Launching a new product feature can be exciting, but also risky. You want to deliver value to your customers, but you also want to avoid bugs, errors, or negative feedback. How can you ensure that your product feature is ready for launch and meets the quality standards of your users and stakeholders? Here are some best practices to follow before you hit the launch button.
Before you start developing your product feature, you need to define what quality means for it. Quality criteria are the specific requirements and expectations that your feature must meet to be considered successful. They can include functional, non-functional, user, business, and technical aspects. For example, you might have quality criteria related to performance, usability, security, reliability, scalability, or customer satisfaction. You should document your quality criteria clearly and share them with your team and stakeholders, so that everyone is aligned on the goals and standards of your feature.
Ensuring top-notch product feature quality before launch involves various testing methods. First, there's unit testing, examining individual parts for functionality. Integration testing ensures these parts work seamlessly together. System testing assesses the entire product's performance and coherence. User acceptance testing involves getting feedback from potential users. The combination of these testing types ensures a robust and reliable product feature ready for a successful launch.
One of the most overlooked quality criteria is "are we proud to shipped this"? If you have the luxury of being part of an org that wants to be a top performing, your team is the most critical in establishing your quality bar. This isn't easy because it means: - You have to dogfood your product so your intuition matters - You have to have enough experience and self awareness of what is actually good - You have to be willing to fail in order to succeed The way you can do this is by establishing your quality criteria before you start working. Once you start, you will struggle to be honest with yourself. I empower my teams to set this bar to be a high performing team.
Ensuring Quality has 2 sides to it - 1. Testing internally before the launch - During this phase, ensure that all the features are pass these 3 layers of testing - Unit testing during development, QA testing and integration testing. During this phase, have sufficient code coverage for unit tests, automation tests. Apart from Whitebox testing, have QAs perform extensive exploratory testing to identify edge cases. For identified bugs, tag them as critical, high, medium and trivial and target to fix critical and high priority bugs before release. 2. Testing with Beta customers - Have a soft launch and conduct product usability testing with users in real time business contexts to identify any issues that could be missed during (1)
To ensure top-notch product feature quality before launch, start by clearly defining quality criteria encompassing functional, non-functional, and technical aspects. Collaborate extensively with your team and stakeholders to align everyone on the standards. Rigorous testing, including beta releases for user feedback, helps identify and address issues early. Implement continuous performance monitoring, security audits, and an iterative improvement approach based on user feedback. Provide thorough documentation and training, create a pre-launch checklist, and closely monitor post-launch performance for prompt issue resolution. This holistic approach ensures a successful product feature launch with high-quality standards met.
As a PM, while you're defining the requirements for your product feature, start considering the negative cases as well. This makes it easier to understand under what conditions your feature can fail, and prevent users from deriving value. This should include both functional requirements like what a button should do or how a calculation should happen when an input in given and non-functional requirements like which browser types should be supported. Defining these criteria ahead of time enables the PM, developer and QA engineer to be in complete alignment throughout the process, assuring high product quality.
Testing is a crucial step to ensure that your feature works as intended and meets your quality criteria. You should plan and execute different types of testing throughout your development process, such as unit testing, integration testing, system testing, user acceptance testing, and beta testing. You should also use various tools and methods to test your feature, such as automated testing, manual testing, code reviews, or feedback sessions. You should track and resolve any issues or defects that arise during testing, and ensure that your feature is compatible with different devices, platforms, and browsers.
Work closely with your QA team to design comprehensive test cases covering various scenarios, edge cases, and potential user interactions. Execute unit testing, integration testing, and system testing to identify and address any defects early in the development process. Automated testing tools can also be leveraged to streamline the testing process and ensure consistent and repeatable results. Regularly conduct regression testing to validate that new features do not adversely impact existing functionalities. Overseeing the testing process, ensuring that it aligns with quality criteria, and actively participating in the resolution of identified issues.
In my experience, the best method for testing is to genuinely and frequently use the product yourself. Do not just check-off requirement boxes but try to go through the product flows and be curious to observe in which parts of the product you still struggle.
Having great rapport with QA engineers and trusting their judgement is important, but can't replace the value of testing as many test builds yourself as possible. And ideally, doing it not only on your personal devices but also on other devices with alternative operating systems and browsers. It's worth investing some team budget into obtaining a few extra devices that are always in your disposal. I also find it helpful to involve designers and copy editors into the early testing cycles especially for the user-facing features where their input has been significant. This ensures the critical user experience is built correctly and backlog is not clogged by design and copy bugs that often are prioritized down continuously.
