How do you build a Go-to market PMM portfolio when you only have content marketing skills?
Having this type of background is GOLD! Don't underestimate yourself here. I understand companies may want a specific example of how you've positioned a new product in the market, but positioning a new product means nothing if you can't create clear content or enable sales to talk about WHY that new product is important/what pain points it solves.
Here are some thoughts on how to repurpose your experience with a GTM lens to (hopefully) crush your next interview:
Show that you understand the GTM process. What have you learned in the courses you've (proactively) taken? From product launches you've seen (maybe from the company you're interviewing with), what would you do better/differently or do again (aka what do you think worked well/didn't work well). Be clear in your examples!
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Leverage Your Content Marketing Skills: Your expertise in content marketing can be a hugely valuable asset in GTM and product launches. In fact, some companies specifically seek PMMs that are strong in this area (content marketing AND content creation). Showcase your ability to create compelling messaging, content, and collateral that resonates with target audiences and supports key stages of the GTM process, from awareness to conversion. Highlight any successful content campaigns or initiatives you've led that have contributed to driving sales and revenue growth. I recommend sending this information ahead of time if possible.
BE SPECIFIC! I've found success in talking through an opportunity or renewal that closed or increased ACV because of your content -- how did you come up with the topics,
Bridge the Gap with Sales Enablement: Your experience in sales enablement gives you insight into the needs and challenges of sales teams, which is crucial in developing effective product launches and GTM strategies. Highlight your ability to create sales enablement materials, such as sales decks, battle cards, and training programs, that align with product positioning and messaging. Emphasize how you've collaborated with sales teams to ensure they have the tools and resources they need to effectively sell new products or features.
Ask to Get Involved: Look for opportunities within your current role or company to gain hands-on experience with GTM initiatives. Offer to assist the product team with upcoming launches, contribute to GTM strategy discussions, or take on a lead role in developing GTM plans for specific products or features. Volunteer for cross-functional projects that involve collaboration with product, sales, and marketing teams to gain exposure to the end-to-end GTM process.
And KUDOS for being proactive and persistent. I hope this can help you with being even more confident in your abilities as you pursue new opportunities!
There are a ton of transferable skills from content marketing to all areas of PMM, especially with go-to-market activities! I come from a content marketing background; here's what I would recommend:
Know Your Audience: If you're in content marketing, you likely already have a solid understanding of your buyer, the industry, and the value your organization delivers. Use that to your advantage! If your organization doesn't have personas documented (or documented in a digestible way), take some initiative to do it. As new products and features are planned or released, ask which persona would care most, why, and what it solves.
Take The Initiative: When I was looking to transfer from content marketing to product marketing, I chatted with my manager and looked for ways to get involved. One of my first activities was working on the bi-weekly release emails to customers. This helped me get into the buyer's mindset. It helped sharpen my writing to focus on value vs. features, and it got me to start working with other departments more to build those cross-functional relationships that are vital for a successful PMM.
Build Cross-Functional Relationships: Every release is an opportunity for you to chat with different departments and ask questions. Always take the time to talk with each team to ask questions about an upcoming release. What is it? Who is it for? What problem does it solve? How does it work? What does it help our buyer do? So what? How is it different than what's currently available? Meeting with the product first, you can gather many of these answers, but then go around to sales and CS to relay the message and see what it means to them and what they need to help communicate the feature to prospects and customers. You can then take all that information and create a few solid blog posts when the feature is released to help support the different teams.
I'm happy to chat more if you'd like!