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SOP Market Research

Overview

This SOP outlines how to generate and validate sales hypotheses using AI-powered research tools (ChatGPT, Perplexity, etc.) to identify high-potential segments, craft relevant messaging angles, and improve targeting for cold outreach campaigns.

The goal is to uncover who to target, what problems they have, and how our offer aligns with their goals — without relying solely on manual research.

Objective / Definition of Done

  • A clear sales hypothesis documented for a target segment, including:
    • Who we’re targeting (industry, title, company size, location, etc.)
    • What problem or opportunity they care about
    • Why our solution is relevant
    • How we’ll angle our outreach
  • Backed by:
    • 3–5 supporting insights or data points (AI-sourced or link-verified)
    • Suggested messaging angles or hooks
    • A short “Persona Brief” that summarizes the segment

✅ Definition of Done: A complete one-pager or doc that can be handed to the outbound team to write copy and build lists, based on validated assumptions.

Step-By-Step Process

Step 1: Define Initial Target Criteria

  • Identify a rough segment to explore (e.g. “VC-backed SaaS companies doing outbound”).
  • Write down:
    • Industry
    • Job titles
    • Company size
    • Known pains or opportunities (if any)

Step 2: Use AI Tools for Exploratory Research

  • ChatGPT:
    • Ask for: Common challenges for {job title} in {industry}
    • Prompt example: "What are the biggest challenges facing Heads of Growth at B2B SaaS companies with 11–100 employees?"
  • Perplexity:
    • Ask similar questions with current date context
    • Use it to verify specific claims (e.g. “Is outbound still working for B2B SaaS in 2025?”)
    • Pull in real quotes, data, or sources if available

Step 3: Analyze and Synthesize

  • Look for patterns:
    • What 2–3 pain points come up repeatedly?
    • Are there trends or recent shifts (e.g. new tools, regulations, market changes)?
    • What metrics matter to this persona?
  • Summarize:
    • 3–5 key pain points or priorities
    • What success looks like for them (include 1–2 common KPIs if available)
    • How our offer maps to that

Step 4: Formulate Sales Hypothesis

Write a brief hypothesis answering:

“We believe that {persona} at {company type} is struggling with {problem}, and would be receptive to a cold email that speaks to {outcome}, because {reason}.”

Example:

“We believe that RevOps leaders at Series A–C SaaS companies are struggling to maintain email deliverability across multiple SDRs, and would be receptive to a cold email that speaks to scaling outbound safely, because they’re under pressure to hit pipeline goals without getting blacklisted.”

Step 5: Draft Messaging Angles

  • Use AI tools to help brainstorm hooks based on the hypothesis
    • Prompt: “Give me 5 cold email hooks for {persona} who struggles with {problem} and wants {outcome}”
  • Save 2–3 hooks that feel strongest or most aligned

Step 6: Create Final Research Brief

Include:

  • Persona summary (role, goals, KPIs, pains)
    • Success Metrics / KPIs: e.g. close rate, cost per acquisition, time to install, etc.
  • Sales hypothesis (as written in Step 4)
  • Messaging angles
  • Supporting research links / AI outputs
  • Notes on tone (e.g. “Direct, expert-to-expert” vs. “Casual, curious”)

Tools and Resources

  • ChatGPT — for generating persona insights, pain points, and messaging ideas
  • Perplexity.ai — for verifying trends, pulling quotes, and citing sources
  • Apollo / LinkedIn — to spot-check persona reality and titles
  • Google Docs — to document hypotheses and briefs

Last updated: 2025-03-25