How to develop a product strategy?

Article 10/25 about?#productmanagement?with a focus on Soft skills.

A product strategy?is an action plan that defines how to achieve your goals and ensure the success of a product in the market. It determines the direction of product development, its positioning, target audience, competitive advantage and the main aspects of marketing and sales. The product strategy includes an analysis of the market, customer needs, competitive landscape and internal resources of the company. It serves as the basis for product development, its improvement and further management throughout its life cycle. The product strategy helps the company to make informed decisions, optimize resources and achieve long-term success in the market.

What is included in the product strategy?

The product strategy includes a number of key elements and aspects that help determine the path of product development. Here are some of them:

• Goals and strategic directions: Defining the main goals that the product should achieve, as well as the strategic priorities of the company.
• Analysis of the market and competitors: Study of the market segment, its needs, trends and competitive environment. This includes researching competitors, analyzing strengths and weaknesses, and identifying the unique advantages of the product.
• Target audience: Identification and understanding of the target audience, its needs, preferences and behavior. This helps to determine how the product can best meet the requirements of the target audience.
• Product positioning: Identification of a unique product offer and its place in the market. This includes determining the value of the product to customers, key messages, and positioning relative to competitors.
• Product mix: Determination of product characteristics, its features, functions, packaging and pricing. This also includes developing a product promotion and communication strategy.
• Marketing Plan: Defining specific marketing activities such as distribution channels, promotion, advertising and sales. The marketing plan helps to achieve the goals of the product and attract the target audience.
• Monitoring and analysis: Regular monitoring of product results, analysis of its performance in the market and customer reviews. This helps to adapt the strategy and make decisions based on new data and changes in the market.

Who creates the product strategy?

A product strategy is usually created by a product management team, which includes various roles and functions. Depending on the organization and its structure, the following roles may participate in the creation of a product strategy:

• Product Manager: The main person responsible for the development and management of the product strategy. He has a deep understanding of the market, customer needs and competitive environment, and formulates the strategic directions of the product.
• Marketing Manager: Participates in the development of the marketing strategy of the product, including positioning, market segmentation, pricing policy and communication strategies.
• Product Analyst: Examines data and metrics, analyzes market trends and competitive data to provide the information needed to make informed decisions on product strategy.
• UX/UI Designer: Contributes to the definition of user experience and product design, ensuring compliance with user needs and creating a user-friendly and attractive interface.
• Technical Leader/Architect: Participates in determining the technical strategy of the product, including the choice of technologies, system architecture and ensuring technical feasibility.
• Stakeholders: Stakeholders, such as company management, representatives of marketing, development, sales and customer service departments, play an important role in creating a product strategy.

In general, the creation of a product strategy is a collective process that involves the interaction of various roles and experts to determine the strategic directions of the product and ensure its success in the market.

Consider the example of creating a product strategy

Let’s say we have a company specializing in the production of mobile applications. Here is an example of creating a product strategy for this company:

1. Market and competitor analysis:

• Studying the mobile application market, identifying potential opportunities and challenges.
• Research competitors, their products and strategies to understand their advantages and weaknesses.

2. Definition of the target audience:

• Identification of the main segments of mobile application users and their needs.
• Choosing the target audience that we will focus on when developing products.

3.?Definition of goals and positioning:

• Defining the main goals that we want to achieve with our mobile apps (for example, increasing the user base, increasing revenue, etc.).
• Determination of the unique offer of our product and its positioning in the market.

4. Product portfolio development:

• Defining the main products that we want to develop and offer on the market (for example, social networking applications, games, productivity, etc.).
• Developing a strategy for the product portfolio, including the balance between new and existing products, as well as resource allocation.

5. Development of the product roadmap:

• Identification of key functions and features for each product in the portfolio.
• Planning the product development sequence and time frame.
• Identify key success indicators and metrics for evaluating product performance.

6. Product implementation and marketing:

• Product development and testing taking into account the requirements and preferences of the target audience.
• Development of a marketing strategy, including product positioning, promotion channels and communication with customers.

7. Product performance evaluation:

• Monitoring and analysis of product performance indicators, such as the number of downloads, active users and conversion
• Collecting feedback from users and analyzing their opinions about the product.
• Using the data obtained to make improvements and optimize the product.

8. Product update and development:

• Following trends and changes in the mobile app market.
• Making changes and updates to the product in order to meet the needs of users and remain competitive.

An example of creating a product strategy using a live example helps to understand how you can develop a strategy for your company or product, taking into account the specifics of the market, user needs and competitive environment.

What is OKR and why is it needed in a product strategy ?

OKR (Objectives and Key Results)?is a management methodology that helps to define goals (Objectives) and key Results (Key Results) to achieve these goals. OKR is used in product strategy to create focus, set clear goals, and evaluate performance.

The objectives in OKR are formulated concisely, clearly and ambitiously. They should reflect the strategic directions of the company or product. An example of a goal might be “To increase market share by 20%” or “To improve user satisfaction”.

Key Results are specific, measurable indicators that allow you to evaluate the achievement of a goal. Key results should be objective and verifiable. An example of a key result could be “Increase the number of active users by 30%” or “Reduce the application loading time to 2 seconds”.

The main advantages of using OKR in a product strategy:

1. Focus and Alignment: OKR helps to focus team efforts on achieving key goals and create a high level of alignment within the organization.
2. Clarity and measurability: OKR helps to identify specific and measurable goals and results, which allows you to evaluate progress and achievements.
3. Flexibility and adaptability: OKR can be revised and updated according to changing market conditions and user needs.
4. Self-organization and motivation: OKR allows the team to independently determine what steps and activities need to be taken to achieve their goals, which contributes to self-organization and increased motivation.
5. Transparency and communication: OKR creates transparency regarding the goals and results of work, which promotes better communication and cooperation within the team and between departments.

In general, OKR helps to set clear goals and measurable results, as well as creates focus and direction in the product strategy, which contributes to more effective management and success

Conclusion

In general, a product strategy is the basis for the development of a successful product, and its creation requires analysis, planning and constant attention to changes in the market and customer needs.