Internationalization and International GTM Series #10: International Audit: The 10-Question Readiness Assessment

Before entering a market. Before scaling an existing international operation. Before attributing weak international results to "the market is tough." Run this audit.

This is a worksheet, not a confidence exercise. Use it to identify which specific gaps sit between you and the market results you want. The goal is to make the difference between "we tried international and it didn't work" and "we identified that our product had a data residency problem and our pricing was built for the wrong market — and we fixed both."

International Go-To-Market Readiness

6. Have you separated real demand from noise?

What is the specific evidence that buyers in this market want your product — not just that some people in this market have heard of your product? Have you built a demand model that accounts for addressable TAM, competitive saturation, and your actual ability to reach and serve this market with the resources you have?

7. Does your product, pricing, and business model actually work here?

Have you made the deliberate decision about what requires localization versus what requires adaptation? Is your pricing strategy for this market built on a real model — not just a currency conversion? Does your business model (contract structure, payment terms, support model) match what this market expects?

8. Who owns this market, and what are they accountable for?

Is there a named person accountable for commercial results in this market? Do they have the authority to make market-specific decisions? Do they have a specific plan with specific milestones, not just a revenue target?

9. Is your channel and distribution model the right model for this market?

Have you made a deliberate choice between direct, partner-led, hybrid, or distributor — based on market revenue potential, regulatory requirements, and competitive dynamics? Is the economics of the channel relationship structured to incentivize actual selling, not just listing?

10. What would have to be true for you to win here, and are those conditions met?

What specific, falsifiable conditions need to materialize for this market to produce the results you need? Can you name three? If you can't name three specific things that would have to be true, you don't have a market thesis — you have a hope. And hopes are not a commercial strategy.