Jane Reynolds

First off, congrats! The positive impact that can have on revenue and growth is pretty remarkable. When standing up a new function, I always think broadly to start. For example, when considering “competitors”—think beyond your direct competitors so you can cover a more robust scope. A company in a parallel industry can be just as helpful a case study as one in the same industry. At OkCupid, we’re often looking to social media and self-improvement apps for inspiration. Analysis will also be key. Be sure to have the tools in place so that analysis will be accessible for all stakeholders. Transparency is so important when analyzing data. And on that note, make sure everyone’s aligned on the function’s KPIs from the start; plan a weekly email or sync to review updates and unforeseen issues. Finally, it’ll be important for the function to be closely aligned with the product and marketing teams. These teams will help bring the learnings to life. Let them know about the analysis you’re most excited about so they can add any pieces that may be helpful for their teams in creating new features.

I started my career in editorial, and didn’t transition over to marketing until about six years ago. I can’t stress enough how important sharp communication and collaboration skills are when it comes to product marketing. So I’m incredibly grateful I first had the opportunity to focus on my writing and messaging before I switched to product marketing because it helped me develop the core components of communication, collaborating, and clarity. But since product marketing incorporates skills utilized in both technical and non-technical roles, there are numerous areas you can transition from: editorial, brand, buyer, you name it. In your resume, highlight when you’ve worked cross-functionally, and when you’ve used both qualitative and quantitative data to make decisions. It’s true that most product marketing roles incorporate data analysis and pricing optimization, but in many entry-level product marketing roles, these can be learned on the job. The qualities I prioritize are leadership skills, curiosity, collaboration (I know I’ve said this a lot, but it’s true!), and a positive, ambitious attitude.

The voice of the customer should be what drives your decisions as a PMM, and it reaches you through various channels. In some instances for OkCupid, that is completely data-driven. For example, when Roe vs Wade was overturned in 2021, we saw an 18% increase in users stating they are pro-choice on their profiles, so it was clear that finding a pro-choice partner was increasingly important to our users. Therefore, we launched our I’m Pro-Choice profile badge so users could filter for other users who were pro-choice. And it worked: people with the badge are nearly 2x more likely to get a reply to a message compared to those who don’t have it. Other times, we are driven by ideas and feedback from our users (and potential users) that may come more anecdotally. We see what our key demo is discussing on social media and what topics are trending, and implement new features. Recently, we added new matching questions written by ChatGPT because we found that millennials and Gen Z are more and more interested in AI and how it will begin to play more of a role in our everyday lives. Those questions now have hundreds of thousands of responses from our users. Having data to back up decisions and new product features is vital. But it’s important to remember the human aspect of the product you deliver, and listen to what your customer may be saying beyond just on your platform.

It depends on the role. As Head of Product Marketing at OkCupid, I rely on data and analytics to drive product decisions. But ultimately, my priority is ensuring that our product lives up to our brand narrative and mission. Ultimately, a product marketer’s job is to ensure synergy between the product and the brand. Like with any hard skill, analytical knowledge can be learned; brand skills can be learned as well, but involve skills such as intuition and clear communication.

Messaging is so important, not only when conveying new features, updates, and opportunities to your customers, but also when getting internal buy-in and gathering resources for a go-to-market plan. Start by putting together your message, focusing most importantly on the value, as well as the must-knows and how-tos. What are you providing to the user (or colleague), or trying to get them to do, and why does it benefit them? And see how other companies approach similar topics. Just because a competitor is doing something, it doesn’t mean to do the same—it could mean to do the exact opposite! But it’s helpful to have some context on what else is out there. Then, seek out feedback. Trust me, people love to give feedback on messaging ;) Get as much feedback as possible and note the trends—were there changes most recommended you make? Were there certain pieces that really resonated? And finally, test and test again. At OkCupid, we’re constantly AB testing our messaging in the app and our CRM to make sure we’re speaking clearly and thoughtfully to our users. If the goal of a new feature is adoption, test out different CTAs and see which ones drive the most click-throughs and use of the feature. Also be sure to note that different demos may respond differently, too. For example, you may find that millennials respond better to Test A whereas Gen Z responds better to Test B. The more targeted you can be, the better.

With Archer, our USP is that all user profiles are selfie-verified and we say that explicitly and directly in our marketing. We tried some cheekier messaging like "Dating that's about face" but ultimately that cleverness just led to confusion. Especially when launching a new product, it's important to be incredibly clear.

A collaborative attitude is a must. Product marketing is one of the most cross-functional roles in any company, so the ability to work well with colleagues in every vertical of the business is vital. Hand in hand with this is strong communication skills. Product marketers drive both internal and external messaging, so being able to communicate succinctly and effectively is key.

It's so important to listen to your consumers and collect both qualitative and quantitative data. When it comes to brand campaigns, we do extensive messaging testing with our core demo beforehand to gauge reactions to the creative. But it's always important to back those qualitative responses up with quantitative data. I find the most effective way to do that is via AB testing through push, email, or in-app notifications—which drove higher engagement in the product? Which generated the most buzz on social? This is the clearest way to see the impact on user behavior.

It’s so important to understand the lift of the project you’re petitioning to add to the roadmap when approaching the team. If you’re not sure, speak with the stakeholders beforehand. When I first began my career in product marketing, many product features I thought would be a relatively low lift were not, and vice versa—which could lead to me not giving enough lead time on a feature, or prioritizing projects that weren’t as impactful. Even now that I have a deep understanding of the mechanics of our product, I confirm the required work of any ideas we’re working on before bringing to roadmap planning. And whenever I can, I build off of product features we already have, or have created before, to cut down on unnecessary work. It’s also important to give as much lead time as possible when you can. At OkCupid, sometimes our product marketing asks are responses to moments in time and we can’t give prior notice. For example, when the BLM movement began in 2020, we knew showing support was incredibly important to our users and we wanted to give them that opportunity as soon as possible. Our product team dropped everything, and we were able to deliver a BLM profile badge within four days. And while that was certainly not advanced notice, having that be an outlier versus the norm helped to get the team on board to drive it forward; that, plus the fact that the entire OkCupid team felt strongly about showing our support, and letting our users do the same.

I agree that soft skills are key, and highlighting them during “STAR” stories is a great way to work them into your interview. You can also share them when expressing your interest in the role and/or asking about the role. Most job descriptions include some mention of soft skills, so note that when discussing the role with your interviewer and how the role felt like a great fit for you because of that. Ask about which soft skills the interviewer is looking for, and highlight which ones are your strengths.