Conduct comprehensive testing to identify and address any issues. This should include unit testing, integration testing, and system testing to ensure the feature functions as intended and integrates seamlessly with the existing product. Perform regression testing to catch any unintended side effects on previously implemented features.
Testing is such a crucial part to ensure product feature quality before release. As a Product Manager, continue to closely collaborate and communicate with Quality Analysts in your cross-functional team to ensure all testing is completed. Here are some of the different types of software testing: 1. Stress Testing 2. Manual Testing 3. Automation Testing 4. Performance Testing 5. Regression Testing 6. End to End Testing
Another way to ensure product feature quality is to validate your feature with real or potential users. User validation helps you to check if your feature solves a real problem, meets user needs and expectations, and delivers value. You can use different techniques to validate your feature with users, such as surveys, interviews, focus groups, usability tests, or analytics. You should collect and analyze user feedback and data, and use them to improve your feature or make changes if needed.
One thing that I think it's really important to ensure product feature quality is placing a strong emphasis on user validation throughout the entire development lifecycle. Specifically, I would focus on early and frequent user feedback. This can be achieved through prototypes and beta versions and provides invaluable insights into user interactions and highlights potential areas for improvement. I think that there's hesitation to present "early-stage products" to customers, leading to prolonged development and refinement of something that may not align with customer needs. Involving users at the earliest stages and doing so consistently is a crucial path to success.
When developing a new feature or capability, validating it with target customers before launch serves two vital purposes. First, it ensures the feature solves the intended problem as expected. Second, testing with real users rather than simulated data reveals whether the feature functions properly in the real world, uncovering issues that may go undetected in internal test phase. Engaging actual target users overcomes flaws missed in test environments & improves overall quality by enabling us to address shortcomings proactively prior to full release.
Look at the clicks, flow completion % and drop-offs data once the feature is live. Connect with the completed and dropped off customers to get early feedback on their experience. Use DEMs (digital monitoring tools) to see how the customers are navigating the feature. Map the actual customer journey with the expected journey to uncover areas of improvement. Monitor how the metrics and counter metrics are performing to see if the result is a hit or a miss and iterate accordingly.
After all the QA testing is done, hopefully in an efficient manner, as PMs we still need to be sure if this is something that users are going to appreciate. This can be done by 1. Take a step back and try to use it as a user who does not know you have released a new feature. Would they be able to discover, would it solve their problem, and would they feel delighted are the solution? 2. Show the feature to a few users as a beta test. This helps you course correct early on without having a large-scale impact on your entire user base.
Engage real users early in the development process through usability testing, beta testing, or prototype testing. Collect feedback from users regarding the feature's usability, functionality, and overall user experience. Iterate based on user feedback to address any concerns or issues before the final launch.
Before you launch your feature, you should also review it with your internal and external stakeholders, such as your team, managers, clients, or partners. Stakeholder review helps you to ensure that your feature aligns with the project scope, objectives, and specifications, and that it meets the quality standards and requirements of your stakeholders. You should present your feature to your stakeholders, demonstrate its functionality and benefits, and address any questions or concerns they might have. You should also collect and incorporate their feedback and approval, and communicate any changes or updates to your feature.
The review with stakeholders should be a continuous discussion at the end of every sprint and not just close to feature launch. If the feature is only reviewed before launch, I have seen countless number of times, that the stakeholder will almost always have some feedback that requires a few minor or medium changes to the feature. The risk of doing this early on is much lower than closer to launch. The more frequently features are reviewed, the lesser is the possibility of surprises for all parties involved
Not just pre-launch it is important to review the requirements and delivery expectations with your stakeholders before starting the development of the product as they know the consumer of the product in and out. What works for me personally is to always have the demo for the features and ask for the feedback before feature goes live in production.
Schedule regular meetings with stakeholders to review the progress of the feature development. Gather input from different departments, such as marketing, sales, and customer support, to ensure a holistic perspective. Address any concerns or suggestions raised by stakeholders to enhance the feature's quality and alignment with business goals.
Engage stakeholders actively in feature reviews as a crucial aspect of product management. Conduct regular meetings to present and discuss the proposed features, ensuring alignment with business goals and objectives. Solicit input from key stakeholders, including executives, product owners, and relevant teams. Address concerns, gather insights, and incorporate valuable feedback into the feature development process. This collaborative approach fosters a shared understanding of project goals and enhances the likelihood of successful feature implementation, ultimately contributing to the overall success of the product.
