Stellar Product Strategies for Early-stage Startups
I’m not a big fan of the word “product strategy”.
Especially if it means filling slides with hypothetical futures.
But not having one means shipping with no purpose.
Building a Frankenstein product.
Wasting precious resources.
Here are 4 steps any startups can follow to create a great product strategy:
1. Open the game
2. Be different
3. Start with tactics
4. Lean toward your vision
1. Open the game
Napoleon loved chess.
For him, no chess opening move was better than another.
He thought the best strategy was to play something.
Anything. And put the game in motion.
A great product strategy is the same.
Start by listening to customers and their problems.
Then build something they want. Anything.
Don’t overthink the competition.
When Stripe launched, Paypal was huge.
When Airbnb launched, hotels were huge.
It didn’t matter. They joined the game.
2. Be different
Next, make sense of what you built.
For that, map your product capabilities into 4 categories.
❌ Elimination: factors of the industry have long competed
⬇️ Reduction: factors to reduce below the industry standards
⬆️ Raise: factors to raise above all industry’s standards
⭐️ Creation: factors the industry never offered
This map is called the Blue Ocean matrix.
I will help you build something different.
And focus your resources on what you’re the best in the world at.
Apple used it too.
The first iPhone (2007) differentiated this way:
3. Start with tactics
Having great tactics is the best product strategy you can have.
Picture tactics as short paths.
They’re the individual steps you’re taking.
Strategy is where you’re going.
It’s the line you’ve drawn.
A great product strategy means taking the fastest line.
How you sequence your tactics matters too.
Airbnb wouldn’t be where it’s at if it had started with Airbnb experience, instead of bedrooms.
4. Lean toward your vision
There are hundreds of tactics possible.
Millions of sequences, or strategies.
So which one is best?
The ones that follow your vision.
Without a clear vision, you won’t know where to start.
Or where to go next.
Make sure your company has a clear vision.
Airbnb’s vision never changed.
Only their tactics did.
