Imagine you have gone through the hard work of ​landing your product marketing interview​ by identifying your targeting, creating a killer resume and personal story, and using referral outreach to secure an interview with your target company. Now is your opportunity to ace the interview, and see if that role is truly a great fit for you. So today, I am going to walk you through how to ace your product marketing interview. As a quick note, today’s newsletter is part of a series of 4 newsletters on the entire job search process. This is the line-up of the series - make sure to check back in a few weeks to learn how to ace assignments: ​Part 1: How to land more product marketing interviews ​ Part 2: How to ace the actual interview process <- this newsletter Part 3: How to ace product marketing assignments Part 4: Launch your first 30-60-90 days with confidence So let’s do this and dive straight in! Step 1: Prepare before the Interview Study the role Before jumping into any interview, you want to understand what the role is looking for. Pay attention to the key responsibilities and the keywords they specify in the job description, and notice words they repeat over and over. This is important for 3 reasons: You will want to customize your personal story to the key responsibilities they care the most about. You may even want to create a personal messaging house to match this role specifically. For instance, if they ask you to have experience with building research programs and product positioning and messaging, you should mention these as your key strengths right away. You want to match any keywords you are using in your examples to what they write in the job description. For instance, some companies prefer to talk about “product narratives” instead of “storytelling” - so using the right keywords here could make your responses sound more relevant. Last but not least, you will want to prepare 5-10 examples that correspond directly with the key responsibilities they are asking for on the JD. This will help you focus on preparing for the right questions. Study the company Next, spend a couple of hours also researching the company - understand its customers, size of the team, investors, competition, and how it’s performing. All this information will help you sound more informed during the interview and also help you determine what questions you want to ask during the interview to give you more valuable answers. If a company is public, you can learn a lot about the company’s business strategy by browsing through its 10K financial filing. Conduct a PMM audit Lastly, I suggest spending a couple of hours doing a product marketing audit. For instance, review the company’s website messaging, social content, assets, ad copies, and anything you can see publicly. Note anything you think they are doing well on and areas they can improve on. This will not only allow you to feel much more confident about this opportunity but also stand out above others in the interview process if you bring them into the conversation. Step 2: During the interview Your performance during the interview matters just as much as your actual answer. No matter how well you have prepared on paper, you need to say your answers out loud so your answers are concise, you are seen as more confident, and as having a real conversation. To improve your performance, ​read this post​. But before you can get there, you need to create answers using the best frameworks. Below, I share my framework for the three most commonly asked questions as well as sample answers. Question 1: Tell me about yourself “Tell me about yourself” is the first question you get asked in an interview. It’s also the most important, as it will make or break the rest of the interview. To answer this most effectively, let’s study this question: What the interviewer cares about: They want to learn about your accomplishments throughout your career that are RELEVANT to the job you are interviewing for and why you are a natural fit. Your goal: Make your story as relevant to the job as possible, start with a bang, and do the work for them by articulating why you are the best fit for the role. Tie in your personal story/messaging house here. Framework: Intro - Start with a powerful highlight of who you are in 1-2 sentences, including the best attributes that describe you. Experience highlights - Share 1-2 key highlights from your career that relate to the role you are applying for and call out any major outcomes. Why you are here - End with why you are looking for a new role and why you are a great fit for the role. Here is an example: 🔥 [Intro] "Hi, my name is Ashley and I am an empathetic and strategic product marketer with a diverse background in education and building successful businesses. 🔥 [Experience highlights] I started out my career as a small business owner, helping small brands improve their website copy. In this role, I saw firsthand the importance of understanding customers’ needs and translating them into compelling and powerful messaging. My proudest accomplishment was helping a struggling mom-and-pop shop increase its business by 100% through the work I did. I decided to take a break and pursue my passion in teaching and joined Teach for America, where I taught English for 1 year in Chile. In this role, I conducted deep research to understand what students really want and created a curriculum that allowed them to increase their speaking efficiency by 2x within 6 months. 🔥 [Why you are here] As I think about the next steps of my career, I want to combine my customer empathy, business acumen, and passion for education to create a greater impact. When I saw this role at your company (Edtech startup), I felt it was the perfect fit given my deep understanding of your customers and my background. I am so excited to chat with you today and happy to dig into any areas in more detail. Note that this framework works no matter your experience level. The key is telling a relevant and compelling story to set the tone for the rest of the interview. Question 2: Tell me a time when you launched a product This is perhaps the most frequently asked “technical” interview question you will get, as being able to launch a product is a core skill set of any PMM. Unfortunately, many candidates’ answers sound like a laundry list and are not memorable or structured enough. To answer this most effectively, let’s study this question. What the interviewer cares about: They want to learn whether you can manage product launches. While great results are important, it’s equally important to understand whether you know what the right process should be. Interviewers want you to demonstrate strategic thinking, and collaboration instead of just being a launch machine/order taker. Your goal: Make your process easily understandable, and your story easy to follow. Then add one or two deeper highlights to call out specific aspects of your experience to make it stand out. Framework: Process, situation, action, results (PSAR framework). ​Read more about the framework HERE.​ Here is an example: ✅ [Process] - In general, when I launch products, I follow a three-step process to ensure we drive towards results. First, I try to validate the product/market fit to ensure we can answer the what, how, when, and why we are launching a product. From there, I develop the positioning and messaging to articulate the value of the product, and lastly, I move on to determine the promotional and channel strategy, including internal enablement. ✅ [Situation] - Last year, I was tasked with launching a DEI tool to help SMBs track their diversity metrics easily. The goal for this launch was to drive pipeline for our sales team. ✅ [Action] I first tried to understand the product/market fit. I aligned with my PM counterpart on the research to clarify the target persona, the key problems we are solving for them, and the unique benefits we will bring. I captured that in a GTM brief that outlined all the details clearly. Then I moved on to create the positioning and messaging. Specifically, I realized our tool solved one of the biggest problems SMBs face - capturing DEI information of employees AND protecting their identity easily. I used that as the key insight to drive messaging and shared it with cross-functional teams to get buy-in. With that, I created a promotional strategy. Given the importance of DEI, I worked with our content team to create a series of webinars with leading DEI experts in the industry to focus on education, and not just pushing the product features. ✅ [Result] The launch was a success and we exceeded the target within the set timeframe. Given the success, my launch playbook also became widely adapted across the team. I’d be happy to dive into any area in more detail. Question 3: Tell a time you disagreed with a stakeholder's approach This is a typical “soft” skills question that could be asked in different ways and is generally challenging to answer because most candidates are not strong at telling stories with conflicts. Let’s study this question. What the interviewer cares about: PMMs have to influence stakeholders in order to succeed. Since you don’t have authority over stakeholders, it takes great people skills to get buy-in, build rapport, and have the capacity to admit it when you are in the wrong. Your goal: Demonstrate that you have empathy (EQ) and a clear, logical process to drive influence. Pay attention to both the softer side of influence (e.g. not burning bridges) and the harder side (e.g. showing objective data). You don't HAVE to show you are right - the key is to find an objective solution that demonstrates your humility even when you are wrong. Framework: Process, Situation, Action, Results -> (PSAR) => I recommend starting with a strong process to show your systems-level thinking. Here is a sample answer: 🔥 [Process] Absolutely. My process for influencing stakeholders and resolving disagreements is as follows: 1) See others' perspectives first and understand why, 2) Gather evidence and use data to back up my POV, 3)Communicate and collaboratively reach a decision 🔥 [Situation] One of the biggest initiatives I did at company X was co-leading the pricing increase for our product to drive profitability. After spending nearly 1 year on the research, we are finally about to implement the change. However, the product team wanted to implement the pricing change for all customers at once, but I truly believe that could lead to significant churn. 🔥 [Action] To understand the product team’s POV, I first met with them to understand their rationale - they believed that doing it at once is simpler for engineering, and easier to communicate to customers. After I heard that, I decided to gather some data. I found best practices and benchmark data from leading SaaS companies which showed that a staggered pricing rollout leads to higher adoption and lower churn. I then used the benchmarking data and worked with finance to create a churn scenario analysis to make my case even stronger. With the data, I developed 2 alternative staggered options for implementation, one with a grace period, and one with a discount coupon. I shared the options and data with the product team. They were surprised by the data and agreed the discounting option would be best. As the implementation was happening, I also helped the product team answer tickets from support. This earned the respect of the product team and made them feel I got their back. 