Description
aPriori’s game-changing software is helping manufacturers embrace and thrive in the new world of digital manufacturing. The world of manufacturing has been forever changed by COVID – rapidly accelerating the transformation from physical, step-by-step development of products, to fast, dynamic, collaborative digital design, sourcing and production. This is turning manufacturing on its head enabling upstarts to disrupt the leadership positions held by the manufacturing giants. As a result – everything is changing - and opportunity abounds.
That’s where you come in. Bring your entrepreneurial spirit, your curiosity, your “what if we…” ideas to aPriori where our team is encouraged to swing for the fences. Whether you’re looking to jump-start your career or you’re ready for your next big challenge, you’ll find aPriori at the forefront of innovation. We’re looking for an experienced Product Marketing Manager to lead research/strategic insight, positioning and messaging, product launch/go-to-market strategy, and creation of sales enablement tools for aPriori’s Design Engineering solutions.
Reporting to the Sr. Manager of Product Marketing the successful candidate will be an integral part of a fast growing and high-energy team, and will work very closely with product management, sales, and the marketing teams. The successful candidate will be someone who can effortlessly blend research/strategy with timely execution, thrive in a fast-paced environment, is naturally curious and creative, and can create influential, value-driven stories that really resonate with our customers.
Responsibilities:
There are four core product marketing areas at aPriori and we are looking for someone who can demonstrate experience and capability in each of the areas. While the mix over time can shift between the four areas, we are strongly preferring candidates with proven experience creating effective positioning and sales presentations that really resonate with customers by clearly articulating our value proposition.
The four core areas are:
Research and strategy
- Develop actionable insights from market and user research that inform marketing strategy and messaging
- Research and analyze the existing and emerging competitive landscape to make recommendations for how to sustain and grow our competitive advantage
- Analyze and keep attune to the market and trends taking place that impact the business today or could in the future
- Participate in strategy or white-space voice of customer projects looking at “where to play” and “how to win” that help drive growth, and sustain competitive advantage
Positioning and messaging
- Collaborate with and lead cross-functional teams to develop product positioning and messaging strategy and plans that resonates with our target buyer personas and is informed by user and market research, and product knowledge
- Partner with cross functional teams in product, sales, and marketing to shape the product strategy, vision, and positioning
- Develop and document a deep understanding of customer segments, buyer personas and their associated needs. Ensure segmentation work is robust, actionable, and clear/crisp for internal stakeholders to understand
- Lead packaging and pricing initiatives for aPriori. Collaborate with sales, customer success, marketing and execute management to introduce new models that address customer needs and reduce friction to adopt and expand product usage and deliver strong value
Product launch and go-to-market strategy
- Lead cross-functional teams to stay on track with the go-to-market plan
- Launch date: Set and keep track of dates and key milestones and hold key stakeholders accountable
- Positioning: Draft a positioning strategy document that maps out the key messaging for the launch based on the product vision, new features, and the value proposition
- Pricing and packaging: Approve the pricing for a new product, and design/strategize how it will be packaged and presented to customers
- Communications plan: Decide how the launch will be announced internally and externally; participate in and present in industry events as needed at conferences, trade shows, etc
- Marketing content: Create plan for key marketing content needed and work closely with the marketing team on execution
- Analyst briefings: Brief key industry analysts and influencers on what is new and why it’s important
Sales and marketing enablement
- Creation of effective marketing and sales tools (presentations, white papers, flyers, etc) that really resonate with customers by clearly articulating our value proposition
- Be a go-to resource and subject matter expert so that the marketing teams can ideate and create blogs, landing pages, webinars, events, and other demand generation vehicles that effectively promote the products
Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree; MBA or other advanced degree is preferred
- 5+ years professional experience preferably with a proven track record in product marketing; or combined experience in product, marketing, sales, customer success, or strategy
- Experience working in rapidly growing/evolving B2B environment with a self-service / product led growth selling motion
- Knowledge and understanding of the current and evolving manufacturing landscape (technology, buyer personas,
- Exceptional storytelling skills, including the ability to articulate complex products and features in language that is engaging and easy to understand
- Ability to drive actionable insights and inform product and marketing strategies from research and data
- Proven experience creating customer-facing presentations
- Strong public speaking skills, comfortable in front of large, senior groups; an excellent writer; and skilled at influencing others
- Takes a proactive approach to problem-solving
- Demonstrates excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainly in a rapidly evolving business landscape
- Has the drive to initiate projects and see them through to completion
- Has exceptional data analysis skills, able to prove what is –or isn’t—working and the creativity and flexibility to adjust