Lifecycle" ], "related": [ "MQL", "SQL", "Lead Handoff" ] } }, { "term": "SQL", "aka": "Sales Qualified Lead", "category": "funnel", "def": "A bottom-of-funnel lead showing clear buying intent (demo request, pricing inquiry, vendor comparison), ready for direct sales engagement.", "links": [ "MQL", "SAL", "Opportunity", "Buying Intent" ], "id": "sql", "relations": { "broader": [ "Lead Lifecycle" ], "related": [ "MQL", "SAL", "Opportunity", "Buying Intent" ] } }, { "term": "Opportunity", "aka": "oppty, deal", "category": "sales", "def": "A qualified potential sale being actively worked in the pipeline, with a value and expected close date.", "links": [ "Pipeline", "SQL", "Win Rate", "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost", "Sales Stages" ], "id": "opportunity", "relations": { "broader": [ "Lead Lifecycle" ], "related": [ "Pipeline", "SQL", "Win Rate", "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost", "Sales Stages" ] } }, { "term": "Lead Handoff", "category": "funnel", "def": "The transition of a lead from marketing to sales. The seam where alignment succeeds or fails; governed by shared MQL/SQL definitions and SLAs.", "links": [ "MQL", "SAL", "SLA", "Sales-Marketing Alignment", "Speed-to-Lead" ], "id": "lead_handoff", "relations": { "related": [ "MQL", "SAL", "SLA", "Sales-Marketing Alignment", "Speed-to-Lead" ] } }, { "term": "Lead Scoring", "category": "demand", "def": "Assigning points to leads based on firmographic/persona fit and behavioral/intent signals; crossing a threshold promotes a lead to MQL. Often weighted (e.g. fit 40% + engagement 60%).", "links": [ "MQL", "Intent Data", "Predictive Lead Scoring", "Marketing Automation Platform" ], "id": "lead_scoring", "relations": { "related": [ "MQL", "Intent Data", "Predictive Lead Scoring", "Marketing Automation Platform" ] } }, { "term": "Predictive Lead Scoring", "category": "demand", "def": "AI/ML-driven scoring that uses historical conversion data to predict which leads will convert, rather than hand-set point rules.", "links": [ "Lead Scoring", "Intent Data" ], "id": "predictive_lead_scoring", "relations": { "related": [ "Lead Scoring", "Intent Data" ] } }, { "term": "Demand Generation", "aka": "demand gen", "category": "demand", "def": "Full-funnel marketing that builds awareness, interest, and preference to create a predictable pipeline. Combines demand creation (new awareness) and demand capture (converting existing interest).", "links": [ "Demand Creation", "Demand Capture", "Lead Generation", "Nurture", "Pipeline", "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led" ], "note": "Broader than lead gen: lead gen narrowly captures contact info; demand gen shapes the whole journey.", "id": "demand_generation", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Demand Capture", "Demand Creation", "Lead Generation", "Nurture" ], "contrasts": [ "Lead Generation" ], "related": [ "Pipeline", "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led" ] } }, { "term": "Demand Creation", "category": "demand", "def": "Building awareness among audiences who don't yet recognize they have the problem you solve.", "links": [ "Demand Generation", "Demand Capture", "Thought Leadership" ], "id": "demand_creation", "relations": { "broader": [ "Demand Generation" ], "related": [ "Demand Capture", "Thought Leadership" ] } }, { "term": "Demand Capture", "category": "demand", "def": "Converting existing, active interest into qualified pipeline — prospects already searching for a solution.", "links": [ "Demand Generation", "Demand Creation", "SEO", "PPC" ], "id": "demand_capture", "relations": { "broader": [ "Demand Generation" ], "related": [ "Demand Creation", "SEO", "PPC" ] } }, { "term": "Lead Generation", "aka": "lead gen", "category": "demand", "def": "The narrower practice of capturing contact information and maximizing lead volume, typically via gated content and forms.", "links": [ "Demand Generation", "Gated Content", "Lead" ], "id": "lead_generation", "relations": { "broader": [ "Demand Generation" ], "related": [ "Gated Content", "Lead" ] } }, { "term": "Nurture", "aka": "nurture flow, lead nurturing, drip", "category": "demand", "def": "A structured sequence of communications (often automated) that moves leads through the funnel by delivering stage-appropriate value until they're ready to buy.", "links": [ "Marketing Automation Platform", "MQL", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU" ], "id": "nurture", "relations": { "broader": [ "Demand Generation" ], "related": [ "Marketing Automation Platform", "MQL", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU" ] } }, { "term": "Attribution", "aka": "attribution modeling, multi-touch attribution (MTA)", "category": "metrics", "def": "Assigning credit for revenue/conversions to the marketing and sales touchpoints that influenced a deal — first-touch, multi-touch, or influenced-opportunity models.", "links": [ "Dark Funnel", "Self-Reported Attribution" ], "id": "attribution", "relations": { "related": [ "Dark Funnel", "Self-Reported Attribution" ] } }, { "term": "Self-Reported Attribution", "category": "metrics", "def": "Asking buyers directly ('How did you hear about us?') to capture influence that tracking software misses.", "links": [ "Attribution", "Dark Funnel" ], "id": "self_reported_attribution", "relations": { "related": [ "Attribution", "Dark Funnel" ] } }, { "term": "Dark Funnel", "aka": "dark social", "category": "metrics", "def": "The untrackable influence (podcasts, communities, word-of-mouth, peer DMs) that drives buying but evades attribution software.", "links": [ "Attribution", "Self-Reported Attribution", "Community-Led" ], "id": "dark_funnel", "relations": { "related": [ "Attribution", "Self-Reported Attribution", "Community-Led" ] } }, { "term": "Intent Data", "aka": "buyer intent", "category": "demand", "def": "Behavioral signals (content consumption, search surges, site visits) indicating an account's active interest in a topic or category.", "links": [ "Buying Signal", "Lead Scoring", "ABM", "Intent Surge", "Signal Taxonomy", "Signal-to-Revenue" ], "id": "intent_data", "relations": { "related": [ "Buying Signal", "Lead Scoring", "ABM", "Intent Surge", "Signal Taxonomy", "Signal-to-Revenue" ] } }, { "term": "Intent Surge", "aka": "surge (e.g. Bombora)", "category": "demand", "def": "A spike in an account's research activity around a topic, used as a trigger to prioritize outreach.", "links": [ "Intent Data", "Signal-to-Action" ], "id": "intent_surge", "relations": { "related": [ "Intent Data", "Signal-to-Action" ] } }, { "term": "Buying Signal", "category": "sales", "def": "A verbal or behavioral cue that a prospect is moving toward purchase (pricing-page visit, demo request, job change).", "links": [ "Intent Data", "Signal-to-Action", "Buying Intent" ], "id": "buying_signal", "relations": { "related": [ "Intent Data", "Signal-to-Action", "Buying Intent" ] } }, { "term": "Buying Intent", "category": "sales", "def": "The inferred likelihood that a person or organization will purchase, read from behavior.", "links": [ "Buying Signal", "Intent Data", "SQL" ], "id": "buying_intent", "relations": { "related": [ "Buying Signal", "Intent Data", "SQL" ] } }, { "term": "Signal-to-Action", "aka": "signal-based selling", "category": "revops", "def": "Workflows that detect an intent signal (job change, site visit, surge) and automatically trigger a personalized outreach action.", "links": [ "Intent Data", "GTM Engineer", "Sales Engagement Platform", "Next-Best-Action", "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn" ], "id": "signal_to_action", "relations": { "related": [ "Intent Data", "GTM Engineer", "Sales Engagement Platform", "Next-Best-Action", "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn" ] } }, { "term": "Speed-to-Lead", "aka": "lead response time", "category": "demand", "def": "How fast a high-intent lead gets a response. Best-in-class is under ~10 minutes during business hours; latency loses deals to competitors.", "links": [ "Lead Handoff", "Inbound", "Lead Routing" ], "id": "speed_to_lead", "relations": { "related": [ "Lead Handoff", "Inbound", "Lead Routing" ] } }, { "term": "Lead Routing", "aka": "round-robin routing, lead assignment", "category": "revops", "def": "Automated logic that assigns inbound leads to the right rep based on territory, segment, or availability.", "links": [ "Revenue Operations", "Speed-to-Lead", "GTM Engineer" ], "id": "lead_routing", "relations": { "related": [ "Revenue Operations", "Speed-to-Lead", "GTM Engineer" ] } }, { "term": "Gated Content", "category": "demand", "def": "Content (ebooks, reports) placed behind a form to capture lead contact info in exchange for access.", "links": [ "Lead Generation", "Nurture" ], "id": "gated_content", "relations": { "related": [ "Lead Generation", "Nurture" ] } }, { "term": "Content Syndication", "category": "demand", "def": "Distributing content through third-party networks to reach and capture leads beyond your own audience.", "links": [ "Lead Generation", "Demand Generation" ], "id": "content_syndication", "relations": { "related": [ "Lead Generation", "Demand Generation" ] } }, { "term": "Thought Leadership", "category": "demand", "def": "Authority-building content that positions a brand or person as a trusted expert, keeping them top-of-mind during the buying journey.", "links": [ "Content-Led", "Demand Creation" ], "id": "thought_leadership", "relations": { "related": [ "Content-Led", "Demand Creation" ] } }, { "term": "SEO", "aka": "Search Engine Optimization", "category": "channel", "def": "Optimizing content to rank in organic search and capture buyers researching a problem. A TOFU/MOFU demand-capture and creation channel.", "links": [ "Content-Led", "Demand Capture", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU" ], "id": "seo", "relations": { "broader": [ "Content-Led" ], "related": [ "Demand Capture", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU" ] } }, { "term": "PPC", "aka": "Pay-Per-Click, paid search", "category": "channel", "def": "Paid advertising charged per click; a fast demand-capture channel measured on conversion quality, not just click-through.", "links": [ "Paid-Led", "Retargeting", "CAC" ], "id": "ppc", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Retargeting" ], "related": [ "Paid-Led", "CAC" ] } }, { "term": "Retargeting", "aka": "remarketing", "category": "channel", "def": "Serving ads to people who already engaged, to pull them back into