From Flop to Fantastic

What is your strategy? Is our strategy good enough? Do we have a strategy? Should we update our strategy?

I feel like saying sometimes to people the line from the Princess Bride, “I don’t think that word means what you think it means.” Such a classic line from such a classic movie!

Anyways, when I think of strategy, my mind goes to the word product-market fit. I know another buzzword, right? But really, if a company comprehends its customers' needs and develops a unique product to solve their problems…I think you have a pretty damn good business.

Below is Dan Olson’s product-market fit pyramid (with some minor edits) from the book The Lean Product Playbook.

In the Market section, you focus on understanding your customers and their needs while articulating your mission clearly. Once this is accomplished, move to the Product section, defining the product that addresses the identified problem and outlining your go-to-market approach.

Okay great in principle but where do you go from here? I prefer to talk less and do more so I prefer to knock out a set of core assets that become the foundation for everything a company does.

✅ Create your Why, What, How. I believe this is the most important as it brings the Product Market Pyramid to life in an easy to understand “story”. If you haven’t read the Figment Master Plan, you should as it is a great example of this.

✅ Articulate your Ideal Customer Profile to strategize how you'll approach your target market effectively. I love the Target, Take, Toss model for this.  Here is an example of this and I think it’s a great start from a framework standpoint.

✅ Build your Personas to get a strong grasp of your buyers and their pain points. Here is a template I’ve found useful if you’re looking for something to get you started.

✅ Conduct a TAM Analysis to grasp market opportunities based on industry, region, and company size. Be realistic and document areas where you decide to say "NO" to save time and maintain focus.

✅ Knock out a Competitive Analysis to identify ways to differentiate your product and effectively solve the big problem you uncovered while understanding your target market.