August 2008
Market Driven Products vs. Market Driven Product Companies - 3 Key Differences
“Market driven products” has become another overused phrase that has reached white noise status.
In the purest sense though, market driven products is a valuable concept in that every product should be born and evolve based on needs of a broad market. But this concept can either work wonders or wreak havoc on growth depending on... view or download
July 2008
5 Phases of Requirements - 3 Ways They Improve Overall Company Performance
If you perceive requirements to be those long-winded documents that only a designer or engineer could love, you’re right if you approach requirements as one big blob of features and technical specs. A phased approach to requirements however view or download
June 2008
Product Usability and Its Impact on Revenue
The holy grail of product usability is attained when your product offers such a compelling experience users feel obligated to recommend it to others. It works wonders on your top line.
If your customers aren't taking it upon themselves to promote your product... view or download
May 2008
Requirements – The Problem is the Problem
All great products begin with a well defined need. But the reason many products miss the mark is because product managers have it etched into their brains that business requirements always begin with a problem definition. Starting your requirements with a problem definition is a problem. Here’s why. view or download
April 2008
Product Knowledge - Asset or Liability?
Okay product managers, what has all your down-in-the-weeds detailed product knowledge done for you and your company lately? Entitled you to more phone calls and emails? Turned you into first line customer support? Allowed you to write endless pages of detailed specifications that are more painful than a root canal minus the Novocain? It doesn't sound like product management. view or download
March 2008
Creating a Positive Buying Experience
People buy from people who make them feel good about the buying experience. If you can make your product demos a feel-good experience, your odds of closing the sale go up exponentially. view or download
February 2008
Avoid 3 Types of Demos That Will Kill the Sale
There are three types of product demos that prolong the sales cycle, result in no decision, or flat out kill the deal. view or download
January 2008
Product Management: 3 Tactics for Exerting Stronger Influence & Leadership
Most product management professionals readily admit they spend too much time in the weeds on tasks that, at the end of the day, don't contribute much to the overall mission of the organization. Here are three things product management professionals can do to be more effective doing what they're paid to do - managing the organization's primary source of revenue - its products. view or download
December 2007
3 Tactics for More Engaging Web Demos
Regardless of the venue or medium, there is one basic principle that should be employed in every product demo - always articulate the challenge in the buyer’s language before demonstrating the product solution.
When it comes to web demos though, this principle needs to be executed differently because you don’t have the benefit of reading your audience as you would in a face-to-face demo. You can also assume your audience is doing at least one other task during a web demo so you want to be sure to give them a reason to pay full attention.
Use these three tactics to make your web demos more engaging.
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November 2007
Becoming a Solutions Driven Organization
There's a simple reason solution minded B2B companies grow revenue and market share faster than product minded companies – perspective.
First and foremost, solution-minded companies are better at seeing the world through the same lens as their target customers, and that mentality is ingrained in their culture.
Secondly, solution-minded companies view each of their products as features of the total solution and manage them accordingly. It's simply a different mindset.
Solution minded companies emphasize seven complementary perspectives to achieve a solution focus. Think of each perspective as a complement to the others.
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October 2007
The Functional Designer
The most absent and overlooked role in the entire product delivery cycle is the functional designer. Ironically, it may have a greater impact on the success of a product than any other role. Here’s why. view or download
September 2007
Post Acquisition Paralysis: A Five Point Wellness Plan for High Tech Companies
The motivation behind most acquisitions is strategic in that it opens doors to new markets, expands the breadth of product solutions, provides an instant customer base, or some combination of all three.
But after the deal closes and the celebration parties are over, the wheels of execution often slow to a grinding halt. Three of the most common reasons are as follows...
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August 2007
Agile or Waterfall Development: Do We Care?
Every so often a new concept sweeps the industry, promising to be a panacea for whatever ails us . . . think open source. More recently, Agile development has gained momentum as such a panacea. When development cycles are slow and the product misses its mark, it’s appealing to think a new methodology will be the Holy Grail for delivering products faster with more features. view or download
July 2007
Multi Product Paralysis
The initial stages of paralysis begin the moment your company has its second product - two products, two agendas, and two sets of priorities.
