AMA: Shopify Director of Product Marketing, Marisa Currie-Rose on Growth Product Marketing

Managing product launches when the product team struggles to stick to timelines can be challenging but it is a common thing to navigate through. Here are some things I do to make sure everyone's on the same page: 1. Chat with the product team early on: Figure out their timeline and make sure we're all on the same page about what's important, what can wait and how to deal with delays. 2. Build in some extra time: Things don't always go according to plan so it's good to have some extra time in case of delays. 3. Focus on the MVP: Not everything has to be perfect at launch. Get the most important features out there first and then add more later. 4. Stay close: Meet regularly with the product team to see how things are going and if there are any changes to the plan.

Growth marketing focuses on acquiring and retaining customers to drive business growth. Product marketing focuses on understanding the market, positioning the product and communicating its value to customers. With these definitions in mind, growth marketing is responsible for acquiring new customers with a goal of driving “perceived value” of the product. While product marketing is responsible for “realized value” and keeping the customers using the product. If a product marketer is just launching a new product and feature and then running to the next launch they are missing out on an impactful part of their job, which is driving adoption of the product and feature they just launched.

As a product marketer, there are several tactics you can use to impact the product roadmap: 1. Market research: Get to know your customers, their needs, wants and pain points and you’ll have a strong understanding of what features really matter. 2. Competitive analysis: Dig into what your competitors are up to. See what they're doing well and where they're lacking and compare it to your current feature set. 3. Feedback loops: Chat with customers, sales teams and customer support to hear what they think about your product. Use this feedback to make improvements and prioritize features. 4. Dig into the data: Track the performance of existing features. Use this data to make a case for specific roadmap initiatives that are likely to drive growth and success. 5. Tell a compelling story: Craft a narrative around customer needs and market trends. This will help you understand the impact of certain decisions and build support for initiatives that align with your marketing strategy.

I have moved between growth marketing and product marketing throughout my career. Here are two skills gained in growth marketing that I think are also important in product marketing: 1. User centric POV: Growth marketers have a deep understanding of user needs, pain points and motivations. This perspective is invaluable in product marketing as it enables you to develop the right messaging and value props. 2. Data driven decision making: Growth marketers rely heavily on data to make informed decisions about user acquisition and engagement strategies. This approach can be applied to product marketing, where market research, competitive analysis and customer feedback play a vital role. 3. Deep product knowledge: Marketers with deep product knowledge can position the product correctly and provide tailored solutions to meet specific needs.