🔥 [Result] The result is that we experienced a positive reaction from customers and we were able to come 5% within our financial projections. Moreover, I was able to not only maintain but grow my relationship with the product team. Other considerations At the end of the interview, you will generally be given some time to ask questions. Don’t blow this opportunity, really make this count by asking 3-5 questions that you prepared to show 1) you prepared for the interview, and 2) you actually care about whether this role is a fit. Remember to tie in your research from Step 1 to your questions. If you need some inspiration, ​read this list of 23 questions you can ask. ​ Step 3: Follow-up After the Interview Congratulations! You did a great job in the interview, now what? I recommend sending a thoughtful follow-up to the interviewer. Make sure the follow-up is a personalized note that reiterates key points you learned in the interview, and why you continue to be excited. You could also include a useful resource that is relevant to what was discussed in the interview to add an intentional touch. Generally, the post-interview thank you note won't likely change their decision, BUT it will definitely have a positive impact. In Summary… To improve your interview performance, follow the steps below: Thoroughly prepare for the interview by studying the role, the company, and doing a PMM audit. Prepare answers using appropriate frameworks for 5-10 interview questions Practice your responses as much as possible to optimize performance during the interview Prepare 3-5 reverse interview questions Send a thoughtful thank you note What’s next? With these tips, you will be on your way to acing your interviews and standing out from the competition. But going at it together is much better and faster than going at it alone. If you are looking for expert guidance to help you take ALL your interview answers from good to great while ​getting support from a helpful community​, please reach out for my​ 1-1 coaching program​. Not sure if this is worth it? ​Check out the nearly 50 reviews from my clients ​(recommendations section). 😌 I wish you much success - you’ve got this! 💪 Yi Lin

2023’s job market has been very challenging, to say the least. With ​240,000 layoffs in tech this year​, the market is the most competitive I have seen in the last 10 years, and it’s not uncommon to see 1,000+ applications for a single job. It’s no wonder why so many candidates (even experienced ones) struggle with landing offers or even interviews. If you used to get 15 responses from sending out 20 resumes, today you might hear from only 2, even if you have experience. To help you land a job by January 2024, I have put together a 4-part newsletter series to dive deep into the entire job search process, using techniques that have been ​proven to work​. This is what you can expect: Part 1: How to land more product marketing interviews <- this newsletter Part 2: How to ace the actual interview process Part 3: How to ace product marketing assignments Part 4: Launch your first 30-60-90 days with confidence So let’s do this and dive straight in. 1. Understand your candidate/market fit The biggest misconception people have about landing interviews is that landing more interviews means applying to more companies. In fact, quite the opposite - you want to target fewer roles where you have the highest candidate/market fit, especially in this highly competitive market. Misconception: In a highly competitive market, I need to apply for more jobs in order to land more interviews Reframe: In a highly competitive market, I should focus on targeting roles where I have the highest candidate/market fit This is not only important for landing interviews, but also for closing the offer. One of the biggest reasons why candidates fail to land an offer in the final rounds is because of poor targeting. Imagine you are in the final rounds with 3 candidates who all can do the job - who will the company pick? Likely the person with the more obvious fit and advantage. Case in point: My client Brandon was applying to a lot of jobs after getting laid off. But he kept losing out in the final rounds to candidates with more domain experience for those roles. Once we started working together, he applied to fewer roles and spent more time on ones where he had the best candidate/market fit. He started doing much better and got an offer in 8 weeks at his top choice company. Read about how he did this ​HERE​. So how do you determine your candidate/market fit? You have to evaluate your experience across 3 dimensions: Your key strengths - These could be product marketing skills or interpersonal skills. For instance, are you more of a GTM specialist, or an inbound research expert? Are you great at influencing without authority? Do research on core product marketing responsibilities and map out your strengths across each core area (generally these are research, positioning/messaging, GTM, and enablement). Your competitive advantage - generally previous industry experience has the most bearing, followed by company business model and size. Increasingly, company size is becoming a more important factor in hiring. For instance, if you have only worked in big tech, you may not be fit for early-stage startups where product marketing requires different skills. Your values - importantly you also want to understand clearly your personal values to ensure the cultural match. Do you want to work in a highly fast-paced, ambiguous environment or the opposite? Once you have gotten this clarity you can then focus on targeting the right opportunities. 2. Create a strong personal story Once you have found your candidate market fit, it’s time to create your personal story. Your personal story shows up on your resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile and is the first impression the recruiter/hiring manager will have of you. Just like in product marketing, to create the best story for yourself you need strong positioning and messaging - which is why I recommend you create your own personal messaging house so your competitive advantages and elevator pitch are really clear. ​To develop your own personal messaging house, click here.​ Misconception: In order to impress, I need to talk about every aspect of myself so they can know about everything I can do Reframe: In order to impress, I need to focus on what the company truly cares about, and share the BEST aspects of myself relevant to the role Now it’s time to create a resume. To craft a great resume, make sure you are starting with the roles you are targeting, and work backward to match your resume to the requirements of each role. To get instructions on how to create the best resume, click ​HERE​. Case in point: ​My client Diego ​had a very unconventional experience as a former PM and startup founder. When he tried to land interviews he was running into issues with clearly telling his personal story and his resume was not converting. I worked with him to develop his personal story, enabling him to turn his perceived challenges into competitive advantages. As a result, he removed the fluff from his resume and optimized it to focus on what each job requires. Within a few weeks of these changes, his response rate to job applications was near 100%, and he accepted an offer within 2.5 months. One of the most common questions I get is whether you should include a cover letter with your application. While there is a lot of advice that says cover letters are unnecessary, I believe they are crucial for your job search success to signal high intent and stand out. To create a great cover letter, click ​HERE​. 3. Apply the right way to land product marketing interviews Now that you have all your materials prepped, it’s time to apply. The last thing you want to do is to submit your resume online, where it will sit with hundreds of other resumes. What you need to do is to get referrals as much as possible. This is because getting a referral is 15x more effective than submitting online (​Jobvite​). The most effective referrals will come from people who hold higher positions in the company and/or have directly worked with you before. This is why the network you have built really matters. So what if you don’t have anybody you know who can refer you? Then you need to get a cold referral. This means reaching out directly to the hiring manager in your target companies, with a thoughtful message that directly ties your background to why you are a great fit for the role. ​Here are some tips to keep in mind​ when crafting an outreach message. Note- there has been a lot of talk about how hiring managers hate getting messages, but that’s only if they are getting generic messages. If you are sending well-thought-out messages then they will be read. Misconception: Hiring managers hate getting directly messaged via email or LinkedIn and this will ruin your chances Reframe: Hiring managers who are intentional about whom they hire, will read and consider a well-composed and relevant message. Additionally, I often recommend to my clients that they reach out to 3-5 people within the company who could be peers for informational interviews to secure more possible referrals. The key is to do all of the above to maximize your chance of landing interviews. Case in point: My client Stephanie received three interview requests within the first week of working with me on her job search. 1 interview request came from cold outreach, 1 came from a warm referral, and another from a direct online application with a cover letter (as she could not find the HM online). She seized all three opportunities and accepted an offer from one of them in less than 8 weeks. In Summary… Landing a great product marketing job is possible in today’s job market with persistence and the right strategy, and it starts with landing great interviews. To most effectively land interviews, follow all the steps below: Clearly map out your candidate/market fit Create your messaging house for your target roles Work backward to develop your resume and cover letter Work your network to get referrals as much as possible What’s next? Reframing limiting beliefs, finding a support system, and celebrating your small wins will go a long way to helping you reach success without burnout. If you’d like more help along this journey, consider enrolling in my ​DIY course​, which dives into all of the above steps in much more detail. For a limited time only, you also get the opportunity to participate in monthly live group interviews and job search coaching - so you can get expert guidance directly from me and never feel alone in this process. ➡ Get Access Now (and Get 50% off by October 31) 🎃 I wish you much success and see you in Part 2!

