Product Marketing Is Dead. Long Live Product Marketing!

February 2, 2012

Introduction

Beware product marketers: Dave Wolpert (@SwordfishComm), in a guest post titled “The End of Product Marketing” on the “A Random Jog” blog, warns that the product marketing position is on its last legs. Wolpert writes, “The product marketing function in tech companies is heading for extinction. The work product marketers currently do will continue to be performed, but by different people.”

With due respect, Dave, I believe your report of the imminent demise of product marketing is exaggerated. Here’s why…

Outsourcing Can Have Downsides

Your thesis centers around the notion that a product marketer’s responsibilities can be outsourced (or insourced). For instance, product managers can synthesize the “voice of the customer”, thus combining both “outbound” and “inbound” product management roles. Content development is insourced to MarCom. Sales presentations can be handled directly by sales reps.

You have to ask, however, whether quality suffers. Effective product marketers have significant subject matter expertise within their industry. Who will provide this knowledge and know-how to the MarCom team who’s been asked to write next quarter’s white paper? Similarly, who will define and provide the messaging and positioning for Sales to include in their decks? Sales should focus on selling, not marketing.

You note, “most copywriters can write persuasive proposal content.” While I agree that good writers can write quality content, I point to the Wendy’s commercial from the 80’s that asked, “Where’s the beef?” Copywriters can provide the ketchup and the bun, but subject matter expertise is required to produce quality beef.

Functional Oversight Still Required

We don’t operate in absolutes, of course, so I’ll partially accept Wolpert’s notion that some product marketing responsibilities can be outsourced. Don’t we still need an overseer to coordinate the outsourced tasks, ensure the quality of the work and be held responsible for the overall deliverables? If a CMO outsources demand generation, event marketing, search marketing and SEO, should her role be eliminated as well?

A product marketer is responsible for delivering upon product marketing objectives, in the same way a CMO is responsible for delivering on the broader marketing objectives.

Focus Is Paramount

Wolpert does note that someone still has to “perform the bit roles product marketers play,” but goes on to say that “ancillary roles don’t collectively constitute a full-time job.” But what about focus? Tuning in to the voice of the customer means that you often need to “leave the building.”

When product managers are meeting with customers and prospects, will they still be able to make the daily Scrum meeting? Will they be able to maintain and update the competitive matrix while keeping the product roadmap current? Can they speak at an analyst briefing while ensuring that this month’s product ships on time?

I don’t think so. Sure, in smaller organizations, product management and product marketing may be the same person. But as organizations grow, product marketing should be distinct, in the same way that QA exists as a role distinct from the developers.

Priorities for Product Marketing (Strategic)

Wolpert writes that “only those with an exceedingly rare combination of talents” will survive the mass extinction of product marketers. I agree that product marketers need a rare combination to succeed, though I object on the “exceedingly rare” qualifier.

Strategically, product marketers need to deliver on more and more of the “E” in “SME” (Subject Matter Expert). We need to serve simultaneously as customer and industry advocates. Product marketers ought to be the leading voices that propel an industry forward on adoption and growth.

Priorities for Product Marketing (Tactical)

Product marketers should be comfortable and well versed with the following:

  1. Social media. While Marketing Communications or Corporate Marketing tend to manage an organization’s social channels, product marketers need to utilize social media as a listening platform. Your market is speaking. Are you listening?
  2. Blogging. Start blogging. Never before have you been able to both publish and receive market input so quickly. If you blog, be sure to allow comments, as two-way conversation is more powerful than the one-way street.
  3. Video. Learn how to effectively use this medium. Your market wants its content in this form.
  4. Webinars. Learn how to present via webinars.
  5. Events. Attend industry events to build upon your (and your organization’s) role as the industry advocate and voice.

Conclusion

As a product marketer, I’m confident that my role (and by “my,” I mean the role in general) will continue onward. Sure, it may shift and adjust, but eliminating product marketing, in my opinion, will bring harm to organizations far and wide.

Use the Comments section below to share your thoughts on this topic.

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5 Ways Face-to-Face Events Are Like Family Reunions

January 13, 2012

Introduction

This week, I attended my fourth Virtual Edge Summit and my second PCMA Convening Leaders. The two events were collocated with one another at the San Diego Convention Center. As I made my way throughout the event, I kept noticing the same thing: people embracing one another in enthusiastic hugs.

I noticed the hugs just about everywhere: in the hallways, on the elevators, on line for coffee and in the session areas. I made the realization that members of an industry comprise a family – and with our busy schedules these days, the “family” may see each other a few times per year. Or perhaps, a few times every five years!

Let’s consider how face-to-face events are like family reunions.

