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Hila Segal

AMA: Observe.AI VP Product Marketing, Hila Segal on Category Creation

May 31 @ 9:00AM PST
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Observe.AI VP Product Marketing, Hila Segal on Category Creation
Top Questions
How have you historically sourced people to interview while developing personas?
Especially if you don't have any customers that fit the bill my current plan is to assemble a list of possible titles and have my virtual assistant company prospect for and find contact details for them then probably send out a survey to validate if they're the right people to talk to and reach out individually to the ones that fit the bill.
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
If you're going after a whole new market, consider using services like G2G where you can provide the desired profile including industry, companies, titles, and areas of expertise. Then you'll get scheduled interviews where you can ask very specific questions. Set aside some budget for these inter......Read More
479 Views
1 request
How would you go about naming a new category?
Hey guys, for those of you who have been in the position to name a new category, what steps did you take to ensure that you were on the right track?
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
Naming a new category is a big deal. Don't name it just by the scope and capabilities of your own solution - think bigger. A few things to help the naming process: 1. Talk to customers and try not to lead the witness. Understand what terms they use to describe the pain points and expected busine......Read More
648 Views
3 requests
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
Have a strong point of view on the market and don't be afraid to reframe the current definition, but be prepared to invest heavily in education and thought leadership. Rely on proof points to support your narrative in the form of customer advocates that evangelize your definition and why it drive......Read More
561 Views
2 requests
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
Not everyone should pursue a category creation strategy. It might be appealing but it's a huge heavy-lift and will require significant investment and buy-in from everyone in the company - not just your executives. It really all starts from the story - the strategic narrative - and how strong and ......Read More
470 Views
2 requests
How much effort is it to market products that create new categories? As in time and touches vs. existing products.
Or in other words, what is the education/definition effort vs. competitive differentiation effort in a known category
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
It really depends on how much competition exists in the market. If you're a market of 1 you'll have to fund 100% of market education and this will take time. In this situation rely heavily on your existing customers and early adopters as champions and spokespeople for the category - recruit them ......Read More
471 Views
1 request
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
Category creation is a journey into the unknown. There are rarely clear right or wrong answers at the beginning so brace yourself for the ride.  Here are a few areas to think about:  - Category name. You want to find a name that represents the new world and the promise of the category while m......Read More
505 Views
1 request
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
Analysts will not endorse any vendor directly. Your goal with AR is to help shape their POV about the market, especially if this is a new category and ultimately get well positioned on MQs and Wave reports. Shaping their POV means showing analysts how customers are getting value from this new typ......Read More
619 Views
1 request
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
The short answer is customer validation. The best messaging is what comes out of your customer's mouth so spend time learning from your customers and informing your base messaging. But even after you validated your messaging, test it. Run a/b tests in digital, email, and other channels to show yo......Read More
493 Views
2 requests
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
Not validating it enough and getting sucked into internal debates between stakeholders. Messaging can be very subjective and emotional. When working on messaging for a new product - 1. Start very early, put the first draft of messaging and continue to refine. 2. Write the press release early too ......Read More
477 Views
1 request
Hila Segal
Hila Segal
WalkMe Vice President, Product MarketingMay 31
1. Listen to sales/CS calls. As a team on 1 you can't be on every call but make it a weekly habit to listen to at least 5-10 calls (you can listen at 1.5 or 2x speed 😊). Be strategic about the calls you listen to - use keyword search or tagging for key topics of interest that are rel......Read More
693 Views
2 requests