I developed a single-sheet battle card at Yammer to aid sales people and customer success managers with what was at face-value a sticky-wicket. Many of Yammer’s customers were already using Salesforce.com, and were given it essentially for free. We and their users knew our product was better, and worth every penny, but not every person in the customers’ decision chains were quite so knowledgeable or passionate about Enterprise Social Networking. The simple explanations of complex diferentiation in this battle sheet helped our CSMs stay focused on a consistent message—one we knew worked and were comfortable with long-term.

My deep attention to detail allows me to create documentation that never leaves users wondering what will happen next. The Active Directory Sync admin guide I wrote at Yammer enabled our customers to install and configure the complex tool with minimal hand-holding, even when our customers assigned wet-behind-the-ear admins to the complex task.

Making everyone happy is impossible, and at CADENCE magazine, my job was to serve the readers, not our sales team. Yet I felt I was doing our readers a disservice if I didn't do a thorough job, which included carefully evaluating what the products’ manufacturers cared enough about to have their PR and product managers brief me on. The results were predictable: a few advertisers were very unhappy, and nearly all of the readers were thrilled, because I helped them make the right decision for their needs.

I can do the same for your products—in private—at any stage of their development. My Private Product Reviews will teach you where reviewers and technology bloggers are likely to find fault with your creation, and where the hidden treasures are that you can promote to counter the negativity.