. ® The Marketing Journal for High-Tech Product Managers A Pragmatic Marketing Publication

™ productmarketing.comVolume 1 Issue 3 Sept/Oct 2003

How to Make Less of a Mess in Software Product Management

The Market-Driven Certification

Why Are We Winning and Why Are We Losing?

Change Now, Change Later Have You Changed?

Depending on whom you talk to, Many who were cut, found it particularly we are either near the bottom of difficult to find employment in a sagging the economic slump, or we have market, regardless of pay.With few credentials begun the climb to more prosperous and little experience, some have given up and times. One measure I use to gauge changed careers citing that they’ll never find the health of the high-tech product a job in high-tech marketing again. They are marketing segment is the number of new job probably right. postings. Two years ago, virtually all the posting revolved around the, “Help, I just got laid off” Although the job postings are expanding genre. Now I am more optimistic as I see a every day, those doing the hiring are being variety of new job postings every day in the much more selective. They want to hire strategic high-tech marketing field. thinkers who, through experience or training, know how marketing can deliver exceptional Through this transition, the industry has been value to the company. dramatically changed. During the dot-com and software expansion, product management and The economy is preparing to make a marketing personnel were hired to fill an comeback. The industry has changed over the expanding vacuum created by a market with last two years so you must ask yourself, “Have an insatiable appetite. Marketing positions I changed?” There is no better time than now were in such demand that they were filled to prepare by improving yourself. Read some by recruiting from other parts of the company new books, attend training, or quantify your with little or no marketing experience. knowledge through certification. Preparing for Experienced people were recruited by other the unforeseen opportunities in the next two companies, offering larger salaries, causing years will assure your likelihood of success. the marketing employee retention period, in some parts of the country, to dip below 12 months.

Well, the bubble burst and managers in the Craig Stull surviving companies President and CEO were faced with the Pragmatic Marketing, Inc. gut-wrenching task of deciding who to lay off. Having personally participated in this task, I know that management tends to gravitate to tenure, experience, qualifications and, probably most importantly, the delivery of value to the company. Those who were kept, at least in the minds of management, are the ones who demonstrated measurable results.

1 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 productmarketing.com™ 16 035 N. 8 0 th Street, Suite F Inside this issue: Scottsdale, AZ 85260 Special Features Volume 1 Issue 3

President and CEO Craig Stull 3 How to Make Less of a Mess in Software Product Management Pragmatic Marketing, Inc. Understanding the role of product management in your business can be very confusing. It can also make or Managing Editor break your company. Kristyn Marathas

Contributing Writers 9 The Market-Driven Certification Harold Frost Being certified is really about investing in one’s self. Bruce Hadley Naseem Javed Announcing a new product management certification program. Steve Johnson Barbara Nelson Gabriel Steinhardt 17 Part 2 of 3 Part Series Why Are We Winning and Why Are We Losing? No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted, in Exploring how we listen to the market to become experts any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical in what they need. photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. 23 Change Now,Change Later productmarketing.com™ is available free of charge to qualified subscribers. If your naming challenge is simply based on a hit or miss process, For subscription inquiries or back issues then you are definitely not going forward. call (480) 515-1411; or visit http://www.productmarketing.com In This Issue For advertising rates, please call (480) 515-1411. 1 Have You Changed? Other product and/or company names mentioned in this journal may be trademarks The product manager’s job market has changed. Are you prepared? or registered trademarks of their respective companies and are the sole property of their respective owners. 8 Book Reviews productmarketing.com is a trademark of Read a good book lately? We’ve got several to share with you Pragmatic Marketing, Inc. Printed in the U.S.A. from our “top seller” list for product managers. All rights reserved.

8 Ask the Expert About Pragmatic Marketing, Inc. 15 The Pragmatic Marketing Framework Based in Scottsdale, Arizona, Pragmatic Marketing, Inc. was formed in 1993 to provide Distinctive Competence product marketing training and consulting to high-tech firms by focusing on strategic, market- driven techniques. Pragmatic’s training courses 22 Tools and Tips emphasize business-oriented definition of market How to conduct a successful webinar. problems, resulting in reduced risk and faster product delivery and adoption. Since its inception, Pragmatic Marketing has successfully graduated over 22,000 product managers and 27 Case Studies marketing professionals, and was named one F5 Networks takes market insights to new heights. of the Inc 500 fastest-growing companies of 2000. For more information about Pragmatic Marketing and its courses, please visit 31 Calendar of Upcoming Pragmatic Marketing Seminars http://www.pragmaticmarketing.com or call 480-515-1411. productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 • 2 How To Make Less of

By Bruce Hadley, SoftwareCEO.com

In our 20+ years in the software business, the messiest job we’ve ever seen is product management. Not because it’s particularly dirty or greasy, but because so few understand it, yet nearly everyone claims that they do—and none will hesitate to tell you how badly you’re doing at it.

And, this mess runs deep: Ask ten software CEOs to define software product management, and you’ll get ten different answers. Ask another ten where the job ought to live, department-wise, and you’ll get at least three different answers. Ask another ten to put a price tag on the position, and you’ll get a range from secretarial to saint.

In terms of job security, there’s probably nothing dicier than VP of sales—especially in a sour economy. But the product manager’s job is right up there: To do it well, you need a renaissance- level assortment of skills, the charm and graciousness of a career diplomat, and the hide of rhino.

So, what the heck does a software product manager do? How do you know if you need one? And what are the prime mistakes to avoid in product management?

We recently caught up with Bill Corrigan, the VP of product management and marketing for Boston- based developer Softricity, founded in 1998.

Although the company isn’t huge—55 employees and about $6 million in revenue this year— Corrigan’s product management background is blue-ribbon: He previously worked for Calico Commerce, a Kleiner Perkins-backed developer that went public in 1999 then sold to PeopleSoft, and for IBM; he was the product manager for Lotus Notes for over 10 years.

Since Corrigan now has both “management” and “marketing” in his title, we thought that a good place to start:

3 / productmarketing.com / September/October 2003 a Mess in Software Product Management

Q: What’s the difference, we asked, Q: Then why not put the position developers into a successful product between product management and in Marketing? manager. “It’s going to be a very, very product marketing? gifted engineer,” he says. “Most good A: “Well, engineering types don’t often product managers have come from a A: “Product management means building have the listening skills required, but consulting background, or a sales the right product for the market at the pure marketing types don’t have the engineering background—they have right time, and helping Sales sell it,” ability to establish what’s practical,” been implementing. It’s highly unlikely Corrigan says. “It means understanding Corrigan says. you’ll pull someone right out of your customer inside and out, so that Development and put them in you can deliver the right product to the Q: Let’s say I want to hire a product this role.” right audience. Product management manager; where should I look? puts the product on the shelf; product Regardless of their background, marketing is getting people to take it A: “There are two places,” Corrigan says. Corrigan says it’s vital that they can off the shelf.” “Many good product managers come verbalize well, and use multiple modes out of a traditional sales engineering of communication. “You have to be able Okay, next question: role. They’ve been out talking to customers, to cut left, cut right, and run right up working with customers, most of their the middle,” he says. “You also have Q: Who should “own” product management? lives; that’s where I came from, in fact. to be the ultimate evangelist for To whom should the product manager Often, those people have the technical your product. report? wherewithal and the customer skills, but they may not have the discipline “A product manager needs to be a A: “Most successful companies have VP to focus on a set of deliverables. technical person who is the ultimate product management who reports to communicator. He needs to gather the CEO or COO or VP marketing,” “Second, I’d look at people who are information from customers, from Corrigan says. coming out of an engineering role within analysts, VARs, and employees, then a professional services organization. coalesce it into a vision and a product Q: Why not R&D? They likely understand the technology, plan that’s deliverable.” but usually have a lot more interest about A: “Don’t put it in engineering. You’ll end what’s happening in the industry Much of this is personality type, up developing an ivory tower complex. in general.” Corrigan says. “You want someone who When the development group controls is a good listener. Somebody who is product management, you tend to lose It’s unlikely you’ll find a great product inquisitive and wants to solve the customer focus, and you start drinking manager who came from a marketing customer’s problem—as opposed your own Kool Aid®. background, Corrigan says. “Those people to someone who says, ‘I have a usually don’t have the technical depth new widget and isn’t it cool?’” “Engineers tend to get too inwardly that’s necessary to be a good product focused, rather than customer focused,” manager. First, they lack that curiosity Q: What’s the overlap between product Corrigan says. “Engineers are very good that drives them to play with a product, management and product marketing? at building, at sticking to schedules, at to figure out what makes it work. And drilling deep into the details. But if second, they don’t have the credibility A: “Marketing is often looking at branding, R&D owns product management, with the engineers. It’s sort of like the how to capture mindshare—you’re you’ll get an inside-out view; if it comes Venus and Mars thing—engineers spending a lot of time with analysts and through the CEO or marketing, you’ll are from one planet, and marketing the press,” Corrigan says. “You’re looking get a customer’s perspective. is from another.” at the best way to phrase this, to couch this issue. Product management is But, lest you think Corrigan just has it defining what a product could and in for marketers, he says it’s just as much a long shot that you’ll turn one of your

productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 • 4 How to Make Less of a Mess in Software Product Management

should be. It’s very hard to do both— Q: At what point should you hire a “So, you’ll see your sales people wasting most people tend to gravitate one way product manager? Is it a function a lot of valuable sales time creating the or another. I think they can report into of size or number of products or tools they need—competitive sell-against the same organization, but not to each something else? sheets, FAQs, etc.—because they don’t other—it’s good to have the two feel what they’ve got is effective.” separate disciplines.” A: “It depends on the dynamics of the team, but you do need that product Sign #3: You look at product plans Q: How does the product manager get management role filled first,” Corrigan for the next two years, and you see customer feedback? How do you go says. “But the thing is, in a small you need an engineering team that’s about contacting them? company the product manager is four times as large as what you have. oftentimes the CEO—they become the Put another way: Your pipeline and A: “You get very close to the people who person who defines the product, they sales forecast are predicated on features are close to your customers—you direct engineers, and so on. In a small and products that are beyond your become the sales people’s best friend,” company, you can get away with that. ability to build. Corrigan says. “The product manager needs to proactively engage the direct "But if your CEO comes from a sales This happens for two reasons, Corrigan sales channel and the resellers, so if it’s background, one of your first hires says: “First, sales doesn’t understand the the ugliest, most gnarly situation, needs to be the product manager. Too product—so they’re selling futures. they’ll call you into it.” many software companies wait until Second, you’re not managing the process. after the fact—after product release— Stuff is getting thrown at the engineers “The other thing you need to do is get to realize the product was never defined ‘unscrubbed’—usually from Sales. on a plane and go out and deal with to meet market requirements. Maybe Everything is important, everything customers eyeball to eyeball—especially along the line it got off track because is urgent, and everything is a huge when they’re complaining. Set the no one was tracking deliverables other market opportunity.” expectations correctly: If your product than the engineering team, or maybe isn’t working as advertised, then yes, tell they missed it altogether after a great Q: What about the person managing the them you’re going to fix that problem. initial idea. product manager? What are the most common CEO’s/VP’s mistakes? “But if it’s enhancement territory, you “Either way, it’s a huge and very common need to be upfront—tell them you’re A: Exec’s mistake #1: Trying to force their reason that companies fail: The product in it for the long haul, and you will look own personal views on the product plan is a mess. I’ve done consulting for at their requests and do whatever we roadmap. “I had a CEO once who, I companies where they have 50 customers can. I’ll tell the customer, ‘I will fix swear, had attention deficit disorder,” and 50 versions of the product, and bugs, I’ll communicate your needs, I’ll Corrigan says. “We had a well-defined, their code stream is a mess.” elevate your most serious requests— well-thought-out roadmap, and he and I’ll communicate that back to you. Q: Okay, that’s one example; what are would read something in Red Herring I can’t guarantee you’re going to get this some other tell-tale signs that you magazine about a successful IPO and feature, but I will get it into a queue, need a product manager? say, ‘Why aren’t we doing that?’ He’d and I will let you know where it stands.’ yank engineers off a project, and then You must build credibility over time.” A: Sign #1: Your engineers are spending realize too late it was something we more time out of the office than in. never should have been pursuing.” Q: What happens when an overeager “It’s often because they are doing the sales rep promises the moon? job the product manager should have As an example of this type, Corrigan been doing—either gathering data or cites Steve Jobs. “He was, effectively, A: “I have worked out plans with sales evangelizing, because the marketing the product manager for Apple. He’d management to explain why that’s person doesn’t have the depth to do come out on stage at a big show and damaging over the long haul,” it,” Corrigan says. say we’re going, to do this, and this, Corrigan says. “We’ve actually have put and this—and often it was the first discouragements into sales compensation Sign #2: Sales is screaming for sales time the engineers had heard anything plans, to show reps that ultimately they tools (and creating what they need on about it.” are the ones who will pay the price the fly).“Marketing can do the high- because they have to look the customer level stuff, but they can’t do the technical Exec’s mistake #2: Assuming that the in the eye.” demos, the technical white papers, the engineers will deliver the right product. stuff that comes up during the course “This is the opposite of the first mistake,” of the sale,” Corrigan says. Corrigan says. “The product manager’s boss needs to care about the roadmap, and needs to be engaged. Once a 5 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 Freeseminar! The Strategic Role of Product Management ™

• As a high-tech executive, are you unclear about the strategic role of product management?

• Does the role of product manager in your company need to be defined to the CEO so support can be given to strategic activities?

• As a product manager, do you strive to lead the organization rather than react to it?

This half-day session is a subset of the Practical Product Management™ seminar and introduces the industry standard This seminar is open to anyone for high-tech marketing, the Pragmatic Marketing framework. currently employed in high-tech Refined over ten years and implemented by hundreds of marketing, including senior technology companies, this framework shows how Product management, product marketing Management and Marketing personnel can move from managers, and product managers. tactical activities to quantifiable, strategic actions that deliver tremendous value to the company.This session includes There is no fee to attend, but immediate actionable ideas about how to best establish the registration is required via our website: role of Product Marketing/Management and define market- www.PragmaticMarketing.com driven products that make customers want to buy.

Seats are limited, so early registration is recommended. See available dates on back cover. How to Make Less of a Mess in Software Product Management

quarter, I sit down with the senior Corrigan says. “You need to come in titles: “Crossing the Chasm,” “Inside management team to say here’s where with a really clear set of requirements the Tornado,” and “Living on the we’re going, here’s what needs to be —the market needs these three pains Fault Line.”] done—just to keep the awareness high to be solved—then engineering needs and the momentum going. As positive to respond with, ‘we can solve that “Another good one is Jerry Kaplan’s examples of how execs ought to treat pain with these 10 features.’ ‘Startup: A Silicon Valley Adventure’— product management, Corrigan thinks it’s kind of funny, because he’s the best Philippe Kahn and Bill Gates stand “Don’t engineer the product for your person in the universe he’s ever met, out. “Gates is unbelievably talented developers; define the problem set in but the stuff his company goes through in that regard,” he says. “He can go a complete enough way so that it can is very interesting from a product toe to toe with any engineer with become an iterative process on both management perspective. their project plan. He can walk into sides, drilling down to the definition.” any cube and Gates will know about “I also recommend ‘High Stakes, No the technology and ask them PM’s mistake #4: Not getting clear Prisoners’ by Charles Ferguson—he’s challenging questions.” consensus at project milestones. “This the guy who conceived and built has happened at almost every company FrontPage. He wrote a thesis at Harvard Q: But that sounds like mistake #1, we I’ve been to,” says Corrigan. “You’re about how to bring that product to said; isn’t that micromanagement? three months into the schedule, the market, then went out and did it.” engineers have built something, and A: “You don’t want to tell them what the product manager or the customer to build, or to divert focus from the says, ‘No, that’s not what we had in Note from SoftwareCEO: roadmap,” Corrigan says. “The trick— mind at all.’” We didn’t prompt Bill and what Gates does so well—is to Corrigan to mention Pragmatic ® create just enough tension to make The fix, Corrigan says, is what he calls Marketing , but we’re glad that people always seek out the best solution a product contract. “The contract gets he did—and we agree that —to think, as opposed to just doing all sides to agree that we’re not going they’re the best. That’s why we what they feel comfortable with.” to deviate from this schedule. The recruited them to teach a class product manager promises that for our Software University online Q: Okay, let’s look at the other side; what engineering is not going to get yanked series: “The Role of the High are the most common mistakes a around with requests for nine other Tech Product Manager,” pm.c software product manager is likely things during this process. scheduled for October 9. to make? “With that contract in place, all the PM’s mistake #1: Getting too A: downstream activities can start much entrenched on one side of the problem earlier: the sales tools, training and A veteran of three startups, set. “This is by far the biggest danger,” demos, research, the press and analyst SoftwareCEO Inc. founder Bruce Corrigan says. “You either get too deep tour. Most companies do that stuff way Hadley spent 20 years in software in the design, almost becoming an after the fact, and that’s because there’s marketing, sales, and operations. engineer, or you spend too much time ambiguity right up until three weeks One of those companies went public, on the outside and fail to bring that before the code is frozen. That ambiguity and the other two were sold to much information in.” slows the whole product-to-market larger software firms. Before founding process down.” SoftwareCEO, an online resource for PM’s mistake #2: Not taking time to software executives and entrepreneurs, document what you’re doing. “Being a Q: Where should aspiring product he was editor of one of the industry’s product manager is a very disciplined managers go to learn more? leading news and research publications. process,” Corrigan says. “You need to gather all the information and document A: “The training class I like the best is it, so that people can see where you are from Pragmatic Marketing—those and so that others can reuse your work. guys are the best,” Corrigan says. Copyright © 2003, SoftwareCEO Inc. Your work is—or should be—the This article originally appeared at genesis of the functional spec.” “From a book perspective, I love the www.SoftwareCEO.com. Reprinted with Geoffrey Moore books, because they permission. PM’s mistake #3: Defining products encompass the big picture, and show rather than market requirements. you everything that happens if you “Engineers get really bored when don’t do it right. [Among Moore’s they’re just treated like code monkeys,”

