5 Reasons Marketing Should Be Included in Your Software Development Team

Marketing is at the heart of your business and is essential if you want to build a successful company. One of the biggest mistakes a company can make in the early stages of development is overlooking the importance of marketing. When marketing is included in your development process, you will avoid certain challenges that may arise as you prepare to launch your product. Here are five reasons marketing should be included in your team.

1. Competitive Research. Understanding your competition is a crucial business activity. Including marketing in your software development team will help you figure out who your competitors are and what they have to offer early on. Your marketing team can easily find information about your competition using the internet, public records, or business databases. Without in-depth research, you will have a difficult time positioning your product(s) in the marketplace. Having someone with experience in marketing on your development team will ensure that your business approaches development strategically. However, it’s important to note that gathering competitive intelligence is a skill and not everyone can do it well. So if you don’t already have someone with a background in marketing, you may have to add a new staff member to your team or hire a consultant. A marketing expert on your team will keep track of what competitors are doing, and help you figure out how you can do it better. After analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of your competition, you can then narrow down what features you must include in your product to stand out from them. Competitive research doesn’t stop there; it must be an ongoing effort. Companies are constantly changing their messaging and adding new features to their products. Your team’s marketing expert will stay on top of any changes that may affect the way you build or message your product.

2. Product Naming. Naming your product is a crucial part of strategically branding your product. You need a unique name that will stand out, grab people’s attention, and showcase what makes your product special. Having a marketing expert as a part of your team will help you come up with the perfect name. Someone with expertise will know what works and doesn’t work when it comes to naming a product. If you choose not to have an expert on your team, you might end up with a product name that is too literal, cliché, or just plain bad. Overlooking advice from an expert could cause you pain in the long run, especially when it comes to creating the right messaging and marketing content for your product. Having the right name will support the success of your product and overall growth of your company.

3. Potential Customers. In addition to researching your competitors, you must also research your target market. Identifying who your potential customers will be is an important part of the development process. After all, these will be the people that will make or break your business. Without expert advice, you may overlook certain demographics when considering who will be interested in buying your product. A marketer will help you narrow your focus, and create strategies to appeal to specific targets. For example, he/she could create marketing and user profiles that would list the traits, demographics, and interests your potential customers may have. This way, you can ensure that your product will serve the needs of your customers. Your marketing expert will understand that customers must be involved in the development of the product and not just the launch. If you fail to conduct thorough research on the needs and wants of your customers, you run the risk of failure. If your product doesn’t appeal to particular targets, those customers will buy from your competitors. The marketing expert on your team will have experience in this type of research and will provide crucial guidance and advice to help your product launch successfully.

4. Marketing Content. Creating compelling content is no easy task, but it is crucial when it comes to marketing your product. People are always searching for information, so your content must speak to the needs of your customers. If marketing experts are included early in the development process, they will be able to truly understand your product and write content that will inform and educate customers about your product. Your marketing expert will know who you’re targeting and what to write to appeal to them.When writing product descriptions, it is important that the marketer understands the true functionality of your product. If you choose not to include marketing from the beginning, you may run into issues creating effective content.Also, a marketing expert will know the proper mix of different forms of marketing. For instance, the marketer will share with you the importance of creating a website, using social media, and including platforms, you might have otherwise overlooked.

5. Longevity. As mentioned before, marketing is an ongoing effort. You must be able to stay ahead of your competition by running various campaigns to promote your product. If you want your business to last, you need to constantly conduct research, engage with customers, and create compelling content. Marketing is a crucial investment for any business pursuing long-term success.

The reality is; you’re going to have to market your product at a certain point. But why wait to do so till the end? The earlier you begin to create content and conduct research, the better and more effective your marketing will be. If you bring in an expert early on, they will help you grow your product from just an idea to a marketable product. By being involved throughout the development process, they will gain a true understanding of your product and be able to tailor messaging and content to appeal to your target customers. Marketing done correctly will lead to higher product sales and overall company growth, something all companies strive for.