A go-to-market strategy where a company first sells a small, initial deal into a customer account (the "land"), then grows that account's spend over time through upsells, cross-sells, and broader adoption (the "expand").
Why it matters
Land and expand lowers the initial barrier to closing a first deal, since the ask is smaller and lower-risk for the buyer, while still allowing significant total account value over time — it shifts the growth burden from the initial sale to ongoing customer success and expansion efforts.
In a sentence
"We land most accounts with just one team using the free tier, then expand into paid seats and additional departments over the following months."
Related terms
- Often confused with: Upsell / Cross-sell (land and expand is the overall strategic approach; upselling and cross-selling are the specific tactical mechanisms — expanding within an existing feature line, or selling an additional, different product — used to execute the "expand" half of the strategy).