Tag: new product development

Developing a New Product: Expectations vs. Reality

Written by Lucy on January 28, 2025. Posted in Design.

It’s the start of a new year; the time when we typically set new challenges for ourselves. Businesses, start-ups and entrepreneurs tend to set goals for the year, and some of these goals may be related to new product development.

Creating a new product can be one of the most exciting and rewarding challenges in business. It’s the moment when ideas take shape, innovation meets market need, and something truly unique comes into existence. However, while the process often comprises an atmosphere of excitement and innovation, the reality of product development is far more complex and filled with unexpected hurdles.

In this blog post, we’ll explore the gap between the expectations and the reality of developing a new product. Whether you’re a startup founder, a product manager, or someone interested in the product development journey, understanding these contrasts can help you navigate the process with greater clarity and preparedness.

Expectation 1: The Idea Will Come Easily

Reality: Innovation is often a messy process.

When brainstorming a new product, we tend to imagine that the perfect idea will just click into place. Perhaps you envision yourself having a lightbulb moment or feeling a sudden burst of inspiration that leads to a flawless product concept.

In reality, developing a new product often begins with days (if not weeks, months or even years!) of research, iteration, and testing. The initial idea might be vague or incomplete, and it may need to be refined multiple times before it starts to resemble a viable product ready for the market. The creative process is rarely linear, and sometimes, the best ideas come from feedback, setbacks, or looking at the problem from different angles.

Expectation 2: The Development Timeline Will Be Predictable

Reality: Timelines almost always stretch.

You’ve created a product plan with clear deadlines, and everything seems set for a smooth rollout. But, as any product developer will tell you, timelines rarely hold up as expected. Delays can occur for numerous reasons – technical challenges, changes in market demand, unexpected customer feedback, or even the complexity of sourcing materials.

Moreover, each phase of product development typically takes longer than anticipated. From the design phase to prototyping, testing, and market validation, there will be setbacks and revisions. While some parts of the process can be managed more effectively, it’s important to be prepared for unexpected obstacles and build in contingency time to avoid frustration.

Expectation 3: Development Will Be a Collaborative, Unified Effort

Reality: Collaboration can sometimes be more challenging than anticipated.

The expectation: teams work together seamlessly, everyone is aligned, and there’s an easy flow of ideas. The reality? Product development often requires balancing a multitude of perspectives, from engineers and designers to marketers and business stakeholders. Everyone has their own priorities, and aligning all these views can lead to disagreements, delays, and confusion.

Additionally, cross-functional collaboration involves significant communication efforts. Teams need to maintain constant dialogue to ensure that everyone is on the same page. Miscommunication can lead to costly mistakes and coordinating schedules for everyone involved can be tricky.

Expectation 4: Product Testing Will Be Smooth

Reality: Testing often uncovers a lot more than you expect.

Product testing is meant to be a phase of refinement, where you uncover and address issues before launch. While this phase is crucial to creating a high-quality product, it’s not uncommon for it to reveal far more problems than anticipated.

No matter how many prototypes you’ve built, the product may still face unexpected usability challenges. Design flaws sometimes often surface only when real users interact with the product. Testing isn’t just about fixing issues; it’s about rethinking assumptions, revisiting features, and sometimes going back to the drawing board entirely. The process can be frustrating, but it’s also the key to refining the product to ensure that it meets user needs and expectations.

Expectation 5: The Product Will Be a Hit Upon Launch

Reality: Gaining traction takes time.

There’s always hope that your product will immediately succeed once it hits the market. However, even the best products often require time to gain traction and attract a loyal customer base. Market conditions, customer education, and competition can impact a product’s success, even if it’s well-designed and solves a real problem.

For most products, the road to success involves careful marketing strategies, potentially improvements based on feedback, and even a bit of luck. You’ll likely face challenges post-launch, such as tweaking the product, revising messaging, or adjusting to user feedback. It’s rare for a product to hit the market and immediately find its perfect audience without a period of growth and adjustment.

Expectation 6: Financial Success Is Guaranteed

Reality: Financial success isn’t immediate or assured.

