Annu Augustine

In order to create a product roadmap, you need a product vision and product strategy.
The vision describes how your product will change the world, while the strategy clarifies your market segment and the unique elements of your solution.
The roadmap articulates how you are going to achieve your strategy from where you are today.

Think about the roadmap as a prototype of your strategy.
It is not a list of features, but is focused on the outcomes you want to achieve.
Instead of dates, structure the roadmap in terms of a now-next-later approach.

An investable startup must be significant in size.
The entrepreneur must also be passionate about the problem and the market segments.
Without that passion, entrepreneurs find it difficult to keep going.

Passion for the problem you’re solving will see you through the difficult times.
Customer acquisition and retention are your first priorities.
You can then adapt to optimise revenue and achieve profitability.

We distinguish between discovery and delivery activities.
Product discovery entails rapidly testing ideas so you can discard the non-viable ones.
The result should be fewer failures and happier developers.

In the discovery process, ask questions that give you insight into customers’ actual behaviour and not their aspirations.
Product analytics are important in the delivery process.
Both mechanisms give insights into your customers and provide feedback to influence your strategy.

Eric Ries coined the term in his book The Lean Startup to refer to the smallest experiment you can run to test a hypothesis.
However, the word ‘product’ can cause confusion and different people attach different meanings to the term.
It’s better to use more specific terminology to describe what you are testing.

In the earliest stage of your business, use qualitative research in the form of customer interviews to really understand your customers’ world and pain points.
Use evaluative research to test different solutions and put numbers to the feedback.
The research method you choose depends on what you are testing.

A 2-out-of-10 acceptance rate is not enough to validate a concept.
You have to make sure that industry and vertical norms are accounted for, as well as proper market segmentation.
You need statistically significant data to draw valid conclusions.

The four product elements are value, usability, feasibility and viability.
The founder has to think about these elements and de-risk them.
Only appoint a product manager once you are out of the early-stage startup phase.

Annu Augustine shares her secret ingredient.