How do you break down responsibilities and KPI's for product launches between demand generation and product marketing?

A simple answer to this is that as a PMM, you are responsible for product launches and the GTM strategy around those launches. So, you will ultimately own all launch metrics. However, things like Pipegen, ACV/Revenue, Traffic, SOV etc are shared with your demand gen and content stakeholders.  In addition, some metrics you could focus on as a PMM are -  New product/feature mentions in sales calls: Tools like Gong help you search keywords and add filters. It's not hard to see how many times your s ...Read More

Great question. I would first caveat that this is something we're always working on, so if you haven't figured it out yet, don't worry, goal setting, responsibilities, and KPIs are always a work in progress! I think it's rare that in larger organizations and with significant cross-functional work there's one person or one function who owns one clear KPI. I try to think of it as a Venn Diagram. On the left is Product goals or responsibilities - overly simplifying here, but defining the product, b ...Read More

Upfront, I just want to call out something that you all likely already know - PMM’s strategic and interconnected role makes it difficult to pinpoint and measure impact. Strategic, foundational work is hard to measure. And being so interconnected means that there are heaps of dependencies and variables. Shared goals and metrics are part of the job, so get comfortable with that. Build communicative, productive partnerships with the teams that have shared goals and align on the approach. Celebrate ...Read More

As the driver of the overall success of a launch, typically the PMM is responsible for the overall metrics around a launch. These can drill down into KPI categories like: Sales (ARR), Product (adoption or engagement), PR/Comms (coverage), Social (likes, new followers, engagement), Web (traffic, demo requests, form submits), Sales Enablement (asset views/downloads) and Demand Gen (will detail below) KPIs. At a more mature company where there are members of the marketing team specialized in these ...Read More

At two previous companies I worked at (Zuora and Hired) we have OKRs and each group creates their own and works with each other to define theirs. We can also view everyone's OKRs in our Workboard tool. Alignment begins before any project begins. Each quarter we all get better at aligning our OKRs. And, with each project we improve on how we report back on how we acheived our OKRs together. We also focus on shared frameworks and process we all agree and align on. During and after each project we ...Read More

Depending on the size of the launch, we have multiple teams involved, not just Product Marketing and Demand-Gen. I'll also note that Product Marketing and Demand-Gen teams SHOULD be working closely together, all the time. Both teams should be contributing to the short- and long-term success of product sales, and a launch is just one moment in time.For example, for a Tier 1 launch, which means that it's an important launch, receiving lots of marketing support, we break down the following:For up t ...Read More

While Demand Gen is responsible for lead, MQL, and pipeline target attainment when it comes to evergreen marketing programs, Product Marketing gets join in on the fun and think about lead and pipe generation more directly and holistically when it comes to product launches. Product marketing can set a lead, pipeline, or revenue target within 30-60-90 days of launch (this is the KPI, depending on your business type and stage) Leading up to launch date, key cross-functional stakeholders sync to ali ...Read More

This is really two questions with very different answers: KPI's: Especially for KPI's, drawing a solid line between Product Marketing and Demand Gen is unnecessary; it could even cause harm to collaboration between the two functions. Both teams are working to drive new sign-ups, adoption, or revenue related to the product/feature being launched. Both teams should carry goals toward that outcome to make sure all incentives are aligned. Choosing the ones that makes the most sense will depend on yo ...Read More

Here's how we break responsibilities down at BackBox. Product Marketing owns launch "project" owns launch messaging creates technical content creates press release advises on demand gen content (emails, social media, ads, website) owns PR & analyst relationships shares responsibility for enablement with demand gen; specifically owns technical and "what's this about and why does it matter" enablement Demand Gen owns content scheduling and production (emails, social media, ads, website) owns c ...Read More

I believe that the person ultimately responsible for the results, will most incentivized to succeed. So it comes down to ensuring incentives are aligned and expectations and responsibilities are clear.   For every product or feature launch, I create a go-to-market checklist that includes timelines, deliverables, dependencies, owner, and KPI. Some projects (like building out a message map) require input from both the PM and PMM, so I spell out specifically what pieces should come from which owner ...Read More