Juliet F. Rizek

I don't think there's a typical product marketing career path. But here are a few that I've seen: * Marketers first: these folks can come from anywhere. Growth /demand generation, content, or brand marketing is what I've seen most often. Some even have ad agency backgrounds. * Former Product Managers (PMs): they started on the product side then decide to join "the fun side." 😉 * Ex-Sales: Typically solutions engineers (SE) who understand the product well. They usually make the leap to help with messaging or the go-to-market. * Business Analysts or MBAs: Most of these people come straight from business school or have worked on the business side first. For product marketing, it's less about the path and more about the competencies. To be really effective, you need to be a: * Deep listener: you have to have an ear to what the market, customers, competitors, and cross-functional teams— especially sales— are saying. * Stong storyteller: you're the communication arm of the product, so you have to sell your ideas to internal stakeholders and be able to attract the customers you're trying to reach with value props/messaging that resonates. * Strategist: you are looking out for the best interests of the business, so you need to make decisions based on your competitors and intelligence. You have to be prepared to ask questions, be questioned, and be flexible enough to change your mind. * Customer empath: a solid understanding of the customer — including their buying psychology — is key to success. You have to put yourself in their shoes at a human level to understand their biggest challenges and pain points. * Team player: PMMs are the "glue" of the go-to-market and keep many cross-functional teams aligned/informed. Soft skills and relationship building are essential to success. You also have to be prepared to answer to executives and upper management, depending on the role.