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Chapter 5 of 15

Chapter 5: Channel Selection

The Bullseye Framework and the 19 traction channels.

Playbook Chapters
What You'll Learn By the end of this chapter, you'll master the Bullseye Framework for selecting traction channels, understand the 19 channels available to startups, and learn why "saturation" is a myth.

The 50/50 Rule

Most startups spend 100% of their time on Product and 0% on Traction. Then they wonder why they have no users.

The Traction Gap

"Traction and product development are of equal importance and should each get about 50% of your attention." — Gabriel Weinberg, Traction. If you are building for 40 hours a week, you should be marketing for 40 hours a week.

The Bullseye Framework

You cannot test 19 channels at once. The Bullseye Framework is a method for prioritizing your tests.

1. The Outer Ring

Possibilities: Brainstorm at least one strategy for every single one of the 19 channels. No bad ideas.

2. The Middle Ring

Probabilities: Select the top 3-5 channels that seem most promising. Run cheap traction tests to gather data.

3. The Inner Ring

Core Channel: Focus exclusively on the ONE channel that works best. Saturate it before moving on.

The 19 Traction Channels

A Field Guide to Growth

  • Viral Marketing: Referrals (Dropbox)
  • PR: Traditional media
  • Unconventional PR: Stunts (Richard Branson)
  • SEM: Google Ads
  • Social/Display Ads: FB/Instagram/LinkedIn
  • Offline Ads: Billboards/Radio
  • SEO: Organic search
  • Content Marketing: Blogs/Whitepapers
  • Email Marketing: Newsletters
  • Engineering as Marketing: Free tools (HubSpot Grader)
  • Targeting Blogs: Guest posting
  • Business Dev: Partnerships
  • Sales: Cold calling/outreach
  • Affiliate Programs: Commission based
  • Existing Platforms: App Store/Chrome Store
  • Trade Shows: Industry events
  • Offline Events: Meetups
  • Speaking Engagements: Conferences
  • Community Building: Slack/Discord

The Law of Channel Saturation

As you scale within a channel, your CAC (Cost of Acquisition) will inevitably rise. The early adopters are cheap; the mass market is expensive.

The S-Curve

Every channel follows an S-curve. It starts slow (testing), goes hyper-growth (scale), and then plateaus (saturation). Successful companies layer new S-curves on top of old ones.

Test Your Channels

Don't guess which channel will work. Use our Bullseye Framework tool to prioritize your experiments and track your CAC per channel.

Channel Testing Competitive Deep-Dive

Turn Theory Into Action

Build your GTM strategy, test pricing, and validate PMF with the LeanPivot AI tool suite.