Throughout my experience working at four tech companies, I've encountered exceptional product marketers in various roles – some were my peers, others were my superiors, a few reported to me, and many were PMMs I had the privilege of mentoring and coaching. In my view, certain distinct qualities set these top PMMs apart from their good counterparts. Below, I've expanded the list to include 15 traits based on reader feedback, building upon the original ​top 10 traits I shared in my LinkedIn post​. 1/ Good PMMs spend time understanding customers - they conduct research regularly to uncover existing customer needs. Great PMMs are obsessed with customers’ needs - they know the customers' intrinsic motivators and emotional drivers to anticipate their FUTURE needs. 2/ Good PMMs leverage market and customer data to do good product marketing - such as influencing the roadmap and understanding the customer journey. Great PMMs leverage a wide variety of data to triangulate and uncover entirely new business opportunities, such as new use cases and new segments to go after. 3/ Good PMMs understand that tracking metrics is important. Great PMMs also understand that not all metrics matter equally. They focus on metrics aligned with the most important objective of the company at a certain time and intentionally choose to ignore vanity metrics. 4/ Good PMMs create clear and value-focused messaging that is tied to the needs of the customer. Great PMMs not only do that but also create emotionally resonant messaging that compels action. They understand the keys to great copywriting. 5/ Good PMMs have a great grasp of the biggest competitors and how to win against them. Great PMMs understand all the competitive alternatives that get the same job done - in order to smartly position the product today for the future. 6/ Good PMMs can deliver a great launch from beginning to end. Great PMMs take the lessons learned from each launch to create repeatable launch processes that will enable the delivery of many great launches moving forward company-wide. 7/ Good PMMs deliver quality assets and training when asked by sales teams. Great PMMs anticipate the needs of sales by proactively analyzing sales data and calls to provide the most useful assets and training. 8/ Good PMMs add value to other teams and help out when necessary. Great PMMs exert great influence and are the “invisible” hand that adds strategic insights across each successful strategic project across the company. 9/ Good PMMs can explain the “what” behind each project to stakeholders. Great PMMs focus on explaining the “why” behind what they do and regularly take the opportunity to educate others in the company on product marketing. 10/ Good PMMs are focused on delivering high-quality deliverables. Great PMMs understand that it’s also important to get feedback quickly and progress > perfection - they take an iterative approach to get things done faster and with more input. 11/ Good PMMs are hard workers - they are diligent and are always busy. Great PMMs understand how to work smart, not just hard, and know when to push back and say no by intentionally managing stakeholder expectations. 12/ Good PMMs are focused on learning the best product marketing frameworks and principles. Gret PMMs understand the best frameworks can come from other disciplines. They actively learn about product development processes, sales best practices, and design thinking techniques to create a broad, diverse set of tools in their toolbox. 13/ Good PMMs do their best so they don’t get negative feedback by validating their idea with people they trust. Great PMMs understand that (constructive) negative feedback is important and pushback is good. They actively welcome such feedback and foster a culture of questioning the status quo. 14/ Good PMMs are trusted by leadership. Great PMMs empower and enable leaders to see their peers and the entire team - they also lift others up all around them. 15/ Good PMMs are focused on their career development - getting that next promotion and visibility. Great PMMs also understand what works for others may not work for them and are focused on creating an intentional career beyond promotions. What can you do today to become a great PMM? Becoming a great PMM is a challenging journey that requires time and effort. I've never encountered anyone who fulfills all the criteria on this list, or even most of them. So, consider this list as a compilation of the most crucial behaviors you can choose to focus on. It's also important to recognize that the conditions necessary to grow to become a great PMM - a great work culture and a supportive, knowledgeable manager. If you don’t believe this exists at your place of work, it may be time to make a change. And if you are inclined to make progress today, here are a few things you can do: Choose one item from the list above that resonates with you the most. Assess your current position in relation to that item and determine where you need to improve. Set the smallest, most achievable goal you can work on in a week. Dedicate yourself to achieving that goal in the upcoming week, and then repeat this process weekly. If you put in the work and take small steps consistently, you will create tremendous career growth for yourself that will serve you in the long run. Let me know how it goes! And if you want more… Here is ​my recent podcast interview with Dave Gerhardt​ of Exit 5 - where we discuss everything PMM, career, art, and being a woman of color in tech Here is a ​PMM interview assignment artifact I created for Reforge​ where I walk through how I would evaluate the quality of an assignment

You are eager to land your first role in product marketing, so excitedly, you send in your resume, hoping to secure your first product marketing job. However, all you hear in response is silence – not a single reply. Doubts start creeping in. Are you not cut out for product marketing? Is the job market so bleak that you should give up altogether? Will you never be able to overcome the chicken-and-egg problem? If you are facing this, you are not alone. Each week, I have candidates reach out to me with that exact challenge. My response to you is the same as it is to them: You undoubtedly have great potential to break into product marketing, but you may need a different approach - one based on gaining real-world experience to overcome the chicken-and-egg problem, and that aligns with today's hyper-competitive market conditions. Allow me to walk you through exactly what that approach looks like. *Read till the end for a special announcement. Step 1: Assess your current product marketing skills The first step to becoming a product marketer is to understand what it is (and is not). At the core, the purpose of product marketing is to tell the story of the product by deeply understanding the customer, market, and competition, and then using that story to drive product adoption and business goals through GTM activities. My LinkedIn post summarizes product marketing in a nutshell. So, in order to do product marketing successfully, you need skills in two categories: Core competencies. These include: Research/data analysis: the ability to conduct market, competitive, and customer research and be able to synthesize insights using data analysis. Positioning/Messaging: the ability to use the insights through research to create product positioning and messaging to articulate the value and story of the product Product launch: the ability to launch a product or feature to market, or implement a full GTM strategy. Enablement: the ability to create collaterals, assets, and training for field teams including sales, customer success, and other marketers so they know who to market to, and the product can deliver General skills. These include: Influencing without authority A bias for action writing/verbal communication skills Emotional intelligence/empathy While candidates generally understand that soft skills are transferable, many think they do not possess any of the hard skills. But the reality is even the hard skills can be transferable - after all, the principles of research are the same whether you are a product marketer or not. The key is to correctly rate yourself on how strong you are across each of the skills, this will help you understand where your key skill gaps are. For instance, most career switchers lack experience with positioning and messaging - one of the most critical skills to develop as a product marketer. You can use the template below as a starting point to assess your skills. Step 2: Fill in your skill gaps by getting real hand product marketing experience What if, after assessing your skills, you discover certain gaps in your knowledge? This is the biggest catch-22 for career switchers - how do you break into a field to gain experience when you are not even given the chance to do so? In that case, you should focus on filling those gaps by gaining real-world experience ALONGSIDE theoretical learning. Because, the reality is, no matter how much theoretical learning you do, what hiring managers care about is real, practical experience. To gain real experience, consider the following: Volunteering for startups or non-profit organizations to assist them with their marketing needs (e.g. messaging). Freelancing for startups on Upwork, Growth Collective, or others and trying to get paid as you gain real-world experience (you may have to leverage some existing skill first and gradually move on to PMM-focused work) Creating targeted projects (e.g. messaging teardowns) for your target companies using the theory you learned Whatever experience you can build from working for real companies/startups, turn that into a portfolio of relevant projects that you can use. Pro tip: you will get the highest response rate if you create a project for a specific company, as it’s most relevant. But do this only sparingly for a few select roles you care the most about. Step 3 - Create a focused targeting strategy to land a product marketing job Once you have covered your key skill gaps - you are ready to start job searching. Before you start sending in resumes, determine what companies you should be targeting as not all opportunities are created equal. Prioritize opportunities that you are passionate about AND have a competitive advantage. To uncover your competitive advantages, start by listing out all types of customers, industries, transferable skills, and products that you have had experience with within your previous roles. Then find companies where your competitive advantage will be a key requirement for the role. One of the most common mistakes job seekers make is using the “spray and pray” method, where they apply to as many jobs as they can. When that does not work, they apply for more jobs only to have the same thing happen again. This creates a vicious cycle of not getting results and wasting your time. The number of companies you target will vary by your experience level and industry, but on average, you should aim to apply to about 20-40 companies to land offers. 4. Develop a strong personal story and apply the right way Your personal story is NOT just your resume - it’s your entire brand from your resume/cover letter to how you introduce yourself in LinkedIn messages to hiring managers. To craft a great personal story - read this example and framework. To craft a great resume, make sure you are starting with the roles you are targeting, and work backward to match your resume to the requirements of each role. Once you have all your materials in place, it is time to apply. The last thing you want to do is to submit your resume online, where it will sit with hundreds of other resumes. What you need to do is to get referrals as much as possible. This is because getting a referral is 15x more effective than submitting online (Jobvite). For most companies, when you get a referral you bypass the online application pool, so the resume goes straight to the recruiter or hiring manager to be reviewed. So what if you don’t have any warm leads? Then you need to get a cold referral. This means reaching out directly to the hiring manager on LinkedIn in your target companies, with a thoughtful message that directly ties your background to why you are a great fit for the role (and with links to your portfolio projects!) Step 5 - Ace product marketing interviews and assignments Finally, you succeeded in landing interviews. When it comes to preparing for each interview, be sure to prepare thorough examples following the PSAR method I created. This framework is better suited to PMM interviews than the STAR framework because it showcases your thought process more while reducing unnecessary information about the background. Processes allow you to structure your thinking and present a cohesive plan that can be more easily understood and communicated internally. The assignment stage is where a lot of candidates trip up. In general, there are presentation assignments and writing assignments - both of which require strategic thinking and communication skills. The key to doing them well is by avoiding the temptation of jumping in to solve them right away but instead smartly outlining the thought process first. Then, choose at least 1 area to focus on to dive deeper and showcase more than what they asked. This will help you stand out and seal the deal. Read more about how to ace assignments here. What’s Next? Ultimately, pursuing a product marketing career without prior experience is possible with persistence and the right strategy. By following the steps above, I hope you have gained more clarity and confidence in tackling this the right way, and I am confident you should be landing interviews and job offers successfully and confidently. However, this can also be a lonely and challenging journey to navigate on your own. This is why I have dedicated the past 6 months to building a brand new, one-of-a-kind program with Olivine Marketing to help you tackle this exact challenge. The PMM Launch Accelerator will be the first-of-its-kind apprentice-style program to help you land your first product marketing role. You will be taught theory, and then paired with a real startup to work on real projects during this program - turning theory into practical experience immediately that you can apply to your next role. The first cohort is launching in September with 20 slots only, so sign up for the waitlist to get first dibs when doors open. I hope to see you there!

