Episode 77: Temitope Adelanwa - Making Sales Enablement Work as a Solo PMM

Speaker A: As a pmm, it's easy to get distracted. Everybody wants a piece of you. Everybody wants you to do this. Everybody wants it and wants it now. So at times you just see you're in thousands of meetings and have very little time for your actual work itself, and then you get overwhelmed. So what I would say is trying to stick to your set objectives as much as you can, even if you're flexible, is very, very important. So understand why you are there. Understand what is expected of you.

Speaker B: You are listening to this is Product Marketing brought to you by Product Marketing Hive, a product marketing community that gives back. I'm your host, Louise Liu. Uh, Product Marketing Hive and this podcast are supported by Product Marketing M Edge, a technology product marketing consulting firm. In this episode, Timmy Top at Lenwa shares her experience on, uh, enabling sales across multiple products as a solo product marketer. Let's dive into it right now. Hi, Timmy. Welcome to the show.

Speaker A: Thank you so much, Larry. Thank you for having me.

Speaker B: It's quite interesting because you've been our listener for a really long time, since the beginning of the product marketing hype, right?

Speaker A: Yes, I have.

Speaker B: That's good. So I'm very happy to have you on the podcast today. Um, tell us a little bit about yourself and your product marketing journey.

Speaker A: Okay. Thank you so much for having me. I'm super excited. So I'll say. My journey started back in the university where I studied computer engineering. And I actually didn't enjoy it initially. In my first few years in school, I really wanted to change my major, but something happened. I got to meet Google. So Google came on campus. Then I'm trying to have, like, Google ambassadors, trying to show a measure between technology and marketing, basically how to use Google tools for marketing and things like that. And I saw an interest of, okay, you can actually use technology for business. And that just sparked an interest in me. I finished my degree. Um, the first job I got was in the marketing agency. But I think I just didn't want to leave the technology bit because that's my first love. And I pushed to look for a major between technology and marketing or technology and business. And I landed into product marketing about five years ago. Uh, I got my first role in 2021, and I think I haven't looked back since then. It has been really interesting for me.

Speaker B: That's great. That's good to hear about your passion for product marketing. Tell us a little bit more about, um, your transition to product marketing. Was it difficult? Was there a lot of, um, either the skill gaps you had to fill in or knowledge wise.

Speaker A: Okay. So interestingly, I'll say it was really easy because I had a technical background with all my engineering skills and I also had like two, three years of marketing. So that was just an amazing combination for me. The skill gap I still had to fill was more of stakeholder management because obviously I had to work across things like business things, um, sales, customer circles and things like that. But whenever I was with the product managers or working with the engineering team, I had no challenges. I understood the technical jargons, I spoke, understood marketing completely. And so it was really, really easy for me to fit. I just had to build in my stakeholder management more, um, build more on those skills.

Speaker B: That's good. So your career started back in Nigeria. Tell us a little bit about moving to UK and then your thoughts on either the developmental taxing or product marketing in both regions.

Speaker A: Okay, so I'll say I had a strong footing in Nigeria to my own country and um, coming to the UK was a different, different terrain. But I think what has helped me so far is the fact that I had my master's for in the UK and had a job for my Masters. So it was interesting to see how working in the UK is getting to understand the UK working culture. And now that I have my full role in the uk, I apply those skills I've learned like just working through my masters and doing um, project marketing consulting then into what I do day to day. So the difference I would say is just the understanding the culture and the nuances, understanding that the market is different. Definitely. So, so, so different. Understanding, um, how to. I'll go back to the stakeholder management bit. So understanding how to like manage other business teams, understanding how to communicate, it's really different. Distance is clear. And um, what else would I say? Um, I think I'll just focus more on stakeholder management and understanding the market is so different. And again because this is my uh, let's say first official role in the UK and also I'm working in the edtech space which is quite different, Very broad, very interesting. You're working with like across multiple instances or multiple, multiple use cases in my company where I work, for example. So it has been a lot of learning curve for me, A lot of research is needed. I will understand that this is a new journey, it's a new industries, a new space for me. And so that the journey has been for me so far, like coming to the UK from Nigeria, everything is new and I'm basically taking it a day at the time and learning as I

Speaker B: go in, in several roles you had before, you were either the first or the only product marketer in the organization. What does that actually look like from day to day perspective?