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Works Cited & Recommended Reading
GTM Strategy & Frameworks
  • 1. Complete Go-To-Market (GTM) Strategy Framework with Examples. Slideworks
  • 2. The Lean GTM Framework: A Founder's Guide. Seed Through Series
  • 3. 6 Steps to Creating a Go-to-Market Plan. YouTube
  • 4. How to Build a GTM Strategy Without Guesswork in 2026. Via Marketing
  • 5. GTM Strategy for SaaS: Step-by-Step Process & Examples. Default
Growth Loops & Viral Mechanics
  • 6. Growth Loops: Transcending AARRR Frameworks. Reforge
  • 7. Brian Balfour on Flywheels, Funnels, and the Future. Proof Blog
  • 8. The 4 Growth Frameworks You Need to Build a $100M Product. Reforge
  • 9. Four Fits For $100M+ Growth. Brian Balfour
  • 10. Product Channel Fit Will Make or Break Your Growth Strategy. Brian Balfour
  • 11. What is K-Factor? Complete Viral Growth Guide. Arfadia
  • 12. Viral growth explained with a formula for the viral factor. Hacker News
  • 13. Why more retention drives more viral growth. Andrew Chen
  • 14. Discover content growth loops. Reforge
  • 15. Discover paid growth loops. Reforge
Bullseye Framework & Channel Selection
  • 16. Strategize, Test, Measure: The Bullseye Framework. Brian Balfour
  • 17. Bullseye Framework: The Definitive Guide To Traction Channels. DesignWithValue
  • 18. The 19 Traction Channels for Extraordinary Growth. GrowthRocks
  • 19. How does the Bullseye method compare with other frameworks? Medium
  • 20. 24 Budget-Friendly Marketing Ideas for Startups Under $500. KeyGroup
  • 21. 24 Marketing Ideas for Startups Under $500. M1-Project
Pricing Strategy & Van Westendorp
  • 22. Pricing Products the Silicon Valley Way - Van Westendorp Model. First Principles
  • 23. How To Price Your Product: Van Westendorp Pricing Model. Forbes
  • 24. Conducting a pricing survey with Van Westendorp. Startup Recipes
  • 25. Van Westendorp Price Sensitivity Survey Template. Contentsquare
  • 26. A complete guide to Van Westendorp + How to graph it in Excel. The Maykin
  • 27. Van Westendorp Price Optimization Using LimeSurvey. LimeSurvey
Value-Based Pricing & Economics
  • 28. EVC, a value-based pricing technique based on Competitive Analysis. Gocious
  • 29. PRICING ECONOMIC VALUE TO THE CUSTOMER. MIT OpenCourseWare
  • 30. Value-Based Pricing: Pricing on Customer Outcomes - 2026 Guide. Rework
  • 31. SaaS Unit Economics: Pricing for Growth. Lucid.Now
  • 32. Mastering Value-Based Pricing Calculation. Togai
  • 33. Value-based pricing example: Pricing SaaS products by value. Orb Billing
Unit Economics & SaaS Metrics
  • 34. LTV/CAC Ratio: Guide for Startup Founders. Lucid.Now
  • 35. LTV:CAC Ratio: What It Is & How To Calculate It. Klipfolio
  • 36. CAC Trends for Growth-Stage Companies 2025. Phoenix Strategy Group
  • 37. 2025 SaaS Benchmarks: CAC Payback. ScaleXP
  • 38. CAC in SaaS: How to calculate, benchmark, and improve. Stripe
  • 39. Go-To-Market Fit: SaaS KPIs & Metrics. Oxx VC
  • 40. 2025 B2B SaaS Benchmarks: CAC, NRR & Growth Rate Metrics. Pavilion
  • 41. 2025 Private B2B SaaS Company Growth Rate Benchmarks. SaaS Capital
Product-Market Fit & Sean Ellis Test
  • 42. How to Measure Product Market Fit: Tips & Metrics to Master. First Round Review
  • 43. How the 40% Rule Can Help You Find Product-Market Fit. Usetiful
  • 44. Measure and improve product/market fit with the 40% test. Reforge
  • 45. SaaS churn and user retention rates: 2025 global benchmarks. Pendo
  • 46. SaaS NPS Benchmarks 2025: Software Company Scores. NPSpack
  • 47. 38 SaaS NPS Benchmarks & Top SaaS eNPS scores. Customer Gauge
Activation, PLG & Experimentation
  • 48. What is Activation Rate? Full Guide With Examples. Eppo
  • 49. 20 Product-led Growth Examples to Inspire Your Own Strategy. Userpilot
  • 50. 8 Inspiring Product Led Growth Examples to Emulate in 2025. Development Corporate
  • 51. Growth Experiments Templates. Todoist
  • 52. Experiment Canvas Template. Soren Kaplan
Channel Saturation & Risk
  • 53. Diminishing Returns: Accounting for Channel Saturation. Recast MMM
  • 54. MMM: Saturation Curves. Indaru
  • 55. Advertising response curves: What are they and why do you need them? Sellforte
  • 56. Essential Steps for Risk Managers in Product Launches. LaunchPad Agency
  • 57. Top 10 Product Risk Assessment Templates. SlideTeam

This playbook synthesizes research from traction methodologies, growth engineering, and value-based pricing frameworks. Some book links may be affiliate links.