Why Reverse Interview Questions Matter in Product Marketing The manager you choose will have the BIGGEST impact on your next role. A great manager will catapult your career, and a bad manager will hold you back and make you feel inadequate. Having worked at 6 companies across industries, I can say the biggest factor in my career success was optimizing my next role for the best manager. However, even though we all know it’s important to find the right manager, most people don't know how to determine the quality of the hiring manager during the interview process. So if you are currently job searching, you need to smartly and tactfully ask great reverse interview questions in order to make informed decisions. This will also have the added benefit of enabling you to take control of the interview process and be seen as more intentional and capable. Key Questions to Assess Manager Quality Below is a list of key reverse interview questions to ask during product marketing interviews. While not exhaustive, it serves as a helpful starting point. Huge shout out to my current clients who contributed to this list as well, based on their real-life, first-hand experiences. Also keep in mind, the most valuable questions you can ask are those aligned with the values that matter most to you, which you should have identified when you began your job search journey. Manager Quality What led you to join this company? What do you like/dislike about the journey so far? How do you take constructive criticism, and how did you respond to a time you received it? How would your employees describe your management style? What is your view on promoting employees? What is the promotional and growth path for this role in particular? What are the three things you think I can learn from you as a manager What are you doing to reduce burnout for your team? What is the most surprising thing about company X that is different from other companies you worked at? Business Strategy Why did this role open up, and why now? I understand the target customers are X - would you mind sharing more about the approach for determining ICP and targeting? What segments are you choosing NOT to focus on? What is the biggest challenge facing the company right now, and why? What does success mean for your company today? Of the three growth levers, which is most important (acquisition, monetization, retention)? What do you feel is the company’s greatest competitive advantage? What KPIs are you most focused on improving to drive revenue? How do you view the relationship between product marketing and product management? Role-specific What kinds of decisions do you expect the new hire to make, vs. deferring the decision to you? What do you envision success looking like in this role in 90 days and in a year? How do you hope this role contributes to meeting the key goals of the company? What’s the biggest impact you believe this position can make for the company? Company/Team Culture Can you define what being flexible means in a hybrid/remote environment? If you could describe the company culture in 3 words, what would they be and why? How did your company respond to social issues such as the rise in Asian Hate and the Black Lives Matter movement? How do you support your employees from diverse cultural backgrounds? Perception of you Is there any additional information I can provide that would elevate your confidence in me as a candidate? What is the profile of the candidates you think would be the most successful on your team? Additional Tips for Your Reverse Interview Process In addition to choosing from this list of questions to ask, here are some additional tips to keep in mind: How you ask the question also matters. If you are asking more sensitive questions, it’s always better to start by providing context on why it’s important for you to know and ask them in a positive, friendly tone. You can always request more meetings with the interviewers after you get an offer if you feel the information you got is insufficient to allow you to make a decision. Do not hijack the interview and demand to get all your questions answered no matter what. Even beyond asking questions, if you feel something is off, you can also do your own diligence by finding ex-employees on LinkedIn and getting some insider information. Finally, remember, you are valuable and you are in control of the interview as well, so don’t sell yourself short and get what you deserve! In summary, You should be asking smart reverse interview questions during your interviews, even in today’s job market. The questions to prioritize should be focused on what you value the most. If you don’t get what you need or have doubts, find other ways to learn more before you take the offer! And if you are in need of more in-depth, detailed guidance along your job search journey, then it’s the perfect time to sign up for my Product Marketing Job Search Course. For a limited time only, you get access to the 20+ video lessons PLUS access to my private student community, and LIVE group interview coaching sessions, at 50% off before 7/31. Check it out today! ​

When I started my career, I remember being told that I needed to climb the proverbial career ladder to succeed. So I worked really hard to pursue my path as a transportation consultant, always striving to earn more income, promotions, and prestige. But even after several promotions, I felt something was missing and I was deeply unhappy. The creative side of me was begging to be fulfilled, yet my job involved long hours of writing reports and doing technical analysis. Breaking Free: A Pivot into Marketing I thought, surely there is something better out there for me. So I went back to school to pursue an MBA. I had a lightbulb moment when I learned about marketing. It was exactly what I wanted to do and what would scratch that creative itch. When I decided to quit my safe job and pivot into marketing where I had zero experience, people thought I was crazy. Doing a 180-degree career pivot was no cakewalk. I was met with countless failures and rejections. But I didn’t give up. After several months of grueling interviews and developing a unique method for job searching, I landed my first role in marketing. That role led to 3 more leadership roles in product marketing before I realized I loved helping others land their dream jobs and grow their careers even more. So, I began to pursue new territory as a coach and solopreneur. Having helped over 150 people on their job search and career journey so far, I couldn’t be happier to be building again! Through my career loops, I’ve learned to define success in my own terms, and we’re going to explore how you can too. The Myth of the Linear Career Path The truth is, if you’re feeling unhappy or stuck in your career, the myth of the "linear" career path may be to blame. Nobody’s career is a straight line, and believing so can make us continue to go down the wrong path, overly focus on money and prestige, and feel the crushing weight of inadequacy if we are stuck on the same rung of the ladder for too long. In my case, I was only able to take the leap of faith to pivot first into product marketing, and then again into career coaching once I abandoned linear thinking. By letting go of the idea that I needed to climb the ladder in one industry or job function my entire life, I could entertain new possibilities and get unstuck. And I believe you can too. The Four Stages of the Career Growth Loop to Grow Your Career Just like the product growth loop, the career growth loop is a continuous process of regeneration and reinvention, with the learnings from previous iterations serving as inputs for the next iteration - driving compounding growth. Let’s dive in to explore each stage, and what to focus on or avoid at each. Stage 1 - Sprout You are at the beginning of your career as a young seedling. You may have just gotten your first job or you’re on the path to getting one. This is the time to roll up your sleeves, work hard, learn as much as possible, and stay curious. Most of the work at this stage may be tactical and repetitive, but it’s through repetition we learn and train our muscles to have a strong foundational skillset. What to Focus On Focus on finding a great manager. The most important mentor you will have early on in your career will be your manager. During the interview process, focus on finding managers with a lot of relevant experience, and who clearly demonstrate they are focused on mentorship. Not sure how to do that? Start with this list of reverse interview questions. What to Avoid Avoid optimizing for salary alone. At this stage, learning from the best and joining the right company is the best thing you can do. When you earn more knowledge and have more experience under your belt, your earning potential will grow rapidly in later stages. I was once offered a role that paid $30K more than other offers, but upon having further conversations with leadership, I realized they weren’t aligned on company priorities, which was a red flag. I turned down the offer, and 2 months later there was a shake-up at the company and the hiring manager was let go. The company I ended up choosing instead provided me with tons of learning opportunities by having a strong and diverse leadership that truly cared. Stage 2 - Growth The growth stage is one of the most exciting. You now have a few years of experience and feel more confident in your skills. Your execution capabilities have grown, so it is imperative to establish repeatable systems that work for you. These systems will serve as vital frameworks as you progress into the next phase and assume a strategic leadership role. What to Focus On Focus on becoming a T-shaped marketer. While gaining a general understanding of every aspect of your role is really important, you also want to develop at least one area of deep expertise that you enjoy while growing your reputation as a subject matter expert. Becoming the go-to person for a specific skill set will make you invaluable and grow your confidence, paving the way for the next stage of your career. For instance, in my first PMM role, I spent over 50% of my time enabling sales on enterprise deals. I created over 18 use-case-specific decks that significantly transformed our messaging and helped me build a reputation as a star storyteller. I won a sales award that year, which was instrumental in helping me get promoted. What to Avoid Avoid thinking there is only one way to grow. Instead of chasing after more and more titles in