Friday, December 4, 2009

Product Marketing is NOT Marketing Communications

While we know that Product Management is a listening (or inbound communications) role and that Product Marketing is a talking (our outbound communications) role, it is not very surprising that some folks confuse Product Marketing with Marketing Communications.

In a B2B setting, Product Marketing talks about products – and does so in a strategic way, addressing five important, strategic questions:

  • What products will be offered (i.e., the breadth and depth of the product line)?
  • Who will be the target customers (i.e., the boundaries of the market segments to be served)?
  • How will the products reach those (i.e., the distribution channel)?
  • At what price should the products be offered?
  • How will customers be introduced to the products (i.e., advertising)?

These strategic answers plus product features and benefits must be handed over to marketing communications folks. The tactics of writing, graphic design, coordination with the printer and enforcement of the trademarks or usage of the logos all fall within the realm of the marketing communications people. They understand proper grammar, journalistic writing styles, color palettes and font choices.

If you are a product marketing manager with control issues, you will still want final review of all marketing communications creations to ensure they “get it” and that they properly address the information provided to them.

Looking from the outside in, since many product marketing managers cannot draw, spell or discern colors, some tasks are best left to the professionals.

[Via http://outsideinview.com]

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