Your product design budget is tight. How do you decide which features to prioritize and cut?

When facing a tight product design budget, prioritize features by: Identify Core Objectives: Focus on features that align with the primary goals and user needs of the product. Conduct User Research: Prioritize features based on user feedback and the impact they have on user satisfaction. Evaluate ROI: Assess the potential return on investment for each feature to determine which offers the most value. Analyze Costs: Consider the development and implementation costs of each feature. Apply the MoSCoW Method: Categorize features as Must-have, Should-have, Could-have, and Won’t-have to make informed prioritization decisions. Involve Stakeholders: Engage stakeholders in the decision-making process to ensure alignment with business objectives.

First, by focusing on building in or working on only the most important parts of whatever the project is first. Second, for the other parts, look for cost effective alternatives that do not sacrifice quality for cost and cut any parts that do not serve a purpose, are too expensive, or can be built around while ensuring safety for the workers (and the prospective customers). Third, see what parts can be built together in the shortest amount of time by which specific groups of the development team. Then, divide the parts of the project among the development teams. See what teams can finish their parts first and then put them into larger teams with the parts needed to work together. Do this until each team and the project is completed.

With a tight product design budget, prioritize features by focusing on those that deliver the most value to users and align with business goals. Start by conducting user research to identify the most critical needs and pain points. Use a prioritization framework, such as the MoSCoW method (Must-have, Should-have, Could-have, and Won't-have), to categorize features based on their impact and feasibility. Collaborate with stakeholders to ensure alignment and make informed decisions. Cut or postpone low-impact features that do not significantly contribute to the core user experience or business objectives.

When your product design budget is tight, prioritize and cut features by: User Needs: Focus on features that address the core needs and pain points of your target users. Business Goals: Align feature priorities with key business objectives and strategies. Impact vs. Effort: Evaluate the impact of each feature on user satisfaction and business value against the effort and cost required to implement them. Feedback and Data: Use user feedback and data analytics to identify the most valuable and least used features. Minimum Viable Product (MVP): Prioritize features essential for the MVP to launch quickly and gather user feedback for future iterations.

The Minimum Viable Product (MVP) approach is crucial when funds are sparse. The MVP is the most pared-down version of my product that still delivers its core functionality. I identify the features that are absolutely necessary for my product to function and meet its primary objective. By focusing on these core features first, I ensure that my budget is spent on developing a solid foundation for the product. Additional features can wait for future iterations when more resources may be available.

I couldn't recommend going the MVP route more if your budget is tight. Here is why. 1. An MVP is an incredible way to showcase the core features of your product. The features that really make your product what it is, without all of the bells and whistles. 2. It'll be cheaper and quicker to build. Less resources will be needed in order to make it happen. 3. Since you're only building specific features, you're clearing the way for user feedback, and not wasting any time or money building something that users don't want. Instead, you'll find out exactly what they want, and will have full freedom to build that.

Focusing on user feedback is essential for product development, especially when operating on a tight budget. One of the most cost-effective methods for gathering user feedback is the Net Promoter Score (NPS). Send the NPS survey to your customers via email, within your app, or on your website. Use free or low-cost survey tools like Tally, SurveyMonkey, Google Forms, or dedicated NPS tools. Keep the survey short, focusing on the primary NPS question and optionally an open-ended question asking for reasons behind their score.

To manage a tight product design budget effectively, establish a solid feedback loop with your customers. Start by analyzing data from surveys and feedback sources to identify design issues and prioritize them. This quantitative data highlights the most reported user concerns. Next, use this information to delve deeper during user interviews and testing sessions. Focus on understanding specific difficulties or delays users encounter with features or sections. This qualitative insight helps you prioritize features with the most impact. By combining both quantitative and qualitative feedback, you can make informed decisions on which features to prioritize or cut, ensuring efficient use of your budget.

Having a holistic approach in product design is imperative. Choosing what to prioritise now is going to lay your building blocks for the future designs. Here’s how I would go about it - 1) RESEARCH - what do our users want and NEED. Make a list of all the broader requirements. 2) Using agile method and cost evaluation, understand how to - deliver more with less, find core requirements that match your users need and your business vision. 3) Get your MVP out there!! 4) FEEDBACK is key! Good design is invisible. If you have feedback - make insights. 5) Keeping business goals in mind- plan future improvements and scale up while bringing in the insights into the roadmap 6) REPEAT- research to validate your insights and keep designing!