Customer Segmentation Checklist
Enterprise vs SMB motions — don't treat them the same.
“The moment you start serving two kinds of customer with the same motion, you're serving both of them badly. Mid-market companies discover this painfully — and usually after they've already built one unified approach.”
The Insight
At mid-market scale, you're usually running two businesses under one brand: a high-touch enterprise motion and a scalable SMB motion. They have different sales cycles, different margins, different product expectations, and different success metrics. Pretending otherwise is the silent tax that keeps blowing up your conversion rates.
01
Segment Definitions That Actually Differentiate
Don't segment by revenue tier alone. Segment by: purchase complexity (single decision-maker vs committee), sales cycle (days vs quarters), implementation effort (self-serve vs professional services), expected LTV, and support intensity.
02
Different Motions for Different Segments
Don't use enterprise ABM on SMBs (you'll burn the budget). Don't use self-serve on enterprises (you'll lose the deal). Match the motion to the segment.
03
Different Metrics, Different Teams
The Takeaway
Segment by behaviour. Motion by segment. Team by motion. At mid-market, you're running two businesses — run them deliberately as two, not as one compromise.
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