As the high technology market continues its torrid pace of consolidation, many companies struggle to manage the mishmash of products, processes, cultures, geographies and priorities. This can quickly lead to paralysis if not remedied early on.
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June 2007
Solutions Marketing - The New Product Marketing
Before the advent of Tylenol, Advil, Motrin or Excedrin, the world somehow got by on aspirin for general aches and pains. But marketers never rest in looking for ways to gain competitive advantage, hence, the myriad of pain relievers available today for every discomfort imaginable. For example, there’s Tylenol for a cold, flu, sinus, arthritis and a slew of other ailments. view or download
May 2007
Get More Product Management from Your Product Managers
If your product management function is not performing up to par, there could be a million contributing factors, most of which relate to a single issue: the lack of a supporting cast. Like athletes who are great with one team but not so great with another, it’s usually their supporting cast. The same philosophy applies to the product management function within a technology company. view or download
April 2007
The Price of Saying Yes Too Often
If you’re a software company, committing to new features just to win the deal is part of the business. But making a habit of this practice is the equivalent of throwing your company into a death spiral then perfecting your spin. Here’s why. view or download
March 2007
Demonstrating a Solution vs. a Bunch of Products
There's hardly a technology company out there that hasn't been through a merger or acquisition in recent years. The good news is you have more products to sell… and the bad news is you have more products to sell.
In many cases, the product stovepipes that exist internally become transparent to your prospects during the sales cycle, creating the perception you’ve got a bunch of fragmented products instead of a solution. Longer and more difficult sales cycles lie ahead if this is the case.
Here are 3 tactics to help you sell a single solution instead of a bunch of products.
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February 2007
Harmony Between Product Management & Product Development
The relationship between product management and product development might never be one of mutual adoration, but there are a few simple routine practices that can make for a healthier and more productive working environment.
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January 2007
Many Products, One Direction
Mergers or acquisitions have left most technology companies with a slew of products that are going in different directions. There are five steps you can take to get all products pointed in the same direction.
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December 2006
Strategy & Product Plans: Are the Dots Connected?
Most high technology product companies have a strategic plan that includes goals for revenue growth, new customers, market share and other quantifiable metrics. But a huge disconnect often exists between the strategic plan and product plans. The result is an organization going in many different directions. view or download
November 2006
The Obvious Answer & the Real Answer
During the product planning process we typically gather feedback from customers, sales, services and other stakeholders. The question we don’t ask often enough is, “why do you need those features.” view or download
October 2006
The Product Development Vault
Most people manage money with two objectives: protect it, and invest to secure the future. Your product development team is like a financial portfolio. Are you investing to secure the future or spending like a shopaholic?
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September 2006
Strategic vs. Tactical Product Management
The problem with dividing product management into strategic and tactical camps is that most people shy away from the tactical label because it lacks the glamour of a strategist, not to mention all the hard work that goes with it. You can hardly blame them. view or download
August 2006
Problem Discovery & Product Objections
All products have deficiencies. Don't get too worked up over it. Successful technology companies master the art of overcoming objections by making them seem trivial in the grand scheme. How do they do it? By asking the right questions early in the sales cycle. view or download
July 2006
Using White Papers to Generate Better Sales Leads
According to a 2005 survey from the CMO Council and KnowledgeStorm, prospects value white papers more than any other content produced by technology companies. And while most technology companies regularly publish white papers, they fail to get the maximum marketing value for their efforts.
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June 2006
Hiring the Right Product Manager
Product management positions are among the toughest to fill in the high technology industry due to the broad range of skills and real-world experiences that make for success in any given environment. A successful product manager in one organization doesn't necessarily translate to a successful product manager in your organization because the circumstances may be very different. view or download
May 2006
Get More “Nice to Have” Features
Product planning is nothing less than an exercise in prioritization. There are always a hundred things you need, but it boils down to the ten you can get done. So the question becomes, which ten best help your cause? The key to getting bonus features with this mentality is letting the engineers pick and chose the features they prefer to build. Keeping in mind that all such features fall into the "nice to have" category, priority is irrelevant. You're goal is volume. view or download
April 2006
Customer Feedback: Are You Asking The Right Questions?