Speaker A: Okay. I wouldn't say it's lonely, but it can be lonely. And that is why I think I'm so grateful for communities like yours and PMM that I just go to when I feel like overwhelmed just to see what other people are saying and like say, get research, um, get articles, just things to help me. But to be honest, your team matters a lot. I'll start with your team, the team you work with. So as a pmm, definitely you collaborate with like pms, collaborative engineering team, business team. So understanding that you are basically in the middle of everything actually helped me and I don't feel so lonely. And again, most of the companies I've worked with, I've had amazing managers, like amazing managers that set the path clear for me and know exactly what I'm supposed to do. So it makes it easier. I know exactly what I'm working with, what I'm supposed to do, and then I take it upon myself to be productive because nobody's going to chase you around. Take it upon myself to make sure I make impact and I make sure I deliver. Uh, so that is how day to day is. You basically have to solo pmm, understand, um, what you're supposed to do. Hopefully you have an amazing manager, you have an amazing team that you work with and then you have to like, set your goals yourself, set your priorities, your set that you work yourself. So it has made me more productive, let me put it that way, because I basically have to answer for my unit, to answer for my department. And once any product marketing need I know, it falls on me or falls on my plate. So basically there's no way to hide. And that is also good because your impact is being measured, your impact is being seen. Um, your impact has been appreciated by your team and by the business as well. So it's easier for you to make impact, easier for me to grow, and it has been easier for me to, what I say, measure what I bring to the table, measure what I bring to the business, and also have my voice heard.

Speaker B: For solo product marketers, uh, what are the priorities you would suggest they should focus on first?

Speaker A: Very good question. So honestly, you really, really have to know why you are there. So different companies have different needs for product marketing managers. And in different companies you sit on different tables. I've had companies, um, where I worked, where I sat more on products like I was Having product meetings, engineering meetings, companies where I sat on marketing team. So you have to know exactly what the company needs from a PM and what they expect for your role. Very very important. And then what is expected of you to do so the role and then you yourself and understand your key stakeholders. That is the first thing. Why am I here? What am I supposed to do? What expertise for me that's the easiest way to understand how you're going to attain those goals, attend those um, let's say set KPI, those set priorities for you and then work along with it. So I think the main focus to prioritize is understanding exactly why they are there. That is the first thing. And then I'll have to bring this in because I mentioned earlier that being in a new um, industry, in a new region, in a new market, you have to understand the market and you have to understand the product you are there or the products, product the products, whichever way. Because that's the like that's the gap. So you can, you might have worked in 10 fintechs before are working with another fintech product. It's the same foundation. Yeah but you have to understand that product exactly the market they serve before you even attempt to do any PMM work. That is what things I think you um, need to prioritize, understand why you're uh, there. When you follow the PMM duties, following the company, are you more product focused? Is the company more um, um marketing focused? For example, what product are they selling, what markets do they serve? Or who are your key stakeholders? Very, very important. So you know who to run to or to talk to in the earlier stages and you prioritize those. I think that kind of helps you on your day to day and as you go. So those are the major focuses they should prioritize.

Speaker B: I'll say yeah, that's very good, very helpful tips. So uh, I remember in our introduction call one challenge you mentioned is uh, supporting multiple products at the same time. So um, in your opinion or in your experience, what makes that especially difficult for a solo product marketer?

Speaker A: It's a very good question. Okay. I think there's an issue with stakeholder management because there's one thing working with different business units like your attention in sales you work with customers and success you work with the uh, marketing team and things like that. When you have multiple products they are managing you basically have to wear different hats when you speak with the different PMs or when you're in the different product meetings. So you have to be really careful. Let me add Prioritizing as well. So everybody's product is important. How do I prioritize what is important? Which takes us back to okay, what is the business pushing right now? What are the key objectives? Some products have more impact on the business revenue wise versus other products. Is that what I need to focus on now? So stakeholder management is really difficult prioritizing the product that we're pushing right now. Everybody wants a case study now, but can I get other case studies done right now? How do I say, okay, this particular product needs that right now There's a gap in that product or this particular product is being so managing that bit and trying to align again with the objectives of the business because you are ah, basically there to enable the sales team, enable the business team to drive revenue. So you really have to prioritize what. Stakeholder management is one thing that can be a little bit challenging and um, prioritizing the product to give you attention aside from every other thing you do. So those two things can be a bit challenging.

Speaker B: So let's talk, let's talk about the sales enablement in the context of this. What are the common mistakes you see company make when it comes to sales enablement?

Speaker A: Oh my. I think I would say overdoing it because at times you go to LinkedIn, for example, and there's a framework for different things. There are white papers everywhere. Oh my God. Templates. I think overdoing it can make the business, I'm not going to say sales team now alone, the business team overwhelmed because there are too many resources, too many things to point out, too many things to pull out. And most times they are always disorganized. Like when you need a battle card, you are seeing like three, four types of battle cards to use. So it's just overdoing it I think is a major mistake. I try to say, okay, what do we need? And try to align as much as possible and uh, make it accessible. So when it's too much, you overdo it. The business team is overwhelmed. They can't even grab what they need easily. Then obviously you're going to have accessibility issue as well. So overdoing it is one mistake I've seen.

