Kashyap Patel

Here is what mine looked like roughly when I started about 9 months ago:

30 days:

1. Product onboarding and learning
2. Meet key people in PM, Sales, Marketing
3. Get introduced to tools used in the org
4. Understand the current messaging and positioning of the product(s) 
5. Listen for key problems that we solve and internalise the personas and brand-level messaging

60 days:

1. Embed yourself in a customer conversation
2. Ride shotgun on monthly product updates
3. Study competitors and their market positioning
4. Review the state of sales enablement and plan for updates
5. Plan messaging updates if and as necessary

90 days:

1. Form opinions on current strategy and present an updated GTM back to the stakeholders
2. Create a GTM plan for any upcoming product changes in your portfolio

This was how it went down for me and I think it covered off almost important bits of getting introduced to a new product, new target personas, and a new market. 

Here is how I validate before and after finalizing them:

1. Form a guild or squad consisting of product manager, sales rep, CSM, an exec (if possible). Use them as a sounding board to get early feedback on messaging options - based on the positioning.
2. Once drafted, I validate it internally via Slack through all sales and CSM teams for wider feedback and buy-in.
3. Next, I design a landing page with the messaging copy and upload it on Wynter.com to validate it with external audience from the target audience industry. Or use Askable as well.
4. And then as the last step, I participate in sales calls to listen to the questions raised when my messaging guidance in used in the pitch decks etc. Based on the questions raised, I can generally gauge whether the messaging is hitting the mark or do we need refinement.

The above helps me validate the messaging internally and externally. And refine it as we go.

- Kash

Signs that the launch plan is headed in the right direction:

1. Your launch plan tasks in proj. management tool are buzzing and finishing well before time. You are well ahead of planned completion dates and that is always a great sign
2. Sales and CSMs cannot wait for enablement sessions to get more information. They nag you because they can already feel it is ready.
3. Execs are responding to your weekly updates in a positive note.
4. Engineering has flagged that the product is QA-ready.
5. No one is worriedly saying I am getting nervous about this launch.
6. You have enough buffer built into your processes to manage unexpected delays.
7. And more importantly, you have a deadline that you are building towards and all (assets, comms, PF briefing and more) is ready and approved atleast 2 weeks before launch.

- Kash

Here is what I feel:

Show them the trailer to get them to watch the movie.

1. Less is more. Simple and succinct is generally better. 
2. Focus on the most important problem that you want to solve and that keeps it less convoluted.
3. The objective of a hook-worthy statement is to get the prospect or customer to want to find out more. And, 80% right statement that is grounded in the most urgent/recent/important challenge is always better.
4. The copy and where it gets used are important to convey the message. You need to have the messaging 100% right. But your hooks on webpage, social post, etc. can be 80% right and succinct enough to make the prospect/customer move down the funnel or flywheel.

Yes, a few.

Actively, 

1. Your own customers or power users who are passionate about your products. Get them into a call and chat with them. Do this atleast 5-6 times with different customers.
2. If you have a reseller or partner network, then their sales and CSM teams can be tapped for validation
3. A validation test that you can run on your own website.
4. Your own sales and marketing teams.

Passively,

1. Participate in or listen to sales calls where the new messaging is being used in a preso or otherwise. Gauge validation based on customer's reactions or questions raised.
2. If your conversion flows are setup across channels, you can compare how the new messaging is doing vs. the old messaging in terms of conversion (whatever that might be).

Cheers,

Kash

Yes and no.

• To create good product messaging, no. It takes many skills to create a good one.
• To create a good representation of that good product messaging, probably yes.

In general, you should be good at writing. But you don't have to be good at copywriting. Especially if you work in orgs where you have access to content writers who are great creative copywriters.

I have relied on the Message House and the Positioning Canvas (from April Dunford's book as well as PMA) for my work in the PMM field. These frameworks are quite well-known and there are a lot of examples available on the internet too.

They do not differ as such when it comes to creating something from scratch or updating existing ones. These frameworks give you a structured thinking process that you go through when filling it up. So that you can arrive at a core value prop that is backed by facts and features that are grounded in solving real customer problems. And these components do not change whether you are creating from scratch or updating.