7 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 Book Reviews The Non-Designer’s Design The Agenda by Michael Hammer Book by Robin Williams As the author of “Reengineering the The PC Is Not a Typewriter: Uh oh, now you’re creating brochures and Organization,” Michael Hammer begins his A Style Manual for Creating letterhead and other design projects. This new book by apologizing for the misuse of Professional-Level Type on design books show various projects with “reengineering.” It was supposed to be about Your Personal Computer before and after examples to illustrate the tightening processes and not about firing four key points of good design: contrast, people. Hammer then introduces the nine by Robin Williams repetition, alignment, and proximity. planks of his new platform about becoming Schools continue to teach typing incorrectly. a better vendor by better serving In the 21st century, a world of proportional The Non-Designer’s customers. He implores us to typefaces, you never use two spaces between Web Book: An Easy Guide look at the company from the sentences. You never underline words; to Creating, Designing, and customers’ view, which he underline means, “I can’t make italics on Posting Your Own Web Site describes in the chapter this typewriter.” The PC Is Not a Typewriter called “Be ETDBW” (easy by Robin Williams drills into kerning and fonts and is filled to do business with). with many, many tips on creating professional And now we’re making web sites... again Revisiting reengineering, he comments documents using without design skills. Williams uses her that products generally get released due to today’s tools. common sense to show you how to create a individual heroics, despite the best efforts of professional-looking the company to prevent the release. Doesn’t website. that sound familiar? What businesses need is a repeatable method for success that relies on process rather than every success being a miracle. There will certainly be some quotes from this book that product managers will want to pass around the office.

Ask the Expert The best role for a product manager at a tradeshow I’m a product manager. My product marketing counterpart and I is not to work in the booth, but to work the show. disagree over whether we should have a booth at an upcoming trade You may decide that you want to attend important show. She says we have all the leads we need, but I think it’s trade shows even without a booth, as a venue for learning about the market. Check out the important to have a presence at the major shows. competition’s demo, attend presentations by vendors and users, and most importantly, meet people who What are your thoughts? I think there is value in terms of are not in your booth. The information you need establishing mindshare. in order to build better products can be found at a trade show; it just can’t be found in your booth. I love tradeshows! I think they are great for gathering information about the market, the competition, and the latest technology. But obviously your product Steve joined Pragmatic Marketing marketing person has other ideas for creating in 1996 after 18 years in software awareness. And so, you’re just going to have to trust and hardware. Steve’s background that she knows the best way to generate awareness includes technical, sales and and leads. That’s what she does. marketing management positions at software companies. His market-driven I think it’s best if you focus on product management orientation allowed him to rise rapidly and let your counterpart do the product marketing. through the ranks from product manager, You need to learn about the market and the where he launched 22 product offerings, to competitive landscape; she needs to decide the best vice president. method to communicate the product message.

email your questions to [email protected]

productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 • 8 In response to the growing need and as part of its own continuing development, Pragmatic Marketing decided to embark on a lengthy project The Market-Driven and develop a product management certification By Gabriel Steinhardt program. This was a clear business decision, as such a program could easily be based on the company’s accumulated professional body of Certification knowledge, and would be a natural extension of Pragmatic Marketing’s reputable training programs.

How it all began The result was the new “Pragmatic Marketing Certified Practitioner” (PMCP) certification program Discussions about the need for a product marketing which finally provides product managers/marketers and management certification appeared a year ago with a designation to differentiate themselves, in several of the online communities dedicated to validate skills, gain professional acknowledgment, product managers/marketers. Much of the and demonstrate a commitment to the product talk centered on the lack of existing venues management or product marketing professions. that would allow a person to validate his/her professional competency, Building a certification program or assess it in others. Indeed it became apparent that the product Building a true vendor-neutral product management management profession had certification is a colossal, if not impossible, task. reached relative maturity and There are many varied product management styles acceptance as an evolving art and being practiced by individuals and various science, but with limited subject corporations. Not being an exact science, it would matter consolidation and be time consuming and not particularly useful to opportunities for certifying gather all known product management practices expertise. and test candidates on every aspect of the product management discipline. However, it is possible and It was further noted that very practical to teach and test individuals on a product managers were defined set of best practices and proven methods always multi-disciplinary, and of performing specific tasks in product management. as such, titles and the associated This is the essence of the PMCP certification responsibilities vary throughout program and also its core value. the market; thus adding to the complexity of understanding the With the premise of examining individuals on skill sets and abilities that people verified methodologies, the PMCP program was might possess. Many lamented there built from the ground up with the intent to test an was simply no common way to evaluate individual on the level of knowledge he/she has product management professionals, and regarding a defined set of best practices and proven as a result, companies and organizations were methods of performing specific tasks in product employing different criteria, tests and interview management, as taught by Pragmatic Marketing. styles in order to expose and/or qualify a candidate’s or an employee’s professional skill set. Every certification program needs to fit its audience, industry, and the challenges that await certified Pragmatic Marketing, Inc., who has helped create candidates in their ongoing job tasks. Following many online discussion forums (a.k.a. local product a thorough analysis, Pragmatic Marketing reached management associations), was listening to those a decision to design the PMCP program as a high- market voices. After all, they apply what they stakes certification program with an intermediate preach—being “market-driven.” rating of difficulty.

9 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 High-stakes certifications are regarded program designed to produce competent In addition, the PMCP program was designed, as personal achievements that impact the network administrators who would be developed, and administered entirely by third certification candidate’s career and the designated as CNEs (Certified Netware party organizations. Pragmatic Marketing’s effectiveness of the organizations that employ Engineers), and thus a new industry was role has been to shoulder all the expenses or use those individuals. In addition, high- born. Many were to follow suit and major including legal, development, operational, stakes certifications are classified as those corporations such as Microsoft®,Oracle®, and promotional expenses. that require passing a proctored examination Cisco® and others soon had their own at an authorized testing center. certification programs. Pragmatic Marketing will receive absolutely no revenue from the certification program so After deciding upon the above objectives, a The benefit of certifying employees quickly it doesn’t fit the typical “for profit” certification team of SMEs (Subject Matter Experts) was became obvious to employers. For companies, scenario. This approach qualifies the PMCP assembled to begin test development—a it meant a key element of differentiation in certification program as yet another example long, systematic and very methodical process an increasingly competitive world and a very of Pragmatic Marketing altruistically designed to ensure test validity (same content strong marketing tool that customers trust. contributing to the benefit of the product is taught and tested) and reliability (certified On the performance side, employers noted management community. individuals should be able to apply the that certified employees demonstrate higher knowledge at their workplace). productivity and provide better service. This The real world was a major revelation and a driver for recruiters There were no major integration needs since and human resource managers to include Committing oneself to long hours of learning the certification program and seminar’s certifications as an occupational requirement is not an easy task, but one that is never curriculum was fully integrated “by-design.” in job descriptions. regretted. The challenge of staying focused and maintaining an effective study regime Being certified has its value Certified individuals have also directly has swayed many from reaping the value experienced the benefits of being certified. in certifying their expertise. Being certified is really about investing in one’s In the 2002 Global IT Training and self. It’s the type of non-tangible investment Certification Study conducted by several However, it’s quite simple to chase away that demands much effort but yields a host sponsors and Prometric (a testing and the study and test preparation jitters. In of returns in both the short and long term. assessment services company), 54% of her excellent book, “Get Certified and certified respondents indicated they received Get Ahead,” Anne Martinez devotes a full The whole notion of certifying high-tech some form of reward from their employer chapter and discusses in detail various study ® professionals began at Novell during its following successful completion of a techniques and study modes to improve heyday in the late 80’s. The burden placed certification. The breakdown was: 18% claimed content retention and understanding. She on Novell’s technical support staff by network a salary increase, 20% were entrusted with also addresses ways of leveraging your administrators seeking help, was overwhelming. new responsibilities and 9% were promoted. newfound certified status to gain maximum To counter the mounting pressure, Novell Most assuring was the fact that 32% of return on investment. embarked on an education and certification candidates surveyed and 34% of already certified respondents cited credibility as Many at all levels of the corporate hierarchy the top reason to seek certification. have come to realize the value of Pragmatic Marketing’s product management The PMCP certification program is perfectly methodologies and the inextricably linked Every certification program needs to fit its aligned with that top reason (credibility), benefits of becoming PMCP certified. audience, industry,and the challenges relative to product marketing and management professionals. that await certified candidates in their Pragmatic Marketing, who is focused entirely ongoing job tasks. Following a thorough on technology and has trained over 22,000 high-tech product managers/marketers, is analysis, Pragmatic Marketing reached a finally in a position to offer a credible decision to design the PMCP program as certification based on curriculum content that has been time-tested and continuously a high-stakes certification program with enhanced during the full decade the company has been in business. an intermediate rating of difficulty.

productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 • 10 The Market-Driven Certification

Dan, a California-based senior-level product manager with over 20 years of software With the new PMCP certification program, Pragmatic Marketing is able to offer the product industry experience, expressed his views manager/marketer a comprehensive solution for increasing productivity in the workplace on Pragmatic Marketing’s training: and better chances for career advancement. “I took Pragmatic Marketing’s Practical Product Management seminar in 2001. Barbara Nelson taught the seminar and it was one of the best seminars I had attended. I thought I understood Conclusions them to instantly isolate product the basics of marketing and product management managers who have demonstrated after studying those topics in an MBA program, With the new PMCP certification a certain level of competence and but the Practical Product Management seminar program, Pragmatic Marketing is able commitment. The Pragmatic Marketing taught me much more. It opened my eyes to to offer the product manager/marketer Certified Practitioner program is a tool the complexities and simplicities of Product a comprehensive solution for increasing they will be able to use and trust as it Marketing. The Practical Product Management productivity in the workplace and better challenges product managers with Model for Success (grid) provides a clear picture chances for career advancement. questions that deal with real-world on the product marketing framework from both scenarios and problems. the strategic and tactical perspectives. The model The combined offering of Training shows you what you need to focus on to be a and Certification provides product Summing it up, Craig Stull, Pragmatic successful product marketing manager.” management professionals with a Marketing’s President and CEO, was unique package that holds true recently quoted as saying, “For a decade Daniel, a vice president of industry solutions complementary value. Pragmatic we’ve helped many companies invest and marketing with a leading eBusiness Marketing’s seminars and certification in their product managers. Now we software vendor, described his personal allow professionals to acquire knowledge are helping product managers invest motivators for attaining PMCP status: they need and prove they have in themselves.” retained it. “For me it was obvious to proceed with the For additional information about certification. From a professional point of view Companies always want to hire the the PMCP program, please visit I think that the certification will give me best people available and now for the http://www.pragmaticmarketing.com/ somewhat of a “moral high ground” in debate. first time they have a tool that allows My company views Pragmatic Marketing as pm.c the fundamental marketing boot camp for this industry (software). Being certified, I think that I will be able to invoke a bit of extra credibility. Personally the certification will help Gabriel Steinhardt is an independent product management me to demonstrate that I possess a disciplined consultant who pioneered and designed Pragmatic Marketing’s approach to product management, which PMCP certification program. should help to open doors throughout my career. A marketing and information systems MBA with over a decade of experience in product management and marketing in the computer My preparation has been simple. I recently took software and hardware industry, Gabriel has assumed diverse senior the Practical Product Management course and and director-level roles with major corporations and startups in I have been studying my notes and the course marketing, product management and technical undertakings. For additional materials. I am confident that this will prepare information, please visit http://www.blackblot.com me for the exam.”

11 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 FeaturePlan™ Collaborative Server

Helping you create, plan and deliver market-driven releases of your products

Please answer the following questions:

• Can you gather market input 2.1 from your customers and sales 2.1 teams over the web? Now Available!

• Is this information organized in a reusable fashion? Built by Product Managers • Can you automatically share for Product Managers and communicate this data with As a Product Manager, you’re probably overwhelmed by everyone including development? features, ideas, product requirements and market intelligence data that’s spread across a number of databases, applications • Can you easily prioritize requirements and/or spreadsheets. Keeping this information organized based on market demand? and easily accessible can be a nightmare.

• Can you easily produce instant MRD reports? FeaturePlan Collaborative Server is the only product life-cycle management software designed to support the methodology If you’ve answered “NO” to one or more of Pragmatic Marketing,® enabling you to electronically capture questions above, we invite you to market feedback, and then track it through the product schedule a demo and see the power management process so you can create, plan and deliver of FeaturePlan for yourself. market driven releases of your products.

For more information about how FeaturePlan can help, call us today at: 1-866-796-2832 Or visit our website at: www.featureplan.com High-Tech Product Marketing Training

Learn what Build market-driven products by listening to the market every product The Practical Product Management course fully explores the role of technical product management, providing tools and a framework to help get products to market more efficiently.This comprehensive course offers real-world product management techniques—using software and hardware case studies manager from enterprise-level to desktop products and services.

Product marketing activities are analyzed in detail with tips for how to be needs to effective at the strategic elements and how to manage multiple tactical activities. This seminar is a challenging program that emphasizes strategic product marketing and market-driven management. Every concept is know designed to be actionable as soon as you return to the office. The third day of the course drills down into the often-difficult process of articulating product requirements. Using concepts from the prior two days, students learn a straightforward method for creating product plans that product managers can write, developers readily embrace, and that result in solutions that the market wants to buy.

Course designed for:

Product managers or marketing managers and directors; marcom specialists and product developers. You should attend if you manage or contribute to aspects of product marketing and management. Practical Product Management ™

Days 1 – 2 Day 3 Requirements That Work™ I. Strategic Role of Product Management (for those who write requirements) • What is marketing? VIII. Building the Market Requirements Document (MRD) • Definition of the role of product management • Writing requirements • Contrasting product management and product marketing • Implementing use-case scenarios • Assigning ownership of responsibilities • Programming for the “persona” • Identifying the “first steps” with gap analysis • Determining product feature sets II. Market Analysis • Creating the MRD • Distinctive competence IX. Analyzing Business and Technology Drivers • Market research • Reviewing specifications • Market problems • Prioritizing the product feature set • Technology assessment • Creating the Business Case • Competitive review X. Getting (and Keeping) Commitments III. Quantitative Analysis • Product contract • Market sizing • Getting the product team in sync • Sales analysis • Getting executive support • Product profitability • Communicating the plan in the company • Win/loss analysis and in the market IV. Strategic Planning • Business case • Buy, build, or partner? Still not sure • Pricing Practical Product • Thought leaders Management • Innovation is for you? 1/2 -day session. V. Product Planning FREE • Product definition Attend a • Positioning • Sales process See back cover for details. • Roll-out process

VI. Case Study Call (800) 816-7861 VII. Delineating Responsibilities • Communicating market facts to Development, or go to Marcom, and Sales www.PragmaticMarketing.com • Drawing the line between Product Management and the other departments to register! TheThe PragmaticPragmatic MarketingMarketing®® FrameworkFramework

Practical Product Management™ introduces a framework that gives product managers the tools to deliver market-driven products that people want to buy.It focuses on the practical aspects of juggling daily tactical demands of supporting the channel with strategic activities necessary to become expert on the market.

Distinctive Competence

What are your unique abilities to offer superior value Market Sizing to a customer? Distinctive competence is why a customer does business with your company instead of one of Which markets value your your competitors. distinctive competence?

Every business has a core capability that is unlike Only the leader in a market makes any real any other business—a distinctive competence. This money; the rest squabble over the leader’s distinctive competence holds the essence of the scraps. Can you identify a market that values company’s differentiation and provides guidance your distinctive competence? Is a leadership for decisions throughout the marketing process. position possible? Is this market large enough to sustain your business? For some, distinctive competence is an excellent channel that truly knows the market and the product; for some, it is brilliant innovations that are deployed to solve market Market problems. Perhaps you have installed your domain Distinctive Sizing expertise in your products and services. Maybe your Competence distinctive competence is that you simply execute strategy better than anyone else.

