Module 4: Execution & Collaboration

A brilliant story and a data-driven strategy are meaningless without seamless execution. This module provides the operational framework for orchestrating the complex, cross-functional work of a product launch. It establishes clear ownership, defines shared artifacts, and creates a system for fluid collaboration between Product, Marketing, and all other key teams.

Roles & Responsibilities Across the Launch Lifecycle (RACI Framework)

To eliminate confusion, prevent tasks from falling through the cracks, and ensure clear ownership, teams must use a responsibility assignment matrix. The most effective and widely used is the RACI framework. It is a simple yet powerful tool for clarifying roles by defining who is Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed for each key deliverable in the launch process.

• Responsible (R): The person or team who does the work. They are the "doers."
• Accountable (A): The one individual who is ultimately answerable for the correct and thorough completion of the task. This person has veto power and makes the final decision. The most critical rule of RACI is that there can only be one Accountable person per task to avoid the diffusion of responsibility.
• Consulted (C): Subject matter experts whose input and feedback are sought. This is a two-way communication channel.
• Informed (I): People who are kept up-to-date on progress but are not directly involved in the task. This is a one-way communication.

The following matrix provides a definitive, actionable chart that delineates the roles of Product, Marketing, and other key teams across the entire launch lifecycle. This table should serve as the cornerstone of inter-team alignment for any product launch. Table: The Unified Product Launch RACI Matrix

Launch Phase & Key Tasks	Product Management (PM)	Product Marketing (PMM)	Sales	Customer Support	Engineering
1. Discovery & Validation
Problem & Market Validation	A	C	C	C	I
Market Sizing & Opportunity Analysis	C	A	I	I	I
2. Story & Messaging
Define Core "Why" (Golden Circle)	A	R	I	I	I
Craft Narrative & Messaging House	C	A	C	C	I
Competitive Positioning	R	A	C	I	I
3. Pre-Launch
GTM Strategy & Plan	C	A	C	C	I
Pricing & Packaging	A	R	C	I	I
Launch Tier Planning (Beta, etc.)	A	R	I	C	R
Create Marketing Assets (Blog, Ads)	I	A	I	I	I
Sales & Support Enablement	C	A	R	R	I
4. Launch
Product Release to Production	C	I	I	I	A
Execute Marketing Campaign	I	A	I	I	I
External Comms (Press, Social)	I	A	I	I	I
First-Line Customer Response	I	C	R	A	C
5. Post-Launch
Analyze User Behavior & Feedback	A	C	C	C	R
Measure & Report on GTM Metrics	C	A	I	I	I
Iterate on Messaging & Campaigns	I	A	C	C	I
Gather Testimonials & Case Studies	I	A	R	R	I

Team Alignment & Enablement

A GTM strategy is only as good as the team's ability to execute it. Proactive and comprehensive enablement for customer-facing teams is not optional; it is a prerequisite for success.

Sales Enablement: Arming the Front Lines

The sales team must be equipped with the knowledge, confidence, and materials to sell the new product effectively from the moment it launches.

Essential Sales Enablement Materials Checklist:

• Internal-Facing Content:
  • Sales Playbook: A comprehensive guide detailing the sales process for the new product, including target personas, key messaging, discovery questions, and sales stages.
  • Competitive Battlecards: Concise, scannable documents that outline key differentiators, strengths, and weaknesses against top competitors, along with pre-approved responses to common objections.
  • Product Demo Script: A structured script (not word-for-word) that guides reps through a compelling, persona-based product demonstration, linking features to customer value.
  • Objection Handling Guide: A document that anticipates common prospect objections (regarding price, features, timing, etc.) and provides effective, tested rebuttals.
  • Pricing & Packaging Guide: An internal guide that clearly explains the pricing tiers, what is included in each, and the discounting and negotiation guardrails.
• External-Facing Content:
  • Customer Pitch Deck: The primary presentation used in sales conversations, visually telling the product's story and value proposition.
  • Product One-Pagers/Solution Briefs: Concise, leave-behind documents that summarize the product's benefits and features for a specific use case.
  • Case Studies & Testimonials: Social proof from beta customers or design partners demonstrating the product's real-world value.
  • Explainer Videos: Short (under 2 minutes) videos that can be used in email outreach or on the website to quickly explain the product.

Enablement Training: Beyond materials, effective enablement involves hands-on training. Teams should conduct mock demo sessions and role-playing exercises to build rep confidence and ensure message consistency before they engage with live prospects.

