When the product isn't the product

When you’re the product

Imagine a dating app that matches you based on your Netflix binges and Spotify playlists. Sounds great, right?

While this exact app doesn't exist (yet), similar "behavioural markets" are exploding around us.

Google pioneered this concept. Their eureka moment? Realising the gold in the user search data they were sitting on. Today their targeted advertising model is raking in a staggering quarter-trillion dollars annually.

But it doesn't stop at ads. Health insurers now offer advice based on your fitness tracker data. E-learning platforms craft lessons tailored to your learning style. Welcome to the age of "surveillance capitalism," a term coined by Shoshanna Zuboff to describe this new economy built on commodifying our personal data.

These companies aren't just selling products; they're selling predictions about your future behaviour. That’s why my hypothetical Netflix-Spotify dating service is an example of a "behavioural futures market."

The Bright Side of behavioural futures markets:

• Personalised recommendations
• Targeted ads that actually interest you
• Services that anticipate your needs

The Dark Side:

1. Your privacy. What’s that?
2. Tech giants amass even more power
3. Your choices manipulated

Sure, it's convenient when a service remembers your preferences. But let's not forget: surveillance capitalists are generally not willing to sacrifice income (theirs) to increase outcome (yours).

Question: How can you use tech to get closer to your customers without crossing ethical lines?

When feedback is the product

Here’s something else for you to imagine: A massive reform project, years in the making, promising to revolutionise the experience of 50,000 customers. Sounds great, right? Until the customer-facing staff get a say.

So here’s the scene I want you to picture that I was a part of recently: 100 customer-facing employees, face-to-face in a conference room with the project team, executives, and board. The air's thick with anticipation.

I’ve been brought in to ask, "How do we make this a success?"

But one person’s not having it.

"Sorry, Andrew," he interjects, as he stands. "My name’s Gerard. And, I want to say that’s the wrong question. What if this whole thing's a non-starter?"

Cue the collective gasp. Everyone pretty much stops breathing, and all eyes are on me.

So, I pivot. "Gerard, give us the short version. Why's this doomed?"

As Gerard speaks, the project team is frozen solid, eyes downcast. The room's restless energy is palpable.

Now, it’s time for a collective gut check. I ask, "Hands up if you're with Gerard, even partially."

Two-thirds of the room reaches for the sky.

So, I need a new game plan, which is two new questions: "What's wrong with this reform? And how do we fix it?"

Ninety minutes of heated debate later, we've got six critical issues on the board. Gerard, bless him, apologises for "stuffing up" my process. I assure him he's done us all a favour.

The verdict? Board, executives, and the 100 staff agree – we had the conversation they needed but were too afraid to start. Remember, sometimes feedback isn't just a product – it's the lifeline your project needs to survive.

But the million-dollar questions remain: What were the project team so scared to ask? Or if they asked, why weren't they listening?

Question: How do you ask the hard questions that you know will disrupt your plans?

When process becomes the product

It’s almost ten years since Mike Cannon-Brookes?and?Scott Farquhar?became Australia’s first tech billionaires. Their success came from a rare pivot that spun their company, Atlassian, into a 300,000-customer, $40b+ valuation business with 12,000 staff.

What was the pivot?

Well, they started out as a third-party support business for other software companies. As they got busier, they needed simple ways to track issues and to project manage. Being programmers, they built their own app, called Jira and, before long, realised there was a bigger market for their internal product than for their tech support. The rest is history.

An even more famous example of ‘process becoming product’ was American Airlines’ converting the paper rolodexes on which it booked flights in the 1950s to an electronic booking system. Developed by IBM, for the astonishing sum of $40m (in 1960 dollars!), the SABRE system was initially used only by AA internally. But then, travel agents clamoured for it, and it spread rapidly to other airlines too. By the time the businesses were split in 2000, Sabre had outperformed its parent substantially.

Both of these businesses succeeded because they solved an internal problem so profound that every team wanted it, and it ultimately spread virally outside the organisation.

Question: What processes do you use that are potentially invaluable to others?

Look around you this week for products that might not be what they seem to be. And, if you like what you’re reading here, please click the 'Like' - I love to know you’re loving reading these provocations.

See you next Friday,

Andrew