10 Pillars of Effective Product Discovery: Essential Principles for discovering Winning Product

Why Is Product Discovery Important?

As Product Managers work towards solving complex problems, we often find ourselves relying on complex systems to power our solutions. However, this comes with its own set of challenges, especially for product teams

Consider the following, as product managers, one of our main challenges is to discover in detail what the customer solution needs to be. It's not just about identifying the demand for the solution, but also creating a solution that caters to both our customers and our business. It's even harder to come up with a single solution that works for multiple customers, without creating a series of customised offerings.

Second, we also need to ensure that the product team delivers a robust and scalable implementation that our customers can rely on for consistent value.

It is best described by Marty Cagan:

“So, we need to learn fast, yet also release with confidence.”

These goals might seem at odds with each other, as we are in a hurry to push out solutions to learn what works and what doesn't. At the same time, we want to avoid releasing something that's not ready for prime time and risking damage to our brand and hurting our customers.

You might also recognise this dilemma when we talk about minimum viable product (MVP). On one hand we want to push the MVP out in front of customers asap to get customer feedback and learn. On the other hand, stakeholders may feel that the product is not representative of the brand or company, and therefore, not ready for launch.

To have a successful product, it needs to be reliable, consistent, scalable, and performant. However, doing all this work before determining if it's the right solution for customers can lead to product failure and wasted effort. This is where product discovery comes in.

The purpose of product discovery is to gather evidence that the solution is the right one before asking engineers to build a production-quality product so that valuable engineering resources won’t be wasted on unproven products. Great product discovery solves the first challenge of learning fast while minimising impact to the second challenge, i.e. product delivery.

Product discovery also allows us to address these critical risks:

Value risk (Will the customer buy this, or choose to use it?)

Example: A PM at a furniture company is considering launching a new line of eco-friendly chairs. The product manager needs to assess if customers are willing to pay a higher price for the chairs because of their environmental benefits.

Usability risk (Can the user figure out how to use it?) Example: A PM at a software company is designing a new mobile app. She needs to ensure that the app is easy to use for a diverse user base with varying levels of technical expertise.

Feasibility risk (Can we build it?)

Example: A PM at a hardware company is considering launching a new product that requires the development of a new type of sensor technology. The PM needs to assess if the technology is feasible to develop and can be produced at scale within budget.

Business viability risk (Does this solution work for our business?)

Example: A PM at a retail company is considering launching a new online ordering platform. She needs to assess if the platform's revenue potential justifies the investment required to build and maintain it. She also needs to make sure that the platform aligns with the company's overall business strategy.

Now that we discussed why Product Discovery is important, let’s go deeper into the 10 Pillars of Effective Product Discovery to uncover the principles or best practice to discover what the customers need:

Pillar 1 Customer DON’t Know Best

Ironically our end users, or our customer does not know the best solution for their needs most of the time. As product managers, we cannot rely solely on our customers to dictate what we should build. This is because customers are often unaware of what's possible, and in the realm of technology products, we may not know what we want until we see it.

For instance, before the iPhone was launched, consumers did not know they wanted a smartphone with a touch screen and a virtual keyboard. It was the innovation of Apple's design team that envisioned a product that would change the mobile phone industry. As product managers, we need to anticipate customer needs and desires, while also taking risks and pushing boundaries to create products that can truly transform the market.

Pillar 2 Get Customer Validation

As product managers, it's crucial to validate our ideas by getting feedback from real users and customers. Often, we fall into the trap of assuming we know what our customers want based on market research or our own experiences. However, it's essential to validate our ideas with real users before investing time and resources in building the actual product.

For example, a PM at a fitness app company might assume that users want a feature that tracks steps taken during exercise. However, after testing the feature with real users, they might discover that users prefer a feature that tracks calories burned instead. By validating the idea with real users early on, the product manager can make informed decisions and create a product that truly meets the customers' needs.

Therefore, if we want to create great products, it's essential to prioritise user feedback and involve them in the development process from the start. By doing so, we can create products that are truly valuable and useful for our customers.

Pillar 3 Many Ideas Don’t Work

We need to understand that not all of our ideas will be successful, and the ones that do succeed will require multiple iterations. to quote Marc Andreessen, “The most important thing is to know what you can’t know,” and we can’t know in advance which of our ideas will work with customers and which won’t, so we approach product discovery with full expectation that most of our ideas won’t work

For example, a PM at a music streaming company may have an idea to add a social media feature that allows users to share their playlists with friends. However, after several iterations, the team realises that the feature is too complicated and doesn't add enough value for users. They pivot to a new idea, allowing users to create custom radio stations based on their favourite songs, which turns out to be a hit with users.

