What makes up product development?
One way I look at product development is by making sure I have 4 major areas covered.
Practice Product-Market Fit as a disciple
First and foremost understand the customer and their underserved needs. That’s the whole point of Product-Market Fit
How do you get started?
Item number one: software
Let me qualify that this document is about software companies. Software is made up of product design which again takes into account the customer. UI UX and the most difficult task of launching and minimum viable product. Get these topics focused and you have the basic bones to creating software. Sure, you need a team, etc. That little detail. But for real, you need software pointed in the direction of problem set thinking. What problems are you solving?
Item number two: A creative framework. Creativity can be defined in many ways but a team that is happy, open to experiences, and understands a balance of Brand Value and Brand Equity will go a long way. Maybe it’s just easier to say and an empathetic team that is creative. If your company understands who they are and where they and you are building products according to the mission and vision you’re in a great space.
Item number three: Progression of value. I think this is often a misunderstood and forgotten concept. Many people fall short on how far they can stretch the product because it has not been folded into a creative process. One classic example is a farmer making coffee beans. Isn’t it too bad that that farmer could also be the person that invented Starbucks? Why has Uber stuck to just people and delivery in food? They built an amazing distribution Network. Progression of Value means you are adding to the value of your product and usually through a very creative process.
Item number four: business sustainability. Balancing brand equity and brand value according to cost-volume-profit analysis is critical. Are you a short term business or in it for the long(ish) term? Are you building something that people really desire? You can’t fake this and they’re certain ways to manage this a lot better.
All four items lead to a solid plan for product development. Of course, don’t ignore the obvious details around resource allocation, talent management, and making sure you have a business that’s viable.
Product-Market Fit fits well into the above four items. If you’re not practicing these four items it just makes Product-Market Fit that much more difficult. At Stealth Dog Labs, we focus on making Product-Market Fit smoother for both Product and Market teams. We seek to make the entire process faster by making areas that were qualitatively supported by data-driven initiatives. We reduce cycles and product development cost by digitizing the underserved needs of customers having a clear view of why people decide, which allows the organization to flourish, go faster, reduce cost, and be set up for growth.