Varun Krovvidi

Today's marketing is being disrupted at an exponential pace. We are constantly being overloaded with content and the traditional marketing channels are quickly getting saturated -- all leading to users quickly losing trust in traditional marketing methods. The one skill that is invaluable for each marketer is adaptability, primarily because of 1/ Constant market shifts: With the infusion of AI into our day to day, business models and products are changing rapidly. So are user preferences. Keeping up with the latest on "where to find your users" and "how to influence them" is key. 2/ Data is no longer king on its own: As marketers, we are starting to have more data to consume but with very few meaningful insights. Adapting to new perspectives of looking at the data will make it easy for you to draw patterns and make decisions on how to adapt your campaigns 3/ Campaign volatility: No matter how well-planned, campaigns encounter roadblocks. Maybe a platform changed its algorithm, or a competitor made a surprise move. Adaptability means not panicking, but pivoting to new tactics, re-targeting efforts, or finding a creative 'hack' to stay on track.

In this day and age, where lines are getting blurry between different roles, I feel it is essential to have an online portfolio of your work. Here are a couple of reasons why: 1/ Building trust & credibility: A portfolio provides tangible proof of your past successes. Your potential employer or client can see firsthand the results you've driven, the campaigns you've led, and most importantly the thought process behind your strategic decisions. 2/ Content creation & market feedback: Creating a portfolio (if you do not have one) forces you to become your own content creator. This helps you understand what messaging resonates with audiences, how to capture attention, and how best to present your work. Feedback on your portfolio helps you grow as a marketer. 3/ Self-reflection & career progression: The act of assembling a portfolio offers a structured opportunity for reflection. You'll identify your strengths, passions, and areas for improvement. This clarity sets a solid foundation for your future career choices and development.

As with any role, growing into "next level" requires two things: 1/ An understanding of what is the value provided to the organization by an individual at the next level 2/ Identifying and developing the right skillsets to provide that value. For example: Next level from a Senior PMM in a startup to mid-size company will require you to influence GTM direction (with deep market understanding), collaborate cross functionally (to drive results across teams), and improve full-funnel expertise (from top-of-funnel awareness to product adoption and retention strategies). Whereas the same next level from a senior PMM in a large organization might be required to manage more products in their portfolio or start to manage people. If we were to generalize, there are couple of skills that are common across these situations in general. For example, if you want to propel your career into a Director of Product Marketing role you need to become: 1/ Strategic thinker: Cultivate the ability to see the big picture. Start to understand deeply your market trends, competition, and company's overall goals. Translate this understanding into building narratives that align with broader company strategy – not just individual product needs. 2/ Data-driven decision maker: The closer you can tie GTM and marketing strategies directly to business and revenue metrics, the better. Back up your vision with the cold, hard numbers. And lastly, learn to tell stories about your strategies with data across leadership in different functions. 3/ Collaborative Leader: You will only maximize your impact and influence by working with other functions. For every strategy you develop, start to question how you can 10x the impact by working with other teams. Practice communicating with empathy, bring them into your process early, and share goals with them to build trust. 4/ Team multiplier: The most important tenet is to shift away from pure task execution and towards adding value. Learn to delegate strategically and if possible start to mentor talent early. Lastly, start to build a clear goal for your career. The next step is only a stepping stone. Is your path leading you to a VP of Product Marketing role, CMO, shifting into Product Management, or starting your own firm. Work backwards from there to build the right skills and path.

