Problem-Centric Thinking

In my opinion, this is one of the greatest challenges of modern-day Product Marketing and Management. Getting under the problem space can be incredibly difficult. It's important to not only understand the customer, but also the society around it. As my friend and mentor Blade Kotelly states, "it's important to understand the time you are in, to truly understand the context around you."

Society and cultures change. Something that might have been valuable two years ago, might not be as relevant today. While this type of narrative might make you think of consumer products – remember that humans still inhabit those business to business structures. 

Time is still a key variable, and it is always moving.

If we are able to clearly understand the market problem, than indeed the wise words of the famous American inventor Charle Kettering are correct. We're past the hardest part. We can now better understand and identify for whom the problem exists. We can now communicate what and how to build the solution to the right teams. We can now more clearly tell that topline product narrative to the world.

For PMMs particularly – content is your product. What problem does it solve? What question is it answering? Who is your target audience? If you can answer these questions before ink hits the paper, or a single pixel is moved...you're on your way to creating more meaningful communications programs