Developing a new product involves significant investment – both in terms of time and money. From development costs to marketing expenses, the resources required to bring a product to market are substantial. While the potential for financial success can be high, the reality is that product development comes with risks, and there are no guarantees that the product will turn a profit immediately.

In fact, many companies face financial pressure in the early stages, especially if the product takes longer to gain traction or if additional iterations are needed. Product success often requires a long-term vision, a willingness to pivot when necessary, and a constant focus on the evolving needs of your customers.

Key Takeaways

Developing a new product is as challenging as it is exciting. While there will certainly be moments of triumph and inspiration, you will also face obstacles that challenge your expectations and require flexibility, creativity, and perseverance. Embrace the unpredictability of the journey, stay agile, and be prepared to learn from both failures and successes.

By understanding the reality of product development, you can better manage expectations, anticipate challenges, and ultimately create a product that is well-aligned with the needs of your market. After all, the difference between a successful product and one that falls flat often lies in how well you adapt to the unexpected twists and turns along the way.

If you’ve reached the end of this blog post still determined to develop your next product, we have great news! We’re product development specialists, and we’ve gained a huge wealth of experience along the way. There aren’t many obstacles we haven’t faced, and we’re equipped to deal with them all. If you’d like to discuss next steps, book a call with our team today.

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What is a product roadmap (and do you need one)?

Written by 33A5f3aF on August 13, 2021. Posted in Business, Marketing.

If you’re developing a product, you’ve probably heard the term ‘product roadmap’ floating around.

But what does it mean, and do you need one?

What is a product roadmap?

Simply put, a product roadmap is a vision of your company’s evolving products. It is a strategic document that outlines plans and allows visibility on which direction the company is heading. The roadmap is usually rolling or agile over a specific time period, which when developing physical products is usually 3 – 5 years. It tells you which products will be delivered, and by when.

Essentially it’s the road your company will be travelling on and what products will be launched along the way. Like an actual road, there may be some bends and twists along the way, and even a few diversions!

Photo credit: Unsplash

Who is responsible for the product roadmap?

The product manager is ultimately responsible for creating and owning the product roadmap, however, there will normally be other stakeholders around the business. The following departments will usually have at least one nominated stakeholder:

Executive board
Product team
Design and Engineering
Sales
Marketing
Customer Service

Depending on your organisation, you may also have some external stakeholders.

It’s vital that the product manager updates stakeholders on a regular basis. They’ll need to arrange meetings to communicate updates and collate feedback, but ultimately it’s the product manager who owns the roadmap and is responsible for keeping things moving. If there are delays that will impact the agreed strategic vision then these need to be communicated to stakeholders. The roadmap will help to manage and align the stakeholders’ expectations.

Why do you need a product roadmap?

As outlined above, the roadmap is the organisation’s strategic vision for the future. It’s an essential document for the business. Without it, you won’t have clarity of which products are being launched.

It communicates the product vision clearly and aligns product goals with overall business goals. The ultimate objective being to launch commercially successful products with a healthy return on investment.

The roadmap translates “technical” jargon into concise language that all stakeholders can understand.

It allows priorities to be communicated easily, which is particularly useful when difficult decisions need to be made (such as which features can we afford to include in the development, and which need to be scrapped).

The roadmap facilitates different departments to work together, resulting in a smoother development process with the outcome being a better product for your target audience.

Simon Cornelius, MD of Cornelius Creative says:

“A long-term strategic product roadmap gives businesses a great foundation for future product launches and exposes the maximum potential from existing product ranges.

A well thought out roadmap identifies potential gaps in a product portfolio as well as gaps in the marketplace. It allows businesses to control their product lifecycles, ensuring that outdated or poor performing products are superseded by new product developments before it is too late. This ensures a continuous revenue stream, as well as helping to plan new product launches, by giving a firm indication of deadlines to complete the development and hit significant selling milestones, be it a trade show, or seasonal time of the year to maximise the product’s initial uptake.”

What should be included in a product roadmap?

