A Product Specialist is a dynamic job in product development and product marketing areas. As the name suggests, a Product Specialist understands the product a company sells very well. Therefore, they oversee everything about the product – from the beginning till the end.
Let’s take a closer look at this job position.
What Is A Product Specialist?
With the changing consumer needs, companies must adopt by constantly improving their products to respond to the changing needs. The product specialist works with both the production and marketing teams to ensure excellent product delivery.
The product specialist must have a wealth of knowledge and concepts on the product. Their product knowledge should be based on a strong education background in the relevant field and intensive industry experience handling the product. The product specialist must analyze market trends, develop the bestselling and distribution channel, ensure fair pricing, and recommend improvements to the product to enhance customer experience.
The product specialist must be passionate about the product they are selling and be enthusiasts in customer service.
Further, the product specialist must be passionate about product development and constantly seek ways to improve branding, packaging, distribution, or supply chain logistics to enhance customer experience.
The product specialist must be a strong team player since he acts as a liaison between customer expectations or demands and the production team.
What Does A Product Specialist Do?
The primary role of a product specialist is to monitor the product life cycle and design the strategies to ensure the growth and sustainability of the product at every stage of the life cycle.
At the product initiation or launch phase, the product specialist must work with marketers to create awareness about the existence of the product. At the growth stage of the product life cycle, the product specialist must work with the supply chain, marketers, and production to ensure all orders are made and delivered on time.
During the slow growth phase, the product specialist must work with customers to create a strong referral network to stimulate demand for the product.
Further, during this phase, the product specialist must work with production to rebrand, change the packaging and other elements of the product to stimulate demand. During the decline stage, the product specialist must decide whether to rebrand the product or phase it out of the market.
The product specialist must be a great communicator to work with the different teams.
At each stage of the product, the specialist must know the appropriate strategy to implement and communicate the strategy to the relevant team.
Product Specialist Job Description Sample
The primary goal of a product specialist is to manage the production, marketing, and distribution of a product at every stage of the product’s life cycle. For instance, during the launching phase, the product specialist must work with marketers to create awareness about the product’s existence. Thus, they must develop appropriate product launching strategies like influencer marketing, roadshows, product activations, free samples, or radio and TV adverts.
As the product penetration increases in the market and the demand for the product increases, the product specialist shifts their attention from marketing to maintaining the supply chain of the product. Thus, they should work with the production team to enhance the delivery of the product, both timely and cost-effectively.
If there are some attributes of the product that complicates the distribution, like the design or raw materials used in manufacture, the product specialist works with production to adjust such features.
Product Specialist Job Responsibilities
- Establishing the pricing guidelines and strategies for a new product.
- Obtaining customer’s feedback and giving recommendations to the production team for product revisions.
- Co-ordinate with production and manufacturing teams in product development activities.
- Recommending the product enhancements required to meet changing customer needs.
- Supporting the marketing team in designing the appropriate marketing strategies for the product at different product cycle stages.
- Co-coordinating with the marketing team to organize product training.
- Providing support in designing the marketing materials, advertising materials, marketing campaigns, resources for trade shows, and other marketing activities.
- Addressing the customer’s concerns and complaints in a timely manner.
- Staying updated with product knowledge, market dynamic, and sales process relating to the product.
- Maintaining the documentation for all information and activities related to the product.
Product Specialist Required Skills
- Bachelor degree in business management with specialization in operation management
- Strong understanding of the product features, including specification, performance, and technical capacity.
- Ability to remember critical details like product features and specifications.
- Ability to articulate product features and conduct demonstrations that are engaging and inspiring.
- Strong communication skills, both verbal and written.
- Ability to work under pressure and meet strict datelines.
Position reports to:
- Product Manager
- Product Marketing Manager
- Product Engineer
How Much Does a Product Specialist Make?
Based on an average of seven job search/salary research websites, the starting salary of a Product Specialist is $40,943/year in the USA, while the average salary is $64,963, and the higher paid ones make $104,190.
In Conclusion
A Product Specialist works as the product’s soul. Their job is to ensure that the products launched in the market are as per the consumer base’s requirements and expectations.
It is also because of the Product Specialist that the product developed connecting various areas of the company.
This Product Specialist job description sample will help you create a job application to attract the best-qualified candidates for the role. Feel free to use this outline for you and your company’s hiring purposes.
Ensure to send your comments and needs for whatever improvements you suggest to this Product Specialist job description. Also, let us know if you need help on any other similar job posting, and we will post it here as soon as possible.
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