Providing Good Product with Product Research

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Before delving into the critical role that product research plays in the success of a developed product, let’s discuss some key aspects of product management in the product development process.

General product development process consists of 7 steps:

• Generate Ideas
  This is the initial step where the team gathers various ideas for a new product. Ideas can come from market research, consumer needs, or even the team’s imagination. The goal is to identify interesting and potentially viable ideas.
• Evaluation
  After collecting ideas, the next step is to evaluate them. The team will consider the strengths and weaknesses of each idea, including market potential, costs, and required resources. Only the most promising ideas will move on to the next stage.
• Concept Testing
  At this stage, the team will create a concept or overview of the product to be developed. They will test this concept with several people to gather feedback. The aim is to determine if people like the idea and identify any potential improvements.
• Product Development
  If the concept is approved, the team will begin developing the product. This includes design, prototype creation, and initial testing. During this phase, the team focuses on ensuring the product meets consumer needs and expectations.
• Testing & Launch
  After the product is developed, further testing is crucial. This includes testing the product in real-world scenarios to ensure it functions well and is free of issues. If everything looks good, the product is ready to be launched into the market.
• Post Development
  Once the product is launched, the team will continue to monitor its performance. They will collect feedback from consumers and analyze whether the product meets expectations. This also involves checking sales and the product’s impact on the market.
• Maintenance & Support
  After the product is in the market, it’s important to provide support to users. This includes addressing emerging issues, making updates, and assisting customers. Good maintenance will ensure the product remains relevant and continues to be accepted by consumers.

In product development process, product management primarily focuses on 3 + 1 key areas:

1. Product Discovery
   This is the process through which the product role identifies and defines certainty (problem statement) from still abstract or uncertain sources.
2. Product Delivery
   This is the process where the product role collaborates with software engineers to ensure that the solution is successfully developed in the form of a digital product (mobile app or website).
3. Go-To-Market Strategy
   This is the process of connecting the product with users (the market).

Plus, Product Strategy
Product strategy outlines how the product will achieve the company’s business goals.

In this article, we will discuss product research, focusing on two aspects: product discovery and product strategy, as they are closely related to research.

Product Discovery

As mentioned earlier, product discovery is the process of identifying or defining a problem from unclear sources. Once a clear problem statement is established, the team will prioritize the issues that need to be addressed first. Subsequently, various potential solutions will be created to solve the identified problems, with a focus on prioritizing these solutions as well. Product discovery relies on research as a supporting mechanism for the product role to find the right solutions to these uncertainties. Solutions can take two forms:

• Product Design → The design of the solution in visual form or a specific flow.
• Product Policy → Business logic that cannot be represented visually.

Both product design and product policy are compiled in a PRD (Product Requirements Document).

Product Strategy

Difference between strategy and plan:

• Plan: What you want to achieve.
• Strategy: Not just what you want to achieve, but also the rules set to reach that goal. Strategy is deeper than a plan and always has a backup plan.

Why is a strategy needed?

• To guide goal achievement.
• To be better prepared for challenges.
• To align the team.
• To manage resources more efficiently.
• To provide a basis for technical/non-technical decision-making.

What is an effective product strategy?

• Balancing short-term and long-term objectives in a product’s lifecycle.
• Aiming at business goals while solving user problems.
• Involving everyone in collaborative efforts from start to finish.
• Keeping goals constant while being flexible in methods.
• Adopting a marathon mindset (slow but sustainable progress).

Components:

• Current product and market conditions.
• Product goals over a specific timeframe (Goals to indicate direction and eliminate bias or preconceptions about specific opportunities).
• How to achieve product goals (Initiatives undertaken to get closer to achieving larger goals).

Research in Product Management

Business Research

• Market Research
• Legal Research (Usually for fintech)

Goal is to understand the viability and current market conditions.
Output: BRD, benchmarking documents, etc.

Product Research

• UX Research (UX Researcher)
• Data Research (Data Analyst)

aim is to understand product performance and user experience.
Output: Design feedback, data visualization, etc.

Research Type

1. Quantitative: Numbers
2. Qualitative: Narrative

Examples:
If a company (B2C) is not large and has fewer than 10,000 active users, it’s best to use qualitative methods like interviews, focus group discussions, live group discussions, mystery shopping, and ethnography. If active users reach millions, quantitative methods (like Google Analytics, Mixpanel, etc.) should be used, complemented by qualitative methods.

Tips for Qualitative Research:
If the number of active users is normally distributed, then the number of respondents involved in the research process can start from 21 to 30 people.

How Conduct Research

1. Research Plan
2. Grooming with stakeholders
3. Detailing tasks
4. Execution
5. Realism of research documents
6. Presenting results to stakeholders

Notes:
The research plan is created by the Product Manager and can be formatted like a proposal detailing the insights wanted and the data to be obtained.

A Simple Example of Conducting Research:

• Discussing with fellow product roles
• Googling and updating on social media related to the product

Research process will be useful in creating product strategy, particularly in defining the product roadmap.

Product Roadmap

Product roadmap is a tool for aligning general communication between the Product Manager and other stakeholders on how to prepare the goals that need to be achieved through strategic methods and steps.

Roadmap is not just a list of features to be worked on over a specific period, but a way to deliver the product’s value and the company’s immediate goals, aligned with strategy and not strictly tied to a timeline.

Simple Example of a Roadmap:

• I will have a house in Jakarta (desire)
• By the end of next year (when)
• By increasing my income (how)
• For a better life in Jakarta (goal)

Roadmap Elements

• Product Goals
  Must align with the company’s strategy and product vision.
• Timeline
  Helps determine when to deliver features that support achieving the goals.
• Metrics & Supporting Data
  Used to measure whether each initiative has met the desired targets in achieving the goals.
• Clear Description of Initiative
  Clearly defines the “what,” “why,” and “how” of each initiative, including the success criteria that need to be met.

6 Steps to Build a Roadmap

1. Understand the Big Picture
   You need to grasp the overall vision of the product and the key metrics for success.
2. Gather Inputs
   Initiatives can come from both internal and external stakeholders, but it’s important to prioritize what users need.
3. Align on Priorities
   Everyone involved should be on the same page with shared priorities.
4. Effort Estimation
   Estimate the complexity of an initiative by discussing it with the development team.
5. Assign a Broad Timeframe
   Create a timeline to achieve the goals (avoid under- or over-committing).
6. Build
   Develop the roadmap and share it with everyone involved.

Every product/feature built must generate value for both users and company. So, we can provide advantages to the product being developed based on the value of user needs to be addressed and the business growth that the company desires.