the same role, growth could also be horizontal - you could move into adjacent roles, move into different types of industries, and sizes of companies. It’s OK to grow in whichever way you want to. Learning can happen anywhere. Stage 3 - Maturity Once you have reached the maturity level, you will notice that doing your job comes with ease, and people come to you regularly for advice, as you are the authority on the subject matter. You should have managed large projects, or perhaps you are leading an entire function. At this stage, the focus shifts towards building leadership skills and overall business acumen as an established leader. Drawing upon your extensive knowledge, it is time to formulate strong points of view (POV) that reflects your understanding of the role through your experience. What to Focus On Focus on developing your personal brand - which is an external reflection of your internal values. When you have a strong personal brand you will have clarity about yourself and attract the right opportunities to you. When COVID hit, I saw a lot of friends lose their jobs, so I decided to help them out by offering ad-hoc job search advice. To my delight, not only was I successful in getting them jobs, but I also enjoyed it so much that I decided to pursue it as a side hustle. I started posting on LinkedIn sharing exactly how I helped them, and that led me to build my thriving coaching business today. What to Avoid Avoid thinking you know it all. Even when you have achieved expertise in something, it’s important to listen to outside perspectives and learn new ways of doing things. Some of the best things I learned are from the employees I hired with far less experience (or so I thought)! Stage 4 - Harvest With a solidified personal brand and a strong skill set, this stage allows you to reap the rewards of your hard work through additional career options. You can leverage your expertise, unique values, and skill set in various ways. This may involve delivering paid talks, offering consultancy services, launching your own startup, or pursuing other ventures. What to Focus On Focus on opportunities that align with your values and lifestyle - Instead of pursuing every opportunity under the sun, think about what opportunities can further enhance your brand, could be complementary to one another, and can be more easily managed and scaled over time. For instance, many PMMs at this stage may become consultants, advisors, or contractors, making great income while maintaining a healthy work/life balance. What to Avoid Watch out for harvesting too soon, or harvesting for too long without planting new seeds for growth. I see many early career professionals capitalizing on additional income streams. While commendable, it's hard to harvest without any crops. True expertise matters and can only be earned through experience and hard work. As you harvest, you will naturally realize new paths you want to pursue, or new skills to gain. This signals it is time to restart the loop and become a beginner again. In summary, Careers are loops, not ladders. Career paths are often winding and cyclical with periods of massive growth, re-evaluation, rest (time off), and reinvention. You can stay in a loop for 10 years, restart a loop halfway through if you think it’s the wrong one, or do something else. And no matter where you are in your career, you are in the right place: every stage of your career serves a purpose even if it does not feel like it at the time. One action step you can do today: Read through this and figure out where you are in your career loop. Find the relevant suggestions I have for that stage, and choose one thing to improve on within the next week. Want more dedicated guidance to land, develop, and grow in your dream product marketing role? Then check out my 1-1 programs to help you: Overcome rejections and land your dream role with confidence Master your onboarding in the first 30-60-90 Days without burn-out or stress Gain career clarity and build out your career loops to become a strong, confident leader Interested in any programs above? Contact me whenever you are ready.

Navigating the Stages of Product Lifecycle for a Dynamic Product Marketing Career All products go through a product lifecycle. As a PMM, your role and focus can drastically differ by-product lifecycle stage, which can, in turn, affect your product marketing career and path. Specifically, this is how product marketing can differ by product lifecycle phase: 🌱 Introduction phase: This is where the product is initially introduced to the market. There is a lot of excitement for potentially disrupting a category or new ways to solve old problems. At this stage, a true 0-1 product marketer is needed to validate product/market fit, message/market fit, and plan and execute full GTMs to drive product awareness. When I was a 0-1 product marketer at a Series A startup, I created the first product launch process and spoke at length with customers to validate the message/market fit and refine our ICP. 🌿 Growth phase: You are looking at a mid-late stage startup doubling revenue each year and more. The goal at this stage is to penetrate the market as fast as possible. This means the PMM needs to split time between launching new features and scaling sales enablement. They also need to support major marketing promotional campaigns. Overall, there will be a shift towards more campaigns vs. new product launches. When I was at a growth stage startup, 50% of my time was spent scaling sales enablement to support AEs across 10+ regions as we needed to win more deals, faster. 🌳 Maturity phase: This is the phase where growth slows, and where the product is generally ubiquitous in the mind of the target customer. At this point, there likely are many other competitors in the market, so the goal is to grow and maintain market share. The PMM can focus on pricing/packaging to optimize revenue from existing customers and collaborate with the rest of the marketing team on brand refresh and competitive-focused campaigns to increase brand loyalty and take market share. When I was on AutoCAD - a 40-year-old product, my efforts were focused on global campaigns to establish our leadership position, attract a new generation of customers, and help avoid customers going to copycats. 🍂 Decline phase: At this phase, the product is in decline, with many similar products on the market. It’s also likely the company already has a broader product portfolio with newer products that are in the growth stage. The goal of a PMM at this stage is to continue maximizing profitability by squeezing $ from late adopters (e.g. developing regions) and promoting the entire product portfolio to upsell or cross-sell customers to newer products. For instance, at Autodesk, AutoCAD is bundled with newer products like Revit to drive up sales and prolong its usage. Crafting Your Unique Product Marketing Career Path I believe in building a strong and long-lasting career path that builds a diversity of experiences across all stages of the product lifecycle, but what works for each individual should be based on their specific strengths, values, and goals. So how does this affect you? 1. If you are looking for a new job, think about what stage of the company would better fit your skills and interests right now. 2. If you are currently working, think about new strategies most aligned with the stage of your product’s growth, and how you can prolong it. If you are looking for guidance to gain more clarity on which growth stage fits you best in a job search, or how to take more control of your career, please contact me and I would love to see how I can help.

​A few weeks ago I posted that product marketing is truly a connector role. It launches products to the market, enables sales, and partners with marketing to drive revenue. The Traditional View of Product Marketing This is why it’s typically represented by the widely adopted Venn diagram showing it sitting at the center of the three functions: The Shortcomings of the Traditional View While this framing is initially helpful, I believe it has several shortcomings: 1. It’s a me-centric point of view I can safely say other functions, especially product management, also think they sit at the center. This me-centric view unnecessarily creates ego and territoriality. 2. Misconception that PMMs have tons of ownership The most common reason I have heard why aspiring PMMs want to move into the field is that they want to have tons of ownership. In reality, PMMs have the LEAST ownership compared to other functions, and instead, have to influence without authority. 3. It overlooks other key areas in the business For instance, customer success and customer support often get ignored, as well as engineering and Ops roles. The fact is there are many other teams not represented in the diagram which are equally important to business success. Rethinking What Is Product Marketing: The Interconnected Web Instead, product marketing should be represented more as an interconnected web: In this web view, every function has an equally important part to play in the success of the company. In addition, holding this view shifts the mindset of PMMs from “How can I make myself look good” to “How can I help other teams look good”. Building Stronger Connections Across Teams It also encourages PMMs to see beyond their bubble and genuinely helps connect with other teams. For instance, one of the proudest things I did in my career was connecting Customer Success with Product to better influence the roadmap and communicate features to customers - which helped both teams reach their goals. Practical Implications for PMMs So how does this affect your job as a PMM? Here are a few practical tips you can apply to your job today: Recreate the web diagram for your specific role. Chances are the functions at your company may look a bit different. Draw it to represent the key functions within your company. Select and prioritize a few relationships to focus on. Instead of focusing on every line in the diagram, pick 2-3 to focus on based on the key objectives of your company. Brainstorm 1 way to add value to those relationships you picked. If you notice any gaps in those relationships, this is a great time to start closing the gap and think about 1 way you can immediately add value. At the end of the day, when PMMs enable other teams, they will naturally become an invaluable part of every company and act as the true connector. This view is messier, but I believe it’s more accurate.

