How to enter a new market (and drive x2 pipeline)

Watch this play as a webinar, with Liam Collins, VP of Paid Acquisition & Nicole Peters, Director of International Demand Generation, to get the full picture of how we entered a new market. Enter your details below. 👇

Why most new market expansions fail

Before you build a go-to-market strategy for a new region, you must understand why so many expansion efforts fall flat.

Here’s what Cognism learned the hard way:

• Sales before demand = wasted headcount
  Parachuting SDRs into a new region without enablement or inbound support leads to pipeline drought and missed targets.

• Local buyer habits misunderstood
  Cultural nuances and regional compliance can radically affect conversion. (DACH buyers, for instance, demand proof of compliance before agreeing to a demo.)

• “Copy-paste” from HQ rarely works
  What wins in the UK won’t necessarily win in Germany or France: local messaging, SEO, and logo selection matter.

• Cost of entry miscalculated
  Without pre-launch testing and media cost projections, companies are flying blind on CAC.

💡 Marketing must take the lead to warm up demand, localise content, and test before sales resources are committed.

Your goal here is to validate demand before any sales boots hit the ground.

We started this GTM process by:

• Running a TAM analysis using Cognism's data to determine where the biggest ICP-aligned opportunities are.

• Testing high-intent keywords in search (Google Ads/Bing) to measure in-market awareness and capture early leads.

• Assign bilingual SDRs to HQ to qualify those early leads.

• Launching an initially translated website, later evolving to truly localised content.

• Building early SEO and BOFU pages to support organic validation.

A key insight we found while doing all this is that you’ll likely have inbound signals before building a sales presence. Paid search will confirm whether there’s real demand or if it's a false signal.

Your next step is to refine your GTM strategy based on real regional feedback.

Here’s what Cognism did at this stage:

• Runs low-budget paid campaigns to test messaging variants.

• Leverages customer interviews and SDR feedback to uncover persona-specific blockers (e.g. GDPR & compliance concerns in DACH).

• Prioritises message testing via paid media (e.g. ad variants + landing page iterations).

• Builds custom BOFU and MOFU content around local use cases (e.g., cold calling benchmarks, ICP-specific pain points).

• Co-creates with local SMEs, influencers, and sales communities to establish credibility and reach new audiences.

Nicole Peters, Director of International Demand Generation, says:

“Everything you think you know about your ICP may be wrong in a new region. We couldn’t reuse anything from our UK campaigns in DACH — compliance content was everything.”

💡 You might also like our GTM play about penetrating new markets.

This phase includes working closely with:

• Local sales reps (even just one SDR and one AE at first).

• Internal legal teams for compliance content.

• Regional communities like the SDRs of Germany.

You can expand your GTM motion once inbound leads exceed the HQ capacity.

Here are some other triggers that caused us to scale in France and Germany:

• Sustained inbound volume that local HQ teams can no longer manage.

• Positive feedback loops from SDRs on ICP fit and deal quality.

• SEO and paid channels delivering a qualified pipeline.

At this point, Cognism:

1. Opens local offices (e.g. Cologne, Paris).
2. Hires local SDRs, AEs, CS, and AMs to support and close regional pipeline fully.
3. Increases paid media investment — but only once ROI is proven.
4. Launches a self-sustaining content engine powered by sales feedback, events, and top-performing assets.

Liam Collins, VP of Paid Acquisition, says:

“We don’t scale the budget just because we’re in the market. It’s all ROI-driven. France didn’t get more spend until we had proof from demand capture.”

Website localisation

Translated pages helped generate early traction, but customised assets with regional logos, FAQs, and relevant compliance material delivered 2x the pipeline.

Cold calling benchmarks by region

Publishing native-language reports like Cognism’s Cold Calling Report (France Edition) helped establish credibility and rank fast in underserved SEO niches.

Regional influencer content

Podcasts and webinars co-hosted with known local contributors built trust and social proof, and opened doors to speaking slots at regional events.

Live events to build brand presence

In-person meetups and roundtables gave the Cognism brand a physical presence in the region — a massive win in markets where credibility matters more than clicks.

• Marketing derisks expansion
  Invest 80% of time in validation and cost forecasting before hiring sales.

• Build demand before you try to capture it
  Don’t just run LinkedIn lead generation — start with thought leadership, SEO, and brand awareness.

• Localisation doesn't equal translation
  Replace generic assets with regionally relevant content built around real buyer behaviour.

• Feedback loops fuel success
  Use sales team insights to iterate faster on messaging, ad copy, and landing pages.

• Don’t measure too soon
  Expect 3–6 months before demand generation campaigns in new regions show return, and keep leadership expectations grounded.

FAQs

Here are some often asked questions about entering a new market.

When should we enter a new market with a local sales team?

You should enter a new market with a local sales team only after marketing has proven consistent inbound traction. At Cognism, we wait for signals like inbound leads from the region exceeding HQ capacity, paid search, and SEO showing repeatable demand, early messaging, and ICP fit, which are validated by sales feedback.

How do you validate market demand before sales hires?

TAM analysis will validate the size of the opportunity. Then, you can run paid search campaigns, localised landing pages, and lead qualification using bilingual SDRs from your HQ. If performance looks strong, expand content, budget, and, lastly, headcount.

What’s the difference between translation and localisation in this strategy?

Translation is just a language swap. Localisation is messaging, tone, visuals, legal content, and even customer logos, adapted for cultural fit.

Example:

• Compliance materials in DACH were essential before prospects even agreed to a demo.

• Swapping UK/US customer logos for French ones improved trust and conversions in France.

How long does it take to see ROI when entering a new region?

You’ll need patience. From Cognism’s experience:

• Paid search shows signals quickly (1–2 months).

• LinkedIn and content-led demand generation takes 3–6 months to show impact.

• Full ROI and inbound engine maturity may take 9–12 months, depending on market complexity.

What marketing channels work best for new market entry?

Here are the channels that work best for entering your new market.

• Paid search (to test bottom-of-funnel intent).

• SEO (localised, bottom-of-funnel content in native language).

• Webinars and co-branded events with regional influencers.

• Cold calling is still effective, with the right data and compliance approach.

Find more GTM Plays for Marketing in the hub. 👇