What Formats Resonate Most at Expansion Stages?
At expansion stages, customers don’t need to be convinced you work—they need proof you can drive more value across products, teams, and regions. The formats that win are those that surface outcomes, benchmarks, and next-step plays, not just features.
The formats that resonate most at expansion stages are those that prove impact and point to a bigger vision: executive-ready business reviews, outcome-focused case studies, maturity assessments, benchmark reports, and prescriptive playbooks. These formats make it easy for champions to justify additional investment, align cross-functional stakeholders, and see a clear path from “what you delivered” to “what you could unlock next.”
What Expansion-Stage Buyers Actually Pay Attention To
The Expansion-Stage Formats Playbook
Use this sequence to design and orchestrate expansion-stage formats that help champions secure budget, align stakeholders, and grow the relationship.
Diagnose → Prioritize Outcomes → Select Formats → Build Stories → Orchestrate → Measure → Refine
- Diagnose the expansion opportunity: Analyze product usage, adoption, and impact by segment. Identify where additional value is likely: new teams, new regions, new capabilities, or deeper program execution.
- Prioritize business outcomes: Anchor everything in the customer’s revenue objectives—pipeline creation, conversion, retention, or margin—and agree on 2–3 expansion hypotheses.
- Select formats by audience: Map formats to stakeholders: executives (EBRs and benchmark summaries), practitioners (playbooks and dashboards), and RevOps/finance (ROI analysis and RM index comparisons).
- Build story-driven assets: Turn data into narrative. Show where they started, what changed, results to date, and the concrete next moves that justify expansion.
- Orchestrate across teams: Coordinate marketing, CS, and sales so nurture programs, QBR decks, and outreach all reinforce the same expansion story and recommended plays.
- Measure format performance: Track engagement (opens, views, meeting accepts), expansion-stage conversion (upsell, cross-sell), and velocity from insight to opportunity.
- Refine by segment and stage: Use feedback from champions and account teams to adjust length, data level, and storytelling based on industry, deal size, and buying group complexity.
Expansion Content & Formats Maturity Matrix
| Capability | From (Ad Hoc) | To (Operationalized) | Owner | Primary KPI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outcome Storytelling | Generic decks focused on features and usage. | Executive-ready stories tied to pipeline, revenue, and efficiency gains. | PMM / CS Leadership | Expansion win rate |
| Benchmarking & Maturity | Anecdotal comparisons to “best practices.” | Formal maturity models (e.g., RM6™) and benchmark reports used in every expansion motion. | RevOps / Strategy | Expansion ARR tied to maturity shifts |
| Format Mix | Static PDFs and ad hoc QBRs. | Curated mix of case studies, dashboards, playbooks, and executive briefings. | Lifecycle Marketing | Content-assisted expansion opportunities |
| Data & Dashboards | Scattered reports without clear narrative. | Standard expansion dashboards aligned to revenue marketing metrics and used in every review. | Analytics / RevOps | Expansion pipeline sourced from dashboard insights |
| Customer Proof | Case studies used mainly for net-new sales. | Proof stories and success metrics integrated into QBRs, roadmaps, and advocacy programs. | PMM / CS | Referenceability & advocacy rate |
| Program Governance | Each account team builds its own expansion materials. | Centralized templates, playbooks, and review cadences linked to revenue marketing strategy. | RevOps / Enablement | Consistency of expansion motions & cycle time |
Client Snapshot: Using Results Stories to Power Expansion
One enterprise provider built an expansion program around a simple question: “Where have we already proven value, and how do we show what’s next?” By pairing outcome-focused case studies with executive business reviews and revenue dashboards, they turned early wins into a scalable expansion motion—similar to the way Transforming Lead Management: How Comcast Business Optimized Marketing Automation and Drove $1B in Revenue showcases results that justify deeper investment in revenue marketing capabilities.
Expansion isn’t about introducing your product—it’s about expanding the value story. When your formats consistently prove impact, benchmark potential, and prescribe next steps, your best customers become your fastest growth engine.
Frequently Asked Questions about Expansion-Stage Formats
Design Expansion Formats That Match Your Revenue Ambitions
We’ll help you align your expansion content to RM6™, your dashboards, and your revenue goals—so every format moves customers toward the next value horizon.
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