Key Elements Of A Product Marketing Strategy
Product marketing plays a crucial role in the success of a company by effectively promoting and positioning its offerings in the market. A product marketing strategy typically consists of several key elements that work together to promote and position a specific product or service effectively.
Components Of A Typical eLearning Product Marketing Strategy
- Target market identification
Clearly define the target market and identify the specific customer segments or personas that the product or service is intended for. - Needs analysis
This involves understanding the needs, preferences, and pain points of buyers, users, and influencers. - Competitive analysis
Identify direct and indirect competitors and evaluate their strengths, weaknesses, market positioning, and unique selling propositions. - Product positioning
Determine and articulate how the company’s product or service will be positioned in the market, key value propositions, and unique selling points that set it apart from competitors. - Messaging and communication
Develop clear and consistent messaging that effectively communicates the value and benefits of the product to the target audience. - Pricing strategy
Establish pricing that aligns with the product's value proposition, target market, perceived value, market demand, and competitive landscape. - Distribution channels
Determine the most appropriate distribution channels to reach the target market efficiently. - Marketing campaigns
Plan and execute marketing campaigns that leverage various channels and tactics to create awareness, generate demand, and drive sales. - Customer feedback and iteration
Continuously gather feedback from customers, monitor market trends, and track the product's performance to refine the product marketing strategy. - Measurement and analysis
Establish Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to track the success of the product marketing strategy. - Sales enablement
Enable the sales team with product knowledge, sales collateral, competitive insights, training, and tools to engage with prospects, address objections, and close deals.
Product Marketing Tactics That Support Sales Enablement
One key component of a product marketing strategy that should not be overlooked is sales enablement, which equips sales teams with the necessary resources, tools, and training to engage with potential customers, cultivate strong relationships, and successfully close deals. CSO Insights says that organizations with sales enablement achieve a 49% win rate on forecasted deals, compared to 42.5% for those without. Here are five product marketing tactics that support and enhance sales enablement:
1. Understand Your Target Audience
Begin by thoroughly understanding the needs, pain points, and buying behavior of your buyers, users, and influencers. Remember that these might be different by industry and geography. Document these and share with your sales teams so they can build better conversations with prospects and clients.
2. Develop Sales-Journey-Specific Content
Build content tailored to the needs of the various personas at the different stages of their journey. This will include items like case studies, product guides, sales scripts, product brochures, demo videos, comparison sheets, and FAQs. Ensure that the content addresses buyer pain points, highlights product benefits, and provides solutions to potential objections.
3. Deliver Market Information
Share market trends and industry insights so sales are informed about market dynamics, emerging customer needs, and regulatory changes. Don’t forget to include information about how the product can meet market changes. Not only will this allow sales to have better conversations, it will also provide an opportunity for them to proactively engage with prospects and clients.
4. Deliver Competitive Insights
Prospects and clients are often looking at what competing solutions offer. Instead of reactively responding to a query about how your solution is better than the competitors, develop the strengths and weaknesses of competing solutions (including "do nothing") and provide these counter messaging points to your sales team.
5. Provide Continuous Product Training
Conduct regular training sessions to educate sales on key features, benefits, competitive advantages, and target market segments. Don’t forget to include them when new features are released so that they are able to articulate the latest and greatest in your solutions. Use tactics like eLearning, Instructor-Led Training, and online learning.
Bonus Tip To Keep Sales Moving: Keep Leads/Prospects Warm With Market Insights
Product content and collateral is great once a prospect is ready to buy, but don’t forget about keeping your leads/prospects warm by providing continuous learning. Think about blogs and webinars that focus on best practices, industry or regulatory changes—anything that will help keep your potential clients engaged with your company so they think of you when they are ready to buy. Ensure that your sales teams are informed about who is engaging with these activities, as it provides insights into their prospects and gives them an opportunity to start a conversation.
Measures Of Sales Enablement Success
It is important to measure whether product marketing's sales enablement efforts are generating results. Here are some key metrics and tactics to use to benchmark and continuously monitor performance.
- Demo conversion rate
Measure the percentage of opportunities that successfully convert into closed sales after a product demonstration. - Sales velocity
Track the time it takes for a qualified lead or opportunity to move through the sales pipeline from initial contact to closing the deal. - Deal size or average order value
Effective sales enablement often leads to higher-value deals, as sales teams are equipped with the right resources and product knowledge to effectively communicate the value of the product. - Win rate
Measure the percentage of deals won out of the total number of opportunities pursued. A higher win rate indicates that sales enablement initiatives are helping sales teams effectively position and sell the product. - Sales feedback and adoption
Gather feedback from the sales team on the effectiveness of sales enablement resources, tools, and training.
Conclusion
Product marketing plays a critical role in developing new revenue initiatives and equipping sales teams with the knowledge, tools, and resources they need to accelerate sales. It begins with understanding the target audience (buyers, users, and influencers) and developing materials that will help sales teams engage with their audience in every step of the buying process. Continuous training will ensure that sales teams don’t forget what they have learned and have updated product, market, and competitive knowledge so they can be a trusted partner for their clients.