Although it varies across different organizations, Product Marketing primarily interfaces with: * Product Management -- Core collaboration around defining the product roadmap, value proposition, pricing, and feature launches. Also to close the feedback loop from the customers * Sales - Aligning with them on the core marketing narratives and enabling the teams with relevant product information * Marketing - Improve brand perception, generate demand, and drive leads with compelling campaigns * Growth - Drive free trials and adoption of the product. Partner on increasing usage and retention. * Customer success - Understanding usage patterns, pain points, feedback loops, and upsell opportunities Over time, we are starting to notice that the time between any two release cycles is starting to reduce in every organizations. This is primarily driven by increasing customer demands, improving delivery times with AI, and continuous disruption from niche players. Primarily due to this reason, we are starting to notice a tighter integration from product development to distribution. Recent shifts from organizations like AirBnB (reframing product management function to product marketing) signals the same. Primarily driven by this change, we might start to see Product Marketing as a function spill over a lot more into targeted specializations like growth, content creation, and product management

Traditionally, both product marketing and product management roles vary widely depending on the organization's size, product offerings, and strategies. Going to the fundamentals, I like the definition of a product marketer as a "storyteller who can champion a product's value and a strategist who can act on a company's biggest need". Based on this definition, there are 3 skills you can develop to position yourself as a product marketer even though you do not hold the title: 1/ Storytelling: Develop the art of crafting a compelling narrative for your product. Start to identify product value propositions you like and try to understand "why" you liked them. This will force you put yourself in the shoes of a user, explain value prop in simple language, and build compelling messaging/positioning. 2/ Strategist: Start understand the product distribution channel. Break it down into stages like - awareness, consideration, adoption, and retention - to understand where you not are doing well. Then try to drill down into the user journey to understand what is missing. 3/ Collaborator: Find opportunities where you can influence cross functional teams across sales, partners, marketing, and product on different projects. Develop the knack of identifying shared goals and proactively partner with teams on projects.

Congratulations on your new leadership role! Majority of your success in transitioning from IC to a leader is driven by how quickly you can fundamentally shift your mindset and approach. Here are a couple of pointers that can help. 1/ Go from being a "doer" to an "enabler": Let go of the need to do everything yourself. Most importantly, don't evaluate your team based on "how you would have done this". Trust your team's capabilities and empower them to take ownership. Shift from focusing on your own performance to helping others develop their skills and reach their full potential. Create an environment of "psychological safety" where team members feel comfortable sharing ideas, challenging assumptions, and working together towards shared goals. 2/ You are not an "expert". You should be a "visionary": Move beyond the day-to-day tasks and focus on the broader strategic direction of the team and its alignment with company goals. Inspire others by painting a compelling vision of the future and communicate it in a way that motivates and excites your team. Focus more on your decision making where you balance the needs of the team and the company. Consider the long term implication of your choices for both your team and the company -- this is the hardest part. 3/ Understand your team: Spend your initial weeks getting to know your team members individually and collectively. Observe their work styles, strengths, areas for growth, and how they interact with each other. Understand their motivations and how they contribute to the team's success. Gauge the team's overall morale, communication patterns, and decision-making processes. Identify any potential areas of friction or improvement. 4/ Build trust: Be clear about your expectations and goals. Involve the team in decision-making and solicit their input on key initiatives. Show that you value their expertise and opinions. Give team members the autonomy to own their projects and take calculated risks. Celebrate successes, both big and small. Acknowledge individual contributions and foster a culture of appreciation. 5/ Be a coach and a mentor: There is pure joy in helping someone on your team succeed. Help team members identify their career aspirations and create individual development plans. Provide opportunities for team members to enhance their skills and knowledge. Offer mentorship, coaching, and access to relevant resources. 6/ It's ok to not have the answers: Acknowledge that you don't have all the answers and be open to learning from your team members. Regularly solicit input from your team on your leadership style and how you can better support them. Here are some resources that might help. "Leaders Eat Last" by Simon Sinek is a book that helps with mindset shift. Seek out experienced leaders within your company or industry who can offer guidance and support. Also, explore if hiring an executive coach is an approach you prefer. Lastly, transition from individual contributor to leader takes time and requires a willingness to learn and adapt. It is not merely a change in title, but a fundamental shift in mindset. Good luck and if you have any questions, feel free to reach out!

