AMA: Strava Former Product Marketing Lead, Lauren B. Parker, MBA on Consumer Product Marketing

I’ve been under both the product org and the marketing org and there are pros and cons to each one. In my experience, the pros of being in the product org are that you are deeply embedded into the product team, can get more insights into the planning process of the roadmap and how and why new initiatives are prioritized, UX research is more readily available, and sometimes you get a more direct line of influence as the ‘voice of the customer.’ The cons are that you are sometimes relegated to specific channels and GTM strategies that limit the reach of campaigns, and you’re disconnected from the overall marketing calendar. One of the biggest pros of being under the marketing org is that you’re surrounded by amazing marketers so you can see the full funnel and lifecycle of your consumer in and out of the product. Two cons I’ve witnessed when you’re under Marketing org, you can be seen as less the voice of the customer from your Product peers and more of as a company amplifier, where everything needs a GTM or a marketing moment. At the end of the day, it’s less about the position in the org chart and more about the relationships you have with your PM. If you have a good working relationship with your PM, where you can bring product needs based on consumer insights and research and your voice is valued, that’s when you’re most influential. They can speak for you in rooms you might not be in or you can work together on the how and why the roadmap is coming together in a particular way. If there's any working relationship that you need to invest in the most, it's the one you have with you PM.

I’m a big believer in learning from others and real-life case studies that are current, so I use Reforge and PMA for workflow examples and heavily utilize their Slack communities. Reforge has been helpful for knowledge sharing, making content readily available and downloadable. Reforge and PMA slack channels also make it accessible to talk to the people who created those workflows to understand the thought process behind them. It’s easy to go to these sites and try to make them fit your use case, but learning from the people who created them makes them more actionable - that’s how they become best practices. If you’re not ready to start a group or 1:1 conversation, scroll through the channels. It’s a treasure trove of information, case studies, and best practices. If you’re ready to jump into these communities and start a conversation, here’s an outline to use: 1. Start with context on the situation 2. Share how PMM is set up at your company so that those in similar positions can chime in. 3. Share what you’re trying to solve. I did this when I was shifting from a B2C-focused campaign to a more B2B2C flywheel model. I was able to learn from other B2B and B2C PMMs, as well as hear some of the pitfalls others that were moving to B2B2C were facing. I know going into these spaces can feel incredibly vulnerable but the best part about them is that we’re all trying to be better and people are more willing to share than you might think. We’re PMMs, we don’t gatekeep. 

I’ve been noticing a shift towards brand marketing and campaign management in the PMM space. More joint titles, more case studies around the brand being product and product as the brand. Another shift I’ve noticed is that everything is B2C. Who your C is changes but B2B isn’t just about internal sales teams, there seems to be a turn to reach the end user more. At the core of marketing is the market, so staying up to speed on what is happening on the macro economic levels and noticing those trends and shifts, can be the crystal ball to what you see happening in each marketing vertical.

In my experience, the best way to prepare for the interview is to be knowledgeable about the industry that you’re working in and how you can bring the customer’s needs and voice to the table in a way that only you can. Whether that means doing a little research into the industry so that you can understand the consumer or deep diving into how the product currently comes to life for consumers. When I was interviewing with Strava, I started my subscription and got familiar with the product so I could see where I could apply my expertise in the fitness space. Then I read a lot of Fitt Insider and AthleTech News to better understand what the market was offering and what the challenges we could be facing as a company. Don’t be afraid to constructively voice your outside view. This is a way to showcase your aptitude, outside of presentations or practicums, to highlight that you can see the bigger picture, come up with ideas, how you would bring them to life, and how you would measure them. This is a gift to share with the hiring manager because they can see your full thought process, the diversity of approach, and business acumen that isn’t always captured in the interview questions.

What a great question! I’ve seen more of the transition from PMM to PM, so I would love to ask you, what is driving you to look at the marketing side of the product coin? There are definitely transferable skills between the two, and depending on the company you’re interested in the PM technical skills can be an incredible win for the team. As for the marketing skills needed for the transition, it’s all about the flywheel. Nothing is linear in marketing so understanding the various levers and touchpoints of the marketing stack, you’ll find success. The more you understand the marketing flywheel - growth, social, and channel strategies - and the business needs, the better. While both understand the product deeply, PMMs understand the customer more, so anything you can do to highlight consumer research, insights, and buyer needs is a great way to make that transition.