Why is Product Strategy Important?

The success of businesses like Netflix, Facebook, Instagram, and so forth may appear to have happened overnight, but in reality, these amazing products are frequently the result of a carefully thought out product strategy.

A product idea may cross a person’s mind in the space of a millisecond, but bringing it to life, perfecting the strategy, and even establishing the ideal environment for inspiring the winning concept necessitates strategic intentionality that funnels product thought.

You can achieve the following by implementing a product strategy:

• Clearly explain the “What,” “Why,” “Who,” and “How”
• Provide your product teams with coordination and guidance during the prioritisation process.
• Support the vision of your business and products.
• It plays a crucial role in product-led growth.
• Helps with decision-making by fostering strategic thinking
• Gives the business focus

One of the most challenging work situations I have ever experienced was at a company I worked(I won’t identify it here) where neither the vision nor the product strategy had been established. We were frequently extinguishing flames. The entire product organisation lacked alignment, and decisions about which features to work on were made purely intuitively and arbitrarily. Simply put, the lack of focus left minds spinning and pivoting, unsure of where to concentrate their time, effort, and resources.

Between what the company intends to accomplish (its product vision) and how the product and engineering teams will lead it there (its product roadmap and development plan), product strategy serves as a link.

Some of the considerations you should make while developing a product strategy are:

Define your product vision

A product vision is where it all actually begins. The journey of a product is defined by product strategy. Like any journey, you must have a clear notion of your destination. Many product teams believe that product vision and product strategy are interchangeable, however this is untrue. Your product’s overarching long-term objective is outlined in your product vision, often known as your product vision statement. Aspirational and succinct, vision statements explain where the product aims to go and what it hopes to accomplish in the long run. Why would you prefer your product to do what it does?

Understand the problem you are solving

We create products that assist clients in resolving issues they are having. We give our customers value in this way. Problem definition is essential because it establishes the foundation for all subsequent product features. This also makes it much simpler to evaluate any product decisions made later on in terms of the value they offer consumers.

Know your customer!

I am not talking about the typical KYC procedure that takes place during onboarding. To design features that your customers will actually utilise, you need to understand what they desire on a deep level. By communicating with them in online forums, scheduling Zoom calls with them, meeting them in person, and other ways, you may get to know your consumers. Recognise the connection between points 2 and 3 in this case. When you know your consumers better, you will also know their challenges better, and this will help you develop features that will naturally add more value.

Set product tenants and design principles in place

Put some design and product tenets in place; these will serve as your product’s DNA and a guide for when you create features.

Define success metrics

Setting a direction alone is not sufficient; you must also monitor your progress in terms of speed. A team uses metrics to assess performance and determine their progress.
I suggest beginning with Objectives and Key Results(OKRs), if you are seeking for specific suggestions on how to select appropriate metrics. In this model, objectives represent what you want your business to accomplish, while key results represent how you plan to evaluate its success. What figures would change? While crucial outcomes should be quantifiable, objectives should be inspirational.

Conclusion

A successful product strategy is essential to the development and expansion of any business. In this post, we have looked at the essential components and factors that go into developing a thorough product strategy. Organisations can position themselves for long-term success and profitability by matching corporate objectives with customer needs, market trends, and competitive landscapes.

A solid product strategy offers a road map for creativity, market penetration, and distinctiveness. It enables companies to decide with confidence on product development, pricing, distribution methods, and marketing initiatives. Organisations can design products that successfully address customers’ pain points by carefully researching their target audience and their changing preferences.