1) Scheduled time together.

At a family reunion, there’s the luncheon, picnic or perhaps a tea party at grandma’s house. There’s the obligatory group photo. Face-to-face events are largely defined by their scheduled activities: sessions, demonstrations, meals, classroom learning and evening networking events.

2) Unscheduled time spent in smaller groups.

A face-to-face event is wonderful at creating serendipity and somewhat random encounters: running into an old colleague while walking from one session to the next; meeting a like-minded professional on the food line; bumping into your former boss on the elevator.

While an event’s scheduled activities are valuable, a lot of enjoyment comes from the meetings and interactions we have during the unscheduled activities, which we tend to experience in smaller groups. Family reunions are similar. The one-on-one time with a cousin or aunt are great, as you reminisce about the “good old days.”

3) Nothing’s the same as face-to-face.

Families have Skype, Facebook and email to stay in touch. Industries have blogs, online communities, Twitter and Google+. All of these tools are very effective for keeping up with one another and staying in touch.

But nothing can reproduce the experiences, dynamics and value of meeting face-to-face. I’ve developed relationships with others online, but it’s not until I spend time with them face-to-face that I truly feel like I “know” them. Industries, like families, need to convene face-to-face from time to time.

4) You realize how quickly the kids grow up.

Kids grow up way too quickly. Go two years without seeing a young niece, nephew or cousin and you may not even recognize them. With business moving as quickly as ever, our friends and colleagues may get promoted or switch jobs without us knowing (although LinkedIn does a great job about letting us know!). It’s at events that we can see how the kids (and colleagues!) are growing.

5) It’s hard to say goodbye.

It’s hard to say goodbye at the end of a family reunion. After spending 2-3+ intense days at a face-to-face event, it’s equally tough to say bye. You’ve spent hours speaking, learning, (hugging) and socializing with a close-knit group of individuals. When it’s time for everyone to head to the airport, you wish that the event lasted one more day.

Conclusion

I had a great week with “family” in San Diego. For some, it’s my hope that I’ll see them again during 2012. For others, I may have to wait for 12 months. Perhaps I’ll combine the face-to-face event with a family reunion – Convening Leaders 2013 takes place in Orlando.

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I Finally Joined Google Plus, So Let’s Circle Each Other

November 18, 2011

Introduction

I like to show up fashionably late to most parties. While most of you set up your Google Plus profiles several months ago, I’m just getting around to that now.

Google Plus and Girl Scouts

The Girl Scouts sing a song called “Make New Friends.” The song includes the following lyrics:

A circle is round, it has no end
That’s how long I want to be your friend.
Here is my hand, and here is the other
Let’s put them together and we have each other.

Let’s Circle Each Other

Let’s put our circles together. You can view my profile here:

http://gplus.to/dshiao

Add me to your Circle and I’ll add you back!

 

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The New Klout Scoring Model Reflects a Shift to Klout 2.0

November 7, 2011

Introduction

Key happenings in October 2011: the NFL in full swing, Halloween, a World Series that was a true October classic and a new scoring model from Klout. I think the World Series received the most commentary, with the Klout scoring changes finishing a close second.

For the most part, people’s Klout scores went down. And not surprisingly, that created a stir, with reactions that ranged from annoyance to sheer outrage.

My Klout score dropped quite a bit. And while I was initially dismayed by the drop, further reflection leads me to conclude that the scoring changes reflect a shift (on their part) from Klout 1.0 to Klout 2.0. Let’s first summarize Klout 1.0.

Klout 1.0

Klout 1.0 was all about generating awareness. Klout was happy to have leading social media experts tweeting about the service and logging in daily to check on their score (and how much it rose in the past day). In addition, Klout kept us all hooked via a crafty use of game mechanics. These game mechanics had us checking our score each day (on klout.com) and engaging with the service. Examples:

Appointment.

While a time was not pre-determined, we did feel an “appointment need” to login to the site each day to check on our latest “rewards.”

Progression.

On your Dashboard page, Klout listed out the following steps:

  1. Connect with Twitter
  2. Connect with Facebook
  3. Follow Klout on Twitter
  4. Like Klout on Facebook
  5. Share Your Klout Score
  6. Visit your profile

When you completed a step, it was visually “crossed out.” The progression dynamic certainly worked on me, in the same way that I was compelled to make my profile “100% complete” on LinkedIn.

Virtual currency.

Second Life has Linden dollars, Klout has “+K” (and they do not cost any US Dollars, unlike Lindens). Each Klout user has an allotment of “+K” that they can award to other users for selected topics. If I think a friend is an expert in social media, I can award her “+K” on that topic. It’s not clear whether receiving +K’s has an impact on your Klout score, though.