Customer Support Enablement: Preparing for Inbound

When a new product launches, the customer support team is the first line of defense. An unprepared support team leads to frustrated customers and a damaged brand reputation. A proactive support enablement plan is therefore critical.

Customer Support Enablement Plan:

1. Integrate Support into the Development Process: Support should be involved early, providing feedback on the product from a customer's perspective and anticipating common questions or points of confusion.
2. Conduct Dedicated Training Sessions: Before launch, the product and product marketing teams must hold dedicated training sessions for the support team. These should cover not just what the product does, but why it exists, its key use cases, and how to troubleshoot common issues.
3. Create an Internal FAQ/Knowledge Base: Develop a comprehensive, living internal document that support agents can reference for answers to anticipated customer questions. This should be easily searchable and updated in real-time as new issues emerge post-launch.
4. Establish Clear Escalation Paths: Define the process for how the support team should escalate complex technical bugs or product feedback to the engineering and product teams.
5. Set Up a Launch-Day War Room/Comms Channel: Create a dedicated Slack or Teams channel for launch day where support, product, and engineering can communicate in real-time to quickly resolve emergent issues.

The Internal Kick-Off

Before any external announcement, a successful GTM plan includes a company-wide internal kick-off meeting. This is a critical alignment ritual. The purpose is to present the final GTM strategy to the entire company, share the product story and messaging, demonstrate the final product, and review the launch timeline and goals. This ensures every employee, from engineering to finance, understands the "why" behind the launch and feels like a part of its success, generating internal excitement and a unified front.

Key Collaborative Artifacts

To operationalize the RACI framework and ensure seamless execution, teams must rely on a set of shared, living documents. These artifacts serve as the single source of truth for the entire launch, preventing siloes and ensuring everyone is working from the same playbook. They are co-owned and consistently updated throughout the launch process.

• The GTM Brief: This is the master strategy document for the launch. It should be co-authored by the Product Marketing Manager (who is Accountable) and the Product Manager (who is Consulted). This brief synthesizes all the components from the GTM Checklist in Module 3 into a single, shareable plan that provides a comprehensive overview for all stakeholders. An effective GTM brief includes:
  • Launch Overview, Goals, and Success Metrics
  • Target Audience (ICP) and the Core Problem Statement
  • Market Positioning Statement
  • The Complete Messaging House
  • Pricing, Packaging, and Launch Tier Plan
  • Multi-Channel Distribution Plan and Key Activities
  • Budget and Resource Allocation
• The Messaging House: As detailed in Module 2, this is the canonical source for all launch-related copy and messaging. It must be stored in a universally accessible location (such as a company wiki or shared document) so that Sales, Marketing, Support, and PR teams can easily reference it to ensure absolute consistency in their communications.
• The Launch Plan & Calendar: This is the tactical execution timeline that translates the GTM Brief into a series of dated tasks with clear owners and dependencies. It is best managed in a collaborative project management tool like Asana, or a shared Gantt chart, to provide a visual representation of the entire launch sequence. This calendar should visualize all activities across all teams—Product, Marketing, Sales, PR, Support—leading up to, during, and after launch day, making dependencies and potential bottlenecks clear to everyone involved.

Key Takeaways

• Define Ownership with RACI: Use the RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) framework to eliminate confusion and ensure every task has a single, clear owner (Accountable).
• Enablement is Non-Negotiable: Proactively arm your Sales and Support teams. Sales needs playbooks and battlecards; Support needs training, internal FAQs, and clear escalation paths. They are your front lines.
• Align with an Internal Kick-Off: Before any external launch, hold a company-wide meeting to share the story, strategy, and goals. This builds internal excitement and ensures everyone is on the same page.
• Use Shared Artifacts as Your Single Source of Truth: Maintain three key living documents to keep teams aligned: the GTM Brief (the master strategy), the Messaging House (the story), and the Launch Plan & Calendar (the timeline).
• Product Marketing (PMM) is the GTM Owner: While collaboration is key, the PMM is typically accountable for the overall GTM strategy, messaging, and cross-functional alignment.

Remember This Even If You Forget Everything Else

A great strategy fails with poor execution. The key to seamless execution is clarity. Use a RACI matrix to clarify who does what, and use shared artifacts (GTM Brief, Messaging House, Launch Calendar) to ensure everyone is working from the same playbook.