I love this question. Fundamentally going to market for enterprise vs SMB/mid market requires a difference frame of thinking. 1. Buyer Personas: Enterprise: * Decisions involve a complex buying committee with diverse roles (C-suite, IT, procurement, end-users). * Prioritize proven solutions, established vendors, and robust security/compliance features. * Require extensive due diligence, proof of concepts, and negotiation. SMB/Mid-Market: * Often involve fewer stakeholders, with a primary decision-maker (owner, manager). * Seek affordable solutions with quick ROI and ease of implementation. * More agile and open to trying new products/vendors. 2. Distinct Needs: * Enterprise: * Need solutions that can be tailored to complex workflows and integrate with existing systems. * Require products that can handle large volumes of data and support business growth. * Expect dedicated account management, training, and rapid issue resolution. * SMB/Mid-Market: * Prefer intuitive interfaces and minimal setup time. * Seek cost-effective solutions with pay-as-you-go or scalable pricing models. * Value online documentation, tutorials, and community forums for support. 3. Differentiated Storytelling: * Enterprise: * Quantify ROI, highlight case studies with similar companies, and emphasize risk mitigation. * Tailor messaging to C-suite concerns like revenue growth, cost reduction, and competitive advantage. * Position your brand as an industry expert through whitepapers, webinars, and speaking engagements. * SMB/Mid-Market: * Emphasize ease of use, quick wins, and tangible results. * Showcase testimonials and case studies from similar businesses to build trust and credibility. * Leverage online reviews, ratings, and awards to demonstrate your product's popularity and effectiveness. 4. Go-to-Market Channels: * Enterprise: * Focus on building relationships with key decision-makers through personalized demos, presentations, and negotiations. * Target specific high-value accounts with tailored campaigns and content. * Participate in conferences and trade shows to network with potential clients and partners. * SMB/Mid-Market: * Generate leads through content marketing, social media, and email campaigns. * Leverage a dedicated team for high-volume, transactional sales. * Offer free trials or limited versions of your product to allow users to experience its value firsthand. 5. Iteration Cycles: * Enterprise: Longer sales cycles and complex implementations often require more extensive planning and testing before iterating on messaging or product features. * SMB/Mid-Market: Shorter sales cycles and faster feedback loops allow for more rapid experimentation and adjustments to marketing campaigns and product offerings. 6. Pricing Models: * Enterprise: Customizable pricing models with tiered options, volume discounts, and add-on services. * SMB/Mid-Market: Simple, transparent pricing with clear value propositions, such as freemium, monthly subscriptions, or usage-based pricing. This is just general guidance while the actual approach should be tailored to the specific use case

Great question. This is a traditional "positioning" problem most enterprises face with historically successful products. Before answering the question, for any behavior to change in such enterprises, all the cross functional stakeholders (product, sales, marketing, and engineering) need to recognize that the market has evolved (new competitors, alternatives, needs, or even customers) and the said product is not well positioned to be the leader forever. With that understanding, it is important to take a fresh look at the following: 1/ Who is the ideal customer "today"? If your product is still generating new revenue but the conversion rates are low, chances are there is a niche customer base now but our definitions are too broad for them. Historically your customers might have been early adopters, large enterprises seeking a comprehensive solution, or those valuing brand reputation. Today, they might have moved to 1/ Late majority who are risk-averse, 2/ niche sectors with specific needs, or 3/ decision makers who value different things. It is important to "redefine" them as specifically as possible 2/ What is the real "value" we provide? In this case, start asking the question without your product in mind. Focus on understanding, what is 1/ outcome your are providing, 2/ experience you are creating, or 3/ ecosystem you are neatly fitting into. There has to be at least 1 of them where "you are best in the world". It is really important to tie them to things your new ideal customer really cares about - security, effort, risk, scale etc., 3/ What are the true alternatives? We tend to think every competitor (or only our competitors) as an alternative. Sometimes it can be an intern with google sheets (in case of data visualization software). High performing sales people truly understand the alternatives. It is important to dig them out to not mark every lost deal as being lost to a competitor. This happens because product and marketing teams' competitor lists are longer than an actual prospect's. Often, strong differentiators get ignored because we can identify a competitor that has the capability. But what if that competitor is not showing up on a prospect's list for other reasons. 4/ How are they paying for your product? Overall the purchasing behavior is also gravitating towards value based pricing than long term subscription models. Sometimes it is worth rethinking the "way" the product is priced than the actual pricing itself. 5/ How are they purchasing your product? It is also important to evaluate the channels of GTM. Maybe the buying behaviors shifted from direct sales to channel partners. Or maybe a preferred mode is to integrate your product into a broader solution offering with other vendors. If none of these still work, the problem might be in product strategy itself and not positioning. Oftentimes I realized getting an external opinion (consultants like April Dunford) help make the process easier in a company than trying to change minds with legacy approach. Hope this helps.

