Is building of a product or a service which nobody wants difficult? Definitely not. Just follow a few tips listed down below and I can assure you, that everyone will really quickly forget about your product. Would you like to avoid this? Then take opposite steps!

Do not talk with the users about their problems.

Will your product succeed if it will not contain answers for the problems and needs of the users? Definitely not! Actually, you will only waste a lot of time, money and nerves to build something, that nobody wants!

I have put this point on the first place, because I really often see this kind of a problem appearing in the beginner Product Owners / Managers. We implement features, that seem to us necessary, but not to our users. Remember, that in 99% of cases users have no idea what they want! Therefore, the role of the product manager is so important.

One of my favorite examples is the theory of the “faster horse” made by famous Henry Ford. While the horses were the primary form of the transportation, Ford asked his potential customers about their expectations for the faster communication. The answer was one – “We want faster horses!” In fact, Ford’s customers needed more efficient and convenient form of the transport, which wouldn’t have to rest as much. So, if you will find out what are the real problems of the users – not those, that customers are able to express, then you will identify opportunities of creating products, that will delight your customers.

To resolve some issues, we are forced to pose hypotheses relating to the principle of the service or the product. Remember, however, that your assumptions have to be verified as soon as possible! Perhaps, you will find out, that the product requires some amendments to be sure, that your product will actually deliver what your customers are looking for. Lean Startup and building MVP will help you with this.

Do not define users of your product.

Are you able to answer this question: Who are the users of my product? Believe me, the answer in many cases may not be so obvious! If you do not know for whom you are building a product, whose problem you solve or who currently uses your product – you’re about to build something, that nobody wants.

Do it well. Define the main points in your product. Select the key points and under these terms try to develop your product. Very important: Do not try to please everyone at once. You have a very small chance for succeeding. Try to also define user segments based on the data, if possible.

Remember to release the product only with all the functions.

The first rule of building a product – we test and release only when everything is completely finished! After all, our users expect all the features to fully meet their needs. Shall we worry, that something might go wrong? No.. not a chance, our analysis of the market was just flawless! # BadProductAdvice

Do not go that way. Let me introduce you an example. One of Apple’s products – Apple Newton, was launched in 1993 after five years of the development. You probably do not remember, but Apple in their ads promised a portable personal computer (so-called ‘palmtop’), which would contain all the wonderful features along with the possibility of writing on the screen using fingertips. Then, when the product was finally released, it turned out to be too “heavy”. What’s worse, the most important functions did not work properly. Finally, in 1998, it was withdrawn from the market. Apple proved to be too ambitious in their plans and a product, that was doing too much at once, was a failure.

Do not be afraid to test your ideas, concepts and give users the product to be tested as soon as it is possible. Select only those features, that affect only your key indicators. Feedback may turn out to be priceless! You will know if you are going in the right direction, if the product will need to change its business model. Test whether the functions are used in accordance with the established hypothesis. Does it resolve customer issues? Bravo! Defined indicators have not changed? Find the cause, talk with the users. Perhaps the problem might be even unintuitive interface.

Do not worry about the user’s experience.

I would like to ask users of your product a few questions:

• Is the product simple and intuitive to use? Is navigation and any interactions not causing any problems?

• Is the application useful? Does it perform any valuable role? Does it meet all the needs?

• Can the use of the application be mastered in a short time? Can this be done without resorting to complex instructions?

• Is the visual aspect of the application attractive?

• Do you trust and believe in their content?

If the answer to any question is NO – the success of your product is much less likely.

Have you ever had a chance to buy a book from Amazon? Did you see how simple it is? One click can make the e-book appear in our reader. And all of that is happening in less than a few seconds!

So be sure to take care of the User Experience – in the end product is for your users, not for you!

Ignore the feedback

You release a product in the world, get feedback from everywhere, ignore it and continue the development of the pre-planned plan, because you assumed, that your customers have no idea what they want. So why their feedback should now be valuable? #BadProductAdvice

You’re doing it wrong. I have recently come across the official site of one of the biggest supermarkets in Poland on my Facebook page. Under each opinion or feedback from the user, I noticed the same message copied and paste sent as a response. Would such an approach attract more customers? Definitely not. You run fan page of your product? Should you receive negative feedback? Then use it as an idea of your next improvement!

Do not ignore the opinion of your users (especially negative), just simply control them. Create the appropriate support, give your customers the opportunity to comment. Ask users what they lack, a good option is to separate the place where users can add new ideas and vote on them. Well-used feedback is priceless.