Before You Build: A simple guide to evaluate new features
Are you thinking of building a new feature? It's all about being diligent before you build something valuable for your users. Learn how to evaluate ideas, reduce risk, and avoid feature waste.
Analysis of customer feedback:
Analyze customer feedback across diverse channels, including customer service interactions, online reviews (e.g., Google, Trustpilot), app store/play store feedback and social media platforms.
Identify if customers have articulated specific needs or proposed solutions. Customers often frame their challenges as potential solutions.
Competition Analysis:
Conduct a thorough analysis of competitors in relevant markets and domains.
Assess whether competitors offer a similar feature and its available duration. Often, validation from competitors can indicate a recognized need in the market.
Market Research :
Examine external market research data, utilizing sources such as industry-wide research reports.
Explore key findings related to the market size, growth trends, and potential opportunities for the planned feature.
User Research :
It’s always helpful to do continuous user research. This means continuous engagement with users to understand their needs, pain points, and preferences, ensuring you have a good backlog of user problems.
Evaluate insights from qualitative user research backlog and feedback surveys. Often, recurring customer pain points come up from customers as features they would want in your product.
Usage Data and Analytics Examination:
Analyze current usage and behavioural data within the product.
Identify patterns, such as specific behaviours within users or relevant cohorts, to form hypotheses about potential pain points and areas for improvement.
Applying these evaluation criteria, you can systematically reduce the risk of new features that may not work for your users.