Product management and development: Creating successful products

Good product managers deliver their work on time and within budgetary constraints while meeting or exceeding expectations. They effectively allocate resources, detail tasks, and foster collaboration to meet the business’s goals. Effective product management delivers numerous benefits, such as increased efficiency, better resource utilization, heightened customer satisfaction, and a competitive edge.¹

This article will explore how a product management MBA can help you learn the skills you need to create successful products using effective product management strategies.

Before you can create a successful product, you need to understand what people want that’s not currently available. Companies conduct market research to identify new opportunities for products. They start by analyzing target markets, including size, growth potential, trends, and user preferences. This information allows product managers to position their products effectively, refine their pricing and marketing strategy, and uncover unmet needs or overlooked market segments.²

A market opportunity analysis includes several key steps:

• Define your objectives²
• Identify your target market and users²
• Gather and analyze market data²
• Understand users’ needs²
• Evaluate the market’s trends and gaps²
• Create a strategy for product development²

In the dynamic landscape of product development, customer feedback acts as a guiding beacon, illuminating the path toward creating products that resonate with the intended audience. Product managers play a pivotal role in this process, leveraging diverse channels to gather invaluable insights from their user base.

The product development process is not static but a fluid journey, with product managers continuously iterating and refining based on customer needs and user feedback. Through methods such as surveys, interviews, and data analytics, product managers meticulously gather and analyze customer feedback, seeking patterns and trends that inform strategic decisions.

At the core of this iterative cycle lies the product strategy, a roadmap that delineates the vision and objectives guiding the product development journey. By aligning customer research with the overarching product vision, product managers define clear milestones and deliverables, ensuring that each step of the development process advances toward fulfilling customer needs and aspirations.

The fusion of customer feedback and product development is akin to a symphony conducted by product managers, orchestrating cross-functional collaboration and innovation. As custodians of the product roadmap, product managers navigate the complexities of software development with precision and foresight.

From the inception of an idea to its fruition, customer research permeates every facet of the development process, guiding decisions on technical specifications, feature prioritization, and market positioning. Product managers, armed with a deep understanding of the target market and existing product landscape, craft strategies that propel their offerings toward market leadership.

In the realm of marketing campaigns and sales enablement, customer feedback serves as a compass, guiding messaging and engagement strategies. Through diligent market analysis and collaboration with the sales team, product managers refine their product development strategy, ensuring that each iteration resonates with the evolving needs and aspirations of their user base.

By embracing a culture of continuous improvement and responsiveness to user feedback, product managers cultivate products that not only meet but exceed expectations, cementing their position as drivers of innovation and customer-centricity in the ever-evolving landscape of product management.

This course is designed to review behavioral science concepts applicable to understanding the behavior of consumers in the marketplace. It investigates the specific processes of consumer decision-making and purchasing, and the implications these have for marketing strategy.

Topics covered include:

• effect of internal and external factors on consumer decision-making
• information processing
• learning and memory
• attitude formation and change
• post-purchase behavior
• ethical/social issues
• effects on marketing strategy

Prerequisite: MKTG 706 or equivalent.

Once you’ve discovered an opportunity through your market research, you can choose to develop a product or service. The development team can focus on generating, refining, and validating new ideas to solve the market’s needs or users’ problems. Diverse teams come together to generate ideas by exploring different angles and solutions.³

You can narrow down these options and take a few to the next stage by creating prototypes or minimum viable products (MVPs).⁴ This approach allows teams to test their hypotheses with real users, gathering crucial feedback on the viability, usability, and desirability of their concepts. MVPs, in particular, offer a lean way to validate assumptions with the least amount of effort and expense, focusing on core functionalities to meet early adopters’ needs and refine the product based on user feedback.⁴

You can ultimately choose a product based on criteria such as market potential, alignment with the business’s goals, feasibility, and resource requirements. Taking a systematic approach allows the most viable concepts to proceed to the next stages of development so the business can optimize its resources and focus on its strategic objectives.³

