There is always a lot of excitement around an acquisition – and a little bit of fear too. Keeping momentum is key. The last thing we need is to lose important key players who have the knowledge needed to accelerate the combining of the companies, and to multiply the value of the organizations – after all, that is the “why” of an acquisition.

I was most active in acquisitions and mergers during my Fintech years. Financial Services institutions are always differentiating by buying what they need, and growing by gobbling up the direct competition. An example of this was the acquisition of a Citibank internal innovation center that led the conversion of travelers checks (paper-based) to prepaid cards (plastic-based) which was acquired by JPMorgan Chase.  

While not a perfect transition, it meant that I learned a lot about what to do better next time. This also kicked off my career as an Industry/Product Marketing Marketing specialist. The keys to success might be a bit different for a company that is acquired vs. for an acquiring company – just remember, the company was acquired for a reason. 

Since then, I've been involved with 10 major acquisitions and an IPO,  in Fintech and the Customer Experience (CX) spaces.   

So, on to the keys to success. 

Talent assessment

Identify roles and who does what – sometimes the org is a bit different and there's not a clear-cut Product Marketing Manager, or the roles are defined differently.  Identify who's most interested in working as a PMM or who will just need a title change. Work with HR to adjust. Be satisfied with dotted lines.  

The key here is to stick to the responsibilities of the PMM role that exists.  Simultaneously, you can identify areas where there will be new a responsibility.  This can be a bit of a Rubik's cube, as there will be talents that now fit into Product Marketing but were previously in other areas. Plus, the acquiring company might grow or shrink areas of responsibility as part of the acquisition. New talent requirements can be recommended based on this assessment.

For more, check out our complete guide to structuring a Product Marketing team.

Cross-collaboration

One of the utmost important new areas to learn is how each function currently cross-collaborates in the new company. Product expertise needs to be shared quickly, and people need to get to know each other fast. 

Ideally, this is done in person, otherwise, a well-organized online program can work too. Or a hybrid approach. This is so important for the Product Marketing function since we can help bring together Product, Marketing, and Sales.  

An important part of this cross-collaboration is keeping track of ideas. Companies are acquired so that their merger results in a greater whole. Continuing the revenue generation, cross-selling, and maximizing what both companies bring to the table is key.  

Team building for the new PMM organization

Collaborating across the Sales, Marketing, and Product teams is first on the list of “to dos”.  Meeting the Product teams who are creating the development timeline and determining how to work with the new team. Setting up regular cadences of meetings and figuring out how to attend product and marketing meetings is crucial to building and understanding of what the future will look like. 

In addition, this is when the PMM team can ensure that the value they bring is apparent. Not every new team member will have worked with a PMM org in the past. They may have a different idea of what Product Marketing does. 

Building product knowledge

Sales enablement is a huge factor in the success of sales, and therefore the effectiveness of the product sell-through.   

Understanding how the audience changes, how the client base changes, and other baseline adaptations, are critical so the learners can pick up quickly. New business development professionals will need to be trained on the systems that are in place for access. For example, adding to Product Marketing internal newsletter databases, and ensuring that there is training in place on using Content knowledge bases (Google, SFDC, SharePoint, etc.) 

Adding new content needs to be done quickly so that BD Execs from the acquiring company can access as well. Learning sessions, and point people who can act as facilitators help as well.

Combine tools, picking the best 

Another important area for saving costs, encouraging collaboration, ensuring efficiency, and facilitating communication is closing tools. Companies often come with different tech stacks, so picking the ones that make the most sense should be a top priority. Key considerations include contacts, current satisfaction with the tool, data transfers costs/risks and future uses.  

This work is best done with a shared spreadsheet that includes rankings, functionality and multiple users. Sometimes someone from the IT department will be involved.  

The initial work should be done in an in-person workshop. When done in alliance with Marketing Communications and Product, Product Marketing will be most effective. The Product Marketing leader should attend the Business development and strategy sessions to ensure a basic understanding of the organization and build a relationship with new key players.   

Integration and restructuring will ultimately help to align with the new vision and strategy. This is a great opportunity to leverage the strengths and expertise of both teams and create a product marketing organization that will serve customers better. The goal is to foster collaboration, innovation, and efficiency across the product marketing organization. This is an opportunity to really step into leading by example, being welcoming, and getting the most out of the blended company.