10 Skills & Traits You’ll Find in Exceptional Product Marketers

Julie Brown
Sep 4, 2018 · 3 min read

Over the years I have met many different types of product marketers at various organizations. And I have seen a commonality among the best. Below are 10 traits or skills I think make for exceptional and effective product marketers.

  1. Willingness to Learn
    Product Marketers are expected to be the experts on the product(s) and market(s) they cover. Sometimes a product marketing manager (PMM) has the domain experience, but many times the industry and/or products are new, so a PMM needs to be willing to learn.
  2. Thorough Researcher
    This one goes hand-in-hand with the first. In order to be an expert in your field, you need to be extremely thorough in your research from understanding the market’s current needs, what your competitors are offering, and where the market seems to be trending.
  3. Solid Writer
    All the product marketing roles I have had required me to create massive amounts of content. Being a solid writer who can clearly articulate and get to the point quickly, all while being entertaining and engaging, is key. I’ve seen too many product marketers struggle when their writing skills were not up to par.
  4. Sharp Editor
    As the expert in your field, you’ll supply the basic concepts and messaging to other departments, and they will take that information to craft marketing and enablement materials. Having a close attention to detail as an editor is extremely helpful. You want to make sure that the content that is pushed to the outside world is accurate and in line with the messaging you’ve put forth.
  5. Savvy at Marketing
    Many times product marketers are expected to come up with the campaigns for product launches and for driving product adoption. A PMM with a strong marketing competency is essential. Knowing the products inside and out is not enough. Being able to develop the creative ways to market your products is what separates good PMMs from great.
  6. Stellar Collaborator
    One of the reasons why I love product marketing is because it is one of the roles in an organization that gets to work with every aspect of the business. When developing and launching a new product, it is imperative PMMs collaborate with everyone. This includes product management, engineering, enablement, support, services, sales, and marketing. If there is no collaboration, crucial steps in the process may be missed.
  7. Ability to Simplify the Complex
    I’ve heard from many, and couldn’t agree more, that product marketers are the translators in a company. PMMs take the information from engineering and product management and translate it into terms that are understandable and resonate with sales, customers, and prospects.
  8. Engaging Presenter
    Product marketers are many times the face of a product, so having an engaging and confident presence is another skill PMMs need to master. If you go to a conference or listen to a webinar, I’ll bet more times than not, you’ll see product marketing presenting the content.
  9. Unafraid to Tackle the Unknown
    The world of tech/SaaS is moving at light speed, so being unafraid to explore new markets, solutions, strategies, etc. is another trait I believe is needed in product marketing. If you let fear creep in, how will you ever know what success could look like?
  10. A True Leader
    When you’re the expert and face of your product, you also need to serve as the leader. As a product marketer, you are an evangelist. You help lead the rest of the organization to market, sell, and champion your product.

I would love your thoughts on these skills and traits. Do you agree? Are there others to consider? Feel free to post your viewpoints in the comments below! And this topic plus many others are the engaging debates we plan to cover at the March 2019 Project Product forum.

This post originally appeared on the 56th Street Productions blog.

ProjectProduct

Project Product is the first of its kind to address the roles of product marketers and product managers and how the two can better work together through content and live events produced by 56th Street Productions.

Julie Brown

Written by

Global Product Marketing, SAP Customer Experience & CEO of 56th Street Productions

ProjectProduct

Project Product is the first of its kind to address the roles of product marketers and product managers and how the two can better work together through content and live events produced by 56th Street Productions.

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