What phrase is synonymous with your company name? Over time, successfully leveraging distinctive competence becomes the heart of your company brand. Distinctive competence must be leveraged in all aspects of product management and marketing, especially product definition and positioning.

Market Quantitative Analysis Analysis STRATEGIC

Competitive Review Competitive Review Does your distinctive competence ensure a competitive edge?

Until you can describe your distinctive competence, you Innovation cannot differentiate your product from competitive offerings. Leverage distinctive competence

We should encourage innovation and innovative thinking. But the measure of success is not cleverness. Successful innovation solves market problems creatively in ways that leverage distinctive competence.

15 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 AA model model forfor successfulsuccessful productproduct managementmanagement

Watch for future issues of productmarketing.com as we continue to highlight and further explore the framework.

Buy, Build, Partner Build only to distinctive competence

How does one know when it’s appropriate to build versus buy? And when should we seek partners instead? The answer: distinctive Positioning competence. You should always build to your distinctive competence, and either Communicate buy or partner for the rest. distinctive competence

Positioning communicates your product message and should call out how your distinctive competence makes a difference to the buyer.

Buy, Build, Positioning Partner Pricing Premium price your Pricing distinctive competence

It’s hard to charge more than your competitors for commodity products and features. But features that TACTICAL leverage your distinctive competence become unique in the market and command a higher price.

Strategic Product Channel Promotional Sales Tools Channel Planning Planning Communications Support

Innovation

© 1993-2003 Pragmatic Marketing, Inc.

productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 • 16 This is the second part of a three- So where do we begin? part series exploring how we listen Type of Channel: Web First we have to identify evaluators. to the market to become experts in How you find them... Wins are easier to Who are evaluators and how do we what they need. The first article track on the web. You should require minimum find them? Evaluators are those people contact information (name and email address is (featured in June 2003 issue) in your market who have recognized sufficient) when they buy your product or service. showed how product managers they have a problem to solve and are Losses are more difficult, but you might offer a actively looking for solutions to the should listen to potential customers, free trial or limited service for which they must problem. They are looking at your register on your site. If they don’t buy after a the inactive members of our market solution and at your competitors’ period of time, follow-up and find out why. It is who have not bought our products solutions. This is the part of the nearly impossible to track down those who never market that your sales channel is most or our competitors’ products (and download or register with you at all. You may familiar with; they are active leads in are not looking). This second article need to periodically conduct market research the sales funnel. Finding evaluators surveys where you tap into your market segment discusses finding and listening to depends on the type of sales channel and find out if they have ever considered your evaluators. The third article you use. The more anonymous people products or services. covers on-going communication are during the sales cycle, the more difficult it is to find them. Here are with our existing customers. By some tips to find evaluators, based on listening to all three types, product different sales channels: managers become “experts on the market.”

Recent evaluators can make the truest assessment of our products. Having just evaluated the product against the competition, they can assess our company’s strengths and weaknesses. Perhaps most importantly, from evaluators we can learn about problems with the product and also problems with the buying and selling process.

Listening to evaluators is different than listening to potential customers, but just as important. This is an activity that can be outsourced (but not to Sales—win/loss analysis is a marketing function). If Sales does win/loss analysis, they often won’t get to the real issues. Often the buyer does not want to reveal the real reasons for fear that the sales person will try to Why Are We Winning overcome their objections and attempt to restart the selling process. But even By Barbara Nelson if you outsource this to someone else, product managers should plan on doing at least one win/loss analysis interview personally every month.

17 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 Type of Channel: Value Added Reseller (VAR) Type of Channel: Direct

Pipeline Reports Pipeline Reports How you find them... Losses are hard to find out How you find them... Buyers in the sales cycle about, particularly if your sales staff did not assist the VAR disappear from the pipeline report when you win the on the deal. If your internal sales staff helps the channel on deal, lose the deal, or when there is “no decision.” deals, you should track the deals through the sales cycle. Sales management should be able to provide you Like pipeline reports with your direct sales channel, this with this information. provides wins and losses when an account drops off of the report. Sales Calls If you don’t assist your indirect channel with the sales How you find them... If the sales people are process, try visiting some of your channel members and do not cooperative in reporting wins and losses, do this: win/loss analysis on a subset of their evaluators. Include when you are asked to participate in a sales call, make both successful channel members and not so successful it clear to them that you will be collecting business ones so you can analyze why some are more successful cards and will be doing win/loss analysis after the deal than others. It might be lack of sales sophistication, lack of is won or lost. If this is the case, Sales and Marketing focus on your product, lack of training, or any number of management should try to improve the situation—Sales other things. Unless you know why they win or lose deals, and Marketing should have a cooperative relationship, you won’t know how to improve the situation so they can not an adversarial one. have more wins. New User Training How you find them... Go to a new user training class. Recent “wins” will be there. Collect business cards to follow-up with a win/loss interview later.

If you are part of a large organization with multiple products and solutions in a complex sale, it is critical that win/loss analysis be coordinated. The evaluator should not get four phone calls from four different product managers asking for the same information. “Don’t you guys talk to one another?”

Why Are We Losing?

productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 • 18 Generally, Why Are We Winning and Why Are We Losing? we want to know: • Why are we winning? What are we When do we listen? trying to learn? • Why are we losing? Win/loss analysis should be performed when Typically, companies believe they “listen” to the deal is completely closed. Either the evaluators during the sales cycle. But more competition or we have solidly won the deal often, they react to individual deals. “If you (the contract is signed, the ink is dry, and Specifically, put feature A in the product, I can win the the check has cleared the bank). If we do this too early (and we were winning), it is we need to learn: deal.” Or, “I could have won the deal if we’d had feature A in the product.” The sales rep possible we might raise some questions in the buyer’s mind that causes us to lose the • How did they find out then says, “Put feature A in the product.” deal (Product Management will be blamed, about you? Sometimes, the right thing to do is put even if it wasn’t our fault). • Who did they listen to for feature A in the product. But sometimes, If we do this too long after the deal is advice during the buying feature A is put in the product for a market closed, the buyer’s memory will fade. We are process? of one, not a market of many. It is a reactive process, not a proactive process. trying to measure what happened during the sales cycle, and if they are too deep into • Were your communications implementation and use of the product, their clear? Rather than reacting to individual deals and potentially squandering precious resources answers will reflect their current views, not solving a problem that one customer has what they were thinking during the buying • Were there any breakdowns versus solving problems a whole market process. In general, a win/loss call should during the sales cycle? What segment has, win/loss analysis can provide occur two to four weeks after the deal is were they? information to validate (among many concluded. evaluators) what we’re doing right and what • What is the competition doing we’re doing wrong. Why are we winning and Where do we listen? right? Are they winning because why are we losing? This type of analysis they have a better product or helps us strengthen (and institutionalize) Visiting evaluators onsite in their natural service? Or is it because they are what we do right and correct what we’re habitat is by far the best scenario. You will outselling us? doing wrong. Many times, the reason learn things onsite that you will never learn companies lose business is not because of in other settings, particularly details about • Do you have the right the product, but because of a flaw in the the competition. However, it is sometimes technology, the right product, the sales process. And yet when they react to lost impractical (or difficult to get permission) right services to solve the business, they usually throw more features to do this for every win or loss. Augment evaluator’s problem? into the product rather than fix the process. onsite win/loss Win/loss analysis looks at the whole picture: analysis with • What problem were they trying product, services, price, evaluation process, other methods, to solve with your product or sales channel, collateral, competition, technical such as phone service? expertise, and interaction with the company. interviews. If you sell over the web, a short web survey can be effective, too.

19 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 Why Are We Winning and Why Are We Losing?

