Why is there so little focus on B2C Product Marketing?

There’s so much B2C product marketing -- just look around you!

Think about the laptop or phone you’re reading this on right now. The bluetooth headphones you used to listen to music recently. The shoes on your feet. The credit cards in your pocket. The toothpaste you used to brush your teeth this morning.

What convinced you to buy those things? Maybe it was the description of the audio quality for the headphones. Maybe it was the extra cavity-fighting and whitening power of the toothpaste.

Throughout my career so far, I’ve already worked on B2C product marketing for credit cards and shampoo and medication and therapy and beyond.

All of these products require a lot of the same kind of B2C product marketing work as tech products do. You need to deeply understand the user, translate their pain points into business action, position and message the product, and know where your customers spend time or look for information. Rideshare apps and deodorant alike need these marketing exercises to succeed in the market.

Now, I will acknowledge that even though these marketing skills are being used in many companies, they’re not always strictly labeled “product marketing.” In the example of consumer packaged goods (like Unullever, Procter & Gamble, etc.), the title might be Brand Manager instead of PMM. But many of the skills overlap regardless.

I’ll also acknowledge that tech product marketing can feel very B2B heavy, but there are many companies that blend tech and B2C marketing well. If you’re looking for ways to build that skill set but are finding tech B2C opportunities limiting, look for DTC ecommerce companies that could fit the bill -- they usually offer a physical good that needs strong PMM work powered by a compelling digital experience.

B2C product marketing is a critical aspect of many companies' business strategies, particularly those in the consumer goods, retail, and e-commerce industries. Often in these organizations, the marketing team is going to be comprised of bigger teams of functional specialists or channel experts such as email or performance marketing. It can be more expensive to acquire new customers in the B2C market in a very short sales cycle, which means that marketers need to be more targeted in their advertising and marketing campaigns. B2C pricing is generally simple and the focus of the pmm involves creating clear, compelling pricing strategies that appeal to consumers.

B2B marketing typically involves a longer sales cycle and requires the ability to nurture leads over time. There are a lot of different stakeholders or decision-makers in a big sales cycle and your message needs to land and resonate across. Also, B2B pricing is often more complex, involving negotiations and customized packages, upsells and crosssells.

Great question - the short answer is that traditionally Product Marketing has been seen as sales-focused rather than product focused. 

In sales-led organizations, PMM doesn't play a big role (usually) in product experience, road mapping, etc. 

That's soo far from the case with B2C product marketing. PMM is working closely with Product on user personas (different than buyer personas), onboarding, product growth, and adoption. 

A lot of PMMs I know come from sales backgrounds, so it would be hard to transition to a B2C type of role where it's more product-centric. It's just a different type of focus!