As a product marketer, one of your key responsibilities is ensuring that other teams within your company fully understand your product so they can effectively communicate its value to customers.
Product briefings are an essential tool to achieve this cross-functional alignment.
In this article, we will explore what product briefings are, why they are important, how to conduct an effective briefing, and tips for maximizing their impact.
What are Product Briefings?
Product briefings are structured presentations given to internal teams like sales, success managers, customer support, partnerships etc to introduce or update them on a product.
The goal is to provide a thorough yet concise overview of the key elements – from features and architecture to positioning, user scenarios, pricing models etc.
This allows internal stakeholders to gain familiarity so they can discuss and represent the product confidently with prospects and customers. Briefings foster collaboration across teams and present a unified front to the external audience.
Proper briefings ensure everyone is brought up to speed on the latest developments. They clarify what differentiates the product versus competitors.
Teams learn how customers have derived value from specific capabilities. Any underlying technology constraints or planned enhancements are also covered.
Internal advocates then talk about the product knowledgeably during field interactions and conferences. This systematic knowledge transfer keeps alignment strong as the solution evolves rapidly.
Why are Product Briefings Important?
Product briefings play a pivotal role in driving alignment across functions.
They help ensure sales, success and support teams sell value not just features. This reduces chances of misrepresentation which can damage reputation.
Briefings also arm partners and advocates with necessary insight into the craft so they can appreciate its nuances.
When conducted consistently, briefings minimize knowledge gaps especially during times of leadership or personnel changes. Customers receive a consistent buying experience irrespective of the internal representative.
This breeds loyalty since expectations were set accurately from the start.
Misaligned efforts due to lack of briefing can stall progress or confuse clients at critical stages.
How to conduct product briefings and trainings for internal teams
As a product marketer, conducting effective product briefings and trainings for internal teams like sales, success managers, customer support etc. is a core responsibility.
These sessions aim to equip teams with the requisite product knowledge so they can expertly represent it externally.
Let’s discuss best practices for planning, structuring and delivering briefing sessions that engender learning and drive alignment across functions.
Why are internal briefings important?
Internal briefings play a vital role in spreading awareness and understanding of the product internally.
This ensures teams present a unified message and are equipped to address customer needs comprehensively. It also future-proofs the organization by maintaining institutional knowledge despite personnel changes.
Consistent briefings minimize misrepresentation and keeps the customer experience consistent.
Tips for planning briefings
When planning a briefing, consider the attendees, learning objectives, duration, format and content. Map out quarterly/monthly calendar.
Book enough time (45-60 mins ideal) and fix recurring days/slots. Choose an anchoring theme and breaking it into modules of 15-20 mins each.
Establish pre-reads; and leverage collaboration tools for reference materials.
Send calendar invites well in advance for scheduling.
Effective briefing structure
Start with a high-level overview of objectives, agenda and discussion guidelines.
Do a ice-breaker for energizing attendees. Provide strategic/market context before covering the focal topic – be it a new feature, workflow etc.
Demo critical aspects and share 1-2 customer stories. Designate modules for audience Q&As and role-plays. Close with a summary and a poll to capture learnings.
Thank participants for their time and commitment to excellence.
Engaging delivery
Maintain an upbeat, conversational tone. Share insights don’t just present.
Limit slides; use multimedia, polls, breakouts etc. to keep it interactive. Welcome questions; don’t be a passive presenter.
Have subject experts support for complex topics. Offer post-session references and certifications if needed. Send out recaps and collateral for future reference.
Measuring effectiveness
Administer feedback forms post-briefing to understand effectiveness and usefulness.
Track tangible metrics like demo requests, certified users if any.
Observe usage/win-rates of briefed teams to refine focus.
Conduct audits to gauge adherence over time.
Reward high-performers through recognition. Iterate constantly based on evolving needs.
Briefings are not one-time events but an ongoing refinement process.
Sustaining engagement
Keep briefings incentivized through gamification, prize draws etc.
Highlight wins and recirculate successes. Leverage champions as branding assets.
Give briefing ownership to different functions in turns for varied perspectives.
Customize content per audience profiles to maximize relatability.
Integrate learnings into sales/onboarding processes. Success comes from collaborative involvement of all stakeholders.
Customizing for different audiences
Consider customizing briefings based on different team’s roles and goals.
Provide sales with ready scripts and objections to address. Success teams may need process deep dives.
Support requires technical specs and corner cases to flag.
Partner trainings can focus on integration and required certifications.
Customization increases utility and buy-in for each group.
Integrating recaps and new materials
Following up is important to reinforce learnings. Send monthly flash reports highlighting real customer feedback and case studies.
Recirculate updated assets or publish on an internal portal.
Feature new certifications, trial programs or even leadership interviews to sustain interest. Reward innovative internal applications and sharing of best practices across teams.
A well-planned internal product briefings lead aligned marketing, sales and support efforts crucial for customer success.
Regular refinements keep sessions impactful. With humility and an emphasis on learning experience over mere information-sharing, briefers drive engagement to achieve the higher goal of organizational excellence.
Tips to Maximize Impact of Product Briefings
Some additional tips to maximize the impact of briefings include:
Gamify elements to keep the audience engaged throughout. Conduct interactive polls, quizzes and incentive-based recall tests. Where possible conduct briefings in-person at offsites for better interaction and bonding.
Circulate one-pagers, videos and collateral post-briefing for future reference and onboarding. Publicly recognize contributors who apply learnings successfully. Request participants to create external advocacy narratives.
Brief not just on new features but other changes like positioning, pricing or problems addressed. Socialize briefing responsibilities so different teams get a turn to own, plan and present material.
Track metrics like pipeline contribution of briefed teams to continuously optimize. Send monthly flash reports highlighting real customer feedback or case studies for inspiration.
Conclusion
In conclusion, product briefings lay the foundation for well-coordinated marketing, sales and support of a solution across an organization.
With an engaging format and continuous refinements, briefings help ensure people championing the product externally develop a unified understanding of its strategic role and value proposition.
This consistency creates an optimized buying experience for the end customer.
Regular briefings are a must for internal alignment and effective external collaboration on the product.
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