How To Build Product As A Small Startup - Michael Seibel

Having a clear process for product release is crucial for small startups, as it helps avoid debates, missed deadlines, and discouragement. Startups should decide on a release schedule based on factors like the product development cycle and approval processes. Putting someone in charge of product ensures goals are met and the product is successfully launched. Establishing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) such as new content created, new users, and retained users is essential for measuring success. Creating a theme for the product cycle based on a KPI helps prioritize decision-making. The product meeting is the only formal meeting held by the team and aims to reach conclusions on what features to build. Brainstorming new features, bugs, and tests is important, with ideas categorized and sorted based on feasibility. Prioritizing hard tasks first helps identify easier ones and create a list for efficient progress. Specifying ideas and assigning tasks is crucial, and the team should shut up and get to work, focusing on getting the product out and learning from customer feedback. Thorough testing involving the entire team is recommended, with a set cadence and comprehensive checklist.

Have a process to get product out the door

Importance of having a process to get a product out the door in a small startup
Personal experience of facing problems due to lack of clear process
Debates, missed deadlines, and discouragement as consequences
Emphasis on need for startups to have a formal process for efficient product release

Decide on a release schedule

Factors to consider when deciding on a release schedule for a small startup include the product development cycle and approval processes.
An example of a release schedule is releasing an iOS app every two weeks, which aligns with the time required for Apple's approval.

Put someone in charge of product

Putting someone in charge of product in a small startup means ensuring the goals of the development cycle are met and the product is successfully launched.
This role does not involve making decisions about what to build.

Establish KPIs

Establishing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) is crucial for small startups. The three KPIs mentioned are new content created, new users, and retained users.

KPIs are essential for measuring the success and progress of a startup.
New content created is a valuable KPI as it indicates the company's ability to generate fresh and engaging material.
Acquiring new users is another important KPI as it demonstrates the startup's ability to attract and engage a wider audience.
Retained users are a key KPI as they indicate the startup's ability to retain and satisfy its existing user base.

Create a theme for the product cycle based on a KPI

Creating a theme for the product development cycle based on a KPI involves focusing on a specific metric, such as user retention.
The goal is to align the entire company's efforts towards improving that KPI.
This approach helps prioritize and guide decision-making throughout the product development cycle.

Product meeting

The product meeting is the key aspect of the process of product development in a small startup. It is the only formal meeting held by the team and aims to reach conclusions on what features to build for the product. The meeting starts with a brainstorming session and utilizes a whiteboard with three different categories for new features.

The product meeting is the only formal meeting held by the team
It aims to reach conclusions on what features to build for the product
The meeting starts with a brainstorming session
A whiteboard with three different categories is used for new features

Brainstorm new features, bugs, and tests

The video discusses the process of brainstorming new features, bugs, and tests for a small startup.

Key points:

Participants were encouraged to share ideas to improve KPIs and user retention.
Ideas were written on a board without debate or criticism.
Ideas were categorized into new features, iterations of existing features, bugs, or tests.
Bugs were given special attention as they can hinder growth and user retention.
The team had a list of potential features and actions for product development.

Sort each into: easy, medium, or hard

The process of "easy medium hard" helps small startup teams prioritize ideas for development
Ideas are graded based on the time it would take to build them, ranging from a couple of hours to multiple days
This framework ensures inclusivity in decision-making, considers other people's ideas, and prioritizes ideas based on feasibility and speed of implementation.

Pick the hards first

Prioritize the hardest tasks first in a small startup
Hard tasks require more time and effort
Focusing on hard tasks helps identify easier ones and eliminate less effective ideas
Create a list of hard, medium, and easy tasks for efficient progress

Spec the ideas out and assign tasks

Specifying ideas and assigning tasks is crucial for building a product as a small startup.
This involves writing a detailed description of what needs to be built and assigning responsibilities to team members.
The specification should be documented in a product management system to ensure everyone is on the same page and working towards the same goal.

Shut up and get to work

The importance of shutting up and getting to work in product development
Not dwelling on ideas that were not chosen
Focusing on the upcoming development cycle
Getting the product out to customers and learning from their feedback
Having confidence that future cycles will yield better results

Testing

Testing is a crucial aspect of product development for small startups. To ensure thorough testing, the entire team should be involved, including engineers and other employees. Creating a testing cycle with a set cadence and a comprehensive checklist can help streamline the process and facilitate bug fixing. This approach proved successful for the speaker's company and is recommended for other startups.