People use products for a reason.
My main questions for every product development project that I work on are variations of “why”? Why was the product built? Why is the product needed? Why will the product continue to be needed? Why would someone choose this product over some other competitor out there? I don’t ask these questions to pester the creator, but more, to make sure that they themselves understand their “why”.
Figure out why people use your product.
Getting to “why” in the various situations above can be hard, but it’s an essential to defining the core essence of your product. You need to have a “why”. It will help you understand who uses your product, where they use it, when they’ll use it, and many other factors that will help craft other elements of your product – like its design, its development strategy, and more.
As cheesy as it might be to plug a Ted Talk, while we’re on the question “Why” I have to plug Simon Sinek:
Getting to “why” isn’t an option.
it’s an essential part of any product development strategy. If you know your why, your customers will innately ‘feel’ it. This will lead to a unified vision within your company, will reduce product confusion between key stakeholders, and will indirectly translate into greater sales and profits. It will also help keep your features and development scopes in line – because instead of running off on tangents, the “why” will act as a glowing light that keeps you on the right path. It will become the basis of your vision, and will unify your team and different business groups.
So, without further ado, can you tell me your company’s “why”? Is it at the core of your product development strategies? If it’s not, get there fast – because without a solid “why,” you’ll be left wondering “how” things got so far from your original goal!