Product Marketing: Mastering the art and science of PMM

By Div Manickam

Are you an aspiring product marketer or product marketing leader?

This book is dedicated to:
Product Marketers around the world
To my PMM mentees, teams and leaders

Imagine a world where we as product marketers are cheering each team and bringing the best in each of us. Our true self-worth as product marketing is yet to be unveiled, as the linchpin across product, sales and marketing.

When I ventured into product marketing 10 years ago, I found my passion across creativity and technology come to life. An engineer’s mind meets a creative heart and I knew this is right where I need to be.

Everyone comes into product marketing from different roles and that is the pure beauty of the PMM discipline. We bring diverse perspectives and challenge the status quo.

This intersection of Product and Marketing comes with its own struggles in educating teams across the organization to show our value and bring cross-functional alignment across product, sales and marketing.

Join me on a journey through the world of Product Marketing as we navigate the good, the bad and the ugly.

If you are wondering why should I read this book: (or why did I write this book)
• As a PMM and product marketing leader, I have the privilege to see the PMM function evolve.
• As a top 100 product marketing influencer, I am blessed to brainstorm with PMM mentees and leaders.
• There are many books on Product and Marketing, but very few become a guiding light. I have read books on product, marketing, sales, leadership, habits, mindfulness and found my true north amidst them all.

In the past 10 years, I've learned a lot about the art and science of Product Marketing – from messaging and positioning, buyer persona, product launch to market intelligence, but the most important lesson is discipline and empathy.
• It's the art of the craft. We keep refining our skills and put it to practice every day.
• Having empathy for our customer, our team, and our stakeholders is the essence of Product Marketing.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Aug 12, 2022
• ISBN: 9781387704873

Book preview

Introduction

Thank you for joining me on this journey. This book is a reflection on my 10 years into the world of product marketing. And share my PMM experiences – the good, the bad and the ugly.

If you are wondering why should I read this book:

(or why did I write this book)

As a PMM and product marketing leader, I have had the privilege to see the PMM function evolve.

As a top 100 product marketing influencer, I was blessed to brainstorm with PMM mentees and leaders.

There are many books on Product and Marketing, but very few become a guiding light. I have read books on product, marketing, sales, leadership, habits, mindfulness and found my true north amidst them all.

There is a bigger calling, that is inspiring me to share my experiences on product marketing. I am lucky to have the support and guidance through communities.

Join me in uncovering the biggest strength in each other and being the rock when everything around us is falling apart.

Thank you for embarking on this journey with me.

I wish you the very best in your PMM journey!

Surround yourself with people who are only going to lift you higher – Oprah Winfrey

Writing this book makes me smile, gives me an inner purpose and pure joy that I cannot describe. My first step was to write blogs on product marketing and focus on what truly matters. As much as I have my days of doubt, this is about touching people’s lives in ways I couldn’t imagine. This is my ikigai.

PART I: Inspire

Trust & Credibility

We trust and respect each other, irrespective of level.

As I was thinking about how to structure the book to be meaningful for my mentees and aspiring product marketers around the world, I got an idea from a fiction book I was reading at 7am in the morning to add travel into the book narrative.

When true inspiration strikes, make the most of it. I started to write it down and this happened (see image below). Something powerful in penning our ideas and thoughts to paper.

Book 4 – Product Marketing Chapters

In the past 10 years, I've learned a lot about the art and science of Product Marketing, but the most important lesson is discipline and empathy. 

It's the art of the craft. We can keep refining our skills and put it to practice every day.

As we learn a new way of working in product marketing: when we teach someone, it’s the best form of reinforcement.

Having empathy for your customer, for your team, and for your stakeholders is the essence of Product Marketing.

If you are an aspiring product marketer, start one step at a time. Find a medium to share your voice – your thoughts and ideas matter – let it flow!

Ask questions, that you have not asked before. 

Find new answers - Why, What, When, Where and How.

Challenge the status quo and uncover the hidden gem. 

Peak your curiosity and be a learner for life.

Be open to new ideas and diverse perspectives.

Throughout the book, I invite you to join me on my travels as I share PMM stories over the decade. As a local guide, let’s travel together to explore the disciplines of product marketing and define success on our own terms.

Chapter 1: What’s your Story?

I didn’t become a product marketer on Day 1. I knew that was my destination and I learned that perseverance pays off.

Recently, I got a chance to share my career journey with aspiring product marketers and leaders. Let’s start here before we dive into the world of product marketing.

My 10+ year career in product marketing with B2B SaaS technology companies - from Startups to Fortune500 has shown me the value of winning together, continuous learning and giving back to the community in any way I can.

Xian 2012

I graduated with an MBA in Marketing, ready for my first work opportunity in the US. As a Marketing Communications Specialist in the Solar Business Group, I got my first experience in Product Marketing – from product launch to integrated marketing to sales enablement. My role included supporting at events and tradeshows to reviewing brochures and whitepapers for my senior team members – a second pair of eyes.

A newbie in the world of Marketing, I was a curious kid absorbing everything I could learn and experience. I was stoked when I got my first experience to travel to Xian for our customer Solar event – Xian Innovation Summit. I didn’t know much about Xian and then learnt about the terracotta warriors.

2012 – Xian | Shanghai | Munich: Solar Conferences

This role helped me to learn about localization and how to build relationships across different teams and regions in Asia and Europe as well as working with an external translation agency.

Where you start in your career is only a stepping stone into your dream job.

If you can dream it, you can do it – Walt Disney

I was lucky to have a very supportive team who was open to new ideas and patient with all of my questions as I understood the business and the product portfolio. Within a year, I traveled to Xian, Shanghai, Beijing, Munich and Hamburg. I think this was my start for a travel bug that led me to pursue my travels and exploration around the world (30+ countries, 75+ cities).

When my manager was leaving, I