Build your best marketecture

This article is based on Allie Wilson’s talk at the Product Marketing Summit in New York. As a PMA member, you can enjoy the complete recording here.

Hello, there! I'm Allie, the Executive Director and Creative Director at GhostRanch Communications. 

Today, I’m excited to dive into one of my all-time favorite topics: cake. 

Just kidding (sort of!). I could happily talk about cake all day long, but instead, I’m going to share some insights into creating the perfect marketecture slide – there will be a healthy portion of cake-related metaphors though!

Here’s what’s on the agenda: 

• We’ll start by breaking down what a marketecture actually is and why nailing it is crucial. 
• Then, we’ll tackle the inevitable challenges that come with crafting a marketecture slide.
• Next, we’ll explore the ingredients of a truly standout marketecture slide. 
• Finally, I’ll share some tips on how to make your marketecture slide as impactful as possible.

Without any further ado, let’s get into it.

What is a marketecture?

So, what exactly is a marketecture? 

You guessed it – it’s a portmanteau of “marketing” and “architecture”. This visual representation of your market offering illustrates how everything works together as a system. 

I like to think of it as a layer cake. If cake isn't your thing, you can imagine puzzle pieces or Tetris blocks instead. Each layer or piece represents an element of your market offering, all coming together in a single visual that shows how they coordinate with each other or align with specific personas.

Think of the “architecture” part as the science behind baking a cake – specific ingredients combined in just the right way to make everything work. It’s the technical foundation.

The “marketing” part is like the icing on the cake. It’s how you describe the flavors in a way that makes someone actually want to take a bite.

If that metaphor feels a bit too abstract, here’s the bottom line: marketectures were born out of the need to take complex architecture diagrams and make them more digestible for business audiences. 

How not to create a marketecture

Now, let’s talk about a common pitfall in marketecture design. Take a look at this architecture diagram. Does it look familiar? 

This was likely created by someone with a technical background aiming for 100% accuracy. They've crammed in every product, capability, and connection point – essentially everything in one place. 

But here’s the issue: it’s not telling a story. For a salesperson, this would be nearly impossible to explain, and for a customer, it’s challenging to see where they fit into this maze.

Now, let’s look at that same product offering, but reimagined as a marketecture:

You’ll notice that while there’s still a lot of information, it’s been organized in a way that makes it easier for customers to see where they fit in. There’s a story being told, and that’s the key difference between an architecture diagram and a true marketecture.

It’s easy to overcomplicate your marketecture by trying to represent all your products, services, and capabilities at once – but that’s a quick way to confuse people.

Instead, it’s better to pick one focus. If you need to layer in services along with products, that’s okay, but the goal should always be simplicity. The clearer and more focused your marketecture, the more effective it will be.

Why you need to get your marketecture right

Let’s take a moment to think about who benefits from a great marketecture.

Sales always benefits because they can use their marketecture slide to help make a sale. Marketing teams often take advantage of marketecture too. Executives can use it to discuss business strategy. And of course, the end buyer benefits because it gives them a better understanding of what they're purchasing.

So what are the stakes of having a great marketecture? Really, the question is: what happens if your marketecture sucks? 

Let's say a salesperson is presenting your marketecture and it looks like this:

As a prospect, I'd look at it and think, “That looks like a perfectly good strawberry. I know exactly what to expect from it." 

But wait, it's not a strawberry…

It’s a cake!

That strawberry exterior is just the marketing shine, the frosting on the cake that makes it look beautiful.

If your salesperson doesn't understand and explain that it's actually cake, with all its complexity and layers inside and how everything works as a system, it could become entirely misleading. They could end up oversimplifying or overcomplicating your product offering and totally confusing their audience.