Student story: Christos Zafeiridis

About you

I have been working in digital marketing, specializing in performance advertising and business analytics since 2013.

Throughout this period I had the opportunity to expose myself to all kinds of business environments from startups to multinational companies advertising from both agency and in-house side.

My professional journey has taken me to three different countries—Greece, Slovakia, and the UK—where I actively engaged in performance marketing projects. I've been involved in every aspect, from hands-on implementation to strategic planning and people management. These projects have ranged from 4 to 7-digit monthly budgets, targeting highly competitive markets such as the US, UK, Australia, and the EU.

How did you decide becoming a PM?

Nearly a year ago, Joseph Fitzgibbon's LinkedIn post sparked a profound shift in my perspective on the future of Performance Marketing as an industry.

He outlined the imperative for Performance Marketers to expand their knowledge base, not only to remain relevant in the evolving market but also to enhance the value we bring to our partners.

Joseph advocated for a focus on the digital product aspect of our work, urging us to broaden our vision beyond traffic and acquisitions.

The core idea is to explore ways to improve the product itself, ultimately enhancing critical business KPIs such as lifetime value, churn minimization, and conversion rates.

Inspired by this vision, I delved into extensive reading and started following industry experts, with Angelos Mouzakitis being a significant influence. Angelos's content provided the extra push I needed to elevate my understanding.

I firmly believe that growth product management, particularly in the context of performance marketing, is an evergreen skill crucial for the future. As AI gradually takes on more operational tasks, there's a tremendous opportunity for us to increase our value by deep diving into the intricacies of the products we promote—understanding their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

While I can't imagine a morning without checking Google and Meta to monitor my accounts, I am prepared to embrace change. The prospect of evolving into a growth product manager is on the horizon, and only time will reveal if, when, and how this will happen. Regardless, my commitment is unwavering—I aim to continue adding maximum value to my partners in this dynamic landscape.

What did you like in the job as you experienced it through the course?

Honestly, all the different aspects of the job are highly interesting to me. If I had to pick a few of them that intricated me the most I would go with the ones below:

User and Market Research for Problem Discovery: This is truly eye-opening. The methodologies that can be employed in uncovering opportunities and threats via a well-conducted research process can prove significant.

Prototyping & Testing Solutions: The intricacies of developing and testing prototypes bring an exhilarating complexity to the job. Managing resources and mitigating risks in this phase can be both challenging and rewarding, adding an exciting strategic dimension to the process.

Customer Feedback for Optimization: Actively listening to our user and customer base can be crucial. Understanding their perspectives not only has an immediate impact on optimization but can also prove invaluable for long-term business strategy.

What will be your next steps after the course?

In the immediate future, I plan to synergize my proficiency in performance marketing and analytics with my newfound product management insights learned from Aggelos through the Product Led Academy.

This integration is aimed at making me the best performance professional that I can be ensuring that I can contribute even more tangible business value to my partners.

The combination of these skill sets is anticipated to enhance my ability to optimize advertising strategies through a deeper understanding of the products I'm promoting.

Hopefully, this holistic perspective will not only refine my decision-making process but also allow me to devise innovative solutions to challenges that may span across business, product development, and marketing.

Finally, I don't plan to stop expanding my product management know-how. I will constantly aim to improve it as I do with my performance marketing skills. Building your own product program from Aggelos and the product-led academy will be for sure one of my next steps.