(Disclaimer: These episodes were recorded prior to the coronavirus outbreak as well as the Black Lives Matter marches.)

For Abhi Bhatt,  Head of Product at Alexa Identity, who’s worked on innovative and category shaping products (like the first generation Motorola Razr phone and North’s AR smart glasses), early adopters and laggard customers give the most insightful feedback. 

He says product teams need to work backwards when building something that hasn’t been done before. You’ll need to figure out the segmentation and what the customer base will look like. Also, find out what these customers care about. Based on the psychographics and demographics, choose a segment that has the most resonance. Ultimately, product teams should be spending a lot of time with their customers, to the point that they become your “partner” in development.

When it comes to customer feedback, Abhi says quantitative data is like looking in the rear-view mirror. It’s already happened! It reflects on how people are behaving in the sandbox you’ve created. On the other hand, qualitative data points to understanding why they are behaving this way and the motivations behind it. This set of data also pressure tests if you’ve built the right thing for customers. Both lenses need to be applied to your product, whether it’s early and innovative or a mature product.

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