Surbhi's Transformation from Freelance Consultant to Product Marketing Manager Surbhi Gupta was a star client of mine. When we met, Surhbhi was struggling to balance her life as a mom and being the owner of a freelance consulting business. She had been out of the corporate world for 3 years and while she had extensive marketing experience, she had no formal background in product marketing. But through our work together, she landed a PMM job at a reputable startup earning a great salary that exceeded her expectations. Her story is truly transformational. I recently caught up with Surbhi, to give her a chance to tell her story and share some of what she’s learned. I hope she inspires you, the way she’s inspired me! Finding the Right Career Path at Avalara Yi Lin: I'm super excited to chat with you today. Could you share with the audience where you work right now? Surbhi: Of course! I'm a product marketing manager at Avalara. Avalara is into tax compliance for the B2B audience in the Fintech space. I earned my MBA in marketing in 2013 and joined Hindustan Times, the largest media house in India as a marketer responsible for social media, promotion, campaigns, and more. I worked there for five years in different capacities, eventually becoming a senior marketing manager. Then I moved to Seattle with my husband, had a baby, and decided to start my own consulting firm in brand and marketing, so I can have a more flexible schedule while still working in marketing. I eventually went on to hire and manage 5 people in my consulting firm. The Decision to Shift into Product Marketing Yi Lin: I love that you started your own business and you have such an amazing background! So how did you decide to break into product marketing? Surbhi: It's funny because I heard the term "go-to-market" and it intrigued me. I knew about it before but with its increasing popularity on LinkedIn, I wondered if there was more to it. Watching product marketing videos made me realize PMMs do GTM, and I became interested in exploring the field for its unique challenges and opportunities. It was a refreshing change from my previous work, and I was excited to pursue it despite not knowing how to get there. Yi Lin: What did you do initially to try to pivot into product marketing? Surbhi: Initially I learned a lot just by reading online, watching videos and free resources, including following you on LinkedIn! I then started to apply for roles. I realized while I was getting some first-round interviews, I could not progress past the hiring manager round. I realized my stories were not cohesive and as a working mom, I really didn’t have all the time dedicated to interview prep and I needed to change. I couldn’t wake up at 5 am, interview prep, and then have to get through the day. Yi Lin: As a working mom myself, I really empathize with you. It’s hard enough to job search, let alone having to take care of a baby and run your own business! So what did you do next? Surbhi: I realized I needed help when I returned from a family visit. I told myself I HAD to get a PMM job in 3 months. I knew that if I didn’t prioritize or focus on it, I would just have delayed the process - delayed the learning and my goal. I knew I may be able to do it alone, but to get the results faster and to keep my sanity intact, I needed a career coach - especially someone who has gone through the exact process and who fully understands my situation. This is when I reached out to you, and within just our first call I decided to work with you because of exactly those reasons - you have been there, done that, and you shared great insights with me just in that 30 min. Sometimes, as a mom, I feel the responsibility is huge. I am taking care of my daughter at night, and then it’s 11 pm, I am laying on the couch, and I realize I didn’t do anything for myself. I decided at that moment to prioritize my own career needs and hiring you would be a gift for me. Yi Lin: Wow, thank you for sharing that! It’s really a powerful step to prioritize your own needs! You have such wonderful skills and I knew instantly that you would be a great PMM. I was happy to provide guidance. Would you share then how the job search process was while working with me? Surbhi: Partnering with you — who are equally excited about my dreams and success — helped me tremendously to land the PMM role. First of all, I had instant relief when we started working together, as you provided me with frameworks and a specific plan of action for every milestone. You laid out exactly what I needed to do after each session, so I knew I was held accountable and that really motivated me and kept me on track. During the job search, I felt the level of detail you put into the program was something I didn’t see in other coaches. You didn’t just show me how to go about getting referrals and using untraditional ways to reach the hiring manager, you also created specific templates and sample messages I could modify and use. You had a template for everything from resumes to tracking progress, interviews, and even assignments which were so helpful. Your resume edit, in particular, was a game changer - it was not a generic resume edit. I was getting completely stuck in my head, but you came in and helped reframe my experiences in a way that exactly described me and highlighted my unique value. I started getting interviews with the new resume and it was remarkable! Finally, as we approached interviews the approach you used to structure questions really changed the game - they actually made me feel more confident in my own skills as I walked into each interview. Apart from the 1-1s I also loved the group sessions and the student community you built which was great for emotional support. Overcoming Challenges and Winning the Role Yi Lin: Wow, thank you for sharing all that! I was so glad when you got the offer because I knew it was the perfect opportunity for you, and you have shown so much resilience in the process. On the other hand, I know the process was also not free of challenges, especially on the emotional side. Would you share how you were able to overcome the challenges? Surbhi: Absolutely, it was definitely not smooth sailing all the way and particularly there were two difficult times I faced. The first one was when I wasn't getting enough calls for product marketing roles. I wanted to give in and switch back to marketing, but after discussing it with you, you reminded me that my dream role was product marketing and that I should keep going and focus on doing one thing at a time. For instance, reach out to 5 hiring managers in a week. I am really glad you didn’t make me give up because then I started landing more interviews and progressing to the final rounds. The second turning point was when I got rejected in the final round with this company I thought I was a shoo-in for. I remember being extremely upset but then speaking with you, you objectively assessed my situation and made me realize the huge progress I made and that success was around the corner. A lot of the time, I felt you were not just a coach, but a friend who I can be completely myself with. You are open, flexible and were available whenever I needed help. Yi Lin: It was clear that your answers kept getting better and better. I only taught you the techniques but you did it all! Now that you are a PMM, how do you like the role so far? Surbhi: I love it. I look forward to Mondays and I look forward to tomorrow. I realized I might not know the mechanics of, say, a full positioning/messaging project, but I know I can learn it. I am fully tapping into my superpowers of collaboration - I can ensure projects get done, and I am learning and drawing energy from everything around my work. It’s awesome. Yi Lin: That’s so great to hear! What advice would you have for anyone who is on this job search journey now? Surbhi: For anyone trying to break into product marketing or land a dream role, I’d say, 1) believe that you can do it and have a positive mindset, and 2) do something about it. Put an action plan together, and have a defined strategy. Then, when you encounter roadblocks (which are inevitable), don’t take things personally. Try to get the help you need, whether it is from a coach, a community, or something else. It's about getting help in whichever form you find useful at the time. What I would caution against is just sitting there by yourself and waiting for something different to happen. — Thanks so much to Surbhi for sharing her perspective! Hearing stories like hers is what motivates me to do the work I do. If you’re struggling in your career, just know: You’re not alone! I’ve been there. Surbhi was there. And when you’re having a hard time, asking for help isn’t weakness—it’s proof of wisdom. If you could use some help, contact me on my website, and let's chat!

