Why Product Marketing only lives (and dies) in B2B tech with Garrett Jestice

Product marketing is marketing at it's purest form (not our words) —but only if we redefine what marketing actually means. Garrett Jestice, founder of Prelude, explains why tech companies get marketing backwards, how AI shifts risk from building to selling, and why messy go-to-market isn't a channel problem—it's a foundational problem. We dive into the CPG vs. SaaS marketing divide, why founders don't get PMM, and the brutal truth about connecting your work to revenue. Spoiler: If you can't explain who you're selling to and why, more ads won't save you.More from this convo...Why product marketers are the "purest form of marketing" (but tech ruined it) • The CPG lesson that every SaaS company needs to learn • How AI is making "can we build it?" irrelevant • Why your messy GTM isn't a lead problem—it's a foundation problem • The Cheerios brand manager approach to product marketing • How tech companies segmented marketing into irrelevance • The brutal truth about connecting PMM work to revenue • Why early-stage companies are PMM paradise • The "small wins" strategy for proving PMM value • How to sell yourself internally (when founders don't get it) • Why more ads won't fix your broken positioningTimestamps 00:00 Introduction & First Redheaded Guest01:00 Guest Introduction: Garrett Jestice, Prelude Founder02:00 The Big Question: Are Product Marketers Actually Marketers?02:30 "Purest Form of Marketers" But Not Today's Definition03:00 The CPG Background: Cheerios at General Mills04:00 Brand Managers as General Managers04:30 CPG vs. Tech: Where the Real Risk Lives05:00 AI Shifting Risk from Building to Selling06:00 The Minneapolis Connection07:00 Physical Products vs. Digital "Ones and Zeros"09:00 The Segmentation Problem in Tech Marketing11:00 Product Team vs. Marketing Team Divide13:00 Why Founders Don't Understand PMM15:00 The Language Barrier with Engineering Founders17:00 Building in Public & Personal Branding19:00 Rapid Fire Round Begins21:00 Worst Marketing Advice Stories23:00 Budget Allocation Debates25:00 The AI Hype Cycle Discussion27:00 Personal Branding for PMMs29:00 The Newsletter Renaissance31:00 SEO in the AI Age33:00 Career Journey: CPG to SaaS35:00 Founding Prelude Agency37:00 Early-Stage Company Focus39:00 The Foundation Problem in GTM41:00 Working with Founders Who Don't Get It43:00 Getting Wins in Their Language (Revenue)45:00 Connecting PMM Work to Revenue47:00 Small Wins Strategy49:00 Messy GTM Execution Fix50:00 Channels vs. Foundations51:00 How to Sell Consulting Internally52:00 Closing & Where to Find GarrettHosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.