ARTICLE SUMMARY: As designers we love a challenge. Give a designer a problem and they move heaven and earth to solve it. The trouble is most of the time it’s a product problem, not a client problem.
The designer needs to realize the importance of focusing on the real needs and challenges that clients face rather than creating products or features that might not address the real problem.
“Stop inventing product problems; start solving customer problems” by Pavel Samsonov looks at this issue and helps the designer identify what are client problems and product problems and how to deal with them. He talks about
- How the road to the Build Trap is paved with product problems
- Customer problems make teams; product problems break teams
- Forget the product, focus on the customer
The goal of focusing on solving actual customer problems is to create products and services that directly address the needs and pain points of your target audience. This leads to higher customer satisfaction. Satisfied customers are more likely to remain loyal to your brand and continue using your products or services, leading to better customer retention rates.
By concentrating on customer problems your development efforts are more focused and efficient. This prevents wasted resources on features or products that do not provide any real value.
Remember, focusing on solving customer problems rather than inventing product problems leads to more satisfied customers, better market fit, efficient use of resources, and sustainable business growth.
This a great article well worth reading, let us know what you think in the comments
