The 3 Things Every GTM Team Should Do Before Building Their 2026 Marketing Plan

Every founder and marketing leader is deep in planning mode right now - setting targets, rethinking priorities, and trying to fit next year’s ambitions into a realistic budget. But before you start assigning numbers to rows, pause. A strong 2026 plan doesn’t start with a spreadsheet - it starts with clarity.

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1. Look back before you look ahead

Your 2025 data is your most reliable guide.
Use it to double down on what’s working - and stop funding what isn’t.

Ask yourself:

• Which campaigns or programs actually created opportunities (not just engagement)?
• Where did we see the best cost of acquisition and conversion rates?
• What content, events, or partnerships influenced deals in motion?

Pull out the top 20% of activities that truly moved the business - and build your 2026 plan around them.

Too many teams start fresh each year as if they’re reinventing marketing.
In reality, your most powerful roadmap is already in your data.

2. Leave room (and budget) for experiments

Innovation doesn’t live in the spreadsheet.
Still, the teams that scale fastest design for discovery.

Allocate 10–15% of your time and budget for experiments - small, time-boxed tests with clear hypotheses and owners.

That could mean:

• Trying a new event, community, or partnership
• Testing a creative format or offer
• Piloting an AI tool that reveals earlier buying signals

Set a six-week window for each, define what success looks like, and review it fast.
Even if half of them fail, the learnings you collect will pay off tenfold.

The goal isn’t perfection  -it’s progress through iteration.

3. Do things that don’t scale

Everyone wants scalable systems - but growth often starts with unscalable moves.

Send a handwritten note to a champion.
Follow up personally after a demo or event.
Record a 30-second video for a prospect instead of an automated sequence.

These things take time, but they build trust - and trust compounds faster than reach.

The truth: automation builds efficiency; personalization builds momentum.
And you’ll need both to win in 2026.

Final Thought

A 2026 marketing plan isn’t just about allocating spend -it’s about focus.

If you start with what worked, make room for experimentation, and keep marketing human, your plan becomes more than a budget.
It becomes a growth engine.

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Download the Free 2026 Marketing Budget Template
This is the version I’ve built, tested, and refined over years of GTM work.
It’s not generic - it’s practical, and it works.

👉 Download the Template