the funnel; a mid-funnel reinforcement tactic.", "links": [ "PPC", "Nurture" ], "id": "retargeting", "relations": { "broader": [ "PPC" ], "related": [ "Nurture" ] } }, { "term": "Co-Marketing", "category": "channel", "def": "Partnering with another company to co-produce content or events, sharing reach and credibility.", "links": [ "Channel/Partner-Led", "Event-Led", "Webinar" ], "id": "co_marketing", "relations": { "related": [ "Channel/Partner-Led", "Event-Led", "Webinar" ] } }, { "term": "Webinar", "category": "channel", "def": "A live or recorded online presentation used for mid-funnel education and lead capture.", "links": [ "Event-Led", "Nurture", "Co-Marketing" ], "id": "webinar", "relations": { "broader": [ "Event-Led" ], "related": [ "Nurture", "Co-Marketing" ] } }, { "term": "Marketing Operations", "aka": "MOps", "category": "revops", "def": "The function managing the systems, processes, and data that power marketing campaign execution and reporting.", "links": [ "Marketing Automation Platform", "Revenue Operations", "Attribution" ], "id": "marketing_operations", "relations": { "related": [ "Marketing Automation Platform", "Revenue Operations", "Attribution" ] } }, { "term": "Revenue Operations", "aka": "RevOps", "category": "revops", "def": "The function aligning sales, marketing, customer success, and finance around shared processes, data, and the analytics layer — designing the dashboards and rules that run the GTM engine.", "links": [ "GTM Engineer", "Sales Forecasting", "Pipeline Coverage", "Stage Definitions", "CRM", "GTM OS", "Agentic GTM" ], "note": "RevOps governs the systems you have; GTM engineering builds new ones. ~9 of 10 GTM-engineer responsibilities also appear in RevOps listings.", "id": "revenue_operations", "relations": { "related": [ "GTM Engineer", "Sales Forecasting", "Pipeline Coverage", "Stage Definitions", "CRM", "GTM OS", "Agentic GTM" ] } }, { "term": "GTM Engineer", "aka": "go-to-market engineer", "category": "revops", "def": "A technical revenue role that builds and automates the systems powering outbound: ICP data pipelines, enrichment, lead routing, signal-to-action workflows, and tool integrations. Builds the machine SDRs used to run by hand.", "links": [ "Clay", "Data Enrichment", "Signal-to-Action", "Revenue Operations", "Sales Engagement Platform", "Agentic GTM", "GTM OS" ], "note": "Emerged ~2022–2023; ~205% YoY posting growth into 2026. Clay appears in ~84% of stacks; AI coding tools (Cursor, Claude Code) ~70% adoption.", "id": "gtm_engineer", "relations": { "related": [ "Clay", "Data Enrichment", "Signal-to-Action", "Revenue Operations", "Sales Engagement Platform", "Agentic GTM", "GTM OS" ] } }, { "term": "Data Enrichment", "aka": "enrichment, waterfall enrichment", "category": "revops", "def": "Augmenting contact/account records with data from multiple providers (a 'waterfall' tries sources in sequence) to improve targeting and personalization.", "links": [ "Clay", "GTM Engineer", "Firmographic Data", "Technographic Data" ], "id": "data_enrichment", "relations": { "related": [ "Clay", "GTM Engineer", "Firmographic Data", "Technographic Data" ] } }, { "term": "CRM", "aka": "Customer Relationship Management (Salesforce, HubSpot)", "category": "stack", "def": "The system of record for accounts, contacts, opportunities, and pipeline. The hub the GTM stack integrates around.", "links": [ "Revenue Operations", "Pipeline", "Marketing Automation Platform" ], "id": "crm", "relations": { "related": [ "Revenue Operations", "Pipeline", "Marketing Automation Platform" ] } }, { "term": "Marketing Automation Platform", "aka": "MAP (Marketo, Pardot, HubSpot)", "category": "stack", "def": "The system that executes lead scoring, nurture flows, and campaign automation and syncs to CRM.", "links": [ "Lead Scoring", "Nurture", "CRM", "Marketing Operations" ], "id": "marketing_automation_platform", "relations": { "related": [ "Lead Scoring", "Nurture", "CRM", "Marketing Operations" ] } }, { "term": "Sales Engagement Platform", "aka": "SEP (Outreach, Salesloft)", "category": "stack", "def": "Tooling that manages multi-step outbound sequences (email, call, social) and tracks rep activity.", "links": [ "Sales Sequence", "Outbound-Led", "SDR / BDR", "Signal-to-Action" ], "id": "sales_engagement_platform", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Sequence", "Outbound-Led", "SDR / BDR", "Signal-to-Action" ] } }, { "term": "Clay", "category": "stack", "def": "A workflow and enrichment orchestration platform GTM engineers use as a 'workshop' — pulling data from many sources, applying AI logic, and pushing results into CRM or sequencers.", "links": [ "GTM Engineer", "Data Enrichment", "Signal-to-Action" ], "id": "clay", "relations": { "related": [ "GTM Engineer", "Data Enrichment", "Signal-to-Action" ] } }, { "term": "Business Intelligence", "aka": "BI (Looker, Tableau, Sigma)", "category": "stack", "def": "The analytics layer turning raw GTM activity into the dashboards leadership uses to manage the motion. Where RevOps lives.", "links": [ "Revenue Operations", "Attribution", "Sales Forecasting" ], "id": "business_intelligence", "relations": { "related": [ "Revenue Operations", "Attribution", "Sales Forecasting" ] } }, { "term": "Sales Sequence", "aka": "cadence", "category": "sales", "def": "A predefined series of outbound touches across channels, executed via an SEP, designed to book meetings.", "links": [ "Sales Engagement Platform", "Cold Email", "Booking Rate", "SDR / BDR" ], "id": "sales_sequence", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Engagement Platform", "Cold Email", "Booking Rate", "SDR / BDR" ] } }, { "term": "Cold Email", "category": "sales", "def": "Unsolicited outbound email to prospects who haven't engaged. Depends on deliverability, list quality, and personalization at scale.", "links": [ "Outbound-Led", "Email Deliverability", "Domain Warm-Up", "Sales Sequence" ], "id": "cold_email", "relations": { "related": [ "Outbound-Led", "Email Deliverability", "Domain Warm-Up", "Sales Sequence" ] } }, { "term": "Email Deliverability", "category": "sales", "def": "Whether outbound email actually lands in the inbox; managed via domain reputation, warm-up, and volume control.", "links": [ "Cold Email", "Domain Warm-Up" ], "id": "email_deliverability", "relations": { "related": [ "Cold Email", "Domain Warm-Up" ] } }, { "term": "Domain Warm-Up", "category": "sales", "def": "Gradually ramping sending volume on a new domain to build sender reputation and protect deliverability.", "links": [ "Email Deliverability", "Cold Email" ], "id": "domain_warm_up", "relations": { "related": [ "Email Deliverability", "Cold Email" ] } }, { "term": "SDR / BDR", "aka": "Sales/Business Development Representative, xDR", "category": "sales", "def": "Entry-level sales role focused on finding and qualifying new prospects and booking meetings to feed AEs. SDR often = inbound; BDR often = outbound (usage varies).", "links": [ "Account Executive", "Sales Sequence", "Booking Rate", "BANT" ], "id": "sdr_bdr", "relations": { "related": [ "Account Executive", "Sales Sequence", "Booking Rate", "BANT" ] } }, { "term": "Account Executive", "aka": "AE", "category": "sales", "def": "The quota-carrying rep who runs discovery, demos, and negotiation and owns closing the deal.", "links": [ "Sales-Led Growth", "Opportunity", "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost", "MEDDIC", "Quota" ], "id": "account_executive", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales-Led Growth", "Opportunity", "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost", "MEDDIC", "Quota" ] } }, { "term": "Account Manager", "aka": "AM", "category": "sales", "def": "Owns the ongoing relationship with existing accounts, focused on retention and growth post-sale.", "links": [ "Customer Success", "Account Expansion", "NRR" ], "id": "account_manager", "relations": { "related": [ "Customer Success", "Account Expansion", "NRR" ] } }, { "term": "Customer Success", "aka": "CS, CSM", "category": "sales", "def": "The post-sale function ensuring customers achieve their desired outcomes, driving adoption, retention, and expansion. Not 'support with a nicer name'.", "links": [ "Onboarding", "Feature Adoption", "Churn", "NRR", "Account Expansion", "Bowtie Model" ], "id": "customer_success", "relations": { "related": [ "Onboarding", "Feature Adoption", "Churn", "NRR", "Account Expansion", "Bowtie Model" ] } }, { "term": "Sales Engineer", "aka": "SE, solutions engineer", "category": "sales", "def": "The technical seller who provides proof (demos, POCs, architecture) alongside the AE in complex deals.", "links": [ "Account Executive", "Proof of Concept", "Sales-Led Growth" ], "id": "sales_engineer", "relations": { "related": [ "Account Executive", "Proof of Concept", "Sales-Led Growth" ] } }, { "term": "Deal Desk", "category": "sales", "def": "A team/process that manages complex deals for pricing, approvals, compliance, and profitability.", "links": [ "Pricing & Packaging", "Revenue Operations" ], "id": "deal_desk", "relations": { "related": [ "Pricing & Packaging", "Revenue Operations" ] } }, { "term": "Field Sales", "category": "sales", "def": "An outside-sales model where reps meet prospects in person, typical for high-value enterprise deals.", "links": [ "Sales-Led Growth", "Inside Sales" ], "id": "field_sales", "relations": { "contrasts": [ "Inside Sales" ], "related": [ "Sales-Led Growth" ] } }, { "term": "Inside Sales", "category": "sales", "def": "Selling remotely (phone, video, email) rather than in person; higher velocity, lower cost per touch.", "links": [ "Field Sales", "SDR / BDR", "Sales Velocity" ], "id": "inside_sales", "relations": { "contrasts": [ "Field Sales" ], "related": [ "SDR / BDR", "Sales Velocity" ] } }, { "term": "Discovery", "aka": "discovery call", "category": "sales", "def": "The early sales conversation to understand the buyer's situation, pain, and process before proposing a solution.", "links": [ "SPICED", "MEDDIC", "Identify Pain" ], "id": "discovery", "relations": { "related": [ "SPICED", "MEDDIC", "Identify Pain" ] } }, { "term": "Proof of Concept", "aka": "POC, pilot", "category": "sales", "def": "A limited trial proving the product works for the buyer's specific case before full commitment.", "links": [ "Sales Engineer", "Free Trial", "Critical Event" ], "id": "proof_of_concept", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Engineer", "Free Trial", "Critical Event" ] } }, { "term": "Quota", "category": "sales", "def": "The revenue target a rep or team is expected to hit in a period; the denominator for pipeline-coverage math.", "links": [ "Pipeline Coverage", "Bookings", "Account Executive" ], "id": "quota", "relations": { "related": [ "Pipeline Coverage", "Bookings", "Account Executive" ] } }, { "term": "Rules of Engagement", "category": "revops", "def": "The agreed rules governing who works which leads/accounts and how handoffs occur, preventing conflict and leakage.", "links": [ "Lead Routing", "Sales-Marketing Alignment", "Stage Definitions" ], "id": "rules_of_engagement", "relations": { "related": [ "Lead Routing", "Sales-Marketing Alignment", "Stage Definitions" ] } }, { "term": "Stage Definitions", "category": "revops", "def": "Explicit, enforced criteria for what each pipeline stage means, so forecasts are consistent and deals don't get stuck or skipped.", "links": [ "Sales Stages", "Sales Forecasting", "Revenue Operations" ], "id": "stage_definitions", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Stages", "Sales Forecasting", "Revenue Operations" ] } }, { "term": "Sales Forecasting", "aka": "forecast, commit", "category": "metrics", "def": "Predicting future revenue from historical data, trends, and current pipeline. 