Before launch, organize a review session with key stakeholders, including team members from design, development, marketing, and customer support. This multidisciplinary review can uncover diverse perspectives on the feature's quality, readiness, and alignment with overall product strategy. Stakeholder feedback is invaluable for making final adjustments and ensuring everyone is aligned for the launch.
Finally, you should not stop ensuring product feature quality after launch. You should continue to monitor your feature's performance, usage, and impact after it goes live, and identify any issues or opportunities for improvement. You should use different metrics and indicators to measure your feature's success, such as user adoption, retention, satisfaction, revenue, or engagement. You should also collect and respond to user feedback and reviews, and provide support and guidance to your users. You should also plan and implement any enhancements or fixes to your feature based on your findings and feedback.
It is crucially important to define what success looks like for a certain initiative or feature. So the monitoring starts with the question: What metric actually correlates most with the success of the feature? What change in the metric would mean success for us? Given that this is clear to the team before the launch already, monitoring and evaluating performance becomes stunningly simple.
Define your success metrics during the envisioning state itself. Keep a track of the same. If required divide the target that can be achieved in phases. Create dashboards if required to keep track of any breaks and monitor the metrics.
Monitoring your feature after launch is necessary to track its performance and identify any issues or opportunities for improvement. Implement robust monitoring and analytics tools to gather data on feature usage, performance, and user feedback post-launch. Continuously analyze and interpret this data to identify trends, patterns, and areas for optimization, iterating on your feature based on real-world usage and feedback.
Implement monitoring mechanisms to track the performance and usage of the feature post-launch. Set up analytics and error tracking to promptly identify and address any issues that may arise in a live environment. Monitoring provides valuable insights for continuous improvement and helps maintain a high level of product quality over time.
Analytics tools such as Google Analytics or Mixpanel can be employed to track quantitative metrics like user adoption, retention rates, and revenue generated by the feature. A/B testing can be leveraged to measure the impact of specific changes on user engagement. Qualitative data from user feedback can be collected through platforms like Zendesk or in-app surveys. Server-side metrics for performance and responsiveness should be monitored as well. Regularly analyzing database queries and server logs for any anomalies can prevent potential bottlenecks. Combining both quantitative and technical insights can help make informed decisions and drive continuous improvement.
To ensure product feature quality before launch, implement a blend of thorough testing, user feedback, and agile practices. Conduct comprehensive testing (unit, integration, user acceptance) alongside automated tests to detect and fix bugs. Utilize beta testing with real users to gather actionable insights on usability and functionality, adjusting based on this feedback. Agile methodologies enable quick iterations and continuous improvement, fostering cross-functional collaboration among development, design, and product management teams. This strategy not only helps in identifying issues early but also ensures that the product meets both quality standards and user expectations, thereby reducing post-launch problems.
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Nail the Criteria: Define what "quality" means for your feature before you build it. Think performance, usability, security, and user value. Test Like a Pro: Go beyond checklists! Use unit, integration, and user testing to catch bugs early. Automate to save time and scale. User Validation is King: Get real users onboard early with prototypes and beta tests. Prioritize their feedback to refine your feature before launch. Stakeholder Buy-In Matters: Keep your team and key players in the loop with demos and reviews. Ensure your feature aligns with goals and meets everyone's expectations. Remember, quality is a journey, not a destination. Monitor, iterate, and keep improving based on data and user insights!
Documentation: Ensure that comprehensive documentation is available for both development and end-users. Scalability: Evaluate how the feature performs under various load conditions and ensure it can scale as needed. Security: Perform thorough security assessments to identify and address potential vulnerabilities. Compliance: Ensure the feature complies with relevant industry standards, regulations, and legal requirements. Accessibility: Verify that the feature is accessible to users with diverse needs and abilities. By addressing these points, we can significantly increase the chances of delivering a high-quality product feature that meets user expectations and business objectives.
Here's what else to consider: In addition to the strategies outlined above, consider integrating quality assurance practices and processes into your product development lifecycle from the outset. Implement continuous integration and deployment pipelines, automated testing frameworks, and code review practices to ensure that quality is built into your feature development process. Foster a culture of quality and accountability within your team, emphasizing the importance of delivering high-quality features that meet user needs and expectations. Finally, stay agile and responsive to changing requirements, feedback, and market dynamics, adapting your approach and strategies as needed to ensure the ongoing quality of your product features.
When ensuring product feature quality before launch, it's important to also consider the broader impact of your feature on the existing product ecosystem. This includes evaluating how new features integrate with or affect existing functionalities, user workflows, and the overall user experience. A holistic approach ensures that the addition enhances the product cohesively rather than disrupting the user's journey.