In the world of tech startups, it's easy to get excited about an innovative solution. However the real key to success lies not in the solution, but in accurately defining the problem.
The Pitfalls of Jumping to Solutions
In all the tech start-ups I have worked at, there was a common problem: the company didn't have a solid strategy for developing new products and features. The process was often chaotic, with new ideas stemming from hunches or 'cool' concepts. This is a recipe for disaster - it's akin to shooting arrows in the dark and hoping to hit the target. Even worse, people would defend their idea to the bitter end without listening to feedback or criticisms. As you might guess, this isn't a productive way to spend a meeting.
Startups that skip the process of defining and validating the problem often find themselves developing features that are misaligned with their customers' needs. It's easy to believe you know what's best for the company, but without measurable success metrics, it's tough to gauge a feature's true success.
Features can also become bloated as new ideas are added. “Wouldn't it be cool if the user was prompted to do this when they got to that step?”. Soon it becomes hard to tell what the purpose of the feature was in the first place, let alone whether it will actually be helpful for users.
The Importance of Identifying the Right Problem
Identifying the right problem is the cornerstone of innovation. It's the compass that guides the journey of a startup, steering it in the right direction. While people may disagree on what features should be prioritized, people can usually come together and agree on the problem.
After a heated debate at my company, we sat down next to a whiteboard and started complaining about everything wrong with our product. We wrote everything down on the whiteboard until it was completely full. These were all the problems that we could agree on and it brought us together. We asked a simple question - “which problem mattered most?” and everyone pointed to the same problem: “Writing prompts for AI chats is complicated”.
We started brainstorming solutions to the problem and people were a lot less defensive. It became less about the feature and more about how well the feature could solve the underlying problem. When everyone agrees on the problem, then everyone can be more thoughtful about the merits of each solution.
- How much time and effort would “Feature A” take compared to “Feature B”?
- Could it be simplified?
- What is the minimum viable product (MVP) that could solve the problem that we identified?
- How do we know the problem is solved?
It should be noted that identifying the most important problem isn't always this straightforward. I skipped over a crucial part which is validating that the problem actually exists. “How do we know this is a problem?”. This is where metrics and data can be helpful to prove that users are facing a certain issue. Likewise, these metrics can serve as the success metrics or indicators to show whether the problem has been solved.
The Role of User Feedback
This is where customer feedback becomes invaluable. It's the lens that brings the problem into sharp focus, enabling startups to develop features that truly resonate with their customers. By prioritizing feedback, startups can ensure they're solving the right problems, not just creating “cool” features.
It's important to note that feedback should be taken with a grain of salt - users may be quick to offer solutions, but ignore these for now. Focus on the friction they faced that led them to offer a solution. Keep track of the metrics before and after a feature was released to find out if a feature successfully solved the previously defined problem. Things often don't go as planned, but this serves as a good framework to point the team in the right direction and adjust accordingly as new information comes to light.
Features may be exciting and fun to build, but it's the problems that truly guide a startup's journey. So, before you start building, take a step back and ask - what problem are you really trying to solve?