Candice Sparks

I use a tiered framework that defines the different tactics and strategies deployed for each type of launch. I first start off by defining the type of tier by whether its a: new product/service (differentiator or evolving our narrative) new feature (getting us to competitive parity) updated feature internal update Then based on the above I will outline the timing required for this type of launch. It could be anywhere from 8+ weeks to 1 week. Here's where you will include all your launch tactics ...Read More

There are a lot of KPIs that you can look at based on your stakeholders, product and GTM efforts. There's some always on metrics you should be looking at like win rates, sales content usage, feature adoption, and pre-established launch metrics. Customer Engagement with Product Content Track metrics like average time spent on product pages, completion rates for product demo videos, and engagement with educational content. This can indicate how well the messaging resonates and educates the audienc ...Read More

Every GTM plan should have different KPIs tailored to the product launch and dependent on the launch objectives - whether driving direct revenue, user adoption, or engagement (or a combination of all three)! Revenue-focused launches centrally track pipeline growth, new customer acquisition, contract bookings generated, and sales team utilization of launch enablement resources. Adoption-driven releases monitor number of new users, account signups, product trials started, feature activation rates, ...Read More

There are a few things that I believe help PMMs to prioritize and manage expectations across the organization. Creating quarterly and annual plans. These plans should include the top priorities for you and your team, your OKRs, and key projects. Once these plans are set I share them with my key stakeholders (product, marketing, sales, exec) to ensure there's visibility and alignment on what PMM is working on. As new projects or requests come in you can stack rank them against your currently plan ...Read More

For a new product or feature I always start out with a simple messaging framework (there are a ton of great ones out there for you to leverage)! At the very least, your product messaging framework should include your value proposition, target audience, and a statement about what differentiates you from the competition. To dive deeper into the differentiation, I always pick 3 market trends and 3 pain points our target buyer has and then describe how our product uniquely solves these pain points o ...Read More

Any client-facing teams I believe should provide feedback on your messaging/positioning. For example, your client strategy/customer success teams get a ton of feedback from your customers who are actually using your product and have a great perspective on what resonates with your prospects and customer base. Secondly, a part of sales, but a key subset of your sales team are sales engineers. Sales engineers have a natural way of telling a great demo story and are boots on the ground hearing direc ...Read More

During the first 90 days of any new role, I like to go on a listening tour. Identify your counterparts you'll be working with across the spectrum of the organization (everyone from finance to product) and ask them the same 3 questions. What you'll start to understand is where the answers differ and where there is an opportunity for alignment. By going on this listening tour you are first understanding where the organization is at, and where there are challenges and opportunities before coming in ...Read More

One of the key challenges with communicating product marketing achievements is often times there are less concrete KPIs. For example, demand gen is looking at MQLs and sales is looking at quota attainment. For that reason, communicating PMM success can sometimes come off as "fluffy". I believe there are some organic ways to drive transparency and visibility into your team for example presenting at All Hands on recent releases, in sales team meetings on new collateral created or sales plays, and ...Read More