Points.

Your Klout score is a form of “points.” And Klout makes you all too aware of your score and its comparison to other users’ scores. In fact, Klout.com allows you to compare yourself to another user. Klout will tell you things like:

  1. You have a higher Klout score
  2. You have a larger Network Influence
  3. You have a larger Amplification Probability
  4. You have a larger True Reach

Status.

Klout’s algorithm assigns you into a particular category (or status). I’m a “Specialist,” which Klout describes as such:

You are a Specialist. You may not be a celebrity, but within your area of expertise your opinion is second to none. Your content is likely focused around a specific topic or industry with a focused, highly-engaged audience.

Klout 2.0

Klout 1.0 made savvy use of game mechanics to stir up early interest and engagement. In the 1.0 world, user advocacy was a big thing, as early adopters who told other early adopters allowed awareness and usage to spread.

The change of scoring method, however, signals a clear shift from the users of Klout to the underlying score itself. Frankly, Klout could care less about noisy users (who are unhappy with their scores dropping). Their focus, instead, is to become the gold standard for online influence.

comScore is “a global leader in measuring the digital world and preferred source of digital business analytics.” Nielsen provides “the complete view of what consumers watch and buy through powerful insights that clarify the relationship between content and commerce.”

Today, Klout sells Klout Perks programs to advertisers.  In the near future, I think Klout wants to become the comScore and Nielsen of online influence.

Conclusion

I have to admit that when my Klout score decreased, I logged into the site much less frequently. But for Klout, that’s OK. What they care about is the fact that the right methodology is now in place behind my current score – one they can track and maintain over time, for the benefit of “watchers” (e.g. advertisers and other future clients).

What are your thoughts on Klout? Share them with us in the Comments section below.

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Pondering The Future With PCMA, VEI and … Event Camp?

October 16, 2011

Note: The thoughts expressed in this post are my own.

Introduction

Recently, the Virtual Edge Institute (VEI) announced that it received a strategic investment from the Professional Convention Management Association (PCMA). Michelle Bruno, in her Fork In the Road blog, provided some great insights on this partnership, in a posting titled “Why PCMA’s Investment in the Virtual Edge Institute Means More than Just Cash.”

Michelle commended PCMA for endorsing an open source model “to unlock the innovation around virtual and hybrid event technology.” I think PCMA should create a trifecta by making a strategic investment in Event Camp (EC). Commenting on this point via Twitter, Michelle tweeted, “Agree. Event Camp Europe gave me the idea about open source innovation in event context.”

Let’s dive into the potential benefits.

Funding

Event Camp has achieved great things to date. They’ve used their own hybrid events (“Event Camps”) to experiment and innovate on meeting and event planning. They’ve reached these heights primarily from the passion of their volunteer organizers and secondarily from supporting sponsors.

And while I believe that innovation can result from budgetary constraints, imagine the possibilities with an investment from an organization such as PCMA. I believe that a stronger financial foothold will create ever more innovative and engaging Event Camps.

Colocation

Event Camp meetings would have a lot to gain by colocating with PCMA gatherings, in the same way that Virtual Edge Summit benefited from its colocation with PCMA Convening Leaders.

In the future, this trifecta could kick off the calendar year with colocation of three events (in one): PCMA Convening Leaders, Virtual Edge Summit and Event Camp National Conference. Given that several PCMA members are key contributors to Event Camp, colocation makes all the more sense.

In addition, there are additional PCMA events that may stand to benefit from VEI and EC involvement, such as the mid-year PCMA Education Conference.

Feeder Organization

Talk about synergy. Event Camp can spin out innovation via experimentation. The innovation fostered is then fleshed out, refined and documented. In this way, Event Camp becomes a feeder organization into Virtual Edge Institute’s certification programs and PCMA’s educational programs.

Open Source Innovation

Jenise Fryatt (@JeniseFryatt) did a great interview with Nick Balestra (@nickbalestra) about Event Camp Europe titled, “Using Open Source to Remix Your Event.” According to Balestra, “creating events can be somehow similar, so taking an open-source approach while thinking about your events can lead to  smarter ways to create them.”

As Michelle Bruno stated in her piece, PCMA and VEI are supporting an open source model for the benefit of the entire events community. Event Camp, with their model built around “innovation from experimentation” would be a perfect fit for this open source event model to further grow and flourish.

Conclusion

I have a dream to one day visit every major league baseball park in the U.S. and Canada. On the meetings and events side, perhaps I’ll one day be able to attend PCMA Convening Leaders, Virtual Edge Summit and Event Camp in one fell swoop. As for the MLB parks, that’ll have to wait till retirement.

