In our latest PMA Member Spotlight, we chat to the wonderful Silvia Kiely Frucci, Senior Product Marketing Manager at Castor to talk all things PMM and what she loves most about being a PMA member.
We get her unique definition of product marketing, steal her top tips on how to make an impression in the first few weeks of a new role, and get her first-hand advice on how to climb the ladder to PMM seniority. We also find out what Silvia's superhero name would be, and what she'd be doing now if she wasn't a product marketer.
"[PMA content is] always available in any way, shape, and form. I dip into articles, events, and podcast very regularly. The community has so many brilliant members and experts that provide multiple nuances to all product marketing topics. I LOVE IT!" - Silvia Kiely Frucci
Wanna join Silvia in becoming a member and tap into our coveted content? Sign up for a PMA membership.
How would you define product marketing to someone who doesn’t know anything about it?
Silvia: Product marketing is the universal translator between customer insight and technical progress intended as your company’s products and internal stakeholders. In order to deliver a compelling product message to market, the starting point is to understand the customers needs-flow, and work retroactively to your product feature to shape your messaging into the right 'market-lenses'.
You’re fairly new to the team at Castor - what would your tips be on impressing during the first few weeks on a team?
Silvia: Be an attentive auditor: in the first few weeks I have interviewed all my main stakeholders and I have studied most of the material available in the various channels such as policies, roadmaps, content, webinars, pricing and proposals, customer data, past OKRs, and so on. I was very lucky; the company is very open, so I was able to deep-dive into the resources and create a compelling 90-day plan that delivered tangible impact.
Also, focus on process, timelines, and deadlines. This is the Holy Trinity of impressing your peers in any role. Create processes to improve internal and external communications, be accountable for timelines, and be vocal about your deadlines. At week three, I have set up a Slack channel called #ask-productmarketing where every Monday I published my three deliverables for the week. That helped creating visibility of my work, as well as prompting my stakeholders and collaborators involved in the accomplishment of a specific deadline without nagging them with emails and useless meetings.
Working on anything exciting at the moment?
Silvia: Everything! Working in a startup is different from working in a large and structured company so I happily get involved in tons of projects at the same time. Top 2 projects right now are re-positioning an existing product, as well as working on ICPs (ideal customer profiles). I love a good customer segmentation with a ton of data to mine so I am in my element there.
Having progressed from PMM to Senior PMM - what would your advice be to anybody wanting to climb the product marketing career ladder?
Silvia: Find your niche and grow your expertise from there. In my career, the term Product Marketing Manager meant different things at different product stages and companies. I have been a pricing specialist, a content creator, a sales enabler a business analyst - you name it! Understand what comes easy to you and then add value by learning from your company, your customers, and your peers. This is essential for personal and professional progression.
Your LinkedIn profile says your ‘top 5 Strengths’ are ‘Restorative, Input, Activator, Learner, Focus’, but if you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?
Silvia: To be able to pause time at my leisure! With three kids and a job that I am super passionate about, there aren't enough hours in the day to achieve all the things I wish to complete.
Okay, so what would your superhero name be and why?
Silvia: Framely! I love a good framework and I actively search for best processes in everything I do. Also, this superhero name sounds similar to my surname Frucci and that is definitely a bonus.
If you weren’t a product marketer what do you think you’d be doing right now?
Silvia: At university I graduated in Molecular Biology so if I didn’t leave Italy, I would have probably worked at my university doing research. I'm glad it did not go that way though: as much as I enjoy contributing to scientific improvements, I don’t have an academic mindset, more of a commercial one.
What is your proudest moment as a product marketer so far?
Silvia: Seeing that my work has a tangible impact on my company strategy is the thing that makes me the most proud. About two years ago I worked on a KPI framework that tracks and quantifies all activities around the customer journey, from acquisition to retention. Some of the insight and relationship between the stages really made a difference on the strategies around ABM and customer success, and resulted in higher retention rates.
How did you come to join PMA?
Silvia: Back in 2018 I came across one of the Product Marketing World events and I signed up to the PMA Slack channel. Through there I met Bryony, Amy and 1,000 other product marketing superstars passionate about their role, willing to share their best practices and eager to hear mine.
What is your favorite thing about being a PMA member?
Silvia: Content! Always available in any way, shape, and form. I dip into articles, events, and podcast very regularly. The community has so many brilliant members and experts that provide multiple nuances to all product marketing topics. I LOVE IT!
Thanks, Silvia! 🥰 Or should we say... Thanks, Framely! 😉
Room for more? Catch up with Mark Assini, Product Marketing Manager at Voices, PMA Ambassador and founding 10,000 member. 👇
Stephanie Whalley
Stay up to date with all other PMA Member Spotlights to learn more about the people behind the PMMs.
