If you’re running or growing a revenue team—sales, marketing, or customer success—you’re probably drowning in software options. Every B2B GTM (go-to-market) platform swears it’ll fix your pipeline, automate your outreach, and uncover hidden gold in your CRM. But which features actually matter? Which ones end up gathering dust? Let’s cut through the noise and see what works for real teams.
What Is GTM Software, Really?
Before we dive into features, let’s level-set. GTM software covers tools that help you find, engage, and close customers. Think sales engagement, revenue intelligence, account-based marketing, pipeline management, forecasting, and sometimes a little bit of everything. The common thread: they promise to help you land more deals, faster.
The problem? There’s a lot of overlap and even more fluff. So, I’m focusing on features that actually move the needle for most B2B teams.
Core Features You Should Actually Care About
Let’s break down the must-haves versus the nice-to-haves. If a platform can’t nail these, move on.
1. Data Quality and Enrichment
Garbage in, garbage out. No matter how slick the UI, if the contacts and accounts in your database are inaccurate or out of date, you’re wasting time.
What to look for: - Automatic enrichment: Does it fill in missing titles, emails, or firmographic data? - Deduplication: Can it spot and merge duplicate records before your reps trip over them? - Freshness: How often is the data updated? Quarterly isn’t good enough.
What works: Tools like ZoomInfo and Clearbit specialize in this, but many GTM suites now bake in basic enrichment. Don’t pay extra for enrichment if it’s mediocre.
What to ignore: Flimsy “AI-driven insights” if the underlying data is stale.
2. Multi-Channel Outreach
Your prospects don’t just live in email. Cold calls, LinkedIn, SMS, even video—meeting buyers where they are matters.
What to look for: - Sequencing: Can you set up multi-step, multi-channel cadences? - Integrated inbox and dialer: No more flipping tabs to call or send a message. - Personalization at scale: Merge fields are table stakes; look for actual dynamic content options.
What works: Outreach, Salesloft, and Apollo do this well. Some upstarts like GetAia are focusing on simplifying automation without making your emails sound like a robot wrote them.
What to ignore: Platforms that only do email. You’ll outgrow them fast.
3. Reporting and Analytics You’ll Actually Use
Sales software is notorious for “robust dashboards” you’ll never look at. What you actually need is clear, at-a-glance answers to basic questions.
What to look for: - Pipeline visibility: Where are deals stuck? What’s closing soon? - Rep activity tracking: Not creepy surveillance, just enough to spot who’s struggling. - Attribution: Can you see which outreach or campaigns actually drive meetings and revenue?
What works: InsightSquared, Clari, and even basic Salesforce dashboards are solid. The best tools let you customize without hiring a consultant.
What to ignore: Overly complex, “AI-powered” forecasting for small teams. It’s often just a black box.
4. CRM Integration (and Not Just in Theory)
Most GTM tools claim to “integrate seamlessly” with Salesforce, HubSpot, or whatever CRM you use. In practice, this is where a lot of teams get burned.
What to look for: - Real-time sync: Data should update instantly, not after a nightly batch job. - Two-way integration: Can reps update records from either tool without causing chaos? - Custom field mapping: You have custom fields. If the tool can’t handle them, run away.
What works: Native integrations (vs. clunky APIs or Zapier workarounds) are best. Demand a demo and test it with your own data—don’t take their word for it.
What to ignore: “Integration available” with a tiny asterisk and a six-week setup time.
5. Automation That Doesn’t Create More Work
Most revenue teams are spread thin. Automations—like lead routing, follow-ups, or reminders—should actually save time.
What to look for: - Trigger-based workflows: Can you automate next steps based on rep or prospect actions? - No-code setup: You shouldn’t need IT to change a sequence. - Human-in-the-loop: Easy overrides for when automation goes off the rails.
What works: Tools that let you preview exactly what’s about to happen before you turn on an automation. Errors here get messy fast.
What to ignore: Rigid “automation” that creates more admin work or weird exceptions you have to fix by hand.
6. Collaboration for the Real World
Selling is a team sport now. Marketing, sales, and customer success all need a shared view of prospects, notes, and conversations.
What to look for: - Shared notes and tagging: Can everyone see the latest context on an account? - Account-based view: Not just “leads” or “contacts”—show the whole picture. - Task assignments: Can you hand off follow-ups or requests to another team member?
What works: Tools that let you @mention teammates or assign tasks without leaving the flow of work. Slack and email integrations help.
What to ignore: Collaboration features that feel bolted on or require training just to use.
Nice-to-Have Features (But Not Make-or-Break)
Some features sound cool but rarely impact results for most teams. If these matter to you, great—but they aren’t worth paying a premium for unless you have a special use case.
- Conversational intelligence: Call recording and AI-driven “insights” can be useful for training, but most teams just need basic call playback and note capture.
- Predictive scoring: Most predictive lead scoring is guesswork unless you have tons of clean historical data. Don’t treat it as gospel.
- Automated proposal generation: Handy if you send a lot of quotes, but most teams need only a template and a PDF.
Pro Tips for Choosing GTM Software (Without Regret)
- Test drive with real data. Demos are always perfect. Insist on a trial or sandbox with your actual contacts and workflows.
- Start with your process, not their features. What’s actually slowing you down today? Shop for that.
- Beware of lock-in. Long contracts, expensive onboarding, and proprietary data formats are red flags.
- Ask about support. Fast, real human support is worth more than another dashboard.
Common Pitfalls and Hype to Ignore
- All-in-one promises. One tool rarely does everything well. Stack a few best-of-breed tools if you have to.
- "AI" everywhere. Unless you see a real productivity gain, don’t pay extra for AI that just regurgitates your emails.
- Over-customization. The more you tinker, the more you have to maintain. Keep it simple, especially early on.
Quick Comparison Table: What Actually Matters
| Feature | Must-Have? | Nice-to-Have | Ignore If... | |-----------------------------------|:----------:|:------------:|----------------------------------------| | Data Enrichment | ✅ | | Data is rarely updated | | Multi-Channel Sequencing | ✅ | | Only does email | | Customizable Reporting | ✅ | | Buried in complexity | | Native CRM Integration | ✅ | | Requires extra middleware | | Workflow Automation | ✅ | | Creates more admin work | | Collaboration Tools | ✅ | | Needs training just to use | | Call Recording/AI Insights | | ✅ | You don’t do many calls | | Predictive Lead Scoring | | ✅ | You lack clean historical data | | Proposal Generators | | ✅ | You only send a few proposals a month |
Bottom Line: Keep It Simple, Iterate Fast
You don’t need every bell and whistle—just the features that actually help your team hit quota and keep customers happy. Start with what’s slowing you down, fix that first, and don’t be afraid to switch tools if your needs change. The best GTM stack is the one your team actually uses. Don’t let the software run the show—use it to get out of your own way.
If you’re testing new platforms, focus on fast wins. Don’t let a fancy roadmap or “AI-powered” promise distract you from the basics. Keep things simple, test with your real process, and iterate as you grow. That’s how real revenue teams win.