How do we listen? 4. If the reason the evaluator says they 8. Record all win/loss interviews in a went with the competition is price, database so you can share and analyze Although product managers should do at follow-up later to really understand the information. least one win/loss report per month, the this. Was it because the sales person rest of these can be outsourced (as long as wasn’t able to clearly articulate the 9. Use win/loss data to quantify features you read every report and analyze what difference in value between your you need to add. Rather than simply you learn). Sometimes an objective third- solution and the competitor’s? Was it reacting to a single data point from the party will be more successful uncovering because the buyer didn’t need the last sales deal, analyze whether you are the reasons we win and lose because the additional value you provided for the consistently losing business because buyer trusts that they are not trying to re- premium price? Or is your price really you are lacking a key feature. open the deal. too high? 10. Always ask, “What problem did you Here are ten tips on 5. If the reason you lost is the salesperson, think you were solving with this drill down on this. It might not be product or service?” listening to evaluators: because the salesperson is incompetent. It might be lack of credibility, which 1. Make sure the evaluator knows you are Win/loss analysis can give us data to might be the result of lack of training not trying to save the deal (if you lost). validate the things we are doing correctly on the product or the industry. It might Maintain this integrity by not passing and insight into what isn’t working. It is be because the salesperson needs the deal back to Sales if you lost due to a more effective way to learn the strengths coaching in uncovering the buyer’s something that can be fixed. Learn and weaknesses about the competition needs. from it and move on. (not just about their products, but also about their sales expertise). In the absence 6. Listen! Your job is not to re-open the 2. Develop a questionnaire that includes of win/loss data, we typically react to sales deal if the buyer went with the both closed-ended questions (multiple anecdotes from the sales channel, which competition. Your purpose is to learn choice, rankings, yes/no) and open- might reflect a market of one and not a why. If the buyer says they went with ended questions. market of many. the competition because you don’t have feature X (and it is your best feature!), 3 As a product manager, do at least one . Ask if you can record the conversation. you simply need to listen. Something If the evaluator agrees, you can go back win/loss interview per month yourself. clearly went wrong in the sales process The market expertise and insights you and review the conversation not only for for them to have this perception. content, but also inflections and tone. will gain will far outweigh the time spent on the interview. 7. Plan on a 15-minute interview. If you find the person is particularly open, ask Stay tuned for Part 3 about Listening if they’d be willing to participate in a to Customers. longer, more in-depth interview at a pm.c time convenient to them.

Barbara Nelson is an instructor for Pragmatic Marketing. She has 21 years in the software industry, including vice president of product marketing for a leading provider of business and accounting applications for the middle market. Before her decade of product marketing experience, she worked closely with customers in several capacities, which taught her the importance of listening to the customer and to solving critical business issues.

productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 • 20 High-Tech Product Marketing Training Analyzing Market Opportunities™

Course designed for: IV. Planning & Analysis Those responsible for market analysis, • Essential information sent and Build a quantitative analysis, strategic planning received from Development, and business aspects of high-tech Marcom, Sales and other products. internal areas compelling • Building the pricing plan I. Building Business Cases • Creating tactical plans • Why write business cases? • Building the financial model, business human resource and risk • Understanding the perspective assessments of senior management • International considerations case for your • Defining the essential elements of a business case V. Selling the Plan • How to get control of the situation • Writing and editing the high-tech as the CEO of your product business case • Laying the groundwork with II. Market Sensing the key decision-makers product • Gathering information from • Presentation approaches prospect and customer interviews • Effective primary and secondary VI. The Product (or Project) Analyzing Market Opportunities research tools Termination Decision is a two-day course that illustrates • Essential competitor information • Early warning signs how to properly listen to customers and prospects, evaluate their input, and where to get it • Gathering facts determine market opportunities for • Reasons to keep or terminate any high-tech product—and build III. Opportunity Validation products/projects a compelling business case. • Target market segmenting • Evaluating alternatives • Market sizing The course includes a systematic, disciplined methodology to • Positioning into the competitive understand potential opportunities, landscape accurately size the market, assess • Market Adoption Cycle™ costs and evaluate risks. assessment

A template is provided for compiling and presenting the business case. Also discussed is how and when to terminate an existing product.

Call (800) 816-7861 or go to www.PragmaticMarketing.com to register! Tools and Tips How to Conduct a Successful Webinar: By Harold Frost a presenter’s view

One of the hottest new ideas To have a successful webinar, tool, I would notice silence, and Because I was running the client made possible by the internet have everything loaded early. realize that the silence was from software, I sat in front of the is the webinar. A webinar is a The presenter should have a me—I was no longer speaking! computer during the webinar presentation delivered and walk-through a few days Apparently, my brain shut down but ultimately felt uncomfortable attended entirely over the web. in advance to ensure the my verbal center while activating and constrained. Since I normally The webinar makes a lot of equipment and software are my motor skills. I suggest you present while standing, in the sense for both presenter and operating correctly together. have someone else run the client future I will use a headset with attendee, particularly as traveling The attendees should arrive a so you can focus on delivering a long cord and stand up. Just becomes more expensive and few minutes early to download the content. like a “real” presentation. more difficult. The presenter and install the enabling client can interact with people without software. Have a Live Webinars Are Great leaving the office; attendees can Audience Anyway attend from all over the world, I used a wireless LAN from Despite being a few years old, getting access to presenters that my computer to a cable modem. Although webinar technology webinars are still in their infancy. would not normally come to Imagine my shock and disbelief allows you to give a presentation Wide adoption of broadband their area. The presentation can when the LAN connection to people all around the world and live video should help. I also be played later for those disappeared during the from the privacy of your home, initially used a dial-up connection who could not attend the presentation! Luckily it I suggest that you have a live when preparing for the webinar; live webinar. reappeared quickly. The audience anyway.What was I was amazed at how good voice moderator had noticed my missing for me was audience over IP (VoIP) works even on a It seems a webinar is the perfect absence and filled the void until participation—feedback that my modem. Of course, video fails venue for most formal presentations. I got back to the presentation. ideas were coming across. Was over a dial-up. Now that I have Yet, something is missing. For So I guess I’ll avoid using the presentation moving too broadband, I’m experimenting all its high-tech convenience, a wireless connections in the slowly? Was I talking too quickly? with voice and video over the webinar lacks a human touch. future. Did my idea even make sense? web. All I can say so far is, “It I guess sometimes you just have With a live audience, you can certainly isn’t like in the movies!” to look someone in the eye, to It’s truly amazing to watch a sense body language— leaning see and hear responses, to make webinar with someone who is forward or back, smiles and Webinars are great: they connect a human connection. extremely conversant in the frowns, crossed arms—to adjust you with people you couldn’t client software. While talking, your presentation. The webinar normally see. And since it’s I recently gave a webinar a good webinar presenter also client has tools to simulate this recorded, people can replay the presentation and made these points to areas of the screen, but it was yet another area of the webinar at a time more convenient notes about how to do them underlines key phrases, draws a distraction that took my mind for their schedules. However, better in the future. graphic to illustrate the point. away from my message. a webinar cannot completely replace face-to-face interaction. Technology I’m not much of a webinar Having a few friends in the room In the end, most customer presenter. Instead of focusing gives you a “live” audience. Smiles interaction means that you For the presenter and attendee, on speaking, I was overwhelmed show the joke worked. Nodding have to go visit somebody. the technology is very straight- with widgets. There are query indicates that your topic makes pm.c forward. Client software manages tools and attendee notes, and sense. Frowns mean you should the slides and voice. All the server drawing tools, and a list of the explain again. pieces are hidden from the slides, and more. I’ve learned participants so they can that I don’t multi-task. While concentrate on the presentation. trying to find a certain graphical

productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 • 22 Javed on Naming By Naseem Javed Change Now, Change Later

Why do corporate image and 1. Your corporate name is identical 3. The spelling of your corporate name identities die a slow death? or similar to thousands of others. name requires a higher IQ. When a corporate name is heavily A large majority of corporate names Globally speaking, every hour, around diluted and shared by hundreds are spelled creatively to fit a logo or and thousands of others in all kinds to avoid a serious trademark problem. the clock, seven days a week, a major of businesses, then a name is simply Here, common sense and the science corporation is forced to change its lost in the crowd. Also, when a name of corporate nomenclature are abused is a borrowed word from a dictionary, at the risk of being too sexy and name. Sometimes it’s good news, when making it a part of everyday lingo, different. This twisted spelling only there is new adventure in the air. But at it never achieves any distinction ensures obscurity. The mind and despite extraordinary expenses continually rejects the corruption times, and often, it’s very bad news, in advertising and promotion, it of a familiar word and refuses to simply dies out of exhaustion. Open remember specific alpha-structures. when a corporate name becomes a any old business magazine and it After all, if a name can be spelled liability, a burden, injured in a trademark will unfold like a cemetery of dead in four different ways, then you corporate names. will only end up with 25% of the battle. When simply it is no longer hits and profits. This type of capable of ringing the cash registers. 2. Your name is too old creativity doesn’t help. These sparks of geniuses end up kindling fires Here are seven reasons why. to convey today’s dynamics. and eventually causing serious Established as a great icon of a damage. period, sometimes a name crawls out of history, reflecting the great 4. You spend more money human toil by the founding fathers but somehow not at all suitable for explaining the origin of your the current agile, cybernauts corporate name. and the digital savvy human If a name cannot simply relate to force of today, surrounded with the business and requires constant emerging technologies and facing explanation of its obscure, yet cute, an explosive future. Corporate origin and how it fits overall to the communication constantly struggles business, then it becomes a daily to shed the old image by promoting routine for advertising to educate the future vision of the company the universe of this dysfunctionality. and tries hard to appear young The poor consumer, the lost end- and futuristic. But, like a grumpy user, and the over-burdened old patient in a nursing home, population of the world at large, these types of names struggle doesn’t really care what the name and slowly linger for means to you, rather simply what decades and always fade it means to them. Corporations away in the end. Any old and ad agencies thrive on getting publication will provide awards for their creative efforts and the proof in black advertising gimmicks for pushing and white. their side of the story, while the consumer simply shuts off.

