5 Things a Product Owner Needs to Know Before Starting a Project
One of the most important roles in any app development team is the one of the Product Owner (PO). His job is to put the dev team on the right track.
From the design of the app to its features and the market that it’s going to launch in, the Product Owner’s role is vital.
This is why we’ve outlined the most important tasks of the job below so that you can excel in your role as PO.
1. Research, Research, Research
One of the most important responsibilities for any Product Owner is doing their research. Even the best startup idea will fail if the team doesn’t know anything about their market, competitors or their intended audience.
A launch page can help teams gather some audience data and you’ll need to keep this in mind when you consider the app’s features.
How old is your key demo? Are they tech savvy or does your app need to be incredibly simple for them to make the most of it? What problems or challenges do they face and can you help to solve them?
2. Assess Your Competitors
Furthermore, you’ll need to look at your competitors to find out what your USP (Unique Selling Point) is and how to avoid being a direct copy of them.
If your competitors are already established then you won’t want to make a clone of their work. But, by looking at which features and services work for them, you’ll get a better idea of what you need to focus on.
3. Brilliance By Design
Another key duty of the Product Owner is outlining exactly what they want from their app.
Teams like EL Passion can take your ideas and make them a reality. But first, you’ll need to think about what it is that you want.
To figure out what will work best for your app, you’ll want to think about the most useful features.
If your target audience is always having trouble making payments then your e-Billing app can feature an easy to use payment system. If your target audience are health conscious foodies then maybe a calorie counter could be your starting point.
4. Which Features Are Best For Your App?
You’ll also want to consider what’s doable and what’s not.
Under the lean startup method, the most successful startups are those that focus on early customer’s needs before anything else.
Every Product Owner wants to make the best product they can but which features are going to hinder development and which ones are absolutely necessary?
Consider these points before you take the idea to your development team to ensure that you all save time and money.
5. Communication Is Key
At EL Passion we greatly value the communication we have with our clients, because we recognize that knowing what you want is important.
For Product Owners, this is just as important as you need to have a firm grasp on what you want from your app.
Do you have concerns about certain features? Speak up and say something.
Acknowledging issues and problems that you may have found during the research stage only helps your development team do a better job.
In Conclusion
As explained, time is money but this can really help to avoid bumps in the road. Development that is slow or bogged down by problems can mean that the final product misses its window of opportunity and suffers success penalties as a result.
No one wants that, especially not you. But, now that you know exactly what needs to be done you can be the best Product Owner possible.
