What is product/market fit?

Are you preparing to launch a new product on the market? This is an important decision and one that requires you to think about a number of factors. Specifically, you need to keep the product/market fit in mind. Now, you may not have heard this term before. That’s where this article is going to help a great deal. We’re going to explain what product/market fit is, why it’s important and how to approach it the right way. Lets get started. 

What Is Product/Market fit?

You might think that the term product/market fit sounds quite complicated and difficult to understand. Well, fear not. Product/market fit, in a nutshell, isn’t that complicated. To comprehend what this means, it’s best to explore an example. 

So, let’s say that you have a new product that you want to release into the market. One of the key steps that you’ll probably take when doing this is to ask people what they think of your idea. You won’t ask outsiders immediately because if it’s truly original, you might be worried about your concept being stolen. So, instead, you focus on family or friends who may tell you that your idea is winning and that they would certainly purchase the product. 

This provides you with the confidence that you need to move forward. You then deliver to a beta version of your product. At this point, it becomes clear that they are not as intrigued or interested as it first seemed.

Unfortunately, this is a clear example that you don’t have a product/market fit. 

Are you still unsure what this means? When you approach a product, you’re looking to introduce a product that solves a problem or issue for consumers. However, it’s possible that the problem was never that significant, to begin with. Thus the product is never going to be as popular as you want. 

As soon as you notice that there isn’t a product/market fit, you need to make sure that you are in a position to change and adapt where possible. 

When Do You Have Product/Market Fit?

When you have discovered product/market fit with a product, consumers will essentially be knocking down your door. They will be desperate to get their hands on the product that you are producing. They will show you that they want what you’re selling and if they don’t, then the product/market fit has not been achieved. 

To find product/market fit, you have to identify the real pain points of your customers. You then need to make sure that your product is providing the solution to those pain points. It’s worth noting that this isn’t a simple process. It does take time and a certain level of effort. 

A good rule of thumb that dates back to the conception of product/market fit in 2009 is this. If 40% of your users state that they are disappointed in a product that you are introducing into the market, then you don’t have product-market fit. 

How To Approach This The Right Way

Now, you understand what product/market fit is, you need to think about how to approach it the right way. One of the most important things to consider is how fast you can determine whether you have product/market fit. Ideally, you need to come to that conclusion as quickly as possible. But you also need to make sure that your final conclusion is accurate. If you get it wrong, you’re going to be wasting time and money on a product that doesn’t fit the market. 

We think the answer is the Design Sprint.

What is the Design Sprint?

This is a 4-day process to make sure that you solve problems with a product, create new products and improve the ones that already are in existence. With Design Sprints, you have an effective way to solve issues and tackle complex problems in a close team that can work together to discover the ultimate creative solutions. 

Through the process, you’ll create or build a product, working in a team. Multiple product designs are created and then the best is voted on before a prototype is created. This is all in the first three days and the product can be created on a digital system saving both time and money. 

Day four is the most crucial aspect because it’s here that you get users to test the product. Users provide feedback and you will gain real insight from then.. This can then be used to provide information and documents on improvements to ensure that user pain points are addressed when the final product is built. 

Design Sprint And Product/Market Fit

With Design Sprint, what you essentially create within the four days is a minimum viable product. By doing this, you can save the maximum amount of money and time but still get the insight you need. You will be able to determine quickly and accurately whether the product you are using is even wanted or needed on the market. Does it really solve a problem that users care about? This is what a Design Sprint can help you address.

However, rather than relying on the typical business processes, you gain an output of hard data on the product/market fit. This will provide you with context on not just whether or not your product will succeed or fail on the market but why. It does mitigate a certain level of risk for startups that believe they are on the cusp of the next winning solution but are really taking a gamble on an untested product.

A digital solution is also cheaper than designing using traditional methods, but because you create an MVP, it still provides the reliable results you need. As such, this is the most efficient and effective solution to discovering whether you have hit the product/market fit square on with your new item before you even need to produce a full beta. 

We hope this helps you understand the concept of product/market fit and why it is important to the typical journey of a new startup building a fresh product. With Design Sprint you will have the best way to tackle this issue head-on, while keeping costs low and maintaining flexibility.