The content of your roadmap depends on your organisation, and your audience. The size and structure of your company will determine the complexity of the roadmap, but there are certain aspects that should be included:

The overall vision for the product(s)
Requirements (what you need to get where you want to be)
Project timeline, complete with timed goals
Metrics, how things will be measured

Best practice tips for a killer product roadmap

Make sure the company’s vision is clear: it will be the overall guide for the roadmap.
Don’t overload the detail: keep it top level with your audience in mind.
Make it accessible to all stakeholders: and keep communication regular.
Review and update regularly: make changes when necessary – it should be flexible.

Next steps:

Are you looking to create your next product roadmap? Our team of experienced product managers can help.

8 signs your product is dying (and what to do about it)

Written by 33A5f3aF on May 25, 2021. Posted in Design, Marketing.

Every product that launches into the market goes through four stages of the product lifecycle: introduction, growth, maturity and decline.

When the product reaches the decline stage, profitability will start to fall until it is no longer commercially viable to continue production, and it will most likely be discontinued.

In some cases, the original product will be replaced, either by a newer version with updated features or design style, or perhaps by a brand-new product. Car manufacturers, for example, update models every few years. The name continues but the older models are phased out, replaced by newer versions with updated technology and more modern designs. Eventually the model may be discontinued to be replaced by a brand new model e.g. Ford Escort – Ford Focus.

While the span of each product’s lifecycle is unique, (some tend to spend more time in the maturity stage), they will all eventually reach the decline stage. There may still be some core loyal customers, keeping the product afloat, but overall demand will continue to fall.

Think back to products that used to be popular; cassette players, typewriters, video recorders, even the Nokia 3310 (remember those? 😊). They will either have a very small production run now or will have ceased production completely. Eventually only second-hand products will be available, perhaps cherished by enthusiasts and collectors.

WHY DO PRODUCTS DECLINE?

Decline is a natural part of the product lifecycle. Typically, when a new product is launched, it will be expensive to manufacture and therefore expensive to buy. As demand grows and production costs fall, competitors will start to sell rival products and the marketplace will fill up. The product will experience a period of growth followed by maturity.

There are several factors that may cause a product to decline, such as saturation of the market or the introduction of more innovative products, which will lead to a fall in popularity.

Some companies will try to keep a dying product alive for as long as possible – clearance sales, special deals etc, but this is simply delaying the inevitable as the product will continue to lose market share until it doesn’t make commercial sense to continue production.

HOW TO SPOT IF YOUR PRODUCT IS DYING: 8 SIGNS

1. Customer interest decreases

The interest in the product will fall – less chat on social media, fewer calls and email enquiries.

2. Competitors are launching ‘me too’ products

Competitor products will be launched that imitate the original. Production may be moved to the Far East where it is cheaper to manufacture.

3. Market share reduces

Competitors with newer products are stealing market share from you.

4. New technology launched, product is outdated / unsupported

The product will be unsupported by new software which will affect performance and customer satisfaction.

5. Product is only bought by loyal or existing customers

Demand from new customers will fall, the product will only be bought by existing customers.

6. Necessity to drop price to garner any sales

The only time sales are made is when the price is reduced, which will eat into any margin made on the product.

7. Decrease in marketing spend

Advertising spend will be channelled towards other products that provide a better return on investment (ROI).

8. Production / supply chain costs increase, while sales do not

As demand falls for certain components, it may be more difficult and expensive to source them. If you notice production costs are going up, yet sales are going down, it’s because the product is declining.

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR PRODUCT IS DYING

Before a product reaches the decline stage of the lifecycle, the next generation product should already be in development. This is especially important if you operate in an industry where new technology is regularly released. Ideally, you should be working to a rolling three or five-year roadmap, with all future product launches mapped out.

Working on the next product development will ensure that your business and its products are always in demand, and keeping up with competitors to protect (and increase) your market share.

However, if your next generation product is delayed, there are some ways you can exploit the existing, dying product to generate some more sales – think of it like using a defibrillator on your product to restart its heartbeat.