Internal Champions

Users who stake their social capital to spread your product within their organizations

Claire Butler
An inside look at Figma's unique GTM motion

Internal Champions

"You're kind of putting yourself on the line. You're taking a risk when you're doing that, especially if it's your job. You're bringing other people in, and you're not going to do that unless you really believe in something." - Claire Butler

What It Is

Internal champions are users who love your product so much that they're willing to stake their professional reputation to spread it within their organization. They're different from satisfied users—they actively advocate, persuade colleagues, navigate internal politics, and push through procurement obstacles.

For bottom-up growth motions, internal champions are the key mechanism through which individual usage transforms into organizational revenue. They bridge the gap between product-market fit with ICs and enterprise sales.

At Figma, these champions often:

  • Started as individuals using Figma for personal projects
  • Gradually introduced it to their team
  • Led the charge to get their company to officially adopt it
  • Reached out to Figma sales themselves, asking "How do I get security to approve this?"

How It Works

Why Love Matters:

Users won't put their reputation on the line for products they merely "like." The bar for advocacy is much higher than the bar for usage. Champions need:

  • Deep confidence the product will work for their team
  • Belief that adoption will make them look good, not foolish
  • Strong enough conviction to overcome organizational friction
  • Personal investment in the product's success

How Champions Emerge:

  1. Patient Zero - One person starts using the product, often in a small pocket of the organization

  2. Team Adoption - They convince their immediate team to try it, usually through organic collaboration (sharing a file, demoing in a meeting)

  3. Cross-Org Spread - The product spreads to adjacent teams through collaboration touch points

  4. Formalization Push - The champion reaches out to get official buy-in (security approval, procurement, enterprise features)

Visualizing Champion Networks:

Figma built node graph tools to visualize how products spread through organizations. These showed:

  • Clusters of users (usually teams)
  • Lines connecting clusters through collaboration invites
  • The "patient zero" at the center of each cluster
  • How one person's invite created a new cluster in a different part of the org

How to Apply It

  1. Identify Your Champions Early

    • Who's at the center of your organizational node graphs?
    • Who's invited the most people?
    • Who's reached out asking to upgrade their whole company?

  2. Help Them Succeed

    • Give them materials to share internally (case studies, ROI data)
    • Remove blockers they face (security questionnaires, compliance docs)
    • Make the internal sale as easy as possible

  3. Nurture the Relationship Over Time

    • Champions don't go away after the sale
    • They get frustrated when things break
    • They need to feel heard when they provide feedback

  4. Help Them Grow Their Careers

    • Speaking opportunities at your conferences
    • Social amplification of their expertise
    • Help them become thought leaders

  5. Maintain Connection After They Leave

    • Champions often become champions again at their next company
    • Stay in touch even when they're not actively buying

When to Use It

Essential for:

  • Bottom-up, product-led growth motions
  • Products where the user isn't the buyer
  • Technical tools with skeptical audiences
  • Products that spread through collaboration

Signs You Have Champions:

  • Users reaching out to sales unprompted
  • Organic spread within large organizations
  • Users defending your product in public forums
  • Enthusiastic reference customers

Signs You Need to Build Champion Relationships:

  • High individual usage but low team adoption
  • Deals stalling at security/procurement
  • Churn when champions leave companies

Source

  • Guest: Claire Butler
  • Episode: "An inside look at Figma's unique GTM motion"
  • Key Discussion: (00:29:12) - How champions drive organizational spread
  • YouTube: Watch on YouTube

Related Frameworks

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