How to introduce yourself as a product person - Better Introductions
I recently attended a product meetup and have to share an observation: Many of us could do a better job of introducing ourselves.
Let’s start with a real-life example:
🔴 “Hi, my name is <Your name>. I’m working for <Full complicated company name> in the <3-letter abbreviation department> and I’m a <super specific role name> for their product called <Triton / Superhero or other weird stealth name>.” ← This not helpful! We make people THINK with an introduction like this and they will not listen to our next few sentences, plus they will have the urge to end this boring conversation ASAP. And worst of all? They won’t end up remembering anything.
So, here are my tips for a better introduction:
Think about your goal for the meeting or meetup. Are you there to make new connections? Find your next job? Share something about your work? Learn from a speaker/talk? Whatever it is, ask yourself: “What should folks remember about me?”
Then, as always in product management, create a little story with your product's user in the center.
And ideally, add a call to action or mention something you would love to learn or share more about. That is what allows people to further engage with you.
So what might that look like? Here’s a better example:
🟢 “Hi, my name is <Your name—that doesn’t change!>. I work at <short company name> where we help people to <short company mission>. I hold a product role for a product that helps <user group> to <problem your product is solving>. I’m here today to <purpose / why you are attending>.”
How does that sound? Try it and use it whenever someone asks you to introduce yourself. And if necessary have two or three of these short intro texts prepared. You might need a version that you are using in company internal meetings with peers, one you use in a meetup-like situation, and one that you add to your Twitter/LinkedIn/Instagram bios.