Product research strategy
Another important component to include in your product’s research strategy, is what I’ve coined ‘foot-soldering’: rolling up our sleeves, leaving the comfort of our desks, and talking to users and would-be users in the field. We do this through dozens of usability testing sessions, focus groups (we frequently recruit for this through craigslist - yes, it's still alive and well), as well as cafe studies
Product testing
Another important fallacy to illuminate, is the tendency for many product teams to fall prey to the notion of treating product testing as a one-off activity somewhere in the pre-launch phase of the product life cycle.The majority of products that fail, do so because they neglect to move with industry and macro-trends and thereby fail at gauging the sentiment of their users, customers, or clients on a frequent basis.
Product life-cycle
Yes, you guessed it, I’m about to preach how product research should be a continuous priority across the product’s life-cycle. Each upcoming product research challenge should be critically evaluated and have a process put together for how to most efficiently conduct research on the given product of feature. It’s important to differentiate between new products/features and existing products/features and not jump on the convenient alternative of thinking that product research is a one-size-fits-all activity.
Whether you’re working on shipping out a new product or making modifications to an established one, it’s pivotal to opt for a research approach that complements the maturity of the given product.
Research is a core part of our product team, permeating through to all other internal teams and we strongly believe that product research should be at the core of one’s product strategy and that companies should prioritize to constantly elicit feedback from their customers.
The more studies we conduct, the closer we’re getting to achieving our product and design goals, whilst at the same time gathering confidence that we’re moving in the right direction through continuous research input.
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