{"id":14044,"date":"2017-12-06T18:00:02","date_gmt":"2017-12-06T18:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.intercom.com\/?p=14044"},"modified":"2020-07-30T12:57:07","modified_gmt":"2020-07-30T11:57:07","slug":"how-we-use-product-betas-to-shape-our-product-marketing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intercom.com\/blog\/how-we-use-product-betas-to-shape-our-product-marketing\/","title":{"rendered":"How we use product betas to shape our product marketing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Private product betas are a tried and true method for improving products, but for marketers, they can be critical for your messaging too.<\/p>\n

As the product evolves during the beta stage, so should your product marketing<\/a> strategy. From evaluating your positioning to choosing the right communication channels for your announcement, betas can inform, improve, and let you preemptively assess your go-to-market plan. Part of my role as a Product Marketer here at Intercom is making sure we\u2019re as prepared as possible for a product launch. As we grow, betas are an increasingly important part of this \u2013 don\u2019t let them go to waste.<\/p>\n

Before your beta begins<\/h3>\n

To make the most of the private beta as a marketer, you need to understand the goals of the product team and the beta plan. Meet with the product manager and outline the schedule, the size and selection criteria for the user group, what feedback or data they want to collect, and how they determine whether a viable solution has been reached. There\u2019s a substantial difference between a short beta focused on finding bugs and a longer one meant to evaluate product\/market fit. These differences will impact how much the product evolves and, as a result, the strategic value the beta can provide to your product marketing.<\/p>\n

Incorporate your positioning into the invitation so you can test it with your beta users.<\/p>\n

With the beta plan and the product goals in mind, you can outline the different things you want to achieve. In general, my objectives for the beta are directly tied to my goals for the announcement. Some will have specific deliverables, like sourcing customer testimonials, while others are more evaluative, such as validating the hierarchy of our messaging.<\/p>\n

What you can accomplish during the beta from a product marketing standpoint will vary, but there are a few opportunities you should consider.<\/p>\n

1. Test your positioning<\/h2>\n

At Intercom, one of the ways product marketing participates in the beta is by working closely with the product team to craft the beta invitation. This is often the first chance to see if messaging clearly communicates the benefits of the product to users. Incorporate your positioning into the invitation so you can test it with your beta users. If you’re considering two directions for your positioning this can be a good opportunity to run a A\/B test. Evaluate your customer\u2019s reaction to the invitation. What percentage of customers agreed to participate? Were they confused, excited, indifferent? Picking up on these queues will let you assess how well you communicated the benefits of the product and whether you need to adjust your positioning.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

When our reporting was in beta, we included the primary user benefit of each report in the invitation, then compared feedback from users to see if the benefit we identified matched their experience.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

In particular, I try to validate the hierarchy of benefits that\u2019s used to structure our messaging. Think of this as removing the bias toward what your team finds compelling about the product, and ensuring you don\u2019t underestimate the value of a particular feature. An example of this is when we launched Articles<\/a>, our knowledge base<\/a>. We built a content importer that automatically moved help center content from another doc site over to our product. Initially, we treated the importer as a minor feature, but after the private beta revealed overwhelming enthusiasm for the feature, we adjusted our marketing to highlight it more prominently.<\/p>\n

2. Set accurate expectations for your product<\/h2>\n

Overpromising and under-delivering will only burn your brand\u2019s credibility.<\/p>\n

In B2B software, your product should solve a specific problem, but that doesn\u2019t mean it will be a perfect solution for everyone. As a Product Marketer, your job is to know the limitations of your product in relation to your target audience. As beta users apply your product to different use cases and discover its limitations, familiarize yourself with these as much as possible. Identify the extent to which your beta users\u2019 pain points are addressed and make sure to reflect that in your product messaging.<\/p>\n

The easiest way to do this is to ask, \u201cBased on what was described to you, did this meet your expectations?\u201d Do this at the beginning of the beta to get a baseline, then again at the end of the beta to see if you\u2019ve delivered on their expectations. This will prevent you from overselling in your marketing and is important information to pass along to your sales team. Overpromising and under-delivering will only burn your brand\u2019s credibility.<\/p>\n

3. Find your target audience<\/h2>\n

The beta is a good time to reevaluate the people you want to target with your announcement. When your beta users have diverse profiles, listen to customer feedback<\/a> to see which subset of your target market finds the product most valuable and ask yourself:<\/p>\n