'Commit' is the number a rep stands behind.", "links": [ "Pipeline Coverage", "Sales Velocity", "Stage Definitions", "Deal Health" ], "id": "sales_forecasting", "relations": { "related": [ "Pipeline Coverage", "Sales Velocity", "Stage Definitions", "Deal Health" ] } }, { "term": "Deal Health", "aka": "deal scoring", "category": "metrics", "def": "A scored read on how likely an opportunity is to close, often derived from qualification (e.g. MEDDPICC) completeness, feeding the forecast.", "links": [ "MEDDIC", "Sales Forecasting", "Win Rate" ], "id": "deal_health", "relations": { "related": [ "MEDDIC", "Sales Forecasting", "Win Rate" ] } }, { "term": "Pipeline Coverage", "aka": "pipeline-to-quota ratio", "category": "metrics", "def": "Pipeline value divided by quota, estimating whether there's enough in-progress business to hit target. ~3–4x is a common healthy SLG benchmark.", "links": [ "Pipeline", "Quota", "Sales Forecasting" ], "id": "pipeline_coverage", "relations": { "related": [ "Pipeline", "Quota", "Sales Forecasting" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Pipeline_Coverage = open_pipeline_value / quota", "inputs": [ "Quota" ], "unit": "ratio", "orientation": "higher_is_better", "benchmark": { "good": "3-4x (SLG)", "note": "Required multiple rises as win rate falls." } } }, { "term": "Sales Velocity", "category": "metrics", "def": "The rate at which deals move through the pipeline to generate revenue — a function of opportunity count, average deal size, win rate, and cycle length.", "links": [ "Sales Cycle", "Win Rate", "Average Deal Size", "Pipeline" ], "id": "sales_velocity", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Cycle", "Win Rate", "Average Deal Size", "Pipeline" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Sales_Velocity = (num_opportunities * win_rate * average_deal_size) / sales_cycle_length", "inputs": [ "Win Rate", "Average Deal Size", "Sales Cycle" ], "unit": "currency_per_time", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "Sales Cycle", "aka": "sales cycle length", "category": "metrics", "def": "The average time from first opportunity to closed-won. Longer for high-ACV, multi-stakeholder deals.", "links": [ "Sales Velocity", "ACV", "MEDDIC" ], "id": "sales_cycle", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Velocity", "ACV", "MEDDIC" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Sales_Cycle = avg(close_date - opportunity_created_date)", "inputs": [], "unit": "days", "orientation": "lower_is_better" } }, { "term": "Win Rate", "category": "metrics", "def": "The percentage of qualified opportunities that become closed-won. ~20–25% on qualified oppties is a common SLG benchmark.", "links": [ "Opportunity", "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost", "Sales Velocity", "Coefficient Compression" ], "id": "win_rate", "relations": { "related": [ "Opportunity", "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost", "Sales Velocity", "Coefficient Compression" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Win_Rate = closed_won / (closed_won + closed_lost)", "inputs": [ "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost" ], "unit": "percent", "orientation": "higher_is_better", "benchmark": { "good": "20-25% on qualified oppties (SLG)", "note": "Benchmark shifts by segment and stage of measurement." } } }, { "term": "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost", "category": "metrics", "def": "Terminal opportunity outcomes — a deal signed (won) or definitively dead (lost). Lost deals often re-enter nurture rather than disappearing.", "links": [ "Opportunity", "Win Rate", "Nurture" ], "id": "closed_won_closed_lost", "relations": { "related": [ "Opportunity", "Win Rate", "Nurture" ] } }, { "term": "Booking Rate", "category": "metrics", "def": "The percentage of outbound touches/conversations that result in a scheduled meeting — a core SDR performance metric.", "links": [ "SDR / BDR", "Sales Sequence", "Outbound-Led" ], "id": "booking_rate", "relations": { "related": [ "SDR / BDR", "Sales Sequence", "Outbound-Led" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Booking_Rate = meetings_booked / outbound_touches", "inputs": [], "unit": "percent", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "Bookings", "category": "metrics", "def": "The total dollar value of new contracts signed in a period (in ACV or TCV) — a forward growth indicator.", "links": [ "Billings", "ACV", "TCV", "Quota" ], "id": "bookings", "relations": { "related": [ "Billings", "ACV", "TCV", "Quota" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Bookings = sum(new_contract_value_signed)", "inputs": [ "ACV", "TCV" ], "unit": "currency", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "Billings", "category": "metrics", "def": "The total value of payments actually collected for committed contracts (vs. bookings, which is signed value).", "links": [ "Bookings", "TCV" ], "id": "billings", "relations": { "related": [ "Bookings", "TCV" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Billings = sum(payments_collected)", "inputs": [], "unit": "currency", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "ARR", "aka": "Annual Recurring Revenue", "category": "metrics", "def": "Contracted, recurring (usually subscription) revenue normalized to one year. The headline SaaS growth metric.", "links": [ "MRR", "ACV", "NRR", "TCV" ], "id": "arr", "relations": { "related": [ "MRR", "ACV", "NRR", "TCV" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "ARR = MRR * 12", "inputs": [ "MRR" ], "unit": "currency_per_year", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "MRR", "aka": "Monthly Recurring Revenue", "category": "metrics", "def": "Recurring revenue normalized to one month; ARR/12 for steady subscriptions.", "links": [ "ARR", "Expansion Revenue", "Churn" ], "id": "mrr", "relations": { "related": [ "ARR", "Expansion Revenue", "Churn" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "MRR = sum(active_subscription_monthly_value)", "inputs": [], "unit": "currency_per_month", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "ACV", "aka": "Annual / Average Contract Value", "category": "metrics", "def": "The annualized value of a customer contract. Average ACV benchmarks deal size and is the primary input to choosing a GTM motion.", "links": [ "TCV", "ARR", "GTM Motion", "Average Deal Size", "ASP" ], "note": "Rough motion bands: PLG <$5K, hybrid $5K–$50K, sales-led >$50K.", "id": "acv", "relations": { "related": [ "TCV", "ARR", "GTM Motion", "Average Deal Size", "ASP" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "ACV = TCV / contract_term_years", "inputs": [ "TCV" ], "unit": "currency_per_year", "orientation": "context_dependent", "note": "Average ACV = total ACV / number of contracts." } }, { "term": "TCV", "aka": "Total Contract Value", "category": "metrics", "def": "The cumulative value of a contract across its full term, including recurring and one-time charges.", "links": [ "ACV", "ARR", "Bookings" ], "id": "tcv", "relations": { "related": [ "ACV", "ARR", "Bookings" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "TCV = (ACV * term_years) + one_time_fees", "inputs": [ "ACV" ], "unit": "currency", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "ARPA", "aka": "Average Revenue Per Account", "category": "metrics", "def": "Mean recurring revenue per customer account over a period.", "links": [ "ACV", "Average Deal Size" ], "id": "arpa", "relations": { "related": [ "ACV", "Average Deal Size" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "ARPA = total_recurring_revenue / number_of_accounts", "inputs": [], "unit": "currency_per_account", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "ASP", "aka": "Average Selling Price", "category": "metrics", "def": "The average price a product or class of products sells for in a market or channel.", "links": [ "ACV", "Average Deal Size", "Pricing & Packaging" ], "id": "asp", "relations": { "related": [ "ACV", "Average Deal Size", "Pricing & Packaging" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "ASP = total_revenue / units_sold", "inputs": [], "unit": "currency", "orientation": "context_dependent" } }, { "term": "Average Deal Size", "category": "metrics", "def": "Mean revenue value of closed-won deals over a period; used to forecast and to design the motion.", "links": [ "ACV", "Sales Velocity", "Win Rate" ], "id": "average_deal_size", "relations": { "related": [ "ACV", "Sales Velocity", "Win Rate" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Average_Deal_Size = total_closed_won_value / num_closed_won_deals", "inputs": [], "unit": "currency", "orientation": "context_dependent" } }, { "term": "CAC", "aka": "Customer Acquisition Cost", "category": "metrics", "def": "The total sales+marketing cost to acquire one new customer. The core efficiency denominator.", "links": [ "LTV", "LTV:CAC", "CAC Payback", "CPL", "Agent FinOps" ], "id": "cac", "relations": { "related": [ "LTV", "LTV:CAC", "CAC Payback", "CPL", "Agent FinOps" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "CAC = (sales_spend + marketing_spend) / new_customers_acquired", "inputs": [], "unit": "currency_per_customer", "orientation": "lower_is_better" } }, { "term": "CAC Payback", "aka": "CAC payback