Asking your customers for input on future product direction can be a double edge sword. If you're not asking the right questions, this process can create more headaches than it cures. The secret to valuable feedback lies in how the questions are asked. Here are a few simple tips that should yield more useful customer feedback.
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March 2006
Product Management: Its a Contact Sport
There's a good reason athletes in contact sports wear protective pads. History of the game has proven where injuries are most likely to occur, hence the placement of the pads.
Managing high technology products is a contact sport in many ways. History of the business reveals where injuries are most likely to occur, yet we often disregard the recommended pads. view or download
February 2006
Big Fish, Small Pond or Small Fish, Big Pond
If you're a big fish in a small pond you're probably one of the leaders in the market space you've defined as your pond. Conversely, if you're a small fish in a big pond you're probably trying to be too many things to too many people which dilutes your strengths and takes away any competitive advantage you might have. Which category do you fall into? view or download
January 2006
Win - Loss Analysis
Duplicate the wins. Stem the losses. It’s easy to blame a lost sale on product deficiencies. While the product may be the real reason in some cases, a larger percentage of losses are directly related to the sales person. There’s an age old adage that people buy from people. view or download
November 2005
Overcoming Product Objections
Sales revenue would come easily if your products had every capability prospects thought they needed during the buying cycle. Unfortunately, this will never be reality in the high-technology world. Your products will always be deficient in someone’s opinion. Stop kicking yourself over it and try the following to make your sales cycles a little easier.
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October 2005
The Maintenance Pricing Shell Game
This month we welcome Gerard Frey of InfoMentis (www.infomentis.com) as our guest publisher. Gerard founded the Maintenance Retention Practice for InfoMentis after 23 years of practical experience in the technology industry. Gerard works directly with InfoMentis clients to help them grow recurring maintenance revenue and customer retention.
If maintenance revenue is part of your business model you'll find the following information extremely worthwhile.
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September 2005
Surviving Product Commoditization
As product lifecycles become increasingly shorter many products quickly reach commodity status where price becomes the single biggest buying driver. How do great companies get out of this rat race? In many cases, there is no magic - just a little creativity and a lot of execution as illustrated by the following examples... view or download
August 2005
Speed Bumps in Your Planning Process?
Opinions are like noses. Everybody has one when it comes to product plans, marketing plans, sales plans, development plans or any others. Just like noses, no two opinions are alike, making it difficult to garner broad support for any plan. The speed bumps appear when you're asked for more information at every step of the approval process.
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July 2005
Using Buzzwords: You Really Should Not
It’s a common practice in high technology to use buzzwords and catchphrases in sales and marketing materials and in conversations with our peers and colleagues. Why are buzzwords bad?
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June 2005
Product Feature ROI
Senior executives often request a feature level ROI prior to approving plans for future product development. This can be a mind numbing exercise for product managers and developers. Most product features are usually interrelated at some level, so how is it possible to predict revenue and cost estimates on a feature by feature basis?
Here are four time saving tips to simplify the feature ROI exercise…
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May 2005
Web Demos
The #1 challenge with product demos conducted via webcast is the ability to read and align with an audience you can’t see. "Is the demo going well? Are they doing e-mail while I talk? Does anyone care? Somebody, anybody, give me a sign!" Here are 3 tips to help your cause. view or download
April 2005
Two Rs of Technology Marketing
The mere thought of R&R takes most of our minds toward rest and relaxation. But in the world of B2B technology marketing R&R is all about sales REVENUE and customer REFERENCES.
Every remedial marketing course teaches the importance of the 4 P’s - product, place, promotion and price. While the 4 P’s should always be considered, the 2 R’s should be at the forefront of major product, marketing and operational decisions.
