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The Hidden Cost of Initiative Sprawl
Most B2B companies run 30-50+ GTM initiatives with unclear ROI. Discover how sprawl fragments capacity and inflates CAC—and what to do about it.
The Sprawl Tax: Why Your CAC Keeps Rising
You've probably noticed: CAC is up, but it's hard to pinpoint why. You're spending more on ads, events, content, tools, and headcount—but pipeline growth isn't keeping pace. The culprit? Initiative sprawl.
What Is Initiative Sprawl?
Initiative sprawl happens when your GTM organization is running too many things at once, with no clear prioritization. Common symptoms include:
- Marketing runs 15+ active campaigns with 3-4 FTEs
- Sales is testing 4 different outbound motions simultaneously
- RevOps supports 8 dashboards that no one uses
- Everyone feels busy but nothing moves the needle
The Real Cost: Fragmented Capacity
When teams spread themselves across too many initiatives, execution quality drops across the board. A single campaign manager juggling 5 campaigns delivers mediocre results on all of them. A sales rep testing 4 different scripts never masters any of them.
Fragmented capacity means:
- Longer cycle times (everything takes longer to launch)
- Lower conversion rates (nothing is optimized properly)
- Higher error rates (quality suffers under context-switching)
- Burned-out teams (constant firefighting mode)
How to Fix It: The 3-Step Rationalization Process
The fix isn't subtle. You need to cut, consolidate, and focus. Here's how:
- Inventory everything: List every GTM initiative currently running
- Score by impact: Rank each by actual pipeline contribution (not effort or visibility)
- Stop the bottom 30%: Yes, immediately. Free up capacity for what works.
What Happens Next
When you rationalize your GTM portfolio, three things improve fast:
- CAC drops (fewer wasted dollars on low-return work)
- Conversion rates rise (teams can optimize fewer, better initiatives)
- Team morale improves (everyone knows what matters)
The Bottom Line
Initiative sprawl is the silent killer of GTM efficiency. Most companies don't realize they're running 40+ initiatives until they inventory them. Once you see the sprawl, the solution is clear: cut, consolidate, focus. Your CAC will thank you.