Marketing and Communications

Marketing and communications in product management involve creating and executing strategies to effectively communicate the value of a product or feature to its target users. This includes defining the product's positioning, crafting its messaging, and planning and executing marketing campaigns. The goal is to create awareness, generate interest, and drive adoption of the product or feature.

Example

Let’s continue with the scooter rental company, who developed a new feature that allows users to reserve scooters in advance. As a Product Manager, you would work closely with the marketing team to develop a communication strategy for this new feature.

First, you would define the positioning of the feature. Given that one of the common pain points for users is not being able to find a scooter when they need one, you position this feature as a solution to that problem. The messaging would emphasize the convenience and reliability that the feature offers.

Next, you would plan the marketing campaign. Given that Bird has a diverse user base, you decide to use a multi-channel approach. This includes in-app notifications, emails, social media posts, and even outdoor advertising in areas where Bird scooters are commonly used.

You would also work with the PR team to get coverage in tech and transportation media. You might provide them with a press release, key messages, and even a demo of the feature to help them understand its benefits and how it works. For instance, when Bird actually launched their "Reserve Ahead" feature, it was covered in various tech news outlets, which helped create awareness and generate interest among potential users.

Throughout this process, you would collaborate with various teams, including design (for product marketing assets), communications (for language and reflection on brand), engineering (for any technical details needed for the communications), legal (to ensure everything is compliant), and customer support (to prepare them to answer any questions or issues that users might have).

Pain Points

One of the challenges in marketing and communications is ensuring that the messaging is clear and resonates with the target users. It's also important to choose the right channels for communication to reach the users effectively. Furthermore, coordinating with various teams and managing the timeline can be challenging.

Practical Exercise

Research Bird and how they launched their reserve scooters in advance feature called “Reserve Ahead”. How did they position it? What was the key message? Which channels did they use to communicate with the target users? Is there anything you think they should have done differently?

Related Research Topics

• Product positioning [ Google | Perplexity ]

• Marketing channels [ Google | Perplexity ]

• PR for product launches [ Google | Perplexity ]

• User segmentation for communications. [ Google | Perplexity ]