Complete Guide on Product Thinking

Product thinking, like Design thinking, is a set of mental processes that shapes how a designer approaches a problem & determines a solution. Practical product thinking begins by identifying an audience's problems. Then, the designer or design team establishes a method and sets the objectives. Product thinking aims to resolve real issues by building substantive solutions. Designers who use product thinking regularly produce impactful solutions that add value to the users.

When thinking of User Experience, we frequently consider a straightforward, beautiful, and simple-to-use feature set of a product that makes the user's life easier. However, as a matter of fact, features are simple, fragile, a part of the product. They're only a few of the many potential solutions for a user's problems that the product tries to resolve. Thinking about a product means thinking about a specific user's issues, jobs, goals, and values. The core user experience isn't a collection of features; in reality, it's the job users hire the product to do. Uber's core user experience is to call a taxi at any time. The arrival time estimates, displaying when precisely the taxi will arrive, may be an appropriate feature that expands this experience. However, Uber's product works despite this specific feature. On the other hand, the estimation cannot live without the product (the certainty to call a taxi at any time). There's a one-way relationship between feature and product: features don't work if the product doesn't. This is why designers should think about the product first.

"Think in product, not in features."

Product Thinking is Problem Solving

It is easy to get over-involved in developing features when working on user experience design. It's not that they aren't vital; however, they're usually secondary to the main reason that a client or user buys our product. That reason is simple; the user chooses the product that solves a real-world problem for themselves. In practice, which means we must think about the product first. A feature might (or might not) be a valuable part of a product; but, the feature should not be there without a purpose. A smartphone can run many apps; for instance, the phone's first use is communication. Apps might enhance the communication experience but without the ability to make calls, send texts, etc, the apps would be of very little value. Therefore, designers should think product first and feature second. Nikkel Blasse, the product and interaction designer at Xing, calls this Product Thinking.

But in reality, What is the Problem?

The first step of product thinking is to work out the problems that your users are trying to resolve. That's the main reason that they're going to purchase your product (as long as it genuinely solves the issue in a meaningful and valuable way). If the problems you decide on don't exist or the solution you intend doesn't truly solve the problem - your product is worthless to the users. A product without users ends up on the scrap heap (often despite the efforts of the people who created it). Sure, there's a chance that if you get the answer wrong - you'll be able to fix it; however, if you solve a problem that doesn't exist, then, there's very little you'll do about it post-launch. Generally finding real issues is troublesome. Even after doing extensive research - it's possible that you can't find a problem that the user faces. However, users may not be able to explain clearly what the problem is (it's not their job, as Steve Jobs would have said); therefore, you'll need to dig deep and do some real-world observations on your users.

Formation

You start with the user & define a problem

• What problem is that you have to solve
• The audience for whom you're going to solve the problems

Then you scrutinize the job to be done

• Why are you doing this (what's the exact idea behind it)?
• Tactic - what can we do to achieve it?

Finally, you define your outputs

• What goals should we set? What precisely can we achieve?
• What features can emerge from this? What do we need to do to succeed in our goals?

Influence

Thinking in product provides designers the advantage of building the appropriate features for the proper individuals. It helps to understand the user experience of a product as a whole, not strictly as an Interaction and Visual design of features. It makes sure designers tackle real user issues and, consequently, reduce the risk of building one thing no one desires. It provides the facility to create the proper selections when it comes to building features.

"Building features is simple; building the right features for the right individuals is challenging."

Product Thinking permits UX designers to raise the proper queries, make the right features, and speak with stakeholders efficiently. It enables designers to mention 'no' and to be hesitant before adding new features. Whenever a new feature is requested, or somebody has a plan for a new product, designers can raise the proper queries before drawing wireframes or crafting fancy layouts: "Does it belong to the product?" - "Does it solve a true user problem?" - "Will the user like it? - Let's establish first!" It may keep the product slim and practical.

Conclusion

Product Thinking allows designers to create higher quality products. It's the way of examining each design decision in context with the problem that the user is trying to solve. It can additionally strengthen the relationship between UX and product management. Thinking about the product as a whole helps designers build the right features for the right people and focus on real problems users actually face. It empowers better decision making and provides a solid foundation for creating the right product that delivers higher value to the users. Product Thinking lets you establish an excellent collaboration between Product Management & UX design and results in a more successful product. This is why Product Thinking is becoming an increasingly important concept in UX design. However, for some teams, it may simply seem like a new term for ideas that already exist in approaches such as Design Thinking. Whether it is truly a new approach or not, Product Thinking can still be used as a valuable supporting framework. The term itself may also be easier for managers, clients, or teams to understand. So, consider your internal audience and use product thinking in the best way to communicate your ideas and achieve your goals.