The key is to be open to exploring new ideas and pivoting when necessary. Failure is not necessarily a bad thing, as long as we learn from it and use those learnings to improve our products.

Pillar 4 Go Cheap

Because most of our ideas won’t work, in product discovery, our aim is to quickly and cost-effectively validate our ideas. The key is speed - we want to test out as many ideas as possible and explore multiple approaches for the most promising ones.

However, we must also be mindful of the different types of risks that our products may face, such as value, usability, feasibility, and business risks. To address these risks, we must use a range of techniques that are suitable for each unique situation. By leveraging the right techniques and moving quickly, we can increase our chances of discovering great products that meet the needs of our customers and drive business success.

Pillar 5 Establishing Compelling Value

One of the biggest challenges in product development is creating a compelling value proposition that resonates with customers. It's not enough to just have a product that works well or looks good; customers need to see the value in it and choose to buy or use it.

While usability and performance issues can be addressed over time, without a strong value proposition, the product is likely to fail. This is why a significant amount of time and effort is spent on discovering and validating the core value proposition of a product.

For example, a meal delivery service may need to conduct extensive research and experimentation to determine what value proposition will convince customers to choose their service over competitors.

Pillar 6 Good UX Make or Kill a Product

As challenging as engineering can be, creating a good user experience is usually even more difficult, and it's essential for a product's success. Even though engineering is critical to building a functional product, it's not always enough to make a product that people will use and love.

The product design team is responsible for making sure that the product is intuitive, easy to use, and visually appealing. However, not all product teams have the necessary design skills or use them effectively. By prioritising the user experience and investing in skilled designers, product teams can create products that users will love and want to use again and again.

For example, Apple's products are renowned for their sleek design and user-friendly interfaces, which is a significant factor in their popularity and success.

Pillar 7 Functionality, Design and Technology are Connected

In today's world, technology is not just a tool that enables functionality, but it's also a driver of design. Design, in turn, enables functionality. This symbiotic relationship is visible in numerous examples around us, such as smartphones.

Therefore, it's essential for the product manager, product designer, and tech lead to work closely together to ensure that technology, design, and functionality are all intertwined and complement each other. This is why we should advocate for physical proximity between these three roles, as it promotes collaboration and ensures that all three aspects are considered in the development process. Without the integration of technology, design, and functionality, a product is likely to fall short of user expectations.

Pillar 8: Feasibility First

During the product discovery phase, it is crucial to validate the feasibility of our ideas as early as possible. If the first time your developers hear about an idea is during the sprint planning, it is already too late. It is essential to ensure the feasibility before committing resources to build the product.

By involving the engineering team early on, we can avoid wasting time and resources on ideas that are not feasible. Furthermore, involving engineers in the discovery process can lead to more innovative solutions and improved collaboration between the different teams. Ultimately, validating feasibility during discovery leads to shared learning and a better chance of success for the product.

Pillar 9: Business Viability First

In addition to validating the feasibility of our ideas, it's equally important to ensure that the solution we build aligns with our business needs. This includes considering financial, marketing, legal, and other senior executive aspects before committing resources to building a product.

Without understanding these crucial business aspects, product managers risk building a product that doesn't meet the company's goals, which can result in lost resources, lost opportunities, and damaged morale. By incorporating business viability considerations into product discovery, we can avoid costly mistakes and build products that are not only technically feasible but also aligned with our business objectives.

For example, a company developing a new software tool must ensure that it's not only technically feasible but also aligned with their go-to-market strategy and budget constraints.

Pillar 10: Learn and Grow Together

Building a cohesive and dedicated team can make all the difference in the success of a project. By creating a culture of shared learning, team members can work together to understand the customer's pain points, develop effective solutions, and ultimately create a better product. This approach can lead to a team of "missionaries" who are passionate about their work and dedicated to achieving success together.

When team members learn together, they are more likely to have a shared understanding of the project's goals, challenges, and opportunities. This makes it easier to work collaboratively and efficiently, ultimately leading to better outcomes for the team and the organisation.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the principles of product discovery are critical to the success of any product development effort. By validating ideas, creating compelling value, focusing on user experience, and ensuring feasibility and business viability, product teams can improve their chances of creating products that meet customer needs and achieve business objectives.

By working together, sharing knowledge and learning from failures, teams can also foster a culture of innovation and collaboration, which can lead to better products and better outcomes.

In next week’s post, we will focus on the various techniques used in Product Discovery, including techniques for discovery framing, planning, ideation, prototyping and testing.

What other principles do you think we should bear in mind when discovering the next winning product? Comment below to share your thoughts.