No one embarks on a project not wanting it to succeed. But it’s a long way from idea to new product. How do you get where you want to go?
Product strategy is the answer to that question. It’s a way to building a process—mapping a journey, if you’d prefer to be a little more poetic—that allows for clear big-picture thinking, improved collaboration with all your stakeholders, and better decision-making along the way.
In this guide, we’ll cover the basics of why you need a product strategy, how to build a successful product strategy, and how to implement that strategy with your team.
Let’s roll!
What is a product strategy and why do you need one?
A product strategy is the roadmap that guides your product from concept to market success. It’s a high-level plan that answers three key questions: What are you building? Who is it for? And why should they care?
Without it, you’re wandering without meaningful direction for product development, hoping you’ll stumble upon a successful product.
“The reason you need a product strategy is to give your team a compass and a map to build towards, along with the fire to fuel the way. It distills the billions of things you could be doing into the few things you will do, and why.” –Ana Gubin, Product Marketing Manager, Sprig
Create clarity and communicate goals
One of the biggest benefits of having a product strategy is that it creates clarity—both for your team and for the wider organization. When everyone knows what the product is, who it’s for, and why it matters, there’s no second-guessing. Ambiguity? Gone.
A well-defined product strategy also helps clearly communicate overarching goals. Your product isn’t just “to build something cool” (although, hopefully it is that, too). It’s to address specific pain points, for a target audience, in a specific way. And when every stakeholder understands those goals, from the development team to the C-suite, it’s easier to align your efforts and hit the mark. You’ll know what success looks like and—equally important—what doesn’t contribute to it.
This clarity empowers teams to work more independently while still staying on track, because they understand the big picture and how their work fits into it.
Guide your product roadmap
Think of your product strategy as the foundation of your roadmap. While the roadmap outlines how you’ll get to your destination, the strategy defines where you’re headed and why. It’s the high-level view that informs the tactical, day-to-day decisions.
Without a strategy, your product roadmap can easily turn into a list of random feature requests or ideas. With a strategy, it’s a carefully considered plan that reflects your overall business goals and customer needs, and takes into account things like product differentiation, prioritization, and competitive analysis. You’re not just adding product features or functionality for the sake of it—you’re building features that help your target market solve real problems and move your product closer to its end goal.
A clear strategy makes sure your roadmap stays aligned with your vision statement, allowing you to prioritize the most impactful work and avoid distractions. Whether it’s a quarterly review or an unexpected pivot, your strategy gives your roadmap structure and purpose.
Support cross-team collaboration
Also, product strategy isn’t just for the product team. Effective product strategy brings together people from every corner of your business because it’s tied to your company’s goals. Engineering, design, sales, marketing, support—everyone has a role to play in executing it.
When each team understands how their work supports the overall strategy, collaboration becomes smoother and more productive. It’s easier for engineering to manage the development process, for marketing to plan campaigns, for customer success teams to offer better support, and for sales teams to craft more compelling pitches.
The strategy becomes the common thread that ties all the pieces together, making cross-team efforts more seamless and impactful.
Keep your customers at the center
Ultimately, a good product strategy is tied directly to your central value proposition, as well as user needs. It’s about creating value for your customers. When you center your strategy on customer feedback, needs, problems, and desires, you ensure that what you’re building has a real-world impact, and will stand out in a competitive landscape.
A well-structured strategy gives your team a north star when considering new features, updates, or even pivots. You can confidently say “yes” or “no” based on whether it will help your customers achieve their goals—and whether it aligns with the overall product vision and business objectives of your company.
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Book a demoKey elements of a product strategy
A strong product strategy isn’t just a “one-pager” you can throw together and forget about. It’s a living, breathing guide for every product decision you make. There are a few key elements that form the foundation of any good strategy.
Let’s break them down.
Goals
Your product goals are like the destination on a map—like we touched on above, if you don’t know where you’re going, how can you expect to get there?
Setting clear, measurable goals—and defining metrics and KPIs along the way—helps keep your team focused and gives everyone something to work toward.
For example, if your goal is to increase monthly active users by 20% in the next six months, that goal will drive everything from product development to go-to-market strategy and messaging. It’s specific, actionable, and gives your team a shared target.
Pro tip: Make sure your goals are SMART—specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. This keeps them realistic and helps your team stay accountable
It's much easier to sail when you know the destination. There are many ways to get there and you can pivot depending on the market winds, as long as you know where you're aiming for.
–Ana Gubin, Sr. Product Manager, Sprig
Vision
While goals are about the “what,” your vision is about the “why.” It’s the big picture dream of what you want your product to become. A product vision paints a picture of the future that your team—and your users—can get excited about.
Think of Spotify’s vision: “Spotify’s mission is to unlock the potential of human creativity by giving a million creative artists the opportunity to live off their art and billions of fans the opportunity to enjoy and be inspired by it.”
This isn’t about hitting a quarterly sales number. It’s about a long-term impact that inspires both the people building the product and the people using it.