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March 2005
Product Training for the Sales Team
You’ve created textbook sales and marketing materials. You’ve spoon fed the information to the sales team on several occasions and in varying formats. You’ve accompanied them on prospect calls. And yet, they're still challenged to articulate key value points that hook a prospect and position your products in a manner that’s compelling. Try these 3 helpful hints...
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February 2005
Choosing Your Target Markets
Your single most important decision is choosing the target markets in which you’ll promote and sell your products. This single decision affects every other decision going forward including the products and features you build, your architecture, pricing, marketing message and sales model just to name a few.
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January 2005
Is Your Product Delivery Team Balanced?
When the product delivery process hits a bump the battle cry of “more people” usually follows. But many of the demons that rear their head during a typical cycle are simply a result of not having the right people in the right place.
5 Typical Issues and The Implications:
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November 2004
How To Benefit From Focus Groups
The purpose of focus groups as used in B2B product management is to understand and validate various product initiatives through interactive feedback such that products meet the needs of target customers. Focus groups are beneficial in a wide range of product initiatives that span new product innovation to product usability and everything in between... view or download
October 2004
The Requirements Hierarchy
A requirement in its most basic form is a way to solve a problem and usually evokes thoughts of product features or technology. When products are designed and built without targeting specific problems to solve, luck becomes the only chance for success. There are four basic layers of requirements... view or download
September 2004
Planning the Next Release
The typical response to the common question, "why are we adding these features to the next release?" usually doesn’t go much beyond a sales opportunity or a customer urgency. This thought process gets most high tech companies into an endless loop of crisis planning because the objectives are too narrowly focused... view or download
August 2004
To Launch or Not To Launch
There is a common misconception that every new product or release requires a big bang marketing launch. In many cases this leads to excessive marketing spend and overall disappointment because the manufactured hype doesn’t gain the anticipated mind share of industry analysts, press, and other market influencers... view or download
July 2004
Keys to a Successful Product Rollout
Many high-tech professionals use rollout and launch synonymously when in fact, they are very different initiatives that serve different purposes. A product rollout is mostly tactical in nature and is focused primarily on internal readiness that prepares a company to market, sell, implement and support a new product or release. A product launch is... view or download
June 2004
5 Keys to a Successful Product Demo
A good demo is all about solutions to business problems. A bad demo is a product feature presentation. The bottom line – your prospects are far more likely to buy something they can relate to. So how do you show your product in a way prospects can relate to? view or download
May 2004
Do you Know Why your Customers Buy
If you were to ask any high-tech sales, marketing, or product development professional why customers buy their product the response would most likely be a feature or technology component. This product mentality exemplifies one of the technology industry’s biggest deficiencies. view or download
April 2004
Managing the Sales Fire Drills
The nature of most product managers is to do whatever it takes to support their sales team. A commendable effort! However, most product managers are already stretched beyond their limits trying to do too many things and not doing any of them very well. Here are three of the most common requests from sales... view or download
March 2004
Strength in Strategy
A long term product strategy is very similar to MapQuest driving directions. It's an explicit set of directions to get you from point A to point B. It gives you the calculated distance and approximate length of time your trip will take. If you follow the directions to a tee you'll end up at your chosen destination 95% of the time (sorry MapQuest, nobody's perfect) view or download
February 2004
Customer Pain
The CEO of every company, regardless of size or industry loses sleep over one or two major issues related to his or her company. These issues have a direct correlation to the pain that everyone at every level in the company is tasked to remedy. Since the proverbial pain rolls downhill, if you understand what CEOs of your target customers lose sleep over, you will inherently understand how your products and services address the pain at all levels of the organization. view or download
January 2004
Wearing Multiple Hats
High-tech companies are similar to professional sports teams. You need skilled players at every position while dealing with limited rosters and salary cap issues. These challenges have never prevented any professional sports franchise from having necessary skilled positions. So why do high-tech companies? view or download
