Katharine Gregorio

Positioning is an internal artifact. Messaging is externally facing and brings this positioning to life in various contexts.  I have usually found it very helpful to have a positioning and messaging evergreen document that is dated and encapsulates the following: 1) the positioning for the company/product 2) how to talk about the positioning for the company/product in 25, 50 and 100 words as it might appear at the bottom of a press release for examples 3) any relevant messaging pillars and theme ...Read More

This is one of the most important (and most common) questions so thanks for asking it! At the simplest - positioning is an articulation of what your company or product offers a target audience that differentiates it in the market it plays and is internal language while messaging brings this positioning to life in a compelling way that will (hopefully) make your target take a specific action. So they're both important. Here's a bit more detail on how positioning and messaging differ/build on one ...Read More

The short answer is it depends. I tend to be pretty anti personas as it often ends up being a fancy exercise no one really uses. What I prefer is to have a matrix that can flex to multiple audiences as necessary of what the key messages are that I’m trying to land.  Keeping the audience in mind for this - eg who in the company needs to digest this messaging - execs for approval, an agency turning this into a video, etc - informs how to package this information out.  As far as mentioning the comp ...Read More

Let's zoom out a little first. I'd encourage you to first answer two questions before writing anything, especially sales enablement: Who is it for? What is the goal of the asset you are creating? Once you answer these two questions then you want to write to support the action you are trying to get the target audience to take. So for example in this instance, without knowing your specific answers I'd think about Audience - is this for prospects or current users Goal - is this to drive new busines ...Read More

At its core product marketing is reaching the right customer with the right message proposition at the right time to get someone to consider, try, buy or renew your product. How you do this for B2B and B2C often differs across the messaging, channels and tactics used to reach your goals. Why? Let's break it down. B2C product marketing targets individual consumers who typically make decisions based on personal preferences, emotions, and immediate desires or needs. Marketing strategies therefore t ...Read More

There are a few things I do before I accept a new PMM role and a few things I do within my first 30 days. Before I accept Talk to customers - either by asking the company for references or working my network to find users Read what people are saying about the space and the company - how competitive is the company, what is their positioning and how differentiated is it Ask the people on the PMM team and others that I'd be working with what the biggest challenges and opportunities are My first 30 ...Read More

The tried and true umbrella message with 3 pillars and proof points (sometimes 4 but only occasionally!) is what I use to drive buy in with executives. When I do this I also use it to drive messaging hierarchy. However when I need to work with partner teams to bring this messaging to life I turn this framework into a longer written form messaging doc that uses language that could show up in a blog or press release as the framework often has to be quite pithy. If needed I also will turn the copy ...Read More

Pursue a lot of different ways to collect user feedback that are both quantitative and qualitative. Conduct feedback on a schedule - win/loss analysis monthly, weekly NPS roundups, quarterly CAB sessions Conduct feedback ad hoc - seek to understand a certain dynamic or segment through a one off quant survey Cultivate your own personal user board of prospects and customers who will tell you the truth (not just what they think you may want to hear which is one issue I sometimes see with CABs) to g ...Read More