A clear vision keeps your team aligned over time, especially as new ideas pop up and trends evolve. You can always come back to the vision and ask, “Does this move us closer to the product we want to build?”
Initiatives
If goals are what you want to achieve and vision is why you’re doing it, then initiatives are the how. These are the key strategic planning efforts and projects that will help you reach your goals.
For example, if your goal is to improve user retention, one product initiative might be rolling out a new onboarding flow that helps users get up to speed faster. Another could be launching an email campaign to re-engage inactive users. Initiatives are all about action—they break down your big goals into manageable steps.
6-step product strategy framework
Creating a product strategy from scratch can feel overwhelming. The key is to break it down into manageable steps. Whether you’re launching something new or refining an existing product, use this 6-step product strategy template to help guide you.
Without a product strategy framework, your team can feel like an aimless octopus; building in all directions without a focus. A strategy cuts to the core of what matters to win.
–Ana Gubin, Sr. Product Manager, Sprig
1. Define your product vision
Before you dive into the product plan, you need to get clear on the big picture: What’s the long-term impact you want your product to have? (Think about the Spotify mission we mentioned above.)
Your vision should inspire both your team and your customers. It’s not just about what you’re building today, but where you want to take the product in the future.
2. Research your target market and personas
Your product is only as good as its ability to solve a real problem for real people. This means you need a deep understanding of who your target market is, what they care about, and what their pain points are.
This is where Sprig’s user surveys and feedback tools can be a game-changer. From targeted surveys to continuous real-time feedback, Sprig helps you gather data directly from users, so you can fine-tune your strategy based on what they actually need.
Whether you’re developing a new product, building an integration, or optimizing an existing feature, knowing what your users actually want is key to building something they’ll love.
3. Know your competition
It’s always smart to know what’s going on in the competitive landscape. You don’t want to build a “me too” product that’s identical to what’s already out there.
Research what your competitors are offering (including the basics like pricing), where they’re falling short, and how you can stand out. This can also help you spot gaps in the market that you can jump on to create real product differentiation (and ultimately profitability).
4. Set product goals
Once you know where you want to go (vision), who you’re building for (customer), and what the competition is doing (competitive landscape), it’s time to set specific, measurable goals. These are the target metrics and KPIs you’ll aim for, whether that’s increasing user retention, driving revenue growth, or expanding into new markets.
Clear goals keep you focused and give you a way to measure success. Plus, they’ll help prioritize what goes on your roadmap (and what doesn’t).
5. Develop a product roadmap
Your roadmap is where the strategy becomes actionable—where the rubber meets the road, if you will. It’s the plan that outlines how you’re going to achieve your product goals over time.
This is where you’ll break down high-level goals into specific features, updates, and initiatives.
Make sure your roadmap isn’t just a wishlist of features, though. It should be a carefully considered plan that reflects your product vision and keeps you on track to meet your customer needs.
6. Test, iterate, and optimize
Building a product is rarely a “set it and forget it” process. Maybe you nailed it in one try—good for you! (We love you, but, you probably didn’t.)
Once your product is in the hands of users, you’ll need to gather data, test hypotheses, and make improvements based on real-world feedback. When you incorporate customer feedback and approach building with a growth mindset, you can be confident that you’re on the right path for product success.
This is where Sprig’s product analytics tools—like heatmaps and session replays, as well as Sprig’s new AI Explorer—come in handy. With the ability to track how users engage with your product, you can identify what’s working and what needs tweaking.
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Book a demoProduct strategy models to consider
Not all product strategies are created equal. Depending on your market, goals, and customer base, different strategies can help you stand out and succeed.
Here are a few of the most common models to consider when crafting your product plans.
Differentiation strategy
With a differentiation strategy, the goal is to set your product apart from the competition by offering something unique. This could be anything from innovative features to exceptional customer service or even a distinct brand identity.
The key is to focus on what makes your product different—and better—than anything else out there.
- Case in point: Think about Apple’s iPhone. Of course, there are plenty of smartphones on the market, but Apple’s focus on sleek design, intuitive UI, and its ecosystem of services has created a product that feels distinct.
If you’re using a differentiation strategy, your job is to find what makes your product special and double down on it.
Focus strategy
A focus strategy is all about zeroing in on a specific niche or segment of the market. Instead of trying to be everything to everyone, you carve out a smaller space where your product can be the go-to solution for a particular group.
- Case in point: Take GoPro, for instance. Instead of making general-purpose cameras, they focused on action sports enthusiasts who needed durable, high-quality cameras for extreme environments. By narrowing their focus, GoPro was able to dominate a specific niche and build a passionate user base.
If you’re working with a focus strategy, it’s crucial to know your audience inside and out. The more tailored your product is to their needs, the more loyalty and traction you’ll gain—but also, the more your business model is dependent on that deep customer knowledge.
Cost strategy
A cost strategy is all about being the most affordable option on the market. This doesn’t mean you’re cutting corners on quality, but rather finding ways to streamline operations, cut unnecessary expenses, and pass those savings on to customers.
