Valeria M.’s Post

Ideas don’t just materialize by cutting corners. When we’re building a useful product for our customers, it must undergo sequential stages from the moment the idea is conceived. All stages work together to ensure the product meets the user’s needs or expectations, so we can’t skip them! Why? Because about 99.5% of consumer apps fail. This means we must go through from ideation to launch and improvement with a defined strategy and a deep understanding of what factors can impact our product during the development life cycle. Some of these forces are:  ✔️ Market adoption: Does your product meet customer’s needs? ✔️ Competition: Who are my competitors, and what are they doing? ✔️ Technological changes: Can my product be updated and adapt to changes?  ✔️ Financial factors: Do I have the needed budget and financial plan? ✔️ Regulatory environment: Does my product comply with the needed regulations? ✔️ Customer behavior: Does my product provide value, and do I keep track of my customer’s preferences? In the end, the product development lifecycle is an ongoing process and not a destination. 🔄 Remember to make data your friend so you can always stay on top of any necessary decisions regarding improvements and optimizations. Have thoughts to share or want to explore more? Let's discuss in the comments below! And for a deeper dive, check out the full blog below. #softwaredevelopment #productdevelopment #softwareproductdevelopment #productdevelopmentlifecycle

Why You Should Not Just Focus on Solving User Problems Common advice (and common sense) is to to start from the user problem and work your way to solutions. You can see this pattern in the popular model of the Double Diamond. But always starting with user needs (the term I prefer to problems or opportunities) is greatly limiting your thinking: 👉 The company has needs of its own, which the product has to serve as well 👉 Fully mapping and prioritizing the needs before evaluating ideas is often impractical (which is why the Double-Diamond is no longer considered a best practice) 👉 There are other valid ways to discover products 👉 Prioritizing ideas is much more effective than prioritizing needs To be clear, I see a lot of value in the start-with-use-needs model, but I feel it's naive to just use this one approach. Read my article to learn more of the reasoning.

Why You Should Not Just Focus on Solving User Problems Common advice (and common sense) is to to start from the user problem and work your way to solutions. You can see this pattern in the popular model of the Double Diamond. But always starting with user needs (the term I prefer to problems or opportunities) is greatly limiting your thinking: 👉 The company has needs of its own, which the product has to serve as well 👉 Fully mapping and prioritizing the needs before evaluating ideas is often impractical (which is why the Double-Diamond is no longer considered a best practice) 👉 There are other valid ways to discover products 👉 Prioritizing ideas is much more effective than prioritizing needs To be clear, I see a lot of value in the start-with-use-needs model, but I feel it's naive to just use this one approach. Read my article to learn more of the reasoning.

5 Best Strategies for reducing friction in your product or service: 1- Remove options: The greater the choices, the lengthier the decision-making process (Hick’s Law). 2- Split into steps: Breaking down a task into three smaller steps is easier than tackling one large task (Cognitive Load). 3- Valid Defaults: Design experiences that require minimal user input and provide a reliable starting point. 4- Discoverability: Ensure users can easily find features by focusing on clear visibility, immediate feedback, intuitive affordance, consistent design patterns, helpful guidance, and inclusive accessibility. 5- Introduce features gradually: While you may be eager to showcase all your product's capabilities, ensure users have adequate time to grasp each feature (Progressive Disclosure). I hope it’s been helpful. I´m Anak and for the past two decades I have been reducing the gap between humans and technology. I founded I Life You with a mission to advice businesses on how to provide enhanced and more human-centric experiences and improve digital wellebeing. I would be delighted to help you if you need advice on this subject. Have a lovely day! Humanise your service Grow your business by increasing your customers' well-being. Lead the path. I LIFE YOU #exceednotmeetcustomersexpectations #productpsychology #humanisingexperiences #meaningfulexperiences #customerservice #ilifeyou

Have you ever used a product and thought... 'Did anyone do user research when they designed this?' It's a common mistake in business—designing products based on assumptions rather than customer feedback.  While it may seem like a time-saver, it can lead to costly mistakes.  True innovation comes from understanding your customers' needs and desires. Guess which one most people mess up? Failing to understand users' needs. So, start by understanding what your customers want and need. Then, follow these steps for a better approach: 1. Find out what your customers want and their pain points. 2. Focus on solving one specific problem first. 3. Test your solutions with your customers. 4. Iterate and improve based on their feedback. Next time you're brainstorming a new product idea, ask your clients what they want. You might be surprised by what you learn! Do you test your product with customers before launching it? Comment below 💬 #CustomerFeedback #ProductDesign #ProductTesting 