period", "category": "metrics", "def": "How many months of gross margin it takes to recoup CAC. A core capital-efficiency metric.", "links": [ "CAC", "LTV:CAC" ], "id": "cac_payback", "relations": { "related": [ "CAC", "LTV:CAC" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "CAC_Payback_months = CAC / (ARPA_monthly * gross_margin)", "inputs": [ "CAC", "ARPA" ], "unit": "months", "orientation": "lower_is_better", "benchmark": { "good": "<12 months", "great": "<6 months", "note": "Varies by ACV band and capital cost." } } }, { "term": "CPL", "aka": "Cost Per Lead", "category": "metrics", "def": "The average cost to generate one lead; a top-of-funnel efficiency metric.", "links": [ "CAC", "Lead Generation" ], "id": "cpl", "relations": { "related": [ "CAC", "Lead Generation" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "CPL = campaign_spend / leads_generated", "inputs": [], "unit": "currency_per_lead", "orientation": "lower_is_better" } }, { "term": "LTV", "aka": "Lifetime Value, CLV / LTV", "category": "metrics", "def": "The total revenue (or gross profit) expected from a customer over the whole relationship.", "links": [ "CAC", "LTV:CAC", "Churn", "NRR" ], "id": "ltv", "relations": { "related": [ "CAC", "LTV:CAC", "Churn", "NRR" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "LTV = (ARPA * gross_margin) / churn_rate", "inputs": [ "ARPA", "Churn" ], "unit": "currency", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "LTV:CAC", "aka": "LTV-to-CAC ratio", "category": "metrics", "def": "Lifetime value divided by acquisition cost; a headline measure of GTM efficiency (3:1 is a common rule-of-thumb target).", "links": [ "LTV", "CAC", "CAC Payback" ], "id": "ltv_cac", "relations": { "related": [ "LTV", "CAC", "CAC Payback" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "LTV_CAC = LTV / CAC", "inputs": [ "LTV", "CAC" ], "unit": "ratio", "orientation": "higher_is_better", "benchmark": { "good": "3:1", "great": "5:1", "warning": "<1:1 unsustainable", "note": "Pair with CAC payback; a high ratio with slow payback can still strain cash." } } }, { "term": "Churn", "aka": "churn rate, logo churn, gross revenue churn", "category": "metrics", "def": "The rate at which customers (logo churn) or revenue (revenue churn) is lost over a period. The leak in the bucket.", "links": [ "Retention", "NRR", "GRR", "Customer Success" ], "id": "churn", "relations": { "related": [ "Retention", "NRR", "GRR", "Customer Success" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "revenue_churn = lost_recurring_revenue / starting_recurring_revenue", "inputs": [], "unit": "percent", "orientation": "lower_is_better", "note": "Logo churn uses customer counts; revenue churn uses dollars." } }, { "term": "Retention", "category": "metrics", "def": "The degree to which customers stay and keep paying; the foundation of recurring-revenue economics.", "links": [ "Churn", "NRR", "GRR", "Customer Success" ], "id": "retention", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Cohort Analysis", "GRR", "NRR" ], "related": [ "Churn", "Customer Success" ] } }, { "term": "NRR", "aka": "Net Revenue Retention, NDR", "category": "metrics", "def": "Recurring revenue retained from existing customers including expansion, net of churn and contraction. Above 100% means the base grows without new logos.", "links": [ "GRR", "Expansion Revenue", "Churn", "Account Expansion" ], "id": "nrr", "relations": { "broader": [ "Retention" ], "contrasts": [ "GRR" ], "related": [ "Expansion Revenue", "Churn", "Account Expansion" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "NRR = (starting_ARR + expansion - contraction - churn) / starting_ARR", "inputs": [ "Expansion Revenue", "Churn" ], "unit": "percent", "orientation": "higher_is_better", "benchmark": { "good": ">100%", "great": ">120%", "note": ">100% means the base grows with zero new logos." } } }, { "term": "GRR", "aka": "Gross Revenue Retention", "category": "metrics", "def": "Recurring revenue retained excluding expansion — pure leak measure; capped at 100%.", "links": [ "NRR", "Churn", "Retention" ], "id": "grr", "relations": { "broader": [ "Retention" ], "contrasts": [ "NRR" ], "related": [ "Churn" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "GRR = (starting_ARR - contraction - churn) / starting_ARR", "inputs": [ "Churn" ], "unit": "percent", "orientation": "higher_is_better", "benchmark": { "good": ">90%", "great": ">95%", "note": "Capped at 100%; excludes expansion." } } }, { "term": "Expansion Revenue", "category": "metrics", "def": "Additional recurring revenue from existing customers via upsell, cross-sell, and upgrades.", "links": [ "Upsell", "Cross-Sell", "Account Expansion", "NRR", "Land and Expand" ], "id": "expansion_revenue", "relations": { "related": [ "Upsell", "Cross-Sell", "Account Expansion", "NRR", "Land and Expand" ] } }, { "term": "Account Expansion", "category": "sales", "def": "Growing revenue within existing accounts through upselling, cross-selling, and seat/usage growth.", "links": [ "Expansion Revenue", "Upsell", "Cross-Sell", "Account Manager", "Land and Expand" ], "id": "account_expansion", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Cross-Sell", "Upsell" ], "related": [ "Expansion Revenue", "Account Manager", "Land and Expand" ] } }, { "term": "Upsell", "category": "sales", "def": "Moving a customer to a higher tier or larger plan than they currently have.", "links": [ "Cross-Sell", "Expansion Revenue" ], "id": "upsell", "relations": { "broader": [ "Account Expansion" ], "related": [ "Cross-Sell", "Expansion Revenue" ] } }, { "term": "Cross-Sell", "category": "sales", "def": "Selling an additional, complementary product to an existing customer.", "links": [ "Upsell", "Expansion Revenue" ], "id": "cross_sell", "relations": { "broader": [ "Account Expansion" ], "related": [ "Upsell", "Expansion Revenue" ] } }, { "term": "Land and Expand", "category": "motion", "def": "A motion that wins a small initial footprint, then grows it within the account over time. The economic engine behind NRR.", "links": [ "Bottom-Up Adoption", "Expansion Revenue", "NRR", "Account Expansion" ], "id": "land_and_expand", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM Motion" ], "related": [ "Bottom-Up Adoption", "Expansion Revenue", "NRR", "Account Expansion" ] } }, { "term": "Activation", "aka": "activation milestone, aha moment", "category": "plg", "def": "The point where a new user first experiences core product value; the leading indicator of PLG conversion and retention.", "links": [ "Onboarding", "Product-Led Growth", "Feature Adoption", "PQL" ], "id": "activation", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Time to Value" ], "related": [ "Onboarding", "Product-Led Growth", "Feature Adoption", "PQL" ] } }, { "term": "Onboarding", "category": "plg", "def": "Guiding a new user or customer to first value and successful setup. Owned by CS in SLG, by product design in PLG.", "links": [ "Activation", "Customer Success", "Bowtie Model" ], "id": "onboarding", "relations": { "related": [ "Activation", "Customer Success", "Bowtie Model" ] } }, { "term": "Feature Adoption", "category": "plg", "def": "How many users actively use a specific feature — a proxy for value delivery and stickiness.", "links": [ "Activation", "Stickiness", "Product Analytics" ], "id": "feature_adoption", "relations": { "related": [ "Activation", "Stickiness", "Product Analytics" ] } }, { "term": "Stickiness", "aka": "DAU/MAU ratio", "category": "plg", "def": "How habitually users return; commonly measured as daily-active over monthly-active users.", "links": [ "Feature Adoption", "Retention" ], "id": "stickiness", "relations": { "related": [ "Feature Adoption", "Retention" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Stickiness = DAU / MAU", "inputs": [], "unit": "ratio", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "PQL", "aka": "Product Qualified Lead", "category": "plg", "def": "A lead qualified by in-product behavior (usage hitting expansion-predictive thresholds) rather than marketing engagement. The PLG analog of an MQL.", "links": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Activation", "Hybrid Motion", "Product Analytics" ], "id": "pql", "relations": { "broader": [ "Lead Lifecycle" ], "related": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Activation", "Hybrid Motion", "Product Analytics" ] } }, { "term": "Product Analytics", "category": "plg", "def": "Instrumentation of in-product behavior to learn which features drive activation and which usage patterns predict expansion or churn.", "links": [ "PQL", "Feature Adoption", "Business Intelligence" ], "id": "product_analytics", "relations": { "related": [ "PQL", "Feature Adoption", "Business Intelligence" ] } }, { "term": "Freemium", "category": "pricing", "def": "A permanently free tier that drives adoption and upgrades to paid plans; a core PLG entry mechanism.", "links": [ "Free Trial", "Product-Led Growth", "Self-Serve" ], "id": "freemium", "relations": { "broader": [ "Pricing & Packaging" ], "related": [ "Free Trial", "Product-Led Growth", "Self-Serve" ] } }, { "term": "Free Trial", "category": "pricing", "def": "Time-limited full access to drive activation before a purchase decision.", "links": [ "Freemium", "Activation", "Product-Led Growth" ], "id": "free_trial", "relations": { "broader": [ "Pricing & Packaging" ], "related": [ "Freemium", "Activation", "Product-Led Growth" ] } }, { "term": "ABM", "aka": "Account-Based Marketing", "category": "abm", "def": "A focused motion where marketing and sales jointly target a defined set of high-value accounts with personalized programs, rather than broad audiences. ~87% of high-growth companies use account-based approaches.", "links": [ "MQA", "ICP", "Intent Data", "Named Accounts", "Buying Committee", "Agentic ABM" ], "id": "abm", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Agentic ABM" ], "related": [ "MQA", "ICP", "Intent Data", "Named Accounts", "Buying Committee" ] } }, { "term": "Named Accounts", "aka": "target account list (TAL)", "category": "abm", "def": "The explicit, finite list of accounts a team is assigned to pursue (e.g. '200 named target accounts').", "links": [ "ABM", "ICP", "Account Executive" ], "id": "named_accounts", "relations": { "related": [ "ABM", "ICP", "Account Executive" ] } }, { "term": "VAR", "aka": "Value-Added Reseller", "category": "channel", "def": "A partner that resells your product bundled with their own services (onboarding, training, integration).", "links": [ "Channel/Partner-Led", "Partner Enablement" ], "id": "var", "relations": { "related": [ "Channel/Partner-Led", "Partner Enablement" ] } }, { "term": "Partner Enablement", "category": "channel", "def": "Equipping partners with training, playbooks, and co-marketing so they can sell effectively on your behalf.", "links": [ "Channel/Partner-Led", "VAR", "Sales Enablement" ], "id": "partner_enablement", "relations": { "related": [ "Channel/Partner-Led", "VAR", "Sales Enablement" ] } }, { "term": "Marketplace", "category": "channel", "def": "A platform (e.g. cloud or app marketplace) where your product is listed and transacted inside a partner ecosystem.", "links": [ "Ecosystem-Led", "Channel/Partner-Led" ], "id": "marketplace", "relations": { "related": [ "Ecosystem-Led", "Channel/Partner-Led" ] } }, { "term": "Sales Enablement", "category": "sales", "def": "Equipping reps with the content, tools, training, and playbooks needed to sell effectively and move pipeline faster.", "links": [ "Battlecard", "Sales Playbook", "Pipeline", "Account Executive", "Coefficient Compression" ], "id": "sales_enablement", "relations": { "related": [ "Battlecard", "Sales Playbook", "Pipeline", "Account Executive", "Coefficient Compression" ] } }, { "term": "Sales Playbook", "category": "sales", "def": "The documented, repeatable plays, messaging, and process a team follows for a given motion or segment.", "links": [ "Sales Enablement", "GTM Motion", "Sales Methodology" ], "id": "sales_playbook", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Enablement", "GTM Motion", "Sales Methodology" ] } }, { "term": "Battlecard", "category": "sales", "def": "A quick-reference enablement asset on a competitor or objection — how to position against and respond.", "links": [ "Competitive Positioning", "Sales Enablement" ], "id": "battlecard", "relations": { "related": [ "Competitive Positioning", "Sales Enablement" ] } }, { "term": "Case Study", "category": "demand", "def": "A documented customer success story used as a BOFU proof point.", "links": [ "Proof Points", "Advocacy", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU" ], "id": "case_study", "relations": { "related": [ "Proof Points", "Advocacy", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU" ] } }, { "term": "Advocacy", "aka": "referrals, word-of-mouth", "category": "motion", "def": "Existing customers actively recommending the product, generating high-trust pipeline.", "links": [ "Community-Led", "NPS", "Word-of-Mouth" ], "id": "advocacy", "relations": { "related": [ "Community-Led", "NPS", "Word-of-Mouth" ] } }, { "term": "Word-of-Mouth", "aka": "WOM", "category": "motion", "def": "Organic peer recommendation; the growth mechanism behind community-led motions and much of the dark funnel.", "links": [ "Community-Led", "Advocacy", "Dark Funnel" ], "id": "word_of_mouth", "relations": { "related": [ "Community-Led", "Advocacy", "Dark Funnel" ] } }, { "term": "NPS", "aka": "Net Promoter Score", "category": "metrics", "def": "A loyalty metric based on how likely customers are to recommend the product.", "links": [ "Advocacy", "Customer Success", "Retention" ], "id": "nps", "relations": { "related": [ "Advocacy", "Customer Success", "Retention" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "NPS = %promoters - %detractors", "inputs": [], "unit": "score_-100_to_100", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "SLA", "aka": "Service Level Agreement", "category": "revops", "def": "A committed standard between teams or vendor and customer — e.g. marketing-to-sales lead-response time, or support resolution times.", "links": [ "Speed-to-Lead", "Lead Handoff", "Sales-Marketing Alignment" ], "id": "sla", "relations": { "related": [ "Speed-to-Lead", "Lead Handoff", "Sales-Marketing Alignment" ] } }, { "term": "Inbound", "category": "demand", "def": "Demand where the prospect initiates contact, having been pulled in by content/SEO/brand. Contrast with outbound.", "links": [ "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led", "Outbound-Led", "Demand Generation" ], "id": "inbound", "relations": { "contrasts": [ "Outbound-Led" ], "related": [ "Marketing-Led / Inbound-Led", "Demand Generation" ] } }, { "term": "AIDA", "aka": "Attention, Interest, Desire, Action", "category": "framework", "def": "A classic funnel/communication model of buyer progression, historically used by marketing.", "links": [ "Funnel", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU" ], "id": "aida", "relations": { "related": [ "Funnel", "TOFU / MOFU / BOFU" ] } }, { "term": "GTM Operating System", "aka": "GTM Partners' eight pillars", "category": "framework", "def": "An advisory framework (GTM Partners) defining the core pillars every GTM strategy should cover; widely used as a checklist of components.", "links": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy", "GTM as a System" ], "id": "gtm_operating_system", "relations": { "related": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy", "GTM as a System" ] } }, { "term": "Bowtie Model", "category": "framework", "def": "Winning by Design's customer-journey model extending the funnel through post-sale: Acquisition (lead gen → development → qualification → closed-won) → Handoff (onboarding, first value) → Retention & Expansion (adoption → renewal → expansion). Visualizes the whole recurring-revenue lifecycle as a bowtie.", "links": [ "Funnel", "SPICED", "Customer Success", "NRR", "Land and Expand", "Outer Flywheel" ], "id": "bowtie_model", "relations": { "related": [ "Funnel", "SPICED", "Customer Success", "NRR", "Land and Expand", "Outer Flywheel" ] } }, { "term": "Sales Methodology", "category": "framework", "def": "A comprehensive set of principles guiding HOW a team sells across the whole cycle (e.g. MEDDIC, Challenger, SPICED), distinct from a one-time qualification framework.", "links": [ "Sales Qualification Framework", "MEDDIC", "SPICED", "Sales Playbook" ], "id": "sales_methodology", "relations": { "narrower": [ "MEDDIC", "SPICED", "The Challenger Sale" ], "related": [ "Sales Qualification Framework", "Sales Playbook" ] } }, { "term": "Sales Qualification Framework", "category": "framework", "def": "A checklist applied early to assess whether a lead/deal is worth pursuing (BANT, CHAMP, etc.). Often combined: a light one for SDRs, a deep one for AEs.", "links": [ "BANT", "CHAMP", "MEDDIC", "Sales Methodology" ], "id": "sales_qualification_framework", "relations": { "narrower": [ "BANT", "CHAMP" ], "related": [ "MEDDIC", "Sales Methodology" ] } }, { "term": "BANT", "aka": "Budget, Authority, Need, Timing", "category": "framework", "def": "IBM's 1950s lightweight qualification framework. Four criteria for a fast read on whether a prospect can buy. Best for high-velocity, low-ACV, short-cycle deals with 1–2 decision makers.", "links": [ "Sales Qualification Framework", "MEDDIC", "CHAMP", "SDR / BDR" ], "id": "bant", "relations": { "broader": [ "Sales Qualification Framework" ], "related": [ "MEDDIC", "CHAMP", "SDR / BDR" ] } }, { "term": "CHAMP", "aka": "Challenges, Authority, Money, Prioritization", "category": "framework", "def": "A relationship/challenge-first qualification framework, leading with the buyer's problems rather than budget.", "links": [ "BANT", "Sales Qualification Framework" ], "id": "champ", "relations": { "broader": [ "Sales Qualification Framework" ], "related": [ "BANT" ] } }, { "term": "MEDDIC", "aka": "Metrics, Economic Buyer, Decision Criteria, Decision Process, Identify Pain, Champion; ext. MEDDICC (+Competition), MEDDPICC (+Paper Process)", "category": "framework", "def": "A deal-qualification methodology (Dunkel & Napoli, PTC, mid-1990s) for complex enterprise sales, applied continuously across the cycle. Best for $50K+ ACV, multi-stakeholder, long-cycle deals; its eight extended qualifiers map directly to deal-health scoring and forecasting.", "links": [ "Economic Buyer", "Champion", "Identify Pain", "Decision Criteria", "Decision Process", "Deal Health", "Buying Committee", "Sales-Led Growth" ], "note": "Strong on closing, weaker on post-sale recurring revenue — which is why SPICED emerged for SaaS.", "id": "meddic", "relations": { "broader": [ "Sales Methodology" ], "related": [ "Economic Buyer", "Champion", "Identify Pain", "Decision Criteria", "Decision Process", "Deal Health", "Buying Committee", "Sales-Led Growth" ] } }, { "term": "SPICED", "aka": "Situation, Pain, Impact, Critical Event, Decision", "category": "framework", "def": "Winning by Design's methodology focused on recurring impact and understanding the buyer's world; flexible across sales, CS, and account management. Built for the recurring-revenue era.", "links": [ "Bowtie Model", "Identify Pain", "Critical Event", "Sales Methodology", "Discovery" ], "id": "spiced", "relations": { "broader": [ "Sales Methodology" ], "related": [ "Bowtie Model", "Identify Pain", "Critical Event", "Discovery" ] } }, { "term": "Economic Buyer", "category": "sales", "def": "The person with financial authority to approve the purchase. A key MEDDIC qualifier.", "links": [ "MEDDIC", "Buying Committee", "Champion" ], "id": "economic_buyer", "relations": { "broader": [ "Buying Committee" ], "related": [ "MEDDIC", "Champion" ] } }, { "term": "Champion", "category": "sales", "def": "An internal advocate inside the buying account who sells on your behalf and navigates the org. A key MEDDIC qualifier.", "links": [ "MEDDIC", "Economic Buyer", "Buying Committee" ], "id": "champion", "relations": { "broader": [ "Buying Committee" ], "related": [ "MEDDIC", "Economic Buyer" ] } }, { "term": "Identify Pain", "category": "sales", "def": "Surfacing the buyer's real, quantified problem — the basis for value and urgency. Shared across MEDDIC and SPICED.", "links": [ "MEDDIC", "SPICED", "Discovery", "Value Proposition" ], "id": "identify_pain", "relations": { "related": [ "MEDDIC", "SPICED", "Discovery", "Value Proposition" ] } }, { "term": "Decision Criteria", "category": "sales", "def": "The explicit factors a buyer will use to choose a vendor. Shaping these in your favor is core to complex-deal strategy.", "links": [ "MEDDIC", "Decision Process", "Competitive Positioning" ], "id": "decision_criteria", "relations": { "related": [ "MEDDIC", "Decision Process", "Competitive Positioning" ] } }, { "term": "Decision Process", "category": "sales", "def": "The actual steps (technical eval, procurement, legal, sign-off) the buyer takes to purchase — mapping it prevents late-stage surprises.", "links": [ "MEDDIC", "Buying Committee", "Sales Cycle" ], "id": "decision_process", "relations": { "related": [ "MEDDIC", "Buying Committee", "Sales Cycle" ] } }, { "term": "Critical Event", "aka": "compelling event", "category": "sales", "def": "A dated, external trigger creating urgency and a deadline to buy (contract expiry, compliance date, launch). The 'why now' in deal form.", "links": [ "SPICED", "Why Now", "Sales Forecasting" ], "id": "critical_event", "relations": { "related": [ "SPICED", "Why Now", "Sales Forecasting" ] } }, { "term": "Launch", "aka": "product launch, GTM launch", "category": "strategy", "def": "The coordinated moment of bringing a product/feature to market — technical release, marketing kickoff, and sales activation in sync. Tiered by impact (major vs. minor releases).", "links": [ "Product Marketing", "Sales Enablement", "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy" ], "id": "launch", "relations": { "related": [ "Product Marketing", "Sales Enablement", "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy" ] } }, { "term": "Product Marketing", "aka": "PMM", "category": "strategy", "def": "The function owning positioning, messaging, launch, and sales enablement — translating the product into market language and feeding the demand-gen engine. Supports all funnel stages.", "links": [ "Positioning", "Messaging Framework", "Launch", "Sales Enablement", "Demand Generation" ], "id": "product_marketing", "relations": { "related": [ "Positioning", "Messaging Framework", "Launch", "Sales Enablement", "Demand Generation" ] } }, { "term": "Operating Cadence", "aka": "operating rhythm", "category": "revops", "def": "The recurring meeting/review structure (weekly forecast, pipeline review, QBR) that keeps the GTM engine accountable.", "links": [ "Sales Forecasting", "QBR", "Revenue Operations" ], "id": "operating_cadence", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Forecasting", "QBR", "Revenue Operations" ] } }, { "term": "QBR", "aka": "Quarterly Business Review", "category": "revops", "def": "A periodic review of performance against targets across the revenue org (and sometimes with customers).", "links": [ "Operating Cadence", "Sales Forecasting" ], "id": "qbr", "relations": { "related": [ "Operating Cadence", "Sales Forecasting" ] } }, { "term": "Leading vs Lagging Indicators", "category": "metrics", "def": "Leading indicators are early signals (demo requests, conversations) that predict outcomes; lagging indicators are the outcomes themselves (revenue, CAC). Healthy GTM measurement tracks both.", "links": [ "Sales Forecasting", "Pipeline" ], "id": "leading_vs_lagging_indicators", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Forecasting", "Pipeline" ] } }, { "term": "Vanity Metrics", "category": "metrics", "def": "Numbers that look good but don't tie to revenue (impressions, raw downloads). The trap of optimizing for activity instead of outcomes.", "links": [ "Leading vs Lagging Indicators", "Attribution" ], "id": "vanity_metrics", "relations": { "contrasts": [ "Leading vs Lagging Indicators" ], "related": [ "Attribution" ] } }, { "term": "Minimum Viable GTM", "category": "strategy", "def": "The smallest operational GTM — ICP defined, messaging locked, first outreach running — shippable in ~30 days. Paired with the 90-day launch cycle as the common time units.", "links": [ "ICP", "Messaging Framework", "Launch", "90-Day Plan" ], "id": "minimum_viable_gtm", "relations": { "related": [ "ICP", "Messaging Framework", "Launch", "90-Day Plan" ] } }, { "term": "90-Day Plan", "aka": "90-day launch plan", "category": "strategy", "def": "The standard execution horizon for a GTM launch: phased (market analysis → positioning → channels/enablement → launch) with decision gates, then measure-and-adjust.", "links": [ "Launch", "Minimum Viable GTM", "Operating Cadence" ], "id": "90_day_plan", "relations": { "related": [ "Launch", "Minimum Viable GTM", "Operating Cadence" ] } }, { "term": "Product-Market Fit", "aka": "PMF", "category": "strategy", "def": "The state where a product satisfies strong, sustained demand in a good market — customers buy, use it repeatedly, and recommend it organically. The prerequisite for scalable GTM: trying to scale a motion before PMF amplifies waste rather than growth.", "links": [ "Go-to-Market Fit", "ICP", "Value Proposition", "North Star Metric", "Retention" ], "note": "Marc Andreessen's framing: a good market with a product that can satisfy it. Often pressure-tested with the Sean Ellis survey (% who'd be 'very disappointed' if the product vanished; ~40%+ is the rule of thumb).", "id": "product_market_fit", "relations": { "broader": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy" ], "contrasts": [ "Go-to-Market Fit" ], "related": [ "ICP", "Value Proposition", "North Star Metric", "Retention" ] } }, { "term": "Go-to-Market Fit", "aka": "GTM Fit", "category": "strategy", "def": "Having a sales motion, channels, pricing, and execution model that match the product and its buyers well enough to acquire and expand customers repeatably and efficiently. PMF is the product-market match; GTM Fit is the engine that monetizes it working.", "links": [ "Product-Market Fit", "GTM Motion", "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy", "LTV:CAC" ], "note": "A product can have PMF but lack GTM Fit (great retention, broken or unprofitable acquisition) — a common and dangerous failure mode.", "id": "go_to_market_fit", "relations": { "broader": [ "Go-to-Market (GTM) Strategy" ], "contrasts": [ "Product-Market Fit" ], "related": [ "GTM Motion", "LTV:CAC" ] } }, { "term": "Jobs to be Done", "aka": "JTBD", "category": "positioning", "def": "A lens for understanding the functional, emotional, and social 'job' a customer hires a product to do. Shifts focus from product features to the underlying progress the customer is trying to make, sharpening positioning and surfacing unmet needs.", "links": [ "Positioning", "Value Proposition", "Buyer Persona", "Product-Market Fit" ], "id": "jobs_to_be_done", "relations": { "related": [ "Positioning", "Value Proposition", "Buyer Persona", "Product-Market Fit" ] } }, { "term": "Time to Value", "aka": "TTV", "category": "plg", "def": "How long it takes a new user or customer to reach the product's core value. Shorter TTV lifts activation, retention, and expansion; it is the lever most directly under product/onboarding control in a PLG motion.", "links": [ "Activation", "Onboarding", "Product-Led Growth" ], "id": "time_to_value", "relations": { "broader": [ "Activation" ], "related": [ "Onboarding", "Product-Led Growth" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "TTV = first_value_event_date - signup_date", "inputs": [], "unit": "time", "orientation": "lower_is_better" } }, { "term": "North Star Metric", "aka": "NSM", "category": "plg", "def": "The single metric that best captures the core value a product delivers and predicts long-term growth — the number teams align product and GTM decisions around. Strong ones measure delivered value (e.g. messages sent, nights booked), not vanity activity.", "links": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Activation", "Feature Adoption", "Vanity Metrics" ], "id": "north_star_metric", "relations": { "related": [ "Product-Led Growth", "Activation", "Feature Adoption", "Vanity Metrics" ] } }, { "term": "Cohort Analysis", "aka": "cohort retention", "category": "metrics", "def": "Tracking the retention, engagement, or expansion of a defined group of customers (usually grouped by signup period) over time, rather than blended averages. Reveals whether the product is actually improving and exposes churn that averages hide.", "links": [ "Retention", "Churn", "Product Analytics", "NRR" ], "id": "cohort_analysis", "relations": { "broader": [ "Retention" ], "related": [ "Churn", "Product Analytics", "NRR" ] } }, { "term": "Win/Loss Analysis", "category": "metrics", "def": "A structured post-decision review capturing why buyers chose you (win) or a competitor/no-decision (loss). The feedback loop that corrects ICP, positioning, messaging, and the sales process based on real buyer reasons rather than internal assumptions.", "links": [ "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost", "Competitive Positioning", "Sales Playbook", "Product Marketing" ], "id": "win_loss_analysis", "relations": { "related": [ "Closed-Won / Closed-Lost", "Competitive Positioning", "Sales Playbook", "Product Marketing" ] } }, { "term": "Rule of 40", "category": "metrics", "def": "A SaaS health benchmark: revenue growth rate (%) plus profit margin (%) should sum to at least 40. Codifies the growth-versus-profitability trade-off — high growth can justify low margin and vice versa, but failing both signals trouble.", "links": [ "Magic Number", "ARR", "CAC Payback", "NRR" ], "id": "rule_of_40", "relations": { "related": [ "Magic Number", "ARR", "CAC Payback", "NRR" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Rule_of_40 = revenue_growth_rate_pct + profit_margin_pct", "inputs": [ "ARR" ], "unit": "percent_sum", "orientation": "higher_is_better", "benchmark": { "good": ">=40", "note": "Either lever can dominate; failing both signals trouble." } } }, { "term": "Magic Number", "aka": "SaaS Magic Number", "category": "metrics", "def": "A sales-and-marketing efficiency ratio: net new ARR in a quarter divided by the prior quarter's S&M spend. Above ~1.0 suggests acquisition is efficient enough to invest harder; below ~0.75 says fix the engine before spending more.", "links": [ "CAC", "CAC Payback", "LTV:CAC", "Rule of 40", "Go-to-Market Fit" ], "id": "magic_number", "relations": { "related": [ "CAC", "CAC Payback", "LTV:CAC", "Rule of 40", "Go-to-Market Fit" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Magic_Number = (current_Q_ARR - prior_Q_ARR) / prior_Q_SnM_spend", "inputs": [ "ARR", "CAC" ], "unit": "ratio", "orientation": "higher_is_better", "benchmark": { "good": ">1.0 invest harder", "warning": "<0.75 fix the engine first" } } }, { "term": "Forecast Accuracy", "category": "metrics", "def": "How closely sales forecasts match actual results over time. The credibility metric for RevOps and the basis for reliable planning, hiring, and capital allocation; poor accuracy usually traces back to loose stage definitions.", "links": [ "Sales Forecasting", "Pipeline Coverage", "Deal Health", "Stage Definitions" ], "id": "forecast_accuracy", "relations": { "related": [ "Sales Forecasting", "Pipeline Coverage", "Deal Health", "Stage