Unlocking the Full Potential of Your Product With Customer Innovation

Many years ago, I was a product manager over the API of an enterprise marketing platform. I sought feedback from customer service, developers, sales, marketing… and most importantly… our customers. While many people utilized our UI for the tasks that we focused on, I was almost always stunned at how innovative customers incorporated some amazing features. Specific to email, here were a few discoveries:

• QR Codes: Utilizing substitution strings in image source URLs, I found that our customers had implemented their QR code libraries to display personalized, trackable coupons in email.
• Countdowns: We found that companies built animated GIF email countdown timers to display in their emails. As the user opened the email and requested the image, it accurately counted down for each subscriber differently.
• Click Polls: While we had built a difficult solution for capturing form submissions from email clients that supported it (very few), we found that our clients built trackable links that automated voting where they could click a simple link in the email to a destination page that counted one vote per subscriber.

While none of these solutions were on our product roadmap, when I questioned potential and current clients on whether they’d be helpful, their eyes lit up. They were all features that could differentiate us form our competition, were incredibly popular with email marketers, and incorporating them in the core product would enable our customers to get better business results.

Customer Innovation

Too many companies depend on internal resources for innovation. I’m not saying that companies can’t create a culture of innovation internally, I’d argue that true innovation happens when you discover what drives value with your customers, prospects, and your competition’s customers.

And as a product manager, it’s crucial to understand that your role extends beyond listening to customer feedback about your current platform. To truly create value and drive success, you must dive deeper and gain a comprehensive understanding of how your customers are utilizing your product to build value for their organizations.

It’s easy to assume that you know everything about your product and how it should be used. However, your customers are often just as smart and creative as your own team. They bring a wealth of diverse perspectives, experiences, and problem-solving skills to the table. When thousands of clients use your software, you have access to an incredible pool of talent and innovation.

Your clients will inevitably find unique and unexpected ways to leverage your product to support their specific business processes. They will push the boundaries, discover workarounds, and identify areas for improvement that you may have never considered. This is where the magic happens – when your customers become integral to your product’s evolution.

Embracing this reality requires a shift in mindset. Instead of being surprised or resistant when clients use your product in unconventional ways, embrace it as an opportunity for growth and innovation. Open your ears and eyes to their feedback, experiences, and creative solutions. Use this valuable input to drive your product in new directions, address unmet needs, and unlock its full potential.

Remember, your client’s success is directly tied to your success. You create a win-win situation by empowering them to utilize your product in ways that best support their business processes. You foster a culture of collaboration, trust, and mutual growth, leading to increased customer satisfaction, loyalty, and advocacy.

By embracing the full potential of your customers and empowering them to utilize your product in ways that best serve their needs, you unlock a world of possibilities for your business. You create a virtuous cycle of innovation, growth, and success that benefits everyone involved.