Launching a new feature in the digital world is a bit like DIY: you’re always wondering if you’re building something people want. And let’s face it: no one wants to spend months (and $$$) only to end up with a "door" that no one uses. 𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝗼𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁—a clever way to gauge real user interest without a full build-out. Imagine adding a button or link for that shiny new feature idea. Users get a friendly “coming soon” message when they click, and we get valuable data on whether it’s worth pursuing. No hammers or endless trips to the hardware store are required. Here’s why painted door tests are the DIY hacks of product development: 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗥𝗶𝘀𝗸, 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁: They’re a Minimum Viable Experiment (MVE) dream—quick and cost-effective. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮-𝗗𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: No more guessing what users want. This approach ensures resources go to features with proven demand. 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗣𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁: Domino’s Cookies🍪, @Conversion used a painted door test to find Domino's next cookie flavor, saving months of R&D. Surprise! The Salted Caramel won despite the early hype around Chocolate Orange. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗗𝗼 𝗜𝘁 (𝗡𝗼 𝗣𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱): • Craft a clear hypothesis • Design the painted door button—it should look real and enticing. • Track engagement: watch the clicks and gather insights. • Provide feedback: if they click, a quick message can explain the feature’s "coming soon" status. • Analyse & iterate: use the data to decide if the feature is a keeper or needs rethinking. The Takeaway: Painted door tests help eliminate “guesswork” from your product roadmap, saving time, money, and unnecessary costs. The link to the full blog will be in the comments. #experimentation #painteddoortests #CRO #wie #convertXwie #speakup

🎥 How customer stories captivate, inspire, and drive change for your tech brand. As the world gets more and more crowded with messaging and competition, marketers need to hit home quickly with the value of their products and services. People remember how you made them feel.  And storytelling is the most powerful way to make the complex, human. Here are 3 lessons we've learned from over a decade of crafting human-centric customer stories for some of the words most progressive tech brands: 👐🏽 Business to human Seeing other humans that look, sound and feel like you builds trust and affinity and film is a perfect medium to transmit authenticity and champion real people — passionate small business owners, enthusiastic brand-side employees and delighted end-users. 🏆 Experiences build relatability Yes, audiences are curious about speeds and feeds, but true motivation comes from relating to the challenges of others. The best narratives set up a key obstacle and show us how they can be overcome with the right solution. 🌐 Stories scale Stories simplify complex ideas making them easier to share with others. Filmed stories create even more ways to spread your message by creating a foundation for extensions — like social-first versions, stills and GIFs — to make an even bigger impact. For more insights and examples of authentic technology stories that work, click below: https://lnkd.in/etXr89gD #storytelling #customerstory #techmarketing

You might have the greatest idea in the world but if it takes you ages to bring it to the market, you’ll lose to a worse idea – just one with better timing. A few years ago Clayton Christensen dropped a bombshell on the business world: out of 30,000 apps launched each year, 95% fail. Does that mean you should give up on your hot idea? Not necessarily. One key success factor is how quickly you can bring your app to the market. Start collecting feedback from customers and iterate based on what the market wants. Why is reducing time to market crucial? 1. Cutting the time to launch means fewer companies to fight for user attention. 2. The sooner you launch, the earlier you’ll see a return on investment. 3. Tech enthusiasts can provide valuable feedback to improve your product. 4. Being early with a high-quality product helps you stand out. But there are three factors that influence TTM: Product complexity, resource availability, and regulations. Here are 7 ways you can reduce TTM: 1. Work with a skilled team to develop a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) quickly. Focus on market research and user feedback to ensure you’re on the right track. 2. Utilize AI tools like GitHub Copilot and Locofy.ai to suggest code, catch bugs, and optimize designs. 3. Use a single codebase for multiple operating systems to save time and resources. 4. Use low-code/no-code for rapid prototyping and iteration, which reduces development time by over 50%. 5. Implement Agile methodologies to deliver products iteratively and respond quickly to customer feedback. 6. Optimize workflows with detailed documentation, clear timelines, and transparent communication. 7. Swiftly add necessary talent to your project on a temporary basis. By leveraging these strategies, you can bring innovative products to market faster and more efficiently. Remember, it's better done than perfect – focus on speed and iterate later. https://lnkd.in/dt7GYx8r

Testing directly in a product really is the best way for building with users at the heart of every decision. When you actively watch users interact with your product, you really capture the data and insights that go beyond what’s learnt from a flow of static journeys. Real life testing uncovers unknown pain points, unexpected interactions/behaviours, existing bad practices and details that weren't even part of your tests that can make or break a users experience. It’s the direct link to understanding how users truly engage and where they encounter friction. For product-led companies, this approach won't just be valuable in the future - it will be essential. These insights will let businesses build solutions that truly address user needs, drive meaningful growth, identify innovative solutions and build loyalty through design that feels intuitive and effortless.

When Hugo Brunet and I discuss our roadmaps, we focus on identifying actionable metrics to analyze before releasing new features. It's not always easy, but it's essential. I recommend "The Lean Startup" by Eric Ries, which changed my perspective a few years ago! I'm passionate (or annoying 😎 ) about actionable metrics because they help identify real issues, not vanity metrics that can mislead us. For example, if there's a big drop-off from the Event Page to the Payment Page, it might mean our UX needs improvement, and the product team should address it. As a B2B2C platform, not everything is a marketing problem. In past experiences, I've seen marketing get blamed when customer platforms struggle, leading to budget cuts and weakened online presence. It's crucial to pinpoint the real issue to find effective solutions! #ProjectManagement #Ticketing #ActionnableMetrics