Definitions" ] }, "metric": { "formula": "Forecast_Accuracy = 1 - abs(actual - forecast) / actual", "inputs": [ "Sales Forecasting" ], "unit": "percent", "orientation": "higher_is_better" } }, { "term": "Multi-Threading", "aka": "multithreading", "category": "sales", "def": "Building relationships with several stakeholders across the buying committee at once, rather than relying on a single contact. Reduces single-point-of-failure risk (your champion leaves, a blocker emerges) and tends to raise win rates on complex deals.", "links": [ "Buying Committee", "Champion", "MEDDIC", "Decision Process" ], "id": "multi_threading", "relations": { "related": [ "Buying Committee", "Champion", "MEDDIC", "Decision Process" ] } }, { "term": "Mutual Action Plan", "aka": "MAP, close plan, joint execution plan", "category": "sales", "def": "A shared, dated plan co-owned by the seller and the buyer that lays out the steps, owners, and milestones from evaluation to signed contract and go-live. Surfaces the real decision process and creates joint accountability to a timeline.", "links": [ "Decision Process", "Champion", "Account Executive", "Critical Event", "Sales Stages" ], "id": "mutual_action_plan", "relations": { "related": [ "Decision Process", "Champion", "Account Executive", "Critical Event", "Sales Stages" ] } }, { "term": "Territory Management", "aka": "territory planning, carving", "category": "sales", "def": "Dividing the market into territories (geographic, vertical, or account-based) and assigning reps to maximize coverage, minimize overlap and conflict, and balance quota potential. A core RevOps planning exercise each fiscal year.", "links": [ "Account Executive", "Sales-Led Growth", "Lead Routing", "Quota", "Rules of Engagement" ], "id": "territory_management", "relations": { "related": [ "Account Executive", "Sales-Led Growth", "Lead Routing", "Quota", "Rules of Engagement" ] } }, { "term": "The Challenger Sale", "aka": "Challenger methodology", "category": "framework", "def": "A sales methodology (Dixon & Adamson) holding that top performers don't primarily build relationships — they teach the buyer something new about their business, tailor the message to each stakeholder, and take control of the commercial conversation. Built for complex, consensus-driven B2B buying.", "links": [ "Sales Methodology", "Thought Leadership", "Discovery", "Multi-Threading" ], "id": "the_challenger_sale", "relations": { "broader": [ "Sales Methodology" ], "related": [ "Thought Leadership", "Discovery", "Multi-Threading" ] } }, { "term": "CQL", "aka": "Conversation Qualified Lead", "category": "funnel", "def": "A lead that has engaged in a real-time conversation (chatbot, AI agent, or live chat) and shown enough intent or fit to route to sales. A modern routing trigger sitting alongside MQL and PQL, reflecting conversational and AI-driven inbound.", "links": [ "Lead Routing", "Inbound", "Speed-to-Lead", "MQL", "PQL" ], "id": "cql", "relations": { "broader": [ "Lead Lifecycle" ], "related": [ "Lead Routing", "Inbound", "Speed-to-Lead", "MQL", "PQL" ] } }, { "term": "PLG CRM", "aka": "Product-Led Sales platform (Pocus, Endgame, Correlated)", "category": "stack", "def": "An orchestration layer on top of the CRM and data warehouse that turns raw product-usage data into actionable signals and PQLs for reps. The tooling that operationalizes the hybrid motion's self-serve-to-sales handoff.", "links": [ "PQL", "Hybrid Motion", "Signal-to-Action", "CRM", "Product Analytics" ], "id": "plg_crm", "relations": { "related": [ "PQL", "Hybrid Motion", "Signal-to-Action", "CRM", "Product Analytics" ] } }, { "term": "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "aka": "SRAL, agent loop, the agentic cycle", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "The atomic four-step cycle an autonomous GTM agent runs: sense signals (zero/first/third-party data, intent), reason over them against a knowledge base and policies, act across channels and systems, and learn from outcomes and human corrections. The unit that populates the execution tier — distinct from rule-based automation, which only triggers preset actions.", "links": [ "Next-Best-Action", "Signal-to-Action", "Intent Data", "Agentic GTM", "Learning Loop" ], "id": "sense_reason_act_learn", "relations": { "broader": [ "Agentic GTM" ], "narrower": [ "Learning Loop", "Next-Best-Action" ], "related": [ "Signal-to-Action", "Intent Data" ] } }, { "term": "Agentic GTM", "aka": "agentic GTM workflow, agentic OS for GTM", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "A go-to-market operating model in which AI agents autonomously execute multi-step sales and marketing tasks (research, personalization, routing, CRM writeback) under human supervision, chaining conditional actions on real-time signals. Augments reps rather than replacing them; the agent owns admin and judgment-light work, humans retain relationship, creativity, and authority.", "links": [ "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "Task-to-Role Matrix", "Human-in-the-Loop", "GTM OS", "Phased Rollout" ], "note": "Vendor consensus (Apollo, Poexis, Wyzard, LangChain): augmentation not replacement. ~70% of top sales teams use AI to augment human skills, and most GenAI value is stuck in horizontal copilots while vertical/function-specific agents remain in pilot.", "id": "agentic_gtm", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Coefficient Compression", "GTM OS", "Guardrails", "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "Signal-to-Revenue", "Task-to-Role Matrix" ], "related": [ "Human-in-the-Loop", "Phased Rollout" ] } }, { "term": "GTM OS", "aka": "agentic GTM operating system, unified GTM platform", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "A platform that runs a system of GTM agents at scale, providing the shared services that make it an operating system: workflow orchestration, scheduling, context engineering, security/access rings, an agent UX layer, and FinOps cost controls. Positioned against point tools — consolidation reduces the coordination overhead that makes multi-tool agentic workflows brittle.", "links": [ "Agentic GTM", "Context Engineering", "Agent FinOps", "Workflow Orchestration", "Outer Flywheel" ], "id": "gtm_os", "relations": { "broader": [ "Agentic GTM" ], "narrower": [ "Agent FinOps", "Context Engineering", "Workflow Orchestration" ], "related": [ "Outer Flywheel" ] } }, { "term": "Task-to-Role Matrix", "aka": "agent-owned / agent-assisted / human-owned mapping", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "An explicit per-process-step decision of whether each task is agent-owned, agent-assisted (human reviews), or human-owned. The practical core of an augmentation strategy: agents take repeatable low-judgment steps (research, first-draft, writeback, routing), humans keep discovery, negotiation, multi-threading, and governance.", "links": [ "Agentic GTM", "Human-in-the-Loop", "Escalation Path", "RACI / DRI" ], "id": "task_to_role_matrix", "relations": { "broader": [ "Agentic GTM" ], "related": [ "Human-in-the-Loop", "Escalation Path", "RACI / DRI" ] } }, { "term": "Human-in-the-Loop", "aka": "HITL, human checkpoint, approval gate", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "A required human review/approval step before an agent action takes effect. Serves two purposes: safety (a single mistimed touch can destroy relationship capital) and — less obviously — error interruption and data collection, since each human edit is a labeled correction the agent learns from. The checkpoint that breaks the compounding-error chain.", "links": [ "Agentic GTM", "Compounding Failure", "Learning Loop", "Escalation Path", "Task-to-Role Matrix" ], "id": "human_in_the_loop", "relations": { "broader": [ "Guardrails" ], "related": [ "Agentic GTM", "Compounding Failure", "Learning Loop", "Escalation Path", "Task-to-Role Matrix" ] } }, { "term": "Escalation Path", "aka": "human handoff trigger", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "A predefined rule for which signals force an agent to hand a situation to a human: pricing questions, legal mentions, negative sentiment, or any high-stakes edge case. The safety valve that keeps an autonomous agent from acting where authority or relationship judgment is required.", "links": [ "Human-in-the-Loop", "Guardrails", "Task-to-Role Matrix" ], "id": "escalation_path", "relations": { "broader": [ "Guardrails" ], "related": [ "Human-in-the-Loop", "Task-to-Role Matrix" ] } }, { "term": "Guardrails", "aka": "agent controls, governance controls", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "The control set that keeps agentic workflows from producing high-volume low-quality output that poisons pipeline data and sender reputation: data-quality gates (act only on verified, enriched records), human-in-the-loop thresholds, escalation paths, and audit logging. Governance and data quality are the difference between a workflow that scales and one abandoned after POC.", "links": [ "Data Quality Gate", "Human-in-the-Loop", "Escalation Path", "Audit Logging", "Agentic GTM" ], "id": "guardrails", "relations": { "broader": [ "Agentic GTM" ], "narrower": [ "Audit Logging", "Data Quality Gate", "Escalation Path", "Human-in-the-Loop" ] } }, { "term": "Data Quality Gate", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "A guardrail that lets an agent act only on contacts meeting a quality bar — verified email plus a minimum set of enriched fields. Prevents the most common agentic failure mode: agents working from stale or incomplete data at machine speed and scale.", "links": [ "Guardrails", "Data Enrichment", "Agentic GTM" ], "id": "data_quality_gate", "relations": { "broader": [ "Guardrails" ], "related": [ "Data Enrichment", "Agentic GTM" ] } }, { "term": "Audit Logging", "aka": "auditability, agent traceability", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "Logging every agent action to the system of record with a timestamp and agent identifier, so any outcome can be traced to its source and reviewed. The accountability layer that makes agent behavior debuggable and lets ops catch regressions and drift.", "links": [ "Guardrails", "Learning Loop", "Revenue Operations" ], "id": "audit_logging", "relations": { "broader": [ "Guardrails" ], "related": [ "Learning Loop", "Revenue Operations" ] } }, { "term": "Compounding Failure", "aka": "error propagation, compounding error modes", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "The property that errors in a multi-step