2024 Is Going to Look Different for Product Marketers - Here’s How to Prepare
WRITTEN BY Shari Diamond, Fluvio Principal
It’s hard to believe we are already two-thirds of the way through the first quarter of the year. We’ve come out of the deep planning stages, have tied up our running shoes, and are off and running into 2024.
But it’s already clear that the year won’t come without its challenges. While none of us has a crystal ball or knows what exactly 2024 will bring, Fluvio’s work to date with leaders across a variety of product marketing orgs has shed some light on a few of the main differences and challenges that lie ahead for product marketers this year. Here is what you can expect to see in the coming months, and how to prepare.
Challenge 1: Effectively leveraging new AI and LLM technologies
A thundering 50% of respondents of our recent LinkedIn survey asking product marketers which product marketing trends they’re most excited about said: selected integrating AI & LLM capabilities. This is an area where there is likely part excitement, part trepidation as the full impact of AI in the product roadmap and marketing landscape remains unknown. Not only that, but many know that they want to integrate AI into their marketing efforts and drive differentiation, but are not quite sure how to best do so. It seems that everywhere you turn these days products are touting AI capabilities as a main value proposition for their product. So, what is to be believed and how much should be invested in these sorts of products, solutions and strategies?
I do think the answers to these questions will continue to unfold as we collectively better understand true AI impact and use cases – this alone could take at least a few years. In the meantime, I encourage marketers to test various use cases for AI in situations like market research, messaging approaches or even new software investments. However, I’d do so with the heedy warning that AI should be used to assist (not replace) our unique brainpower and acquired expertise.
Challenge 2: Identifying differentiation to combat the competition
Perhaps this is nothing new, but its persistence earns it a spot on this list. Despite layoffs and what some call the beginnings of a bubble burst, the technology industry continues to see strong inertia (fueled largely by number 1 on this list… AI!). What that means is that there are fewer new markets to disrupt. Existing markets are crowded, and category creation is expensive, time consuming and challenging.
Given this growth, SaaS businesses are challenged with pulling forward clear and valuable differentiation in order to compete, and that alone can be hard in saturated markets. It’s more important than ever for companies to do consistent research to understand the competitive landscape for their vertical, identify their most threatening competition, and build strong messaging to clearly spell out their unique value proposition to prospective customers. But the work doesn’t stop there. It’s then critical that these insights and supporting assets are shared across the organization so that all internal teams are well educated on the product’s narrative, especially the unique value and differentiators.
Challenge 3: Successfully reaching target audiences
Once a company has their clearly defined differentiators and messaging to represent those, they will still face another challenge - reaching target audiences. This is another challenging area that has evolved and grown over the past 5-10 years, due to a number of factors.
First, related to the issue above, saturated markets mean an abundance of choice for customers, making it that much more important to stand out to a specific ICP / target audience in a distinct way.
Second, with the rise of digital platforms, social media, and maturing PLG tactics into B2B, audience attention is no longer concentrated in a few outlets or channels. Instead, they are spread across numerous platforms, each with its own content, format and demographic appeal. Factor shorter attention spans due to information overload into the mix, and it makes for a higher threshold for capturing audience interest and attention.
Challenge 4: Shifting efforts from acquisition to retention to preserve profits
Many of the challenges above, mixed with a heavy dose of economic uncertainty, have led many companies to realize the value of focusing marketing efforts on customer retention vs. acquisition, as a means of preserving profits. Of course, acquiring new customers can be significantly more expensive than retaining existing ones; retention-focused marketing involves ongoing engagement efforts which are ultimately more cost-effective in the long run.
What does this mean for product marketers? Priorities, plans and playbooks should shift from external facing research to more internally, customer-focused initiatives such as VOC, win-loss analysis, and product usage analysis and validation. Subsequently, expect roadmaps to also be driven more by feedback from existing users, versus trying to compete with market leaders or core competitors. You can also expect internal efforts around customer services, fostering and growing strong relationships, and customer communications strategies to help bolster sales through upsells and cross-sells versus leaning on new business.
This may all be overwhelming, so where to begin? Start with getting a sense for what challenges are present for your organization and team, in order to build strategies to align on, combat, and resolve. A deep dive into this list of potential barriers will help equip you and your cross-functional teams with the awareness and knowledge to set you up for success and know how to tackle impending challenges in 2024.