Related Posts

  1. My Thoughts: Virtual Edge Institute’s Digital Event Strategist Certification

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How to Build a Personal Brand and Advance Your Career with Social Media

August 31, 2011

Introduction

On Friday, September 2, 2011, I’ll be presenting a “Lunch and Learn Workshop” organized by the EMC West Coast Women’s Leadership Forum.

What, Where and When

Title: How to Build a Personal Brand and Advance Your Career with Social Media

Date: September 2, 2011

Time: 11:30AM – 1:30PM PT

Location: EMC, 2831 Mission College Blvd, Santa Clara, CA, The San Francisco Conference Room

Session Abstract

Facebook is not about friends.  Or at least it doesn’t have to be.  In this session, Dennis Shiao provides strategies, tips and tactics for using social media to build a personal brand and advance your career.  Whether you want to build a following online or gain a promotion at work, Dennis’ presentation will cover ways social media can help you, both personally and professionally.

Dennis will first cover some strategies for taking advantage of social networks, including the important activities of listening, connecting and participating. Next, he’ll draw upon his own experiences and cover specific tips from blogging, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, SlideShare and Quora, to name a few. You’ll leave this session with tips and ideas that you can apply right away to your own social networks and your own brand.

Presentation Slides

For those interested, you can view the slides from my workshop below.

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Favorite Book Quotes from “Reality Is Broken”

August 31, 2011

Note: Image courtesy of the book’s web site.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links to the book’s listing on Amazon.com.

Introduction

I’m reading Jane McGonigal’s book “Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World.” The book has three parts:

  1. Why Games Make Us Happy
  2. Reinventing Reality
  3. How Very Big Games Can Change the World

As of August 31, 2011, I’m reading part one, which provides a fascinating look at the psychology behind games (i.e. the neurological factors behind why gamers engage in game play).

I’m continually finding great quotes in the book, so I thought I’d use this blog posting to keep a running collection of my favorites. Feel free to check back from time to time, as I add to the list!

Favorite Quotes

Added: 10/03/2011

“Life is hard, and games make it better.” (page 349)

Added: 09/29/2011

“We need to play games that stretch our collective commitment months, years or even decades ahead. We need to start playing with the future.” (page 295)

Added: 09/27/2011

“Collaboration isn’t just about achieving a goal or joining forces; it’s about creating something together that would be impossible to create alone.” (page 268)

Added: 09/10/2011

“Based on Clay Shirky’s estimate that all of Wikipedia took 100 million hours to create, the WoW community alone could conceivably create a new Wikipedia every three and a half days.” (page 231)

Added: 09/05/2011

“Games are showing us exactly what we want out of life: more satisfying work, better hope of success, stronger social connectivity, and the chance to be a part of something bigger than ourselves.” (page 114)

“Compared with games, reality is hard to get into. Games motivate us to participate more fully in whatever we’re doing.” (page 124)

Added: 09/04/2011

“The single best way to add meaning to our lives is to connect our daily actions to something bigger than ourselves – and the bigger, the better.” (page 97)

Added: 08/31/2011

“To develop foresight, you need to practice hindsight.” (page 5)

“As for the future, your task is not to see it, but to enable it.” (page 13, attributed to Antoine de Saint Exupery)

“Games, in the twenty-first century, will be a primary platform for enabling the future.” (page 13)

“Computers were made to work for us, but video games have come to demand that we work for them.” (page 55)

The quote (above) is attributed to Nick Yee, “a leading researcher of MMOs and the first person to receive a PhD for studying WoW.”

Leave a Comment

Have you read the book? If so, let me know your take via the comments section below.

Related Resources

  1. Buy the Book: On Amazon.

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2011 Professional and Industry Speaker Survey

August 30, 2011

Take the survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/speaker-survey-vc

Introduction

Velvet Chainsaw Consulting and Tagoras have partnered on a research study. Together, they’re collecting data about industry and professional speakers at conferences with 500 or more attendees.  The basis for their research study will be a “2011 Professional and Industry Speaker Survey.”

Survey Details

The purpose of the survey is “to better understand how organizations in the United States and internationally use professional and industry speakers at their meetings (e.g., conferences and other events).”  The survey will take 10-12 minutes to complete.

When you’ve completed the survey, “you may register, if you wish, to receive a synopsis of key data from this survey when it is completed. By registering, you will also automatically be entered into a drawing for a $50 Visa gift card that we will give away to five randomly selected survey participants.”

Responses are due by September 9, 2011.