23 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 5. You do not own a trademark If you already have a world-class, Myths, Facts and Rules unique, powerful, globally trademarkable with an identical dot-com. name which is highly related to your “We are out of names” is only a myth successfully established by advertising If you do not legally own a corporate specific business and it also has an and logo shops. Thus leaving the name then what’s the point of the identical dot-com, congratulations— clients with strange, weird, and often exercise? Why bother at all? Every you can stop here. No need to go silly, names. Contrary to belief, there time your name is advertised it simply further. It’s champagne time. If not, is no shortage of unique, powerful, helps the industry at large and your you should seriously consider changing one-of-a-kind, trademarkable, corporate competitors. Also, you don’t build any it fast, the sooner the better. Just names. What is short is successful, brand values and equities and your remember, no amount of money proven methodologies and highly entire advertising and marketing dollar spent will be able to save the name reputable professionals with successful is wasted. A large majority of corporate in the long run. track records. So therefore, what you names in business today are not globally need is a professionally-executed trademarkable and most do not have Eeny-Meeny-Miny-Mo, naming strategy, guided by a Masters an identical dot-com domain. Catch a Name by the Toe of Naming Architect. Ask your agency if they can produce such a professional 6. Your name is embarrassing Never, never, pick a name out of a with a track record, otherwise they are hat. It’s a bad thing. If your naming in certain countries. only picking names out of a hat. challenge is simply based on a hit or Naming is a serious black and white Globalization is a fact of life. A name miss process, then you are definitely exercise and it should never be confused must work like a marketing weapon, not going forward. Remember, picking with color, design, logos and branding not only in your own country but names out of a hat can also happen campaigns, which only become also around the globe. There is no more than once: 1) When you and important after a name has been need to hide under the desk because your staff pool up a large list of selected under the guidance the name is embarrassing or profane names and pick one out of sheer of a naming in a foreign language. A large majority desperation. 2) When you ask an architect. of names today do not work efficiently ad agency or a, so-called, world-class on the international scene and cause identity firm, who also go through an an ongoing stress in gaining identical exercise with their internal international recognition. staff or creative freelancers. They end up picking a name from a very large hat—normally, the day before the 7. Name is too long, too difficult, press conference. too complicated or too boring. When a name is too long it gets Are you still holding an initialized. This unwanted process old magazine? The proof changes the entire meaning and lists of embarrassing name the name in strange categories. When announcements a name is too difficult, confusing or covers most boring it becomes a different animal centerfold ads. to different people. Strange name combinations, due to M&A, end up telling more than one story and causes confusion in the marketplace. Weird terminologies, alphanumeric structures, using upper or lower cases, dashes or slashes and other dingbat characters in a name will only ensure self-destruction.

productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 • 24 Change Now,Change Later

Corporate Image 2. ONE Face, ONE 7. Rightful Ownership: If you own a Name: Stand up with a corporation, why not its name? Today, & Trustworthiness happy, healthy face. Don’t try 93% of corporations do not own a How to re-gain too many masks and transmit multiple global trademark with an identical customers and personalities. This can seriously blur the domain name. This is the easiest thing shareholders confidence image. Advertising is wasted in harnessing to do. Shortages of global names are only a common mind share. Is the name selling myths successfully established by design Corporate image-makers and brand agencies accounting or space navigation, computers firms. Fix it immediately as there is no have only hurt themselves by ignoring the or distilled water? Honest names are truly winning without a global trademark correct methodologies required for proper honest about what they do. with an identical dot-com. naming. Agencies asking sub-contractors to hire freelancers to do their brainstorming 3. Current Status: If you think you’re on top In Summary and run focus groups, or exercises to pool of the world, then show it with your name. 5,000 names over five months for few millions Old-fashioned names will not attract At this moment, there is a much bigger to come up with PHOOFFS, are finished. customer’s attention to your ongoing war of branding image going on out Extreme exercises with executives locked up evolutions. Glories of the past often lose there. Corporations are fighting for in a boardroom, in the dark, each with a their value with the changing times. Face global positioning while shareholders flashlight, making letter signs to form words cyber-branding realities of tomorrow’s are frightened by the fake hoopla. For those while the other half tried to decipher, are global e-commerce. genuine, honest and progressive corporations lost in the darkness along with their of the real economy armed with realistic goals, there are still a lot of opportunities OINGA BOINGA names. 4. Become A Star: Have a star quality in to stay clear of these corrupt, polluted your brand name. Its alpha-structure and damaged name identities. Seek out If this is the end of logo design, then what should be bright, clear and shiny. Don’t professional naming solutions to your is the future for Corporate Identity Services? educate the universe on how to spell, marketing needs making sure that your This offers a great leadership opportunity pronounce or remember a weird spelling names are on solid ground and can pass for providing well-executed name identity, or obscure origin of a blunt, klutzy name. the acid test of trustworthiness. under the guidance of Masters of Naming No need to be a matchstick when it can Architects. After all, there never was a be a flashlight. pm.c shortage of great names, just lack of expertise and wisdom. 5. Freedom To Travel: Spread your wings and fly away.Wander country to country Naseem Javed is a Seven Remedies from the with your name-identity and explore syndicated columnist, global opportunities. No room for author of Naming for Brand New Laws of Corporate difficulties of global translations, Power, Founder of ABC & Name Identity Image connotations, secondary meanings, Namebank International, foreign obscenities, pronunciations and all www.abcnamebank.com, 1. Respect: A name must have an alpha- other language issues. Today, marketing is and an expert on corporate character to qualify and gain respect—a ONLY global, BURN all the other books naming issues. Naseem is a committed face of honesty, integrity, reliability and that say otherwise. Think locally, but follower of sobriety in corporate and credibility. No room for “PurpleFrog” name universally. communication strategies and a harsh critic “PinkRhino,” “Globe-a-Con” or “Tomorrow of the “beer commercial” mentality on naming Inc.” Sobriety must prevail because 6. Pride & Joy: Be a leader. Set an example. and the influence of voodoo branding on our corporate names are not beer commercials. Take pride. Introduce it globally with full culture. A hilarious speaker, he has a powerful confidence. Why the embarrassment? It’s message on why Global Name Identities not stolen, or is it? Watch competitors are on fire. struggle with confusion, dysfunctionalities © Naseem Javed 2003 and embarrassing naming stories. Shine [email protected] where others hide. www.naseemjaved.com

25 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 High-Tech Product Marketing Training Requirements That Work™

Course designed for: I. Defining Roles and Methodology Create Product managers and lead product • Understand the source of developers. You should attend if you are conflict between Development responsible for defining and delivering and Marketing executable high-tech products. Product managers get • Define clear roles and more from this course when trained responsibilities simultaneously with their counterparts • Introduce a product Market in Product Development. planning methodology II. Gathering Input • Channels of input to Requirements product planning • Organizing product ideas • Quantifying market needs Documents that III. Building the Market Requirements Document result in product • Writing requirements • Implementing use-case scenarios • Programming for the “persona” solutions your • Determining product feature sets • Creating the Market Requirements Document (MRD) potentials want IV.Analyzing Business and Technology Drivers • Reviewing specifications Requirements That Work is an intensive one-day course that introduces a straight • Prioritizing the product feature set forward, repeatable method for creating easy • Creating the Business Case to understand product plans that win. V. Getting (and Keeping) This course teaches product managers how Commitments to write a Market Requirements Document • Product contract that developers will read, understand and • Getting the product team in sync readily embrace. The result? Feature/benefits • Getting executive support solutions your market will want to buy. • Communicating the plan in the company and in the market This training establishes clear roles for team members, teaches a process that creates an executable plan–and delivers solutions that sell.

