Product Management for Dummies: A Cheat Sheet

Here’s a cheat sheet on product management for dummies. Scroll down to learn more.

Product Management for Dummies

What is product management, really?

Product management is one of the most critical positions in any company. It is responsible for ensuring that the product meets the needs of the end-user. 

While the end-user may not understand what’s exactly happening behind the scenes, it’s important that they feel as if they’re getting a superior product.

As a product manager, you’re responsible for knowing everything about your product. You need to be familiar with details such as you

• product’s market position
• target market
• Competition
• customers’ tastes and preferences.
• The kind of value you can offer your customers 

So pretty much, it’s a lot of things.

What Product Management Involves

But before you can achieve any of that, you first need to know what your customers want. 

It’s likely that your customers don’t even know what they want yet. That’s where you come in.

You need to do research about the market, the competition, and how people are using your products right now. 

You need to make note of things like how they use it, the problems they encounter, and their level of satisfaction with your product.

Based on this information, you will then be able to identify opportunities. With your findings in hand, you can provide direction for the rest of the company. 

For example, maybe you’ve found out that there is a need for an upgraded version of your product or that there is an opportunity for developing a new product altogether.

Once you’ve identified the opportunities, it’s time to create your strategy and tactics to tackle these opportunities/tasks. 

For example, if you’ve found out that the current product needs upgrading, you’ll need to create a plan of action to improve it so that it meets customer expectations. 

Think of this as putting together a puzzle with all the pieces scattered all over the table.

You have to find every piece and fit them into place until you have a completed picture. This may take some time but the end result will be worth it.

Why Is It Important?

Now, why is product management even important?

Think of it this way: you’re the one playing the most important role in the company. 

You control the direction of your product and how it will be received by your customers. If you do a good job, you will be able to make a name for yourself and impress your boss. 

If you fail? No one’s going to remember you.

The first step is to know what your market wants and how they want it. Always remember that if your product doesn’t meet their needs, then it’s not going to sell anyway. 

Figure out what they want from your product and work from there. You have to have a clear vision of what your product is before you can tell someone else about it. 

Define what success means for your product and measure it on a regular basis to see how well it’s doing. 

Summary

Product management is truly a challenging role. 

But if you have the right attitude, skill set, and knowledge, you can be successful at it. 

The whole point of being a product manager is to ensure that your product meets the needs of the customer. 

If you want to succeed in product management, you have to keep that in mind at all times.