Dave Lutz (@VelChain) from Velvet Chainsaw Consulting notes, “Thank you in advance for taking time to help improve conference education and learning. Please share this with other association professionals that plan meetings with 500 or more attendees and secure both professional and industry speakers. The more high quality responses we have, the better!”

Take the Survey

You can take the survey here:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/speaker-survey-vc

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#eventprofs Profile: Jenise Fryatt (@JeniseFryatt) on Event Evolution and More

August 5, 2011

“Events will change, but they will also thrive because nothing is more satisfying than turning our online relationships into real-life face to face friendships”

Introduction

Jenise Fryatt (@JeniseFryatt, @IconPresentsAV) is Co-Owner and Marketing Director for Icon Presentations, an independent audio visual company that provides sound, video, projection & lighting support for events. Jenise is based in Southern California. Online, however, you can find her everywhere.

Jenise founded the #EIR movement by creating the associated hash tag and promoting Twitter users who “Engage, Inform and Retweet.” She’s a power user and influencer in the #eventprofs community, sharing a constant stream of useful resources that rivals the pace of Jeff Hurt (@JeffHurt).

In addition, Jenise is Community Manager for Engage365, an online community for event professionals that focuses on technology and innovation. She’s also a co-organizer for Event Camp Europe, taking place this Fall in London.

Thoughts on: Event Camp

Event Camp is a collection of events that was formed by the #eventprofs community on Twitter. Its mission is “to bring together like-minded professionals, to share best practices, and learn new strategies, for leveraging social media and technology to create enhanced event experiences.”

Event Camp Twin Cities (#ectc11) is fast approaching and Jenise recommends you attend. “Last year ECTC blew everyone away with its masterful hybrid event presentation,” said Jenise. “I’m happy to say that this year I will be sharing improv concepts and a game or two with the ECTC participants,” continued Jenise.

Event Camp East Coast gives event pros the opportunity to experience a completely attendee-driven event.  According to Jenise, “That one changed my life last year starting me on a new career path sharing improv games with non-performers.“

Thoughts on: Hybrid Events

Jenise attended her first hybrid event in 2010 (Event Camp).  She was immediately captivated by the power of hybrid events. “I particularly like what people like Emilie Barta (@EmilieBarta) have done to improve the presentation quality by blending platforms and including remote and onsite audiences as participants in one event,” said Jenise.

Thoughts on: Event Evolution

Jenise is excited by the movement in the event industry to “recognize and make use of the collective knowledge of our event participants.” According to Jenise, “I have performed and studied improv for several years and know first-hand that magic happens when you give a group the proper tools for collaborating and just let them go.”

I expect this model of active attendee involvement to accelerate. Millenials, who grew up with the web at their fingertips, are frustrated by passive audience models. Jenise expects to see “creativity in new technology and formats like virtual events, gaming elements in events and participant driven events.”

Thoughts on: Event Evolution for Associations

“One thing to watch is the threat that these new ways of meeting and collaborating so easily and inexpensively pose to the traditional ways associations are run.  Associations will have to evolve to remain relevant. Events will change, but they will also thrive because nothing is more satisfying than turning our online relationships into real-life face to face friendships.”

Thoughts on: Social Marketing for Small Business

To market a small business online, Jenise partakes in a steady diet of content creation. She maintains two blogs, Sound n’ Sight and Eventprov. She uses Twitter to promote her blog posts – and at the same time, uses Twitter to share related content that clients may find useful.

Jenise guest blogs whenever asked, moderates Twitter chats for #eventprofs and #Engage365 and regularly posts on Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+. Like I said earlier, she’s everywhere. It’s hard work, but it pays off for Icon Presentations. According to Jenise, “We now rank #1 for almost all of our key words. And I have had many business opportunities as a result of my online friendships.”

For other small businesses looking to market themselves online, Jenise has this bit of sage advice: “Change your perception about marketing.  It’s not about one-way broadcasting anymore.  It’s about building relationships with potential clients as well as those who will help to sing your praises.”

Thoughts on: Google+

Jenise has been experimenting with Google+, noting that the most active people are the early-adopter, social media geek types. So far, she likes how Google+ combines some of her favorite attributes of Facebook and Twitter.

She’s excited by Google Hangouts, the group video feature of Google+. “A few of my online friends and I have been meeting for group video chats for more than a year and have struggled with tech difficulties on several platforms we’ve tried. When we tried Hangouts it was easy and all the tech problems were gone.”

Related Resources

  1. Web site: Icon Presentations
  2. Blog: Sound n’ Sight
  3. Blog: Eventprov
  4. Web site: Engage365
  5. Web site: Event Camp Twin Cities

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