Build Platform Messaging Like a Blue Manta PMM
Remember when Netflix was just a DVD-by-mail rental service? Or when Apple only sold computers? Every giant brand started with a single, simple product story, but once you expand with more offerings, the narrative gets messy fast. Most PMMs face this brutal reality: you've built something genuinely valuable that solves multiple problems, but explaining it without confusing everyone feels impossible. You're stuck in the platform storytelling paradox where companies either lose deals or leave massive opportunities untapped.
Jonathan Pipek and Craig Brown join us as two experts who've cracked this code across dozens of companies. Jonathan is the founder of Blue Manta Consulting, having built PMM departments from scratch and mentored over 90 PMMs across 20 countries. Craig is the founder of Troubadour, the UK's first dedicated product marketing consultancy for B2B tech, and founding product marketer at fast-growing startups like Beamery and Invisible. Together, they walk us through a transformative case study where they helped a European legal tech company transition from single product story to platform narrative whilst entering the US market.
Their process reveals a five-step playbook for platform storytelling that actually sticks, starting with comprehensive internal alignment and market research before building flexible messaging frameworks. Jonathan emphasizes handling the potential sales cycle slowdowns that accompany strategic shifts, whilst Craig focuses on creating messages centered on problem-solving and clear benefits rather than feature lists. The key insight? Platform storytelling is as much an internal alignment process as it is an external marketing exercise.
We also dive into our messaging critique of Metomic's data privacy solutions, where Jonathan and Craig illustrate how subtle shifts in language and strategic positioning transform overly technical narratives into clear, compelling stories aligned with customer pain points. Their experience proves that platform messaging isn't just strategic repositioning but crafting stories that resonate internally and externally, guiding companies toward future growth whilst maintaining what made the original story work.
LINKS
Metomic (messaging critique): https://www.metomic.io/
Connect with Jonathan:
Connect with Craig:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/craigobrown
Connect with Elle:
Website: www.productmarketingadventures.com
