Here's how you can confidently champion your ideas and proposals as a product marketer.

Before speaking up confidently about your ideas and proposals, one should have the clarity about his technical product knowledge in and out, then showcase and demonstrate your thorough articulated research facts behind your ideas.Your hold on product knowledge will not only impress but also reassure internal stakeholders that you have a firm grasp on the product's potential impact.

To confidently champion your ideas and proposals as a product marketer, ensure you deeply understand your product, craft a compelling narrative, back your claims with data, actively listen to feedback, and demonstrate how your proposals align with business goals and customer needs.

Really use the product. Get help if you need to, but use it. Challenge it and try it on different things. If it's software, set up an integration or explore the nitty gritty options by clicking through the software. Also ask critical questions. Like, take LinkedIn's collaborative articles for example. Consider why it asks such fundamental questions more than once or bothers to rephrase/spin the wording from time to time. See if the questions it generates are a tad too generic – why does it produce these questions? Are they themselves reflective of questions people are actually asking? And if so, what *level* of question is it (beginner/interm./advanced, etc.)? Even if you can't find the answers, you will have delved into the product.

As a product marketer, you help strengthen the product strategy for your product management partner. That partnership relies on you having different, but equal understanding of the customer problems your product solves and the value it delivers (or fails to deliver). Being a great voice of the market to the product and voice of the product to the market is your super power. Use it wisely.

Any time I propose a new idea within my company, I try my best to follow the following framework to reflect on and emphasize a few very important things: - Identify what we have/have not done in the past and its impact on where we are today - What we're currently doing today and the risk(s) we assume by sticking with the status quo - How the idea being proposed can guide us in a positive direction and why I feel this way Approaching your ideas with this framework not only positions you to inform stakeholders and make them aware of the bigger picture but it forces you to take a more critical look at your idea.

Having a complete perspective of the market (industry experts, customers, competitors, partners) is the key to truly understanding needs and how well your product meets them. Be sure to focus on higher-level value that stem from a feature or group of features and you're on your way to a compelling pitch.

Develop a clear and concise message that highlights the key benefits and value of your proposal. Use storytelling techniques to make your message engaging and memorable. Structure your presentation logically, ensuring that each point builds on the previous one and leads to a strong conclusion.

I've often used user journeys to help start crafting the message for a new idea. That journey includes the challenge (size, frequency, persona), any alternatives that are typically used, the negative consequences faced, and how your product produces more positive outcomes.

Garner support from key stakeholders early in the process. Share your ideas informally with colleagues, gather feedback, and refine your proposal based on their input. Building a coalition of supporters increases the credibility of your proposal and helps in addressing potential objections.

In order to validate your idea practice your pitch first with key influencers in the company. They can pave the way to improving the pitch or directing it toward those stakeholders who will help execute upon it.

When presenting, it's crucial to convey your passion and confidence, as this can positively influence your audience, including skeptics and undecided stakeholders. Using storytelling to frame your product can engage listeners on an emotional level, making your message more compelling. Being well-prepared to address questions and concerns demonstrates your commitment and can inspire others to support your vision, increasing the likelihood of your proposal's advancement. Eg: if you're presenting a new tech gadget, you could start with a story about how the idea came to be, highlighting the challenges you faced and how this gadget solves a significant problem, weaving in demonstrations and potential impacts to keep the audience engaged.

This is a broad topic, but if you are looking to become a more confident presenter, I would recommend checking out Toastmasters. Beyond presentation skills, if you want to advance your ideas, you need to build strong relationships with your stakeholders. Establish credibility by displaying knowledge and bringing value to their department. Show empathy and ask questions to understand their goals. Once you have earned respect and you recognize motivations among stakeholders, tailor your pitch to their needs and describe how it will benefit them.