As product marketers, we're constantly hunting for that elusive edge – the insights that will help us position our products better, understand our market deeper, and connect with customers more effectively. But here's a truth that took me years to discover: the most valuable market insights aren't hiding in analyst reports or competitor websites. They're flowing through your organization every single day, in countless conversations you might not be part of.
The Real Competitive Advantage
Your real competitive advantage isn't just in the data you can access – it's in the relationships you build with the teams that talk to customers every day. These teams aren't just executing their roles; they're collecting invaluable market intelligence that often goes untapped.
Let's dive into why these relationships are so crucial and how to leverage them effectively:
Support Teams: The Front Line of Customer Reality
Support teams don't just handle tickets – they're cataloging the daily gap between customer expectations and reality. They're witnessing:
- The friction points that marketing messages don't anticipate
- The features customers assume should exist (but don't)
- The actual language customers use to describe their problems
- The workarounds customers create for missing functionality
One conversation with a support team member can reveal more about product-market fit than a dozen market research reports. They don't just see the problems; they understand the context and emotion behind each issue.
Sales Teams: Masters of Market Understanding
Your sales team isn't just closing deals – they're collecting real-time feedback on positioning, pricing, and competitive dynamics. The stories behind lost deals are often more valuable than the wins because they reveal:
- Which competitor messages are resonating most strongly
- Where your pricing model creates friction
- What features prospects assume you should have
- How decision-makers justify (or struggle to justify) the investment
When a sales team member tells you "we keep losing deals because..." they're not just sharing a frustration – they're giving you invaluable positioning insights.
Success Teams: The Journey Witnesses
Success teams have a unique vantage point: they see the full customer journey from expectation to reality. They witness:
- The difference between what customers think they need and what actually drives their success
- How customers evolve in their product usage over time
- Which features actually deliver on their promised value
- Where customers find unexpected value you haven't marketed yet
This insight is gold for future positioning and product strategy. Success teams don't just see how customers use your product – they understand why certain features become crucial over time.
Building Your Intelligence Network
1. Change Your Mindset
Stop thinking of these teams as "stakeholders to enable." Start seeing them as your intelligence network. This shift in mindset changes everything:
- Instead of "checking in" occasionally, build regular touchpoints
- Rather than just sharing updates, ask probing questions
- Move from formal meetings to informal conversations
- Focus on building trust and mutual value
2. Create Value First
The best way to get insights is to give value first:
- Share market research that helps them do their jobs better
- Create messaging frameworks that make their lives easier
- Offer to help with customer-facing content
- Be responsive when they need marketing support
3. Ask the Right Questions
Don't just ask for general feedback. Ask specific questions that unlock deeper insights:
- "What surprised you most about recent customer conversations?"
- "What competitor claims are you hearing that we aren't addressing?"
- "Which customer success stories don't fit our current messaging?"
- "What do customers assume about our product that isn't true?"
4. Systematize the Intelligence
Create simple ways to capture and share insights:
- Set up regular, informal coffee chats with key team members
- Create a Slack channel for sharing customer insights
- Document key stories and examples for future reference
- Share back what you learn to create a virtuous cycle
The Long-Term Impact
Building this intelligence network takes time, but the payoff is enormous:
- Your messaging becomes more authentic because it's grounded in real customer language
- Your positioning evolves based on actual market response, not just competitor analysis
- Your product marketing strategies align better with customer reality
- Your entire organization becomes more customer-centric
Remember: The best product marketing insights don't just come from formal research – they come from building the right relationships and asking the right questions. Your intelligence network is already there, waiting to be activated. Start building those relationships today.