SOM is the slice of SAM you can realistically capture in the next 12–24 months given your resources, competition, and execution capacity. If your SAM is 8,000 companies and you have a 3-person sales team, your SOM might be 200–400 accounts. SOM is the number investors actually stress-test — it should connect directly to your revenue plan.
For example, if your SAM is $500M but you can realistically close 150 deals at $20K ACV with your current team, your SOM for this year is $3M ARR.
SOM analysis informs how we size outbound programs — matching pipeline targets to realistic team capacity.
Related Terms
Relevant Cactus Services
We implement Serviceable Obtainable Market (SOM) strategies for B2B tech startups every day. Book a free 30-minute call to get a concrete plan for your situation.
Book a free strategy call →Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
Your ICP is the precise description of the company most likely to buy, stay, and expand.
Sales Development Representative (SDR)
An SDR is the outbound hunter on your sales team — their job is to generate qualified meetings, not close deals.
Business Development Representative (BDR)
A BDR is similar to an SDR but often focuses on larger, more strategic accounts or outbound into new markets rather than a defined territory.
Total Addressable Market (TAM)
TAM is the total revenue opportunity if you captured 100% of your target market.
Serviceable Addressable Market (SAM)
SAM is the portion of TAM you can actually reach with your current GTM motion.
Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL)
An MQL is a lead that marketing has flagged as sales-ready based on behavior or firmographic fit.