Sabari Sawant

Understand and map the following points when you start new with any organization. This may also be helpful if you are the only PMM. First 30 days: 01. Mission and Vision (Talk to the CEO /Founder if its a startup) * The founding story? * Why do you exist? * What are the targets? Objectives, goals and metrics. * What are roles and responsibilities? * What’s on the product roadmap-month, quarter, year? How are tasks prioritized? How are customer requests prioritized? 02. Know Your Product (Existing training material, web content) * Go through Product Demo, Sales Calls, Learn to Demo the product, Enablement Materials, Pitches, etc. * Review website and all available content created 03. Identify Key Stakeholders (Sales, Customer Service, Engineering, Product, Marketing) * Learn the Team structure, schedule 1:1s, build key relationships by talking to the manager, engage in consensus building * Focus on relationship building and understand the expectations each has from a PMM and offer support * Understand individual team plans and deliverables for the next 2 Quarters and areas where you can provide some quick wins Next 30 days: 04. Know your competitors (Create a central document that gives edit rights to the sales teams to add/modify suggestions) * Start with your direct 5 competitors as well as indirect solutions * Find their(pricing, ads, products, differentiation, positioning, promotions, ICP) * Find their sales strategy(sales process, channels, emails) * Find their customers, case studies, countries, applications, use cases * Identify gaps in the market that are not currently addressed by anyone 05)Talk to your Customers (understand their motivations to buy/not to buy/JBTD) * Align with collaborators to explore opportunities and the best channel to reach out to the customer * Determine relationship-building with vendors and suppliers, channel partners * Talk to the existing prospects, leads, and customer service reps and build feedback loops on the exact process that happens today from the time the prospect enters the funnel till conversion Next 30 days : Existing Framework and Process Review * Determine which frameworks need to be reviewed, updated or created * Look at the existing tools-project management, sales enablement * Understand the company and industry standards of practices and existing structure. Compliances, regulations, etc. 06)Define/Refine a Launch Process if there isn't any(Put a framework together by tiering launches) Share the framework with key stakeholders to get alignment on timelines, tactics, process, metrics. 07)Audit existing content (Marketing Material/PRDs, MRDs) Sales Deck? Buyer Persona? Value Prop? Identify Quick Wins and create a report with your insights, recommendations, action plans and timelines. 08)Setup Communication Channels Monthly Newsletters (revenue, key metrics, product/marketing updates, competitor intel) Online channels(teams/slack/ channels: pricing, competitors) 09)Create Battlecards for 2 to 3 direct competitors Why we win vs Why we lose Key differentiators(price, speed, security, supports, apps) Give collaborators/stakeholders permission and space to review your insights, plan of action.

Here are the steps I typically follow to unlock what the target segment can be: STEP I: ANALYZE YOUR OFFERING * What does your product/feature offer in terms of functionality? * What gap do you want to fulfill by bringing this to the market? * Why do you think this feature is needed today? * Define some jobs it is helping accomplish as well as value it unlocks for your customer? STEP II: BRAINSTORM THE KIND OF CUSTOMERS WHO MIGHT NEED THIS OFFERING (PUT THIS IN THE FORM OF A TABLE WITH THE FOLLOWING HEADERS CUSTOMER CLUSTER, PROBLEMS/PAIN POINTS, NEEDS/WANTS, GAINS/VALUES) * Which customers would require this kind of a feature/product? List all the ones that come to your mind. Cluster them into broader categories initially. * Identify specific problems/pain points individual cluster of customers are looking for. Keep in mind that each cluster has a unique need/problem they are trying to address. It is important to list their specific problems/needs. * What value/gains are these list of customers looking to derive in regards to this problem/feature? How did the customer expect their lives to be better with your product/feature? STEP III: UNDERSTAND THE MARKETPLACE * What is the market size of these clusters that you have identified? Most important is TRM )Total relatable market is simply the number of people who could potentially become your customers because only you serve them at this point. * What regulations/trends are affecting them today that you need to be aware of?( Climate Change, Soil Conservation, Water Conservation, Plastic Reduction, antitrust laws, Labor laws, etc.) * What social trends are affecting these clusters of customers that may fasten the process of buying your offering? (Short form content, Community building, influencer, side hustles, etc.) * What sorts of things or opinions are becoming popular or unpopular? (Abortion, LGBTQ rights, Movie opinions, Book debates) * Are there any economic trends that might affect customer shopping behaviors?(Inflation, deflation, gig economy, rising interest rates, unemployment rate, consumer confidence in economy) STEP IV: ANALYZE THE COMPETITORS BOTH DIRECT AND INDIRECT ONES (Make a table for each competitor as well as any indirect competitor) * What are the businesses that offer comparable products/features? * Who else is targeting these clusters of customers that you have identified? * What is their offering/features ? * What is their marketing strategy? What channels are they using? * What prices are they offering? * What good and bad reviews do each of them have? STEP V: PRIORITIZE THE MARKET SEGMENTS (TOP 3 CRITERIA THAT MATTER TO ME) * Which sub-cluster/sub-segment within a cluster is underserved, unhappy by competitors today? How can you serve this niche in a differentiated way? Does it fit with the capabilities of your offering/feature? * Does this segment have the urgency to solve this pain point/problem? Would your product or service be something they really need today and help them solve ongoing pain points? Can you be a Painkiller rather than a Vitamin for them?* * Does this segment have the budget to satisfy your revenue goals? Is the total relatable market/sales opportunity good enough to meet your business revenue goal? * Can you find some early adopters who are an influential group of customers/business leaders/have a social media following/ frequently share opinions in this cluster that can help my business get a head start through social boost? Once you are able to map out the following data points, you will understand which segment you should prioritize now, tomorrow, and next!

The best channel will depend on: · What channels your customers use, rely on for gathering information. Customer research will help you find that information. · Your team's skills and the amount of money you want to invest. · Most importantly, what is their stage of awareness related to the problem area you address. (Brand Aware, Solution aware, Problem Aware/Unaware) Brand Aware: These customers might have bought products from you in the past. You can take a direct, sales-based approach with your most aware audience. Channel/medium: Email Funnel, PPC Retargeting, Event/Tradeshow Launches, PR, Organic Social Media marketing Solution Aware: Customers are aware of their pain. And they likely know of your competitors and the solution for them. You need to show why you are differentiated and the right one. Channel/medium: Comparative Advertising, Comparison Pages, Educational Content, Keyword PPC targeting, brand campaigns Problem Aware/Unaware: These people experience pain. But they do not know the actual problem and its intensity if not solved. They don’t even know if a solution exist. Channel/medium: Create a Narrative around the issue, Webinar marketing, Content Marketing, SEO, Low-Cost strategy: providing answers to questions raised in communities like Quora, Reddit, etc.