Category Product Manager
What do product managers actually do?
This is a question that gets asked a lot, because the definition of a product manager varies from one company to the next. A survey of over 100 product managers conducted by Alpha UX demonstrates that the primary roles and responsibilities of product managers range from design to interacting with customers to organizational management and […]
The Product Line Manager role at New Balance
Claire Wood from New Balance explains in 3 minutes what is her role as a Product Line Manager. Patrick Sirois psirois@triode.ca http://www.triode.ca At Triode, we specialize in developing new products and services for complex industries like medical devices and transportation. We work with you closely to help define product strategy, with an emphasis on reducing the risks […]
What to do after a Voice of Customer?
Over the last few weeks we have talked a lot about market analysis and Voice of Customers (VoC) in this blog. But if you want to get a good return on investment from your VoC, you must take action. How do you go about doing this? This post provides some tips about the next few […]
Market Research: How to ask your customers questions
A big part of market research is asking customers direct questions. Surveys and questionnaires are an excellent tool for finding out what your customers want and need and getting their feedback on your product. Unfortunately, most companies ask their customers the wrong type of question, so they miss out on lots of critical information. In […]
Medical device industry outlook
A survey conducted by Emergo Group indicates that sales growth in 2014 was lower than in 2013. A number of factors may have contributed to this negative change. Firstly, the European economy has been in a slump for several years now. This has affected companies which export to Europe as well as German medical device […]
How to conduct usability testing for medical devices
When testing medical devices (or any new products) for usability, it’s important to test both the device and the manual/instructions that go along with it. Usability testing is meant to pinpoint sources of confusion, information that is missing or out of order, instructions that are open to interpretation and information that prompts unexpected behavior. Usability […]
Find flaws in your design through user shadowing
How do your customers interact with your product? What problems do they encounter in its use? The best way to find the answers to these questions is by “shadowing” them as they use it. This means following them around, filming, photographing or taking notes on how they use the product. While it’s true that you […]
How design thinking saved Airbnb from failure
When Airbnb was just a small startup, its founders participated in Y Combinator’s program for startups to improve their position and refine their pitch to investors. They sat with design thinker Paul Graham and tried to figure out why bookings were so low for the properties available for rent on the site. Joe Gebbia, co-founder […]
How to get into customers’ heads
The most important factor in the success of a new product or service is how the customers feel about it. Development teams need to have a clear view of what is important to customers in their industry and in general so they can create a product which meshes with these expectations. Customer interviews and shadowing […]
Why did Google suspend Google Glass?
Wearable tech is a much talked-about trend, but the demise of Google Glass would seem to suggest that it’s not here just yet. Google Glass is an internet-connected eyewear that was tested and marketed for two years. In January, Google announced that it would stop marketing the product to consumers and focus on creating a […]
Product Strategy 101 