Product managers develop a strategy that outlines the direction and goals of a product throughout its lifecycle. This strategic plan answers critical questions about successful product creation, including whom the product will serve and the benefits it will deliver. Effective product strategies are:

• Purpose-driven: They fulfill a specific need or solve a particular problem.⁵
• Customer-centric: These strategies bridge the gap between expressed desires and actual requirements to meet customers’ needs.⁵
• Ecosystem-aware: By recognizing the product’s place within a broader ecosystem, effective strategies can identify areas of potential friction or opportunity.⁵
• Future-oriented: Strategic planning anticipates likely changes and disruptions within the market to prepare for foreseeable challenges and opportunities that could impact product lifecycle management.⁵
• Actionable: The product strategy outlines specific steps to navigate anticipated changes.⁵
• Measurable: It includes mechanisms for tracking success and making necessary adjustments based on performance and feedback.⁵

A product road map is a visual representation of a product strategy.⁵ It illustrates how the product will evolve to meet its goals and address customers’ needs. Product managers can use it as a tool to keep everyone up to date on their progress.

Product managers also have to develop a pricing strategy. They need a thorough understanding of the market, competitive landscape, and value proposition to determine the right approach. Together, these elements form a cohesive strategy that guides product development, marketing, and sales efforts to drive a product’s success and sustainability.⁵

Great products are rarely the result of one person or team. Cross-functional collaboration draws on the experience of various teams, including design, engineering, and marketing, to create successful products. Collaboration helps teams create products that are technically feasible, visually appealing, market-ready, and aligned with customers’ expectations.⁶

Agile development methodologies foster collaboration by promoting iterative work cycles, continuous feedback, and adaptability.⁷ This approach allows for a rapid response to changes, whether they’re market-driven, technological, or based on stakeholder feedback.

Cross-functional collaboration also includes stakeholder management to keep all parties involved, from team members to external partners, aligned on the project’s goals, progress, and challenges. Effective stakeholder management requires clear communication, regular updates, and the ability to navigate and reconcile differing objectives and priorities. This keeps the project moving forward, with every function contributing to the final product’s success.⁸

A launch strategy outlines how a product will be introduced to the market, including plans for maximizing its impact with a successful debut. Product managers consider timing, the target audience, messaging, and the channels through which the product will be unveiled. They work to create a buzz so the product captures the attention of the intended market segment.⁹

Marketing and promotion use a mix of digital and traditional tools to build awareness and anticipation. This could include social media campaigns, influencer partnerships, content marketing, PR efforts, and targeted advertising—all aimed at highlighting the product’s unique value proposition and benefits to potential customers.⁹

Sales enablement equips teams with the necessary resources, tools, and training to effectively sell the product. These teams might create detailed product guides, FAQs, demo scripts, and case studies that can help overcome objections and showcase the product’s advantages. When marketing and sales teams work together, businesses can craft a cohesive and compelling message that drives user adoption and success in the market.⁹

Product managers need an objective method for measuring outcomes. Key performance indicators (KPIs) are specific, quantifiable measures that track progress against key business objectives.¹⁰ They give insight into how a product performs so teams can make informed decisions about the next steps. Effective KPIs need to be aligned with the organization’s strategic goals.

For evaluating a product’s success, metrics often include customer satisfaction scores, user engagement levels, acquisition and retention rates, and market share growth. These indicators help teams understand how well the product is meeting users’ needs, its market acceptance, and its overall contribution to the business.¹¹

Return on investment provides a clear picture of the financial profitability of a product or initiative. By comparing the revenue generated or cost savings achieved to the investment made, businesses can assess the economic value created and make data-driven decisions about future investments or product adjustments.¹¹

Whether you’re looking to start a new career or advance in your current one, the affordable online MBA from the University of Kansas School of Business can help you achieve your goals.

KU’s #9 Best Online MBA Program offers a rigorous curriculum taught by expert faculty to help you develop the skills today’s global leaders need to succeed.¹²

You can learn on your own schedule and when you finish your degree, you’ll be better prepared for upper-level management opportunities at any organization.

Contact a KU admissions outreach advisor today to get started.