Aneesh Varma discusses the basics when approaching Product Design and launching a new product. Also discusses strategy for taking your product international and pitfalls to watch out for. New product development (and the scrambled eggs analogy). Product Management 101 Presented in London.

1. Product Development
&
Scrambled Eggs
ANEESH
VARMA

2. Aneesh Varma
@AneeshVarma
New tech.
International travel.
China.
FinTech.
Amazing foods.
London life.

3. Creating a new product

4. Must solve a
problem
The only rule

5. Your own life encounters

6. Why
scrambled eggs?
Whose problem are you solving?
Are you solving a real problem?
How large is this pain - how many
people do you help?

7. Unexpected twists

8. Luck
Opportunity
✓ Someone
releases a platform (eg: Shazam
benefited from AppStore distribution)
✓ Cloud-hosting
✓ Aviation
Board will allow private airport security
✓ International
✓ People
has become dirt cheap
People aren’t using my product to cook
scrambled eggs.. but rather clean their forks
The “missed calls” economy in India
Backpackers become medicine carriers
shipping costs drop significantly
Shredded paper from offices in London
are more conscious of organic food
By-product of your invention
✓ Government
introduces rules for home
inspection before selling houses
Can you somehow leverage the unexpected
usage into a product opportunity?

9. Product Roadmap
PPT
POC
v0.5
v0.8
MVP
...
v1.0 v1.1
FMR
...
v1.5
From idea to reality
v2.0

10. Competitive Advantages
✓ Barriers
to entry
✓ How
will your have an “unfair
advantage over someone else”
✓ Is
design your USP?
✓ Price?
✓ Speed
✓ Some
of execution?
secret algorithm?

11. It’s ok to fail at first...

12. Design matters
How do you protect your advantage?

13. Measure
everything
Learn from your data.

14. Test and learn
Customer service.
Refunds.
Complaints.
Problems.
Support.
Source: KISSmetrics

15. Sales & Marketing
•
How will you rollout?
•
How long can you wait for traction?
•
Partnerships & JVs
•
“The API as your BD guy”
•
Cost of marketing in your budget
•
Door-to-door sales or scalable idea?
•
Myth about being viral
“Just build it and
they will come”
... it doesn't work
that way.

16. Product for
yourself
Product for
investors

17. Going International

18. Intentional
Unplanned

19. Re-imagine the environment.
Live outside the bubble.
Do all customers really have
the same data speeds?
What about restrictions and
blocked services?

20. The White
iPhone effect
Observed in China.

21. It’s my money,
not our money.
Observed in Brazil.

24. •
Find friends & student interns
•
Go down there (if possible)
•
Read & learn
•
Local with launch partners
•
Alternate revenue models
•
Offer a general solution too
•
Measure everything (data)
Tips & advice

25. Opportunity for a pivot?