TAM to Revenue

A Practical Framework that Turns Potential into Performance

How to align sales, marketing, and finance—before the next “why are we behind plan?” meeting.

1. The Problem With Growth Plans (and Theater)

Most growth strategies look great on a whiteboard.
Big market. Big plans. Big spend.

Cut to three quarters later: you’re under plan, your CAC doubled, and nobody agrees on what “qualified” means.

Why? Because your go-to-market (GTM) model lacks structure. Or worse—it has structure, but no shared understanding of what matters most.

Enter: the Market Capture Framework.

It aligns your strategy—from total market potential to real-world results—and exposes the gaps that are slowing growth.

2. The Layers of Market Capture

Let’s break it down from top to bottom:

Layer 1: Market Potential
→ TAM + Brand Awareness

Your Total Addressable Market (TAM) is the dream—the theoretical ceiling.

But TAM doesn’t pay the bills. Awareness does.

If your ideal buyers don’t know you exist, your TAM is just a spreadsheet fantasy.
Think of it this way: TAM is the party. Brand awareness is the invitation.
If no one knows you’re hosting, your funnel’s just an empty corridor—no traffic, no traction.

This layer is about showing up—early, often, and credibly—in the places your buyers look before they’re ready to buy.

Layer 2: Market Focus
→ SAM + ICP + Personas

Here’s where strategy meets reality.

• SAM is the portion of the market you can realistically serve today—not someday, not post-Series C.
• ICP is the company profile that closes faster, churns less, and ideally tells their friends.
• Personas are the people who can say yes, slow you down, or quietly delete your emails.

Get this wrong, and you’re just shouting into the void—or worse, converting the wrong leads.

Layer 3: Market Performance
→ SOM + Sales Velocity + LTV:CAC

This is where potential turns into performance.

• SOM is what you’re winning.
• Sales velocity is how fast.
• LTV:CAC is at what cost.

You could have the best brand and a clean ICP—but if you’re closing at six months with a 1.2:1 return, your “growth engine” is really just a hobby.

3. Why the Framework Matters

Most GTM conversations fall into two traps:

✨ “The TAM is huge!”
🔧 “Let’s ABM into healthcare accounts with firmographics X/Y/Z and build 17-touch nurture journeys.”

Neither helps when the plan is underperforming.

The Market Capture Framework bridges the strategy-execution gap. It gives sales, marketing, and finance a shared language to:

• See where the plan is breaking down
• Focus on fixable gaps
• Make smarter bets faster

4. Common Market Capture Failures

• Invisible Top Layer:
  “We’ve got traffic… but no one’s engaging.” → Not enough of the TAM is aware you exist—or aware of the value you deliver.
• Unfocused Middle Layer:
  “We sell to everyone.” → In the absence of focus, everything feels reactive—and little delivers.
• Underpowered Bottom Layer:
  “Pipeline looks full but never closes. CAC’s creeping up.” → Your offer lacks urgency—or your competitors make the decision easier.

These issues often stem from the same source: misalignment. Whether it's brand awareness, ICP focus, or competitive positioning.

5. What Good Looks Like

High-performing Market Capture has:

• Awareness in the right circles
• Clear focus on winnable segments
• Measurable momentum

When you place a bet, there’s commitment.
You say “no” more often.
And you feel alignment across the team.

6. Glossary Check: TAM, SAM, SOM

Here’s how each piece fits into your GTM planning:

• TAM (Total Addressable Market): The total market demand for your product or service—if you captured 100% of the opportunity.
• SAM (Serviceable Available Market): The segment of that market you can serve today based on your capabilities, location, or channels.
• SOM (Serviceable Obtainable Market): The portion of the SAM you’re actually capturing right now—your real-world market share.

TAM, SAM, and SOM are essential to go-to-market strategy—helping you set targets, focus resources, and measure what matters.

7. Try It: 30-Minute Market Capture Audit

Pull up a whiteboard. Grab your GTM leaders. Run through the layers:

• Market Potential:
  How big is your TAM?
  How much of it knows you exist?
• Market Focus:
  What’s your true SAM?
  Who’s your ICP?
  Which personas close fastest?
• Market Performance:
  What % of SAM are you winning?
  How fast are you closing?
  Is your LTV:CAC sustainable?

Spot the friction. Fix the gaps. And realign your team on what drives growth.

Need help building your Market Capture Framework?
Browse the Outcome Marketing Marketplace to connect with fractional leaders who’ve been there, fixed that—and can help you drive growth.