Speaker B: Yeah. Have you, have you run into the situation? Uh, sales team is constantly requesting materials from product marketers. I don't have enough. Hey, I need a use case here. I need this Persona. Tell me more about, about it. Uh, what, have you run into that situation before?

Speaker A: Yes, yes. And I think it still goes back to the gap of overdoing it because most time when the sales team come to you and ask you for this particular thing, you, there's a chance that you've done it, the resources available, but they just can't find it. And that's because there's just too much information for them to, to use and it has not been organized properly. There's not just one source of truth for them to just go and easily grab, well sections and things like that. So I've had that challenge and most of them are like, you know, have that right. They probably missed it. And I think it also has to do with when I say alignment. Alignment what I mean when something is out, everybody should know that it's out. This is how to use it. So just not making a one pager or making a personal document and just you know what, it's in the um, I don't know what folder, just go and grab it or something. Helping them understand how to use it is really, really important as well. And one way I do that is to go to the leader. So, so working with the CSM leader, for example, working with the sales leader, marketing lead like this is where these things are. It's easier to so when the leaders know exactly where the materials are or where the enablement tools are. Ah, easier to just coordinate the team and it's easier to um, point them to it rather than them coming to me every time. And obviously when there's a gap, we can fill the gap just for materials that are not available. But yeah, I've experienced that a lot and most of them have discovered that material is available is just an accessibility issue due to overwhelm obviously.

Speaker B: So you recently worked uh, on enabling the sales teams for analytics product. So uh, tell us a little bit more about the core challenges that your sales team was facing and how did you work with them?

Speaker A: Okay, that's a very good question. So the core challenges we're facing were basically conversion. I say conversion and confident of positioning the product correctly. It was business wide, it's a technical product and when I say it was left more to the technical side of the technical team to handle it. And the sales team actually spoke up. So they're speaking up. You're getting the same question over and over and over and over again about particular products. We are seeing a pattern and there's definitely something, something happening there. So governing a panelist, he's getting to the root cause was very important. I'm just about asking questions simply. So when you're talking to the prospect initially, what are the challenges that you have? So let Us understand the frequent questions um, that have been um, raised that you don't think you're confident enough to respond to. For example, we even got into like taking a look at the notes that the sales team have to just get the questions that they have to see objections. And that part came from definitely we understanding that oh, okay, there was a product knowledge gap here and it had to be full. So just asking a lot of questions from the key stakeholders involved. Now filling the gap because I worked with a pm, a PM just to have sessions to train them based on the question, the feedback that they've given. Again, what I said about alignment, making sure everybody's aligning and is being aligned, um, and then on a weekly basis asking questions, make sure they understand, dissecting the product as much as possible so they see how simple it is. And then when it comes to enablement, m definitely creating an easy to reach. So we are just setting um, enablement at each key sales process and then we're going to test. So our testing for now we're still experimenting with education but the next bit is to test and see. Obviously you're going to see impacts like amount of business that comes in, amount of leads is being converted, more, more constructive, more convert, more confident conversations. For example, we test and see and again it might work, it might not work at the end, but we have been um, as flexible as possible to iterate as many times as needed to make the team confident. But so far the experiment we're running, I think what has really helped is the constant meeting, the constant uh, alignment, basically asking them questions, everybody coming together, the pm, the data guys working together to make sure that we go into the product and do like proper demos. Product knowledge gaps has also helped as well.

Speaker B: Yeah, thank you for sharing. You said that you meet with the sales team weekly to educate them, to help them boost their confidence in the product. Um, would you say that would be a right cadence or do you have some other cadence that you think will be maybe this is special scenario.

Speaker A: Okay, this is a special scenario because we're trying to gets the bottom of something and they're trying to like dissect the product. Again, I said it's a robust analytics tool and there's so many bits and parts of it and it's quite technical. So we're just taking our time to break it down, making sure everybody understands it. And then from those meetings we're like, okay, we need this material, we need this material, we need this, we need this. And then we identify the gaps. I'm not filling as we go. But ideally obviously making meeting every week is not possible. I think quarterly or every six weeks might be helpful to realign with the sales team or the business teams to get feedback that's very important like how are they doing, are they having any challenges for example? Um, and also to get insight from them because they are ah, customer facing the listen to the customers. I love to do this to support them for example or what is happening. And funny enough to get case studies because if you speak with the business team like the CSM support team, sales you can understand oh this is why CU they don't come VATs or these are the um, um the names of the names of competitors for example that they have in their conversation. These are kind of objections they are getting. Oh, someone said something good. Let's say the support team said that this work they're struggling. So you can create more support materials for example. So meeting with them like every six weeks is really really good. Just like you do for the do for the product team as well to feed them back um, product insights and things like that. So I think ideally realignment to the business teams can be done or should be done every six weeks.

