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What is a product?

In this video, product managers discuss their definition of 'product'.

In this video, 4 product managers talk about how they define a product. They also talk about their favourite products.


What is a product?

A product is a thing that aims to satisfy a user need.

Products can be physical or digital (or a bit of both – a product like Google Chromecast or Amazon Echo, for example). In the video, one of the product managers, Steve, gives the examples of soap for a physical or non-digital product and software for a digital product.

In the commercial world, a product is built to generate revenue. Revenue is a classic outcome measure, which means it is a way of measuring the effect of your product on its users and your business. In product management, your intended outcome should be to solve a user problem or meet a user need in a way that creates value for the business.

If the product doesn’t meet a real user need, it’s less likely to do this, and is therefore a poorly designed or managed product.

Products rarely exist in isolation. Many products are used by other teams to build their own products. It is important to be aware of the wider context in which your product is being built and will be used.

In the public sector, digital products often exist to help deliver public services more cost-effectively than physical equivalents, doing things on paper or face-to-face. They do not generate revenue, but they add value by cutting costs and making things more efficient.

In government, there is also an additional challenge. Government products and services need to be used by everyone. It is often not possible to opt out of using them or find an alternative.

However, the same principles apply in both sectors. Product managers need to make sure that the product they are building fits with the context, needs and expectations of the intended users. If not, users will not adopt it, they will not succeed in using it