Call (800) 816-7861 or go to www.PragmaticMarketing.com to register! Case Study F5 Networks Takes Market Insights to New Heights

Because F5’s approach to directing Internet traffic is breaking new ground and solving increasingly complex challenges, the company’s product management team is on the frontlines of the industry, analyzing new market opportunities and gathering intelligence that will help the company build market-driven products. As a hardware company, F5 needs adequate lead-time to build those products and bring them to market. Consequently, the product management In the world of air traffic control, they group must be able to accurately predict call it “pushing tin”—rapidly guiding market trends and demands some 18 a vast array of aircraft into and out of months or two years into the future. airspace without a hitch. In the world of Internet traffic management, they According to Dan Matte, vice president call it F5 Networks. F5 Networks is of product marketing and management the industry leader in Application Traffic at F5 Networks, “We are, in effect, Management, sending Internet traffic placing a bet far into the future about into and out of the best place at the best what the world will look like based on time. With the advent of Web services, “We have dramatically improved our research. The cost to change course the explosion of mobile computing, is higher in a hardware or blended our process for collecting customer and increasingly unpredictable network environment than in a pure software environments, that job has never been environment. From my perspective, having requirements and our knowledge more critical. a sound methodology to help us gather information and predict market needs is of what’s going on in the F5 manufactures intelligent, hardware- absolutely critical.” market—with customers and based application switches that enable enterprises and service providers to direct A Catalyst for Change prospects alike, even companies traffic over the Internet and deliver IP applications and Web services with high that evaluated our gear and chose Trouble is, the product management team availability, performance, and security. at F5—like most companies—was too not to purchase it.” Founded in 1996, F5 has grown to nearly bogged down in tactical chores to focus 500 employees and $110 million in its resources on strategic marketing. “We revenue annually. spent too much time on sales support and demos, even wrote copy for our marketing

27 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 communications group,” remembers customers and prospects alike, even The Voice Matte. “We burned our cycles doing companies that evaluated our gear and projects that other people in the chose not to purchase it,” says Matte. of the Market organization were quite capable of “We have always been good at visiting As a result of those efforts, the product doing. We didn’t pay enough attention people, but we changed the back-end management team has taken on a to the strategic things that would matter methodology in terms of what we do leadership role within the organization. most to the company over the long run— with the data we collect. Today, we are “When people at F5 want to find out like analyzing our market or evaluating better at taking inputs and putting them what is happening in the industry and our sales pipeline to determine the impact in the ‘big blender’ to determine how to where we’re headed, product management of different positioning on product boost our revenue by doing what’s best is the first stop for information. They profitability.” for the market.” look to this group to provide guidance about the market—through requirements He continues, “We knew we had a F5’s customers have noticed the difference definition, positioning documents, problem. Like many things, admitting as well. “Our customers love the interaction personal interaction, and public speaking. you have a problem is the first step. they have with us, the opportunity to When someone wants to hear the voice Our next step was to call in Pragmatic add their two cents to what happens of the market, they come to the product ® Marketing for a highly-focused seminar with the products over the long term. management group.” on strategic product management. We We pick their brains about how they needed a shot in the arm to get back use our products and the new challenges For Matte and his team, the most tangible into gear and work smart. Pragmatic was they want to tackle and how we fit. Those difference from implementing the the catalyst to change our focus, and for interactions have been priceless,” he Pragmatic methodology comes from us, that change was wildly successful.” remarks. “Now we are in the process of being able to point to actual, underlying spreading that net more widely around data to support decisions. “For example, the globe, and we’re paying more attention Maximizing Customer we can go to the development to the opinions of people who are not and Prospect Interaction yet F5 customers. Talking to more prospects has revealed an increasing In its product management seminars, percentage of people who are not highly Pragmatic Marketing offers a blueprint network savvy, but are knowledgeable for strategic product marketing that about Windows. In product management, focuses on communicating with target we need to address that persona in order market segments in order to address to enter new markets and capture those high-value prospect problems. For F5, potential customers.” that course sparked a renewed emphasis on maximizing customer interaction. “We have dramatically improved our process for collecting customer requirements and our knowledge of what’s going on in the market—with

productmarketing.com / September 2003 /28 Case Study

team and say, ‘For our Big-IP® He adds, “The ability to quantify “That frees product marketing Strengthening Team product, 92 percent of the what we are seeing has made a to evaluate different ways to people prefer a graphical user big impact internally. Beyond target messages to different Effectiveness interface,’” he explains. “We that, the team can now groups and assess what is most For Matte, the biggest impact now have concrete data to articulate what it is that the effective. As a result, we can of implementing the Pragmatic steer our products in the market is asking for in a way target resources and budget methodology has been increasing right direction.” that makes sense to different toward the more effective the overall effectiveness of his audiences within the company. programs and messages—and product management team. “If That is a huge win, because maximize our return on Another example of the value I were speaking as one manager now everybody can use his or investment,” he emphasizes. of hard market data resulted to another, I would say with her own expertise to do the from research about the confidence, ‘Follow the Pragmatic ™ best job possible based on the company’s iControl interface, The Pragmatic methodology Marketing approach and become information we provide.” a subscription-based traffic has also strengthened the team’s more effective.’ For us, Pragmatic management service. Says interaction with the development was the only solution. Among Matte, “We discovered that Making a Statement organization. “We have always all the information that crosses while numerous people were with Positioning had a good relationship with your desk, you can always spot downloading the tool, a Development, and they trust people who have been to a relatively small percentage were To communicate that market our gut instincts,” says Matte. Pragmatic course. When you actually implementing and information, the product “But without real market data look in their offices, the seminar using it. So we conducted a management group has created to guide product direction, manual is on the desk and it’s survey to identify the steps and distributed compelling agreeing on releases takes a open. Or the grid is pinned they went through and positioning statements to various little more convincing. So to the wall. It’s one of the few determine where we were organizations throughout the customers might not see desired tools you refer to again and losing people along the way. In company, including Development, enhancements in the next again. To me, that speaks volumes that process, we identified two Sales, and Marketing version. Or a release might not about the value of the program.” distinct drop-off points and Communications. The impact be quite on the mark. With this focused our efforts to help market-focused approach, that of this solid data on time-to- He concludes, “At the end customers get past them and doesn’t happen. In fact, we market for effective products of the day, the Pragmatic begin utilizing the solution. included developers in the and sales tools has been methodology helps both our When we presented to our Pragmatic Marketing training, profound. top line and our bottom line. executive team, rather than knowing it would be good to We can point to increased speaking in generalities, we have more folks embrace this Matte offers an example, effectiveness in terms of how were able to state exactly what methodology. One of the “Our marcom team has done we spend our marketing dollars was happening, why it was developers who attended the a wonderful job of using the and manage the cost of goods happening, and what we session said, ‘Thanks for positioning statements to drive sold. Ultimately, we can point needed to do to fix it. That including us in today’s session. entire ad campaigns. Previously, to how we have increased data made the story crystal This was one of the most we spent a lot of time in revenues by entering new clear for our executives.” valuable seminars I’ve been to meetings, lots of email back markets or addressing our in five years, heads above other and forth, lots of iterations of existing markets more seminars. We should meet in ad copy.With clear, consistent effectively.Those are all direct the next month and plan how market direction, our marcom results from embracing the to enhance the next release.’ team can run with it and Pragmatic methodology.” That’s pretty impressive.” produce high-impact campaigns, which they have done very well.

pm.c

To feature the product management success at your company, contact [email protected]

29 • productmarketing.com • September/October 2003 High-Tech Product Marketing Training Effective Marketing Programs™

Course designed for: IV.The Marketing Plan Create Product managers, marketing managers • A business case for programs and directors, industry marketing managers, and marcom managers. You • Correlate budget to measurable measurable should attend if you are responsible for results marketing strategy or the programs that • Build consistent management drive revenue, customer retention, and support brand awareness. growth in V. High-ROI Sales Tools I. Roles and Responsibilities • Create a strategic website revenue, • A structure for effective programs • Move leads through sales pipeline • Balance needs of the sales channel • Manage endless requests for • Accountability for revenue and new tools awareness, other goals • Objective measures of effectiveness II. Prospect Profiles VI. Measurable Program Execution and customer • Why prospects don’t hear you • Generate leads that produce • Attributes of successful messages revenue • What the sales channel really needs • Best practices for customer retention programs III. Program Strategy • Gain perspective on awareness • Strategy is science, not art programs Effective Marketing Programs is an intensive two-day course that illustrates • Eliminate the “list” of activities • Measure program results best practices for programs that have a without CRM quantifiable impact on revenue, market • Optimize program assets awareness and customer retention. • Achieve results stakeholders truly value Through real-life case studies, you will Price increase see how companies of all sizes get their effective message heard in markets both large and small. Take away skills and ideas that Jan. 1, 2004. immediately impact your results, and then Register now! pay dividends throughout your career.

Call (800) 816-7861 or go to www.PragmaticMarketing.com to register!