Speaker B: What kind of attention have you run into when creating sales enabled materials or uh, just sales enablement in general and how would you address it?

Speaker A: Okay, so I'll take this back to so many things being available, everybody asking for different things. Oh, I want this, I want that and most times there's really no need for everything you can compress. So I try to walk through everybody asking for everything. Again I go back to being aligned with the business goals. So why do you need this? What do you think it's going to do? What impact are you trying to see? Does it align with everything we're seeing as a business? Can we combine instead of having three one pages into one, does it make the same impact and still meet the same needs and can be used multiple times on multiple teams? I do not think we need to do a one pager for the sales team, CSM team, support team, this team. I don't think so. I think we can use them. Um, the team can use one material, one tool and then use them at different instances. So the when sales we use the same material is different from when supposed to use the same material. When marketing use the material and things like that. And then what I try to do is create just one source of truth as much as possible possible. If we're talking about this product, this is everything you need to know. About this product and from it the foundational truth marketing can create campaigns. For example support can say okay there is support articles that can come from there. Um, sales can close deals based on that. Like do they need data about the Persona, do they need um information to. Objection. Information to help them tackle it. What do you need? It's just something that is simple and clean. Is that I always do it. And again it's not with a one pager. My company actually one pagers are like. But I cut down on the old one pager thing and again thanks to AI there are things we're trying to do now to make accessibility easier. AI even made it easy to easily create dashboards for example we can just go and um, pick it and um, the materials are easily adaptable, easy to read and easy to grab instead of having loads and loads and loads of PDFs and PowerPoint documents and is easier not just make them easy to read. Flexible dashboards for example that are fun to engage with um, by the sales team or even having an in house chat, a chatbot that basically explains what the one pager is or help them find the one pager help them find the document they need. So that the kind of approaches that we're experimenting with now or I'm trying to push for. So um, that is basically how I tackle it. One source of truth.

Speaker B: So yeah, let's talk about AI. How are you currently using AI in your product marketing work?

Speaker A: Oh yes, good, good, good, good question. So for me I'm using AI as an assistant. I use it for my repetitive task. The things I would do I do almost every day that took me hours before. So things like developing feature um, benefits charts um, or tables for our products for different teams. I just have agents that have trained to understand our products and basically when I say this is what I need to do it just business for me. So definitely I keep training the agents to understand the products more, understand who the product is for and things like that. But repetitive tags are what I use AI for the most. And also making customer facing release notes for example. There's always a release. I manage a lot of products right now. There's always a release note coming. So I have an uh, agent for that as well that basically I'm training. This is how I write my release notes to make it customer facing. The language you should use the tone and things like that. And uh, I convert my technical release notes to customer facing release notes in a couple of minutes and I'm good to, to go. Very important and obviously for analysis on my research. So analysis, research when I have to read. So I'm in ethic and there are so many policies that I said earlier EdTech in the UK, so many policies that pop up also save the market and also so I use it to analyze, pick out what's important and then when I get feedback from a M support team or CSM team on product usage and things like that, I basically want to ask questions. So I use AI to for example analyze loads of data for me and then give me the most important things, respond to questions for me that I can use to feedback into product and feedback into the business team as well. So for me it has to be repetitive tasks, analysis, helping with my release notes and helping me with research as well.

Speaker B: Great thoughts. Thank you for sharing. So we're getting to the end our time here. Do you have any final thoughts you'd like to share?

Speaker A: Again, alignment. You have to know why you're there. So every company I ask you for different things. As I said earlier, some are more product focused and smaller marketing focused. Once you understand, um, why you are there, it really, really help you. And again, make sure you understand what objectives you are set to achieve. Ah, what are you being measured so that you can focus on that. Because as a PMM it's easier, it's easy to get distracted that we talked about earlier. Everybody wants a piece of you, Everybody wants you to do this. Everybody wants it and they want it now. So at times you just see you're in thousands of meetings and have very little time for your actual work itself and then you get overwhelmed. So what I'll say is trying to stick to your set objectives as much as you can, even if you're flexible, is very, very important. So understand why you are there, understand what is expected of you. Very important. Again, when you just start, uh, understand the product you're selling, understand who you're selling to understand the market that the advice I can give.

Speaker B: That's very helpful. Thank you for sharing. Thank you for joining us today.

Speaker A: Thank you so much for having me.

Speaker B: Thank you for tuning in to this is Product Marketing brought to you by Product Marketing Hive, a product marketing community that gives back. Check out our website productmarketinghype.com to join our community, meet fellow product marketers and access free resources. If you enjoyed our podcast, please subscribe and give a five star rating on the platform of your choice. See you next time.