agent chain propagate and amplify downstream, unlike traditional software whose failures are typically non-compounding. A small early misjudgment (wrong account read) cascades into wrong research, wrong draft, wrong send. The structural reason human-in-the-loop checkpoints and guardrails are non-negotiable.", "links": [ "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "Human-in-the-Loop", "Agent Cost Profile", "Guardrails" ], "id": "compounding_failure", "relations": { "broader": [ "Agent Cost Profile" ], "related": [ "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "Human-in-the-Loop", "Guardrails" ] } }, { "term": "Agent Cost Profile", "aka": "agent vs software economics", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "Agents invert the cost/reliability profile of traditional software: LOW marginal cost of creation (natural-language programming) but HIGH marginal cost of execution (per-call model spend), LOW reliability, and COMPOUNDING failure modes — the mirror image of deterministic software (high to build, near-zero to run, high reliability, non-compounding failures).", "links": [ "Compounding Failure", "Agent FinOps", "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn" ], "id": "agent_cost_profile", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Compounding Failure" ], "related": [ "Agent FinOps", "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn" ] } }, { "term": "Agent FinOps", "aka": "FinOps controls, agent cost governance", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "Tracking and managing what agents spend per task, per account, or per partner, to control CAC and protect ROI. Because agent execution cost is high and usage-based, ungoverned agent spend flows directly into CAC and can move it the wrong way — so FinOps is a new cost-control discipline inside the unit-economics layer.", "links": [ "Agent Cost Profile", "CAC", "GTM OS", "Revenue Operations" ], "id": "agent_finops", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM OS" ], "related": [ "Agent Cost Profile", "CAC", "Revenue Operations" ] } }, { "term": "Context Engineering", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "Ensuring an agent uses the right model with the right prompt, relevant knowledge and account context, and precise guidelines on how to use it. The discipline (successor to prompt engineering) that determines whether an agent's reasoning step is grounded or hallucinated.", "links": [ "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "GTM OS", "Learning Loop" ], "id": "context_engineering", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM OS" ], "related": [ "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "Learning Loop" ] } }, { "term": "Workflow Orchestration", "aka": "agent orchestration, multi-agent coordination", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "Reliable execution and coordination across multiple agents and steps — enforcing order, handling spiky inputs, managing inter-agent handoffs and durable long-running runs. The platform service that turns isolated agents into a dependable system (e.g. parent agent spawning constrained subagents per account in parallel).", "links": [ "GTM OS", "Subagent", "Agentic GTM" ], "id": "workflow_orchestration", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM OS" ], "narrower": [ "Subagent" ], "related": [ "Agentic GTM" ] } }, { "term": "Subagent", "aka": "compiled subagent, specialized agent", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "A lightweight agent with a constrained tool set and a structured output schema that acts as a contract with a parent agent. Spawned one-per-task (e.g. one per account), kept tool-isolated for predictable output, and run in parallel for scale.", "links": [ "Workflow Orchestration", "Agentic GTM", "GTM OS" ], "id": "subagent", "relations": { "broader": [ "Workflow Orchestration" ], "related": [ "Agentic GTM", "GTM OS" ] } }, { "term": "Learning Loop", "aka": "agent feedback loop, memory loop", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "The mechanism by which an agent improves from use: human edits are diffed against the original, structured observations are extracted and stored (e.g. per-rep style memory), and every future run reads them before acting. Human-in-the-loop doubles as the data-collection engine — the loop that turns the execution tier into a learning system.", "links": [ "Human-in-the-Loop", "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "Context Engineering", "Audit Logging" ], "id": "learning_loop", "relations": { "broader": [ "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn" ], "related": [ "Human-in-the-Loop", "Context Engineering", "Audit Logging" ] } }, { "term": "Next-Best-Action", "aka": "NBA", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "The agent's decision, given the current account state and signals, of the single most valuable next move — which channel, which message, which person, or an internal alert to a rep. The 'act' output of the agent loop, chosen rather than triggered.", "links": [ "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "Signal-to-Action", "Agentic ABM", "Buying Signal" ], "id": "next_best_action", "relations": { "broader": [ "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn" ], "related": [ "Signal-to-Action", "Agentic ABM", "Buying Signal" ] } }, { "term": "Agentic ABM", "aka": "agentic account-based, ABX (account-based experience)", "category": "abm", "def": "Signal-led, context-aware, account-level ABM where agents connect scattered buyer signals (ad click, webinar, site revisit, nurture reply) into one account narrative, qualify fit and readiness, and launch coordinated next-best-actions across channels. Closes the 'action gap' between activity and follow-up that campaign-led ABM leaves open — built for buying groups averaging ~13 people across 2+ departments.", "links": [ "ABM", "Next-Best-Action", "Signal-to-Revenue", "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "Buying Committee", "Outer Flywheel" ], "id": "agentic_abm", "relations": { "broader": [ "ABM" ], "related": [ "Next-Best-Action", "Signal-to-Revenue", "Sense-Reason-Act-Learn", "Buying Committee", "Outer Flywheel" ] } }, { "term": "Signal-to-Revenue", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "The end-to-end motion of turning a raw buyer signal into pipeline: capture signal -> enrich with context -> qualify fit/readiness -> decide next-best-action -> execute in the right channel, with shared account intelligence across teams. The agentic answer to the fragmented stack where signals sit in separate tools and revenue leaks at the seams.", "links": [ "Signal-to-Action", "Next-Best-Action", "Agentic ABM", "Intent Data", "Dark Funnel" ], "id": "signal_to_revenue", "relations": { "broader": [ "Agentic GTM" ], "related": [ "Signal-to-Action", "Next-Best-Action", "Agentic ABM", "Intent Data", "Dark Funnel" ] } }, { "term": "Signal Taxonomy", "aka": "zero-party / first-party / third-party data", "category": "demand", "def": "The classification of buyer signals by source: zero-party (volunteered directly, e.g. a form or preference), first-party (your own observed behavior, e.g. site visits, product usage, badge scans), and third-party (external intent and firmographic data). Determines reliability and how a signal should be weighted in scoring and routing.", "links": [ "Intent Data", "Buying Signal", "Lead Scoring", "Signal-to-Revenue" ], "id": "signal_taxonomy", "relations": { "related": [ "Intent Data", "Buying Signal", "Lead Scoring", "Signal-to-Revenue" ] } }, { "term": "Outer Flywheel", "aka": "Attract-Engage-Convert-Expand, GTM flywheel", "category": "funnel", "def": "A cyclical alternative to the linear funnel: Attract -> Engage -> Convert -> Expand, looping back as expansion and advocacy feed new attraction. Matches non-linear modern buying (buyers self-research before contact) and frames GTM as a momentum-gathering loop rather than a one-way drop-off.", "links": [ "Funnel", "Bowtie Model", "Land and Expand", "Advocacy", "Agentic GTM" ], "note": "In agentic-GTM framing, one outer business-outcome flywheel wraps hundreds of inner task-level agent flywheels (each running Sense-Reason-Act-Learn).", "id": "outer_flywheel", "relations": { "contrasts": [ "Funnel" ], "related": [ "Bowtie Model", "Land and Expand", "Advocacy", "Agentic GTM" ] } }, { "term": "GTM AI Maturity Ladder", "aka": "GTM AI adoption model", "category": "framework", "def": "A maturity progression for AI in GTM: AI chatbots (reactive, content/research) -> AI copilots (narrow task automation) -> standalone agents (single customer-facing workflows like AI SDR) -> agentic OS (broad, proactive, auto-pilot, customizable guardrails and FinOps). Higher rungs add autonomy, breadth, proactiveness, and governance; most value sits at the top, most deployments at the bottom.", "links": [ "Agentic GTM", "GTM OS", "Phased Rollout" ], "id": "gtm_ai_maturity_ladder", "relations": { "narrower": [ "Phased Rollout" ], "related": [ "Agentic GTM", "GTM OS" ] } }, { "term": "Phased Rollout", "aka": "crawl-walk-run, POC-to-scale", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "Deploying agentic GTM in escalating phases to avoid the ~30% of GenAI projects abandoned after POC: Phase 1 lowest-risk highest-signal loop (research -> draft -> CRM writeback, every message rep-approved), Phase 2 signal-driven routing and multi-channel, Phase 3 governance, thresholds, audit, and quarterly benchmarking. Prove ROI against a manual control group before expanding.", "links": [ "Agentic GTM", "Human-in-the-Loop", "GTM AI Maturity Ladder", "Guardrails" ], "id": "phased_rollout", "relations": { "broader": [ "GTM AI Maturity Ladder" ], "related": [ "Agentic GTM", "Human-in-the-Loop", "Guardrails" ] } }, { "term": "Coefficient Compression", "aka": "rep variance compression, lifting the floor", "category": "execution_agent", "def": "The distributional effect of agentic augmentation: agents lift developing reps toward top-rep performance, raising the FLOOR of the conversion-rate distribution more than the ceiling. So 'improving conversion' with agents means shrinking variance across the team, not just nudging the average — the pipeline impact compounds from the bottom.", "links": [ "Agentic GTM", "Win Rate", "Sales Enablement", "Task-to-Role Matrix" ], "id": "coefficient_compression", "relations": { "broader": [ "Agentic GTM" ], "related": [ "Win Rate", "Sales Enablement", "Task-to-Role Matrix" ] } } ] }