Salary conversations can be a touch taboo, with many preferring not to talk about money, salaries, or bonuses. Here at the GTM Alliance, we hope to change this narrative.
Our Go-to-market Salary Report aims to increase salary transparency across the industry and allow you to make informed decisions about your career.
So without any further ado, let’s explore the factors that can increase your paycheck.
The baseline
Before we can say which factors are likely to increase your earnings, we should probably highlight the average salary for a GTM pro for easy comparison.
According to our latest salary report, the average baseline salary for a Go-to-Market professional in 2024 is $123,976. And the average bonus for a GTM professional is $14,767 per year.
Location
Not everyone’s willing to move across the globe to secure a higher salary, but if you are looking to relocate, Go-to-Market professionals tend to earn the most in North America, with an average salary of $167,800.
This is followed by Australia with an average salary of $87,752, and Europe with an average salary of $68,906. However, it’s worth noting that Australian companies don’t typically pay out bonuses.
Of course, there are differences in the average cost of living within these areas, so while salaries may be higher, this doesn’t always correlate with greater purchasing power. So, it’s worth checking your city’s cost of living before committing to a move.
Company specifics
Next, let’s discuss the markers of companies that typically pay their GTM professionals more.
Industry
From our data, the highest-paying industries seem to be:
- Market research ($285,000)
- Transportation/trucking/railroad ($232,500)
- Internet ($205,000)
However, these industries all had relatively low representation amongst our survey participants, selected by just 1.9%, 2.2%, and 3.9% of our survey takers respectively.
We’ve included (and sorted by) the percentage of respondents who reported working in each of these industries, to give you an idea of which salary figures have the highest rates of confidence.
This should help you to make some educated decisions about which industries might be the most lucrative for GTM pros:
B2B vs B2C
Does it matter if your organization focuses on serving consumers or other businesses? According to our data, it does.
Those at B2C companies tend to earn the least, with those at B2B firms, on average, earning an additional $19,100 per year.
Interestingly, those who serve both businesses and consumers tend to earn the most, with average baseline salaries 57.5% higher than those serving consumers alone, and 31.4% higher than those serving businesses alone.
In summary: Work at a company that serves both businesses and consumers for a significant lift in average salary.
Product-market fit
While there’s no clear and steady increase in salary with growth-stage maturity, we did see markedly lower average yearly base salaries among GTM professionals working at companies that have not yet established product market fit.
Compared to an average of all other growth stages, baseline salaries are 43.6% lower for those in the pre-product market fit stage.
So, if a higher salary is what you’re after, it’s best to work at a company that has already established its product market fit.
Company revenue
Next, is there a trend between company revenue and average yearly salary? It seems so.
Working at a company that makes less than $10 million a year in revenue would net you an average salary of $103,299. In comparison, working at a company earning more than $10 million a year in revenue would net you an average salary of $139,789.
There’s also a clear upward trend in average salary as company revenue increases.
Aside from a possible anomaly in the $500M-$1B revenue row, the largest jumps in salary occur when:
- Moving from a company earning less than $1 million a year to one earning between $1 million and $5 million a year (+45.4%),
- And when jumping from there to one earning between $5M and $10M (+38.5%).
So, working in a company that earns more revenue typically results in greater compensation as a GTM professional.
Headcount
Just as we saw with revenue, there’s a strong upward trend in average salary based on company headcount. It’s clear that larger companies (both in terms of number of employees and revenue), pay more.
Working at a company with 50+ employees is a strong bet for earning more than the industry average.
Role specifics and responsibilities
Some role-specific factors can also impact your pay. These may be easier to change than looking for a new organization, so let’s take a look at them.
Working environment
Interestingly, those who work remotely continue to pull the highest salary figures, while those who split their time between the office and remote work earn much less.
However, the pay gap between those who work in the office and those who work remotely has closed compared to last year, now representing only 4.2% more for remote workers, versus 21.5% more in 2023.
In summary: Opt for fully remote or fully in-office work to see a total compensation uplift 53.5% higher than hybrid roles.
Increase responsibility
You can also increase your pay, by taking on more responsibility.
The simplest way to do this is by becoming a manager or people coach.
Those with zero direct reports earn a base salary of $119,800 on average, compared to those managing 10+ people, who earn $171,800 on average.
The more people you manage, the more opportunity you’ll get to have a greater strategic impact and prove your worth. This is correlated with higher pay.
Hours worked
This may seem obvious, but the correlation here is strong: Those who work more hours in Go-to-Market positions earn more money.
There’s plenty of reason to believe the direction of causation here is bidirectional:
- Those who work longer hours can achieve more, leading to greater compensation.
- At the same time, those who work more senior roles are better compensated, but the demands of those roles require longer working hours.
For example, moving from working 31-40 hours a week to 41-50 hours, results in a 56.9% increase in base salary on average.
Stop second-guessing your paycheck
Discover exactly what professionals like you are earning today.
Our cutting-edge report—featuring exclusive data, primary research, and insights from Go-to-Market experts around the globe—reveals the full story on Go-to-Market compensation.
Download now and step into your next salary negotiation with confidence. 💰
