Does your market category have a Wave of Magic Quadrant? I've lead a few of these applications as a PMM Here are 5 things I’ve learned 👇
1️⃣ It will always be a race against the clock ⏰
It may feel like you have loads of time to get everything ready. But that’s never the case.
Just like everything else in product marketing you will come down to the wire and likely still feel like you’re changing things in your presentation right up to the last minute.
I’m not here to say you can avoid it.
But be ready for it and know your last few days leading up to the deadline will be completely consumed by it.
2️⃣ Build an answer bank, yesterday 🗂️
If your company has completed any past analyst questionnaires, chance are you have them sitting in your Google Drive somewhere.
Do your future self a favor and pull those together into a spreadsheet.
A bank of answers you can pull from so that you’re never starting each new application from scratch.
It’s going to save you a ton of time.
3️⃣ Now‘s not the time to change their thinking ✅
Now is not the time to change how your analysts think about the category.
That’s what the 18 months leading up the Wave or Magic Quadrant process were for.
Your job is now to understand how they score the category and position yourself to win in as many spots as possible.
You need to play within the parameters they set, while showing how your solution is differentiated.
4️⃣ Focus on your 5s 🎯
I was lucky to consult with a few analyst experts during our last wave process at Klue and this is one important strategy point I walked away with.
Not every report is scored the same, but in general, you can assume that if each question was on a 5-point scale, then:
- 5 means you meet the criteria and are differentiated • 3 means you meet the criteria but are at parity with others • 0 means you don’t do it at all
Focus on making sure that your 5s are clearly communicated. For your 3s, make sure you get the check and move on.
Finally, make sure you never give yourself a zero. Never omit a questions or say you simply don't do something. If you do, understand that you are handing yourself a zero score.
5️⃣ Find someone who demos all the time 💪
If you’re a PMM spearheading a briefing you may feel like you need to be delivering the demo. The reality is that you’re likely not the best-suited person for it.
You're just not doing it often enough.
Your sales reps for example, are far more experienced. They’re pitching your product every day.
Leave your ego at the door and bring an experienced rep into the process to help run the demo.
That’s it.
Would love to hear any tips from others who have worked on these reports before.
And analysts, keep me honest and let me know what I missed or got wrong.