As a product marketer, if you are stressed or feel like an imposter, you are not alone. Besides all of the deadlines, lack of understanding of what you do, or general mentorship, many of us PMMs experience a broader tension: What level am I supposed to be at? What’s the path for me? Unfortunately, I can say with confidence that more than 50% of startup PMM roles are wrongly leveled. This is a real problem, both for businesses and for employees. Navigating Your Product Marketing Career Map To help solve this issue, I am excited to share the Startup PMM Career Roadmap. By creating this, I hope to help you, current PMMs, and job seekers, understand what title you should target based on your experience and career goals. So let’s dive in to understand this map in more detail. Two Factors for Career Growth in Product Marketing To begin, growing and advancing in product marketing is a balance between 2 factors. The first is the amount of guidance and oversight needed (Y-axis), and the second is strategic work opportunity (X-axis). As you progress in your career, you will (generally) need to do more strategic work and be increasingly independent. The Four Main Roles in Product Marketing Based on the mix of these 2 factors, there’s a natural progression of four main roles in product marketing: 1. The BEGINNER (Associate PMM) This is a role for someone with 2-4 years of total work experience. Look for this kind of role if you’re just getting started in your career and trying to break into product marketing. Companies generally hire for this role if there is a lot of tactical work that needs to be done. You should get plenty of guidance and mentorship in this role (from a Director or Sr PMM), given you will need to be trained from the ground up. Offering this level of guidance is often not a priority for leaders, which is one of the reasons I believe there are very few Associate PMM roles on the market. 2. The KICKSTARTER (PMM) This is the traditional starting point for product marketing. However, that doesn’t mean it’s an entry-level job. PMMs generally have 4-7 years of total work experience, since they need to be capable of supporting large strategic projects such as positioning and messaging while executing multiple projects (sales enablement, product launches, etc). Leaders should aim to spend 30-70% of their time coaching PMMs to help them gain confidence and navigate more complex projects. As a PMM, evaluate whether you are getting the amount of guidance you need to succeed in the role. Based on my discussions with hundreds of PMMs, lack of guidance is the #1 cause of stress for PMMs. 3. THE ADVANCER (Sr PMMs). Sr PMMs are experienced individual contributors who have mastered the core areas of product marketing. They are expected to launch Tier 1 products with minimal support, design and implement research studies on their own, and meaningfully contribute to positioning and messaging work. Leaders should aim to spend ~20-30% of their time coaching Sr PMMs. They are also generally high performers with a clear track to becoming a leader. If you are a Sr PMM, ask yourself if you are being given the scope that will stretch and help you grow. 4. THE LEADER (Director of Product Marketing) The Director needs to be a people manager. While most Directors need to roll up their sleeves and become players/coaches to some degree, this role is distinguished by leading other product marketers and owning the entire PMM function for the company (or product line). As a Director, you will set the strategy, liaise with other teams, and mentor your reports. You will generally not require much oversight from senior leadership and are the functional head entirely responsible for the results of your team. The coaching from senior leadership is likely focused on executive functions (communication skills and people management), rather than core PMM skills. The expectation is that you are already a master of your craft. Special Cases in the Product Marketing Career Path This is the standard leveling and path at most startup companies—anywhere from Series A to IPO—but I’ll include a few caveats: The First PMM: At very early-stage companies, the founders or general head of marketing will likely complete product marketing functions. The level of the first hire will depend on the company’s needs, but I would be cautious about seeking this kind of position unless you are a Director level (so you can implement a strategic plan immediately) or Sr PMM level (so you can do the hands-on work and grow into a strategic role when it’s time to expand the team). A mistake would be joining as a junior PMM, as they may be expecting you to replace the role of the founders. Head of PMM: This is simply a title used to call the person at the top of the PMM food chain, which could be at the Director or VP level (confusing, I know!) The VP-level title is a natural progression from the Director level and generally is present at later-stage startups only. The IC PMM: What if you want to be an individual contributor, rather than progress up the management ranks? That’s totally fine. People who want to pursue that track generally take Sr. PMM roles and can have a great career there. However, given the collaborative and cross-functional nature of product marketing, even an IC PMM needs to be able to work well with other people. With those outlier situations explained, I hope you have a good understanding of how these roles progress. But if you are looking to find your place in the PMM world, there are two particular anti-patterns to watch for. Anti-Patterns to Watch Out For 1. The Stressed-Out Doer (PMM without enough support) This is a very common case I see. This could be a Sr PMM or even PMM asked to manage a large number of tactical projects with little oversight. They are hired with the promise of ownership, but that ownership came at the cost of real mentorship which they need. People in this position often just take orders from the Sales team or launch what’s needed, but don’t have the expertise to develop the PMM functions that companies really need. If you find yourself in this situation, seek out mentorship or coaching. If this is not available within your organization, ask around in your network for product marketers who might be able to advise you. There are lots of great resources available online. I’d recommend ShareBird—or, you can always set up a call with me! ​ 2. The Glorified IC (PMM leader, but only in title) This is someone who has the title of Director but has no authority. Maybe they are really not managing anyone, or perhaps they have an overbearing manager who makes all the strategic decisions above them. Either way, it will be very hard to show value in this role and the person may feel bored or underutilized. Although this can be frustrating, it’s actually a great opportunity: Impress your boss by asking for more responsibilities and opportunities to make decisions. Be Cautious but Optimistic In summary, your career success and your mental health can be significantly affected by how well your role is designed, and how much support you are given. Comparing your current role and responsibilities to the Product Marketing Career Map above will help ensure you are at the right level and on the right path to be in the best place to succeed. If you are a job seeker, spend time asking the hiring manager thoughtful question to really understand the scope and support they can provide you. If you get stuck, here is a set of reverse interview questions that can help.

Product marketing is enjoying a meteoric rise, but I also know from speaking with many of you that being a product marketer can be stressful - burnout, lack of best practices, and uncertainty about how to rise up are just some of the challenges. So today, I will show you how I went from feeling stressed and awful to getting promoted to Senior Product Marketing Manager and the Director of Product Marketing in less than three years while working less. So let’s dive right in. The Path to Success in Product Marketing Without Burnout Lesson #1: Focus on one big project that will deliver an outsized impact The biggest secret to doing any job well is to have focus. And that means letting go of the desire to do every aspect of product marketing at once, which will dissipate your energy and lead to diminishing returns. To have focus, you need to work on the one project that will have an outside impact at a given time and then double down on that. The best way to find the project is by speaking with others. When I start a new job, I talk to nearly everyone in the company. I try to understand the biggest challenges that no one is helping them with. I then create a plan to address that, show results, and get feedback. For instance, when I was at my first startup, I had to enable a team of 50+ enterprise sales reps - who were the main drivers of our revenue. I had no idea where to begin helping them, but as I spoke to them individually, it because clear that all the reps said something different about our value prop. So I focused on standardizing our pitch to increase win rates. I dedicated an intense 2 months to revising our sales deck and listened to dozens of live pitches before rolling out the final product. The sales reps could see the difference right away and I was given a cultural award for the work I did to help them. If you are struggling with figuring out your big project, ask yourself the following questions: What is the most crucial goal of your company? Which team is most important for influencing that goal? What are the different levers that can affect that goal? What lever can you most readily influence? Lesson #2: Ruthlessly prioritize your time and energy To focus on the projects with the most impact, you need to say no to things. This was something I had to learn the hard way. Saying no does not mean rudely telling your boss you won’t do work, but it means smartly delegating, reducing, or postponing certain tasks. After getting burned out in my first year as a PMM, I now religiously prioritize my time every week this way: Each Monday, I start by writing out all the tasks/commitments I have in front of me, and ask myself the following questions: Does this task move me closer to my most important goal (from lesson #1)? How much effort does it require to do this task? I then lay out all my tasks in a 2x2 matrix as shown below that maps effort against impact (source: ProductPlan): Quick wins - this is where you spend a good amount of time here. Major project - this may be a longer-term strategic project. This could present a great collaboration opportunity. Fill-ins - these can be delegated or reduced in scope if possible Thankless tasks - these should be eliminated Over the years, sticking to this principle has allowed me to excel in product marketing without burnout, producing more results while working less. Lesson #3: Collaborate to create win-win situations Growing up in a hyper-competitive environment, I was told to be successful, I had to be better than everyone else. But the flaw of this statement is it assumes life is a zero-sum game - that there is only a finite amount of “pie”, and my win comes from someone else’s loss. When we live life as a zero-sum game, we are always hyper-competitive and stressed out. That is no way to live. In fact, life is more like a positive sum game - your gain can be someone else’s gain as well. And I have fortunately benefited so much in my career by collaborating with others to create win-wins. When we collaborate with others, we: Benefit from each other’s talents and get the project done faster and better Gain additional perspective and empathy from others’ POV Gain constructive feedback that helps us improve Enjoy our work more and feel a sense of camaraderie As a product marketer, your most likely collaborators are other product marketers, other marketers (demand gen, brand, content marketers), product managers, or customer success managers. These individuals/teams have natural synergies with you, are equally aligned on the same goals, and have complementary skill sets. In the sales enablement example above, I didn’t do it alone. I partnered with