Inbound versus outbound
Inbound product marketing, also referred to as technical product marketing, encompasses a range of activities that focus on the product itself and the processes involved in bringing it to market. This type of marketing is predominantly internal facing, with key stakeholders including product management, UX teams, and designers. Some examples of activities involved in inbound product marketing include conducting market and user research to gain insights that can inform the product roadmap, overseeing the product launch process, and developing product enablement programs. The primary objective of inbound product marketing is to understand which features to prioritize, how to release them, when to bring them to market, and how to incorporate customer feedback into the product development process. Inbound product marketing and product management are closely aligned, as both functions share the goal of understanding customer needs and preferences and how to create and bring products to market that meet those needs.
Outbound product marketing, in contrast to inbound product marketing, is focused on executing the GTM strategy for a product or solution. This role involves being ultimately responsible for revenue, pipeline, win rate, and the sales cycle and ensuring that the product or solution hits its revenue targets. As an outbound product marketer, you'll work closely with sales, customer success, and business development teams to drive product adoption and customer retention. Unlike inbound product marketing, this role is more external facing, with key stakeholders including analysts, customers, and others who interact with the product in the market. The activities involved in outbound product marketing are numerous and varied, but they often include developing a comprehensive GTM plan, identifying and prioritizing key customer segments and potential markets, and producing effective marketing collateral that supports customer outreach and engagement.
Outbound product marketing is an essential function for ensuring that a product or solution is successful in the market. By working closely with sales and other teams, outbound product marketers help to drive adoption, retention, and revenue growth, while also helping to build the brand and reputation of the product in the market.
In an ideal scenario, the product marketing department would take ownership of the entire product marketing process, from end to end. This would involve leading both inbound and outbound marketing efforts to influence both product innovation and GTM strategy. For some companies, this integrated approach can ensure greater efficiency and continuity, particularly when resources are limited. However, not all organizations adopt this approach. Larger companies, such as Google and Amazon, typically split their product marketing functions into inbound and outbound. Inbound product marketing is focused on the product itself and is often split by product line. Outbound product marketing, on the other hand, is focused on the GTM strategy and is often split into segments and verticals.
While the integrated approach may work well for some organizations, the split approach can provide a more focused and specialized approach to product marketing. Ultimately, the approach that a company adopts will depend on a range of factors, including the company's size, culture, and available resources.