I am constantly asked often: “What’s the difference between product management and product marketing?” So, in case you’re questioning the identical factor don’t fret. There’s a reason for that.
Hello everyone, my name is Aurelia who is the director of marketing for products at Drift which is why I’m on the scene to clarify the situation.
An HTML0 product manager assists to define and create an innovative product. They take ownership of the problem. They address questions like What is the reason we are creating this? Who are the people who will benefit from this product?
Being a product manager can be very difficult. It requires lots of studies, listening and testing as well as patience to create a great product. (Kudos to my colleagues in the management of products. My job wouldn’t be possible without the incredible products you create.)
However, the product marketer is accountable for bringing the product into the market, making it marketable. We focus on marketing to our customers as well as prospects and the internal team. We’re asking questions such as who are our buyers? What are their goals or problems that this product can help solve or achieve?
Is that the case? But not really. There’s a valid reason people continue to get these roles confused, enough that I’ve spoken on an episode about it. If you’d like the entire episode, click here: The Ins and Outs of Product Marketing. For the rest of the episode, stay tuned to get all the information.
How are the two areas of Product Marketing & Product Management Similar?
Although our primary responsibilities are different in the realm of product marketing, both managers have three commonalities:
- Our customers are always the very centre of our universe.
- We can work efficiently across the entire company whether it’s sales, customer satisfaction marketing, product or.
- There isn’t a universal description of each role and, as such, they frequently become confused.
Each company has its method of product marketing and management. While both roles include”product” in their titles doesn’t mean they are interchangeable “product” as their title doesn’t mean that their functions are identical or even comparable.
To put it in context, let me guide you through the specifics of what a product marketing professional is and what our specific responsibilities are at Drift.
What are the Essentials of Marketing?
The job of a marketer for products comes down to being in the position of speaking for their consumer.
Product marketers employ an outside-in mindset and are constantly in touch with the challenges of our customers and goals, as in the market and trends, as well as our competitors’ strategies. Then we apply that information to inform our product roadmap to ensure future improvements.
Our most important stakeholders are our products and sales teams, however, we also collaborate with marketing, customer service along with our leadership team. Our roadmaps assist these teams to comprehend the latest features and products that allow them to communicate these innovations to customers or prospects. This is vital as it’s the features that allow us to distinguish ourselves from our competitors.
The core of product managers is storytellers. We all know that nobody buys features or products. They purchase solutions to their issues. We make sure that everyone can discuss and market our products. There’s plenty that is involved in that process: from customer-facing and messaging to enabling go-to-market (GTM) facilitation as well as mapping the key talking areas in sales conversations.
The measurement of the effectiveness of marketing a product isn’t easy. In the end, much of the work we do is quantitative. The most efficient method to gauge our performance is to measure our win rate and the average price of selling (ASP). Also, are the sales bringing new buyers in, and are buyers adopting more of our services?
In essence, a successful product marketer brings the consumer and market perspective to the table. They help create stories for products that meet the needs of customers to ensure that sales will sell.
The 4 Structural Pillars in Product Marketing
Although the fundamentals of marketing for products are identical across different organizations their goals differ depending upon the division they are within.
In my work, I’ve witnessed marketing for products from both the marketing and the product aspect. This often leads to an unbalance between the product concentration, and a focus on sales.
In the end, I believe companies require a healthy balance between both. Product marketers have to create an effective item and be competent in selling it. We accomplish this by focusing our attention on the following four main elements of product marketing:
1. Market Insights
A big part of understanding what consumers are looking for is understanding the market. This is often dependent on research into the market: What is the size of the demand for the product you sell? Which companies are in the scope of your product? Which competitors are you competing against in the same field? And how can you measure up to them? What are the main trends that are affecting the business?
Market insights can also be gleaned from conversations with analysts, influencers and (of course) prospects and customers. All of this data is gold that product marketers can utilize to create strategic messaging as well as inform the prioritization of product features and build plans for the future.
2. Product Positioning
What is it that makes your product stand out from your competitors? Product positioning is about being able to sell and market your products as the solution to an issue. To reach out to consumers, product marketing professionals must be able to communicate their customers’ pain points and explain how their solution can solve these issues while demonstrating how their product is superior to the solutions of their competition.
In the same way, product marketers have to use their company’s values and their brand’s voice to ensure their product’s message aligns with their core values. This way, consumers will not view your product as a solution in a sea of options, but instead, to be the solution they’ll need to resolve their issues.
3. Go-to-Market
It’s all about planning your launch. Going to market can involve several elements, such as branding, pricing, packaging as well as goals, positioning as well as marketing tactics. The most important aspect to remember is “who.” You will always need to reference back to the personas and verticals the solution was designed to serve. It is crucial to utilize a value-based language, to ensure that your customers don’t be confused by technical terms.
4. Customers, Sales and Partner Enablement
You’ve created your product! But it’s not going to market by itself. Product marketers must be prepared to explain to the sellers and customers the purpose of the product and teach them how to discuss it. Because in the final analysis, those who interact with customers aren’t aware of what the product does as well as why it is important to be concerned about it, the customers will not take it on.
For success Product, marketers must take on these four pillars from product prioritization through the launch stage to selling. All of this is impossible, however, without a good relationship between product marketing as well as product management. This is the reason I am going to move on to my next point.
Take time to study the connection between Product Marketing and Management
Product managers and product marketers should be joined to one another (figuratively in the sense of speaking). It is essential to work together even amid a product that is in the planning phase.
Why?
While the bulk of the work of a product marketing professional is done while the product is being developed the earlier we’re involved, the more effective. When we bring product marketers in early, we can begin to research the product’s motives for being developed, what it’s designed for, and what problems it’s solving. This allows us to have more time to create an appealing story for the customers and to plan a successful launch.
We’re all aware that product launches require a lot of planning and time. Ensure a successful launch, it requires getting your team aligned early and frequently and having a leak-proof process from beginning to end.
Consider the connection with product marketing as well as management in this way It’s like a team baking cakes together. Both teams must be able to bring the correct ingredients to the mix so that when the cake is taken baked the cake is restaurant-quality and ready for all hungry diners.
Keep in mind that if you keep your product marketing and management in sync and sync, you’ll be able to create great products that make a splash.
