Every marketing team is comprised of product and corporate-focused professionals. Their goals might not always align, but they work towards increasing revenue, leads, and sales opportunities. Moving these metrics means these two teams, product marketing, and corporate marketing, have to work together to make sales conversations more accessible, right? Well, that's how it's supposed to be. In reality, both teams are often misaligned and misinformed about the other's objectives. So what exactly are the differences between product marketing and corporate marketing?
Product Marketing is a science that requires precision, knowing the right formulas that customers will be more likely to convert.
Corporate Marketing is an art that requires experimentation to attract more opportunities. It requires frequent testing and finding what gets people's emotions and hearts and making customers pay attention.
All marketers have to be both a fantastic storyteller and be great listeners.
Product Marketers master the science of knowing how to listen and when to ask the right questions. They actively listen to their buyers and prospects to uncover how to convert better. By digging deep into surveys, feedback forms, face-to-face interviews, zoom focus groups, studying Gong calls––they know how to appeal to you.
Corporate Marketers have to master the art of painting a memorable story on a canvas you will share. It requires captivating and potent storytelling that resonates and sticks in a competitive market. Hence, Corporate Marketers use every opportunity to share the brand and its awesomeness making their touch points memorable.
Product Marketers value their success hinges on data and metrics. Activities include demand in the form of sign-ups, cross-sells, and frequency of feature adoption. The tangible results of a product marketer's work typically include:
- Buyer personas, positioning and messaging that provide structure and insight, judged based on its clarity and succinctness
- Tracking the frequency of product usage, cost per acquisition, sales close rate, net promoter score, customer lifetime value
- Competitive intelligence that gives the team a deep understanding of the market
On the other hand, Corporate Marketers measure their worth on the "magic spell" they can create. Growing followers, getting more engagement in the form of shares and content, having as many user-generated reviews and testimonials, and even the number of viral content pieces. The tangible results of a product marketer's work typically include:
- Growing an account's social media following and engagement
- Having a strong ROI for online marketing campaigns
- Go-to-market strategy, PR plans, and collaborations that outline how to get the brand name out there.
So the real question is with limited resources, which should your company practically invest in first?
