GTM OS — ICP Definition

# GTM OS — ICP Definition This skill owns `icp-definition.md` — the buyer precision file. Depends on `profile.md` existing first. Without a sharp ICP, every other file degrades: signals become generic, positioning becomes vague, and competitor analysis loses its target. ## What icp-definition.md captures ### 1. Segments (ranked by fit) For each segment: - Name and brief definition - Fit tier (Tier 1 = best fit, Tier 2 = workable, Tier 3 = edge cases only) - Why this segment fits — the structural reason, not just "they have budget" ### 2. Firmographic fit signals Hard criteria (must-have): - Company size range (employees) — with reasoning - Revenue range or ARR if known - Industry / vertical - Geography / region (if relevant) Soft criteria (nice-to-have): - Growth stage (Series B, scaling, post-IPO, etc.) - Recent funding or M&A activity - Tech stack signals ### 3. Organizational signals Who you need to exist inside the company: - Role / title of the champion - Role / title of the economic buyer - Org structures that make deals work - Org structures that kill deals ### 4. Behavioral and timing signals What the company is doing or experiencing that makes now a good time: - Business events (hiring surge, new exec, product launch, compliance deadline) - Problem events (outgrown current solution, team restructure, failed project) - Market events (competitor move, regulation change, category shift) ### 5. Anti-ICP (explicit exclusions) Specific profiles to walk away from — not just "bad fit" but the exact reason: - Size too small: [threshold] because [reason] - Vertical mismatch: [industry] because [reason] - Structural blocker: [org pattern] because [reason] ### 6. Qualification framework The 3–5 questions that separate real buyers from tire-kickers. Not generic BANT — questions specific to your product and motion: - [Question 1] — what the answer reveals - [Question 2] — what the answer reveals - [Question 3] — what the answer reveals ## How to build or update this file When building from scratch, start with the best wins: "Walk me through your three best customers. Not biggest ACV — best fit. Why do they love the product? What made them easy to close?" Then probe for exclusions: "Tell me about a deal that looked great on paper but turned into a nightmare. What was the early warning sign you missed?" Then force specificity on size: "When you say 'mid-market' — what's the employee floor? What's the ceiling? Why does it break outside those bounds?" ## Anti-patterns to flag - "Series B SaaS" as a complete ICP — push back hard. Force employee range, vertical, and organizational signal. - No anti-ICP section — ask specifically about deals they've lost or regretted winning. - Generic BANT qualification questions — push for product-specific signal questions. - Segments without fit tiers — if they list three segments as equals, one of them is lying.