# Product marketing skill Human Guide

## What This Is For
Build product marketing strategy including positioning, messaging, and go-to-market. It gives the agent a clearer input/output frame for product marketing skill: what context to ask for, what decisions to make, and what usable artifact to return.

Use this as a human-readable version of the Product marketing skill agent skill. It is meant for marketers, operators, founders, and other non-coders who want the workflow without reading agent-specific implementation instructions.

## When To Use This
- Use this when you need a repeatable process for product marketing skill.
- Use this when the task needs judgment, examples, constraints, or a clear output format rather than a one-off prompt.
- Use this when you want to hand an AI assistant enough context to produce a usable marketing artifact.

## When Not To Use This
- Do not use this when you only need a quick factual answer.
- Do not use this when the work depends on private data you cannot share with the assistant.
- Do not use this as a replacement for legal, compliance, financial, or medical review.

## What You Need Before Starting
- The goal or business outcome you want.
- The audience, customer segment, or market context.
- Any source material the assistant should respect, such as notes, briefs, examples, URLs, or brand guidance.
- Constraints such as tone, length, channel, deadline, region, or approval requirements.
- A clear definition of what a good final answer should look like.

## Step-By-Step Workflow
1. State the job clearly: "Use the Product marketing skill guide to help me with..."
2. Add context: audience, goal, offer, channel, source material, and constraints.
3. Ask the assistant to identify missing inputs before producing the final output.
4. Have the assistant follow the skill-specific guidance below.
5. Review the result against the final checklist and ask for revisions where needed.

## Skill-Specific Guidance
- Direct competitors (same category)
- Indirect competitors (different approach, same problem)
- Status quo (manual process, spreadsheets, doing nothing)
- **Firmographics:** Company size, industry, revenue, growth stage
- **Role:** Job title, department, reporting structure
- **Situation:** What trigger makes them look for a solution now?
- **Characteristics:** What makes them a great vs. okay customer?
- **Existing category** — "We're a {category} that {differentiator}"
- **Sub-category** — "We're a {adjective} {category}" (e.g., "collaborative design tool")
- **New category** — Create your own (risky, requires education budget)
- **One-pager** — Single page overview for prospects
- **Pitch deck** — 10-15 slide presentation

## Decision Points And Nuance
The original skill emphasizes: Positioning Framework (April Dunford Method), Step 1: Competitive Alternatives, Step 2: Unique Attributes, Step 3: Value (So What?), Step 4: Target Customer, Step 5: Market Category, Messaging Framework, Messaging Hierarchy, Messaging by Audience, Competitive Intelligence.

Use these questions to steer the work:
- What is the intended audience or buyer?
- What source material must be preserved?
- What should the assistant optimize for: clarity, persuasion, accuracy, speed, creativity, or conversion?
- What examples represent the desired quality bar?
- What should the assistant avoid?

## Common Mistakes
- What do you have that alternatives don't?
- Don't try to be everything to everyone. Strong positioning means saying no to some audiences.

## Copy-And-Paste Prompt
```text
Use the Product marketing skill human guide.

My goal:
[Describe the business outcome]

Audience:
[Describe who this is for]

Context and source material:
[Paste notes, examples, links, or existing copy]

Constraints:
[Tone, length, channel, timeline, must-include items, must-avoid items]

Before producing the final output, ask me for any missing information that would materially improve the result.
```

## Final Checklist
- [ ] The output matches the original goal.
- [ ] The audience and context are reflected in the answer.
- [ ] Important constraints and source material were preserved.
- [ ] The assistant made the relevant decisions explicit.
- [ ] The final artifact is ready to use, review, or hand to the next person.

## Source
This guide was generated from the openclaudia/openclaudia-skills skill entry for `product-marketing`.

## Source Skill Notes
These notes preserve the nuance from the original skill. Use them as supporting reference when the workflow above feels too generic.

# Product Marketing Skill

You are a product marketing strategist. Build positioning, messaging, competitive intelligence, and go-to-market strategies.

## Positioning Framework (April Dunford Method)

### Step 1: Competitive Alternatives

What would customers use if your product didn't exist?

List all alternatives:
- Direct competitors (same category)
- Indirect competitors (different approach, same problem)
- Status quo (manual process, spreadsheets, doing nothing)

### Step 2: Unique Attributes

What do you have that alternatives don't?

| Attribute | You | Competitor A | Competitor B | Status Quo |
|-----------|-----|-------------|-------------|------------|
| {Feature/capability} | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| {Feature/capability} | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| {Feature/capability} | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |

Focus on attributes that are **unique to you** or where you are **significantly better**.

### Step 3: Value (So What?)

For each unique attribute, answer "So what? Why does the customer care?"

| Attribute | → | Value to Customer |
|-----------|---|-------------------|
| {Feature} | → | {Saves X hours per week} |
| {Capability} | → | {Reduces error rate by Y%} |
| {Integration} | → | {Eliminates manual data entry} |

### Step 4: Target Customer

Who cares the most about these specific values?

Define with:
- **Firmographics:** Company size, industry, revenue, growth stage
- **Role:** Job title, department, reporting structure
- **Situation:** What trigger makes them look for a solution now?
- **Characteristics:** What makes them a great vs. okay customer?

### Step 5: Market Category

What category context makes your value obvious?

Options:
- **Existing category** — "We're a {category} that {differentiator}"
- **Sub-category** — "We're a {adjective} {category}" (e.g., "collaborative design tool")
- **New category** — Create your own (risky, requires education budget)

## Messaging Framework

### Messaging Hierarchy

```
LEVEL 1: Positioning Statement (internal)
  "For {target customer} who {situation/need},
   {Product} is a {category} that {key benefit}.
   Unlike {alternative}, we {key differentiator}."

LEVEL 2: Value Propositions (3 pillars)
  Pillar 1: {Benefit} — Because {proof point}
  Pillar 2: {Benefit} — Because {proof point}
  Pillar 3: {Benefit} — Because {proof point}

LEVEL 3: Headlines & Taglines (external-facing)
  Homepage: {Compelling headline}
  Subhead: {Supporting detail}

LEVEL 4: Feature Messages (per feature/capability)
  Feature → Benefit → Proof
```

### Messaging by Audience