Product Marketing Vs. Product Management: The ACTUAL Difference
TL;DR
- Product management and product marketing are two distinct roles that work closely together to ensure the success of a product.
- Product managers take ownership of the product’s development and strategy, while product marketers focus on positioning, messaging, and driving adoption.
- Both roles require an understanding of customer needs, market trends, and product value.
- They collaborate on pricing, equipping the sales team, roadmap planning, and product positioning.
- When product managers and product marketers work together effectively, they create a powerful partnership that leads to successful products.
There’s this constant confusion between product management and product marketing. Even in their space, there always seems to be a clash between them. What exactly are their responsibilities? What are their similarities and differences? We’ll cover everything in this article.
What is Product Management?
Product management involves combining customer needs, business goals, and market trends to create and manage products that are enjoyable to use. Product managers are the ones who take charge of your product’s success from start to finish. They’re master problem-solvers, identifying the key challenges of your SaaS product.
They have end-to-end ownership of the products and define the core challenges that must be dealt with while ensuring their teams have all the necessary resources to deliver a valuable product.
What is Product Marketing?
Product marketing defines, builds, and communicates your SaaS product’s position, value, and go-to-market strategy. It’s about crafting the perfect story that captivates your target audience and gets them hooked.
Product marketers are the master collaborators, working hand-in-hand with your product team.
They dive deep into your product’s purpose, getting to the core of why it exists and who it’s meant for.
Is product marketing a part of product management?
Think of product marketing as a reliable help for product management. They work hand in hand to drive your SaaS product’s success. Product marketing focuses on promoting and positioning your product in the market, while product management takes care of the overall strategy and development.
Product Marketing vs Product Management: Similarities
Significant roles in the process of discovering a product.
Both parties must understand the needs of their users, the challenges they face, and the potential opportunities in the industry. They gather data, evaluate it, and dig deep to truly understand the target audience. They use this knowledge to develop a solid product plan and strategy.
Understanding the products’ functions.
Both parties need to understand the problems a product solves, its features, and how to communicate its value effectively.
Similar Skills
They both need to have strategic thinking and communication skills. Their shared focus centers on meeting customers’ needs and creating valuable products.
Product Marketing vs Product Management: Differences
| Product Marketing | Product Management |
| Knows the product’s position, customer needs, business goals, and main objectives. | Understands customer needs, then uses that information to define and deliver products. |
| Creates demand, messaging, and positioning in the market. | Sets the vision for a product by working closely with the product team. |
| Focuses on positioning the product in the market. | Responsible for delivering a successful product that solves customer problems while meeting business goals. |
Shared Responsibilities
Pricing
When deciding the right price, product managers and product marketers must join forces and collaborate. It’s like a tag team effort, where both parties bring their unique expertise to the table.
Product managers play a crucial role in determining the value of the product. They know its ins and outs, understand its features, and can assess how it stacks up against the competition.
On the other hand, product marketers bring their customer research and competitive analysis skills to the table. They know the market like the back of their hand, understanding what customers are willing to pay and how the product compares to similar offerings. They’re the pricing gurus armed with data-driven insights.
Equip Sales Team
The sales team needs to be fully equipped and ready to sell like champs. Product managers and product marketers have a crucial role to play here.
They team up with sales to ensure they grasp the customer’s pain points, needs, and how your product solves their pain.
Product marketers also support the sales team by giving them the lowdown on positioning and messaging. This way, they can effectively communicate the value of your product to potential customers.
Roadmapping
The Product manager takes the lead regarding roadmap planning, but they’re not alone. Product marketers jump in to provide valuable input on market trends and what the competition is up to. Product managers and product marketers join forces with stakeholders to get the complete picture of the business needs. By understanding these requirements, they can prioritize the product roadmap accordingly.
Product Positioning
Product managers and product marketers are the experts who can guide the sales teams on who to sell the product to. They work together to ensure that the product is strategically positioned to meet those customer needs and score big on acquisition and adoption.
Final Thoughts
A product manager is the mastermind behind the scenes, responsible for the vision and strategy of a product. On the other hand, a product marketer is the genius of product positioning. They define and communicate your product’s value proposition, and its go-to-market strategy.
When product managers and Product marketers join forces, they become a powerful duo that can build a product that truly meets customer needs and drives business success.