- Case in point: Think of brands like Walmart or Ryanair. They’ve built their success on offering lower prices than competitors, attracting price-conscious customers who prioritize savings.
If you’re going with a cost strategy, your challenge is to maintain product value while keeping pricing competitive.
Quality strategy
In a quality strategy, the emphasis is on delivering the best possible product. This business strategy can involve higher-end materials, more rigorous testing, and a commitment to excellence that justifies a premium price point.
- Case in point: Luxury brands like Rolex or Mercedes-Benz use a quality strategy to maintain their reputation for top-notch craftsmanship. Customers are willing to pay more because they know they’re getting something that will last and perform at a higher standard.
If you’re pursuing a quality strategy, every detail matters. From the product itself to the user experience, you need to ensure that your customers feel the difference in every interaction with your brand.
How to implement your product strategy
Having a product strategy is great, but execution is where the magic happens. To turn your strategy into reality, product leaders need to focus on building a clear roadmap, organizing around strategic themes, and prioritizing the right features.
Build a product roadmap
Your roadmap is the blueprint for implementing your product strategy. But it’s more than just a timeline of feature releases—it’s a strategic planning tool that aligns your entire team around shared goals.
When building your roadmap, make sure it reflects both your short-term objectives and long-term vision. A mix of smaller, quick wins and bigger, strategic moves will keep your team focused and motivated.
Keep in mind that your roadmap is dynamic. As you gather new insights, be prepared to adjust and iterate, especially as market conditions and customer needs evolve.
Organize around themes
One of the best ways to make your roadmap actionable is to organize it around strategic themes. Themes allow you to group related initiatives under broader goals and create cohesive go-to-market strategies, rather than getting bogged down in the details of individual features. This high-level focus helps your team understand the “why” behind each initiative and how it contributes to the overall product vision.
For example, instead of listing out specific feature releases, you could group them under themes like “Improve User Onboarding” or “Enhance Mobile Experience.” This gives your team flexibility in how they tackle problems while keeping everyone aligned with the larger goals.
Prioritize new product features
With limited resources, not every idea can make it to the top of the list. That’s where prioritization comes in. Prioritizing new features isn’t just about choosing what’s next on the to-do list—it’s about making tough decisions that have the biggest impact on your goals and your users.
When prioritizing, product leaders often use frameworks like the ICE Score (Impact, Confidence, Ease) or RICE (Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort). These frameworks help quantify the value of each new feature by assessing how much impact it will have on your goals, how confident you are in that outcome, and how much effort it will take to execute.
Sprig’s product analytics and AI-generated insights tools can be incredibly useful here. By using data to understand how users interact with your product, you can make more informed decisions about which features will provide the most value and which ones may not be worth the effort.
Product strategy example
Ok, now it’s time to put it all together. Let’s say we’re working on a fitness app, and looking to expand its user base and improve engagement.
Here’s how a product leader might approach this:
- The vision for our fitness app might be something like: “To empower people of all fitness levels to achieve their health goals through personalized, data-driven workouts.” This vision serves as the North Star, keeping the team focused on the long-term goal of creating a personalized experience that’s accessible to everyone, from beginners to seasoned athletes.
- To get a deep understanding of the target audience, the product team would conduct user interviews and surveys, digging into the pain points users experience with current fitness apps. Based on the research, they might find that users struggle to stay consistent with their workout plans or don’t feel like the app adapts to their changing fitness levels.
- Next, the product team takes a look at competitors in the market—think apps like Peloton or Nike Training Club. They note what those apps do well, and where they fall short. This analysis reveals opportunities to differentiate by focusing on a more tailored experience with personalized workout plans and progress tracking.
- Armed with customer research and competitive insights, the team sets specific goals:some text
- Increase user retention by 25% over the next 6 months.
- Improve the onboarding experience, reducing drop-off by 15%.
- Launch a new personalized workout feature to drive engagement.
- Now, it’s time to turn the product strategy into a product roadmap. The team breaks down the goals into initiatives and organizes them around themes like “Improve Personalization” and “Enhance Onboarding Experience.” For example:some text
- Q1: Roll out the personalized workout feature, integrating user fitness data to create adaptive plans.
- Q2: Redesign the onboarding flow based on feedback gathered from Sprig surveys, ensuring new users can quickly find and start their personalized workouts.
- Q3: Introduce gamification elements like achievement badges to keep users motivated and improve retention.
- Once features are live, the product management team uses Sprig’s product analytics tools to track how users are interacting with the new personalized workout feature and the improved onboarding experience. Based on this data, the team can iterate, fine-tuning the feature to better meet user needs. For example, if they notice that users are dropping off during onboarding, they might tweak the flow to make it even more intuitive.
Build a product that better serves your customers with the right insights
When you define your goals and center your customers, you’re on your way to realizing your product vision. With the right analytics tools and user insights, you can be confident that every decision along the way is data-backed and moving you toward your North Star.
Get started with Sprig today to make your customer data and insights more actionable, at any scale.
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