“We’re looking for a head of product…” I get a lot of messages that start this way. So when I saw one in my Twitter DMs last week, I started composing my usual response. But as I was typing, another DM came through… “…but not you.” I paused. A series of messages from a former colleague came through, asking for advice in her current situation. She’s part of the leadership team at an enterprise SaaS startup, and while they have an active search for a head of product, the exec team is actively mis-aligned on why. She explained that there were 2 camps forming:
the basic idea is your product discovery / activation / engagement / expansion is a "loop" (versus a funnel or a flywheel) and can be (a) operationalized from a GTM perspective and (b) automated from a product perspective - you can't do more sophisticated / higher value things with you product (and grow as a company) until the foundation runs itself - you can read more about the concept here -> https://www.reforge.com/blog/growth-loops
This concept is fascination. How do you think about the difference b/t "product strategy" and "growth strategy"? If you're small enough to have one sprint team, do you try to make sure the product strategy includes a growth loop? Or is the growth loop something you graduate into alongside investing in core functionality?
the growth loop is a way to model your product/market motion - if we solve problem X for persona Y then outcome Z happens which increases our access to more of persona Y dealing with problem X (and so on, in a virtuous cycle)
where strategy comes in is identifying leverage points - where do we have a differentiator with regards to X, Y, and/or Z that we can take advantage of relative to other players in the market
and finally where product strategy comes in is answering how can we build/buy/partner (and use R&D budget) to accumulate and utilize advantages
the key part of loops is understanding how the system works and where it needs a boost
the key part of strategy is understanding where you have leverage and choosing to focus
The timing of this post is spot on. I was working on spot checking our strategy, literally this week. Couldn't have read this at a better time - thanks!
I just have one question -
>>how does product usage tie to a buying decision?
Could you shed more light on what you mean by this?
if the usage decision (end user) and the buying decision (IT, CxO) are separate motions, connecting those dots has to be part of your strategy
for example are you offering a free version that user adopt, and once you reach a tipping point you have a purchase conversation? do people pay as they go with a self-serve option? is there a direct sales team that sells into a line of business that is then responsible for deploying within a department?
basically, does buying follow usage or does usage follow buying?
thank you. What does the last point mean- does your core motion distil into a primary loop?
the basic idea is your product discovery / activation / engagement / expansion is a "loop" (versus a funnel or a flywheel) and can be (a) operationalized from a GTM perspective and (b) automated from a product perspective - you can't do more sophisticated / higher value things with you product (and grow as a company) until the foundation runs itself - you can read more about the concept here -> https://www.reforge.com/blog/growth-loops
This concept is fascination. How do you think about the difference b/t "product strategy" and "growth strategy"? If you're small enough to have one sprint team, do you try to make sure the product strategy includes a growth loop? Or is the growth loop something you graduate into alongside investing in core functionality?
they are complementary
the growth loop is a way to model your product/market motion - if we solve problem X for persona Y then outcome Z happens which increases our access to more of persona Y dealing with problem X (and so on, in a virtuous cycle)
where strategy comes in is identifying leverage points - where do we have a differentiator with regards to X, Y, and/or Z that we can take advantage of relative to other players in the market
and finally where product strategy comes in is answering how can we build/buy/partner (and use R&D budget) to accumulate and utilize advantages
the key part of loops is understanding how the system works and where it needs a boost
the key part of strategy is understanding where you have leverage and choosing to focus
The timing of this post is spot on. I was working on spot checking our strategy, literally this week. Couldn't have read this at a better time - thanks!
I just have one question -
>>how does product usage tie to a buying decision?
Could you shed more light on what you mean by this?
if the usage decision (end user) and the buying decision (IT, CxO) are separate motions, connecting those dots has to be part of your strategy
for example are you offering a free version that user adopt, and once you reach a tipping point you have a purchase conversation? do people pay as they go with a self-serve option? is there a direct sales team that sells into a line of business that is then responsible for deploying within a department?
basically, does buying follow usage or does usage follow buying?