Creating a product, such as an application or an advanced website, requires the work of an extensive team of specialists. The leading role among them is played by the Product Manager, on whom the success of the project largely depends. What exactly does the PM do, and why is his work so important?
1. Defining the vision of the product
The Product Manager’s task is to create an outline of the product’s shape, which will be the point of reference during all subsequent activities. To achieve this, first, it is necessary to determine to whom the product will be addressed and what customer needs it should meet.
For this purpose, personas are created, which means fictional characters representing types of future users. Each of them is defined by such information as demographic data, desires, fears, occupation, income, education, or, for example, the way of using the Internet and devices.
Determining the exact target makes it easier to choose what problems the product is supposed to solve. The key here is to adopt the user’s perspective. It’s not so essential “what the product is supposed to be like”, but “how it's useful to the consumer”.
To create these assumptions, the PM needs to conduct market research. Surveys or interviews are used for this, but it can also be helpful to analyze blogs, forums, or social media (e.g. with the help of Internet monitoring tools). By reading posts and comments, the PM can identify the needs and problems of the target audience.
It is also necessary to conduct a competitive analysis. PM should know what solutions are used on the market so that the product can gain an advantage over others. It’s a way to observe the shortcomings of competing products or to get inspired by good solutions.
Based on all this information, it is possible to define a product’s vision. It can be summarized in a short sentence. For example, IKEA's vision was “To create a better everyday life for many people”. This sentence reflects perfectly what is the purpose of the created products, and what kind of consumer needs are to be met.
2. Creating a strategy
PM strategy defines the project roadmap, which is a blueprint for the entire process. These are goals to be achieved in a specific time: in the near and distant future. The first stages are defined (e.g. sprints in Scrum) so that the team knows where to start. Milestones and final goals are also outlined to convey to the team what it should strive for.
Project goals can be prioritized from the least important to crucial. Thanks to this, some flexibility is achieved and compromises are possible during development. Sometimes it is worth sacrificing a less important goal to maximize the basic ones, savings or acceleration of product implementation.
It is also necessary to define the metrics by which the success of the project will be measured. KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) can be, for example, the number of user accounts created, application downloads, subscriptions purchased or the level of website traffic.
3. Being the client’s advocate and following trends
The Product Manager has defined the client’s needs and is responsible for ensuring that the product meets them. He must analyze the course of development, considering the assumptions of the vision.
During the work, the team building the application may focus too much on the product itself, forgetting that the user is the most important. The PM’s job is to remind the team of the consumer’s needs.
The PM must monitor the market to react to changes. New competition solutions may appear or customers’ needs may shift. Then a change of strategy is needed.
Agile methodologies, like scrum, allow the team to modify the course of the project during development. This gives a chance to create an innovative and competitive product, even if the situation on the market changes.
4. Supervising marketing and sales
Once the product is ready, the PM's job is to work with the marketing manager and sales team on product launch activities. It is necessary to build customer awareness through marketing campaigns and promotional activities.
Adequate media hype should be created before the product launch. Industry magazines, blogs, and social media are used for this purpose. Especially if the product is very innovative, it is worth making potential customers aware of what new values it can bring to their lives. Content marketing activities, e.g. through a blog or YouTube channel, are very helpful here.
PM also co-creates the pricing strategy in relation to market competition and determines the optimal release time. It is needed, e.g. adjusting the distribution start time to the competition’s products launch calendar.
5.Conducting the product improvement
The Product Manager tracks predetermined KPIs to know if the product lives up to expectations. If the KPI values are not satisfactory, the PM analyzes what can be changed. Perhaps it is necessary to modify the marketing or pricing strategy, or changes should be made to the product itself.
Even if the product has been fully successful, it is worth developing software to maintain an interest in it. Users can also report the need to add new functionalities or introduce modifications. PM’s job is to keep up to date and respond to consumer needs.
Final words
The Product Manager plays a key role in the team creating the application. He sets the direction of development and activities after product implementation. Thanks to it, the team does not forget about the most important point of reference, which is users’ needs. It knows what it should strive for when to achieve the goal, and what are the criteria for success.
The Product Manager knows the product and its assumptions perfectly. He can manage the marketing actions and determine whether the project has been successful. PM will also outline the goals of further product development, considering users’ feedback and the market situation.
All this means that the success of the project depends to a large extent on the competence of the Product Manager. If he makes the wrong assumptions at the beginning, cannot recognize users’ needs, and monitor whether the product meets them, the work of developers may be insufficient for success.
That is why it is worth hiring a PM who has competencies supported by many years of experience. At Codepole, we have specialists who will guide your project in the right direction. They have managed different types of products, so they are versatile and know different aspects of the field.
Contact us to hire a Product Manager who will help your product succeed!