Absolutely! One way to do this is by thinking of yourself as a "product" being sold to the company. Your product marketing portfolio is a marketing campaign – but for yourself. Just like a successful product launch, you need to showcase your unique value, tell a compelling story, and provide evidence to back up your claims. To do that, you need to understand: 1/ What is your unique value? What sets you apart? What specific skills, experiences, or perspectives do you bring that other candidates don't? Identify your target audience well. Tailor your value to the specific companies and roles you're interested in. What are their pain points, and how can you solve them? 2/ What is a compelling story that communicates your value? Your portfolio should tell a story of your career journey, highlighting key milestones, challenges overcome, and lessons learned. If you don't have a portfolio yet, starting posting your thoughts on channels like LinkedIn to communicate your thought process. 3/ What is the proof point to your story? Quantify your achievements whenever possible. Use data to demonstrate the impact of your work. If you do not have data, gather positive feedback from colleagues, managers, or clients to reinforce your credibility and showcase your skills. Here are some of the other things to consider: 1/ Develop a strong personal brand that reflects your unique value proposition. This could include a professional website or online portfolio or active social media presence etc., 2/ Connect with other product marketers and build relationships with potential employers. Attend industry events, join online communities, and participate in relevant conversations. 3/ Be authentic. Let your personality and passion shine through in every conversation. Good luck!

Product marketing is a relatively new and evolving discipline. Unlike traditional marketing roles, there's no specific educational path or degree that leads directly to a product marketing career. As a result, we often come from diverse backgrounds, bringing unique skill sets and perspectives to the table. When hiring junior PMMs, especially those without direct experience, it's essential to recognize this and look for candidates who possess the fundamental skills and mindset that can be applied and developed in the context of product marketing. Here's what I prioritized: 1/ Can they tell a compelling story? Ask them to summarize a complex technical concept in simple terms for a non-technical audience. Or even have them tell a story about a product they like. Specifically evaluate if they can identify 2-3 key aspects of a product that can drive impact on a customer 2/ Can they work with cross functional stakeholders? Present a hypothetical scenario where they need to collaborate with sales, product, and design teams. Assess their ability to navigate different perspectives and build consensus. Ask about past experiences working with cross-functional teams, focusing on challenges they faced and how they overcame them. 3/ Can they identify the most critical tasks and focus their energy where it matters most? Give them a list of competing product marketing initiatives and ask them to prioritize them based on potential impact and available resources. Observe their thinking process (or) Present a case study of a failed product launch and ask them to analyze the root causes, emphasizing the importance of prioritizing the right actions. It can be a common launch in the market as well. 4/ Can they truly understand and represent a customer? Ask them to create a customer persona for a target segment, detailing their pain points, motivations, and buying behaviors. It can be for a product they use. They need not have the right framework, but can they deeply understand a customer and their behaviors. 5/ [Optional] Can they understand what a business needs? Ask them to explain how they would measure the success of a product and how it might relate to a business outcome. I recommend not looking for frameworks in their answers, but to understand if their thought process is in the right direction. Frameworks are coachable. Mindset is tougher. And lastly, every PMM is a result of some manager taking a chance on them. Good luck in hiring !