my PMM peer who provided valuable feedback on my sales decks - we even tagged team to sit in on sales calls. The collaboration allowed us to deliver our project in record time and helped establish the value of the product marketing team as a whole. So, what project can you get help on, and what can you help someone else with? Lesson #4: Ask with intention So you delivered impact and accomplished some really important goals for your company. What’s next? Just delivering results and hoping you will get recognized is unlikely to get you promoted. You have to ask for it. In fact, this is the best advice I have received in my career. Since then, almost all of my promotions or raises are because I proactively asked for them. But how do you ask for something effectively? And how do you avoid the fear of being told no? Here are a few tips I recommend: Make your intentions clear - Promotions don’t happen overnight, and can sometimes take months to build a case. So plan to have a conversation with your manager at least 6 months before you want to get promoted. Layout your intention to move to the next level, and get clarity on what is required for you to achieve that. Ask for it in the right way - When you have demonstrated progress towards achieving the requirements, it’s time to make the ask. Share specific examples of how you have met or exceeded the requirement, and the IMPACT that had on the company as a whole. Have a low emotional attachment to the outcome - Instead of just focusing on yes or no at the moment, be open to alternative possibilities, timing, and feedback. It also shows your willingness to grow and compromise. Lesson #5: Build career portfolios, not career ladders Hopefully, by following Lessons 1-4, you are well on your way to getting promoted and climbing the proverbial career ladder. However, in recent years, more people have discovered that the best careers are not always straight lines. Rather, they are non-linear “squiggly careers” ( source: HBR). Indeed, our careers (and life) are more than just a series of promotions. Getting promoted is not the end in itself, but a means for you to stretch yourself, learn more, and grow through new types of experiences. So instead of being overly focused on a title, or salary, focus more on what new skills will you get to learn, and what new exciting challenges will present themselves. And when you let go a little from the chains of the career ladder, you will open yourself up to explore more career possibilities - whether it is to take on a side hustle, build a passion project, or take a career break - to build a truly fulfilling career portfolio. When I look at my own career path, I see two distinct periods. The first was when I was a transportation consultant when I fixated on just getting promoted and earning more money. The second was when I decided to quit my job and make a dramatic pivot to doing something different. Though the path was way more squiggly (and I have had many challenges and countless failures), it was the most exhilarating part of my career. Best of all, by not fixating only on getting promoted, I ended up getting promoted faster. Thanks for reading. Whenever you are ready, I can help you: Accelerate your career growth Overcome impost syndrome Master product marketing fundamentals Transition into a new role with confidence

Insights on the Current Job Market for Product Marketers 2022 was a year of constant change with drastic shifts in the tech labor market (and massive layoffs). With such uncertainty, it's natural to wonder what 2023 will be like for product marketing. An Interview with Rebecca Tan, Senior Recruiter at Creative People So back in December, I laid out my top 7 predictions for product marketing in 2023 in my LinkedIn post, where I mentioned that while more pressure will be put on product marketers, the roles will be even more critical this year. However, I thought it could be even more insightful to hear the perspective on the labor market from a recruiter directly. This is why I am excited to interview Rebecca Tan, Senior Recruiter from Creative People in today's issue. Navigating Job Opportunities and Career Growth for Product Marketers Below, she shares her perspectives on the job market for product marketers and practical tips to help you navigate the landscape, whether you are a job seeker or hiring manager. So let’s begin. Yi Lin: I am so excited you are here Rebecca! Could you introduce yourself to everyone? Rebecca: Hi! I’m a Senior Agent at Creative People, a people-first boutique recruiting agency that focuses on helping innovative start-ups grow their product, brand, and marketing teams. I oversee all of our Product Marketing and Communication searches. Yi Lin: Thank you! The year 2022 has been interesting. Could you share what the hiring market was like in the past year from your experience? Rebecca: Last year, I saw an explosion of product marketing roles earlier in the year - this is everything from MAANGs to smaller orgs creating product marketing departments for the first time. A lot of organizations began to recognize the strategic need for product marketing and the role it can play in growth. In Q4, we began to see a slowdown in the market with the layoffs in tech due to the rapid growth companies experienced at the height of the pandemic. It was difficult to see and not easy for the candidates that were impacted. On the other hand, I’m optimistic as we’ve continued to see opportunities arise in the market, but there is a shift in the way companies approach hiring to be more strategic. Y: Thank you for sharing that. I have observed similar patterns as a hiring manager and coach. I’d love to understand what you see as the shift. R: I truly believe Product Marketing will remain a critical and strategic role. The difference is that we won’t be seeing the “hyper-growth” that many organizations experienced during the pandemic. I fully agree with the perspective that you shared in your LinkedIn post, which is that companies are going to be more thoughtful and strategic in how they build their teams and allocate resources. Similarly, I also believe we’re going to see more emphasis on “retention” - how we can keep customers and maximize their value. PMMs can play a critical role in this as the voice of the customer. I think this retention mentality will also extend to the companies as they think about how they can retain and nurture existing talent. Y: I love that last point you made about retention and investing more in employees. But what will that mean for people looking for new jobs? R: You should 100% be looking for new jobs and companies will continue to hire, as new roles will pop up (even as there could be fewer backfills). I always recommend candidates have a pulse on the market and take those first chats to learn more even if the timing isn’t right. Take your time and network so you understand what’s out there and when the right thing comes along, you’ll know. Y: Fully agreed! It’s always better to be prepared. I also see more startups and companies add new product marketing roles and teams (even as they shed other functions) given the importance of this role in helping with business strategy and growth. Overall, would you say you are bullish or bearish on the market for product marketers? R: I am bullish. With anything, there will always be highs, lows, and changes. There is just a shift in the way companies are approaching hiring and growing teams during this time. I know it can feel uneasy with the number of layoffs we’ve seen, but at the same time, I’ve continued to see opportunities with companies hiring especially in startups. Y: Thanks for sharing that, and it's reassuring. I want to switch gears a bit and talk about how candidates should job search in today’s economic climate. What are some things you recommend candidates do to stand out and best prepare? R: First I highly recommend LinkedIn. We always talk about “geeking out” in your market and being an expert. Connect with your “dream companies” and leaders within your industry (like Yi Lin!). Do not be afraid to reach out to people and hiring managers to ask for informational interviews and make connections. Getting the perspective of others in your space can help change how you approach searches or represent yourself, and then make yourself top of mind to those target companies. I also recommend refreshing your LinkedIn profile to express your personality, interests, and projects you’re proud of. For many hiring managers and recruiters, your LI profile is the 1st reference point before your resume. Y: I am so glad LinkedIn is the first thing you brought up. It’s how I landed my first internship offer earlier in my career. Submitting your resume online or just counting on your friends to refer you is not enough in today’s market. I also recommend job seekers create cold referral opportunities through networking. R: Yes totally! So the second thing I recommend is tailoring your experience and story to the job description: talking about yourself and distilling your experience can be one of the most difficult things. But think of yourself as similar to the products that you work with every day. How are you developing and storytelling about yourself? If you find this difficult to do (as it can be to do it for yourself), this is where I recommend you work with someone like Yi Lin who is an expert in this area and specializes in product marketing. By talking to someone else you can vocalize things out loud and get a fresh perspective that helps you frame your experiences in a much more compelling way. Lastly, I also recommend using a recruiting agency. Recruiters have a pulse on the market and what hiring managers are looking for. We like to call ourselves “agents'' because we try to present multiple opportunities to our candidates. It’s like being a matchmaker. We pair our companies and candidates up to allow for personal career development and company growth. Y: I love that last point you brought up as many have not thought about using recruiting agencies. How can a candidate get agency representation from you? We absolutely represent candidates from diverse backgrounds as the needs of hiring managers can vary. I love making connections with candidates, even if I don’t have a role that’s a close fit at the time. So you can just reach out to me! YL: Amazing! What about companies - what mistakes do typical startups make when hiring PMMs? What should hiring managers do differently? Great question! Product Marketing can be interpreted in different ways. But at its foundation, product marketers are the voice of the customer and should be able to speak the different “languages” of cross-functional teams (typically sales, product, and marketing) to drive strategy. I’ve seen companies make mistakes when they’re making their first PMM hire. I’ve seen over-leveling, where it’s positioned as a senior role, but the needs of the company are creating assets/collateral to support the sales team. The opposite can be true too, where they are looking for someone to act as a director but only giving them a manager title/salary. As a hiring manager, I would take a step back and assess what the short and long-term needs are for the team and how that aligns with existing resources. From there, identify where the gaps are to hone in on the profile you’re hiring for. I would also consult specialists who can help advise an org if a hiring manager isn’t as familiar with the PMM landscape. Y: Yeah I have seen this as well. This unfortunately happens due to the immaturity of the function. I generally tell candidates to target two levels of title, and also focus more on the responsibilities and scope, and less on the title itself. Anyways, this has been so insightful. To wrap up, are you currently taking on more companies to represent? Absolutely! For hiring managers in product marketing, please reach out to me if you are interested in expanding your team! We can help paint a landscape of the industry, conduct salary analysis, develop JDs, and more. Reach out even if it’s to make the connection and say hello! Yi Lin: Fantastic. Thank you so much for the wonderful insights!