Mergers and acquisitions are high-stakes plays. Yet once the ink is dry, the hardest work begins – delivering on the plan! With multiple considerations in play the GTM strategy sometimes slips down the to-do list. Don’t let it happen!
At Rholben Consulting, we help clients not just integrate the businesses but go on to outperform the competition. And that starts with a GTM strategy that’s focused, unified and positioned for growth.
Before we discuss GTM strategies, below is a broader list of considerations (by no means exhaustive) that you need to address when formulating a 100-day business integration plan. We’ll tackle these in a future blog!
- Revenue Growth
- Management Structure
- ESG
- Marketing
- Operations
- Tech Infrastructure
- Finance Infrastructure
- Human Resources
- Legal & Tax
- Reporting
Intangible Assets
I want to briefly mention intangible assets. M & A often leads to brand evolution, but that can come at a cost. If a company pays more than is considered ‘fair market value’ for the acquired company, it can justify the inflated sale price from the value of intangible assets.
Brand recognition is one of those assets, as are key personnel and perceived synergies. If an integration involves losing the target company’s name in favour of the acquirors then this could lead to a write-down of goodwill, affecting the value of the company.
This must be factored into a GTM strategy when looking at how it can affect your branding and marketing strategy going forward.
Due Diligence.
The pace at which a merger or acquisition can happen puts pressure on the time available to undertake a comprehensive due diligence of the target company. It is a critical part of the deal process and it pays to complete a highly detailed analysis.
The non-disclosure and confidentiality obligations can also dictate who you involve in the due diligence process.
In advance of signing a Letter of Intent (LOI) the interested party needs to get a detailed look at the target business and negotiate an exclusivity clause and timeline for completion of the acquisition.
As mentioned, with all the focus on synergies and potential cost savings any joint go-to-market strategy can sometimes be starved of the time and attention it deserves.
There is also nothing worse as a commercial manager than being outside the loop and being told, post due-diligence and after deal completion, “we have made this acquisition, go figure it out.” I know, I’ve been there!
Before launching a combined GTM strategy – Ask these Questions.
Are you expanding your market or diluting it?
- How long have both companies been in business and does one company have the stronger brand? Can you combine the name and present one unified company? Are there goodwill considerations as mentioned earlier?
- Are you gaining new verticals that you were previously unable to access?
- Will one or both companies be able to improve their offerings through adoption of each other’s products or technology?
- Are you acquiring additional revenue streams that align with your offering? E.g., does the acquiree bring to the table an offering that enables you to increase your share of wallet with existing clients?
- Are you gaining new geographical locations?
- Will the acquisition improve your market share?
Are you actually integrating or co-existing and does it affect your GTM?
- Does it make sense to continue with separate go-to-market strategies and focus only on back-office integrations?
- Will the acquisition increase your operational efficiency or enhance the resources at your disposal? This may not initially appear a GTM consideration but if the acquisition enables you to target bigger clients, bigger projects and improve delivery timelines then this influences the strategy.
- Is any part of the technology sold directly to clients and is it proprietary? If so, is it patented? Is there increased value to be gained for the merged entity from the combined technology suite.
- Commercial Team. What does the business development / account management team look like? Is there any employee duplication?
- Who are the high-performers in each business and what is the cross-over in verticals and accounts. Do you need to ring fence high performers at both companies – if so, do it
- Are there underperformers that you can let go from the organisation. If possible, do so before the merger completes.
Client Overlap and Concentration
- Client cross-over. Do both companies work for the same clients, delivering the same service or product? How big is this crossover?
- What is the client concentration? How much of the total revenue sits with the top 10% to 15% of the clients?
Internal and External Communication
- Communication, both internal and external. Create a clear impactful message for both employees and clients.
- Be clear on the new value proposition and focus on the upside of the acquisition / merger. For example., broader product offering, improved technology, greater capacity and resources, wider geographical presence etc.
- Devise a social media strategy to engage with clients. Create content that tells the story of the merger and conveys the values and brand of the combined entity.
- Influencer Marketing. If you can engage with an industry influencer to publicly endorse the merits of the merger, there is a greater chance of increased credibility and trust. The is likely to lead to higher engagement rates and an improved ROI.
Marketing Assets and Website
- Develop collateral focusing on the areas of differentiation that arise from merging the two companies. Understand the benefits to the client and make sure these are front and centre of your publicity strategy and roadshow.
- Work on a plan for the website. Do you keep two separate sites, or do you combine? With possible new geographies do you need to localise the content and improve global reach? Create a separate plan for a new website launch and determine whether this is achievable within the 100-day integration plan deadline.
Competitor Analysis
- Competitor Analysis. Reevaluate the competitive landscape and do a new assessment. Where is the combined group now positioned among its peers?
For example., has the merged company become more of a specialist in the industry or moved towards a more generalist position. Do you now have increased competition, or less, and has the type of competitor changed? - As a result of the merger, do you need to change your value proposition and therefore your marketing collateral?
Don’t Forget
- Look at the top 20+ clients (by revenue) for both companies. For any contracts in place, you need to look for ‘change of control’ clauses. Can the client break contract if the company structure changes? This is critical. These contracted accounts should be approached before the merger completes.
Several factors come into play here but if the client is suddenly faced with three suppliers becoming two due to a merger, they may have no alternative than to look for another provider. There is a high chance this will result in a loss of revenue for the newly combined entity.
A final Word
Get the CEO and / or other C-level execs in front of the major key accounts early.
The first 100-days are critical – having been on both sides of the table you ideally want to reach the deal close with an integration plan ready to go.
Remember the GTM strategy is going to determine whether you can grow the combined business and meet stakeholders expectations. Revenue forgives a multitude of sins so make sure you have a plan for growth.
If you’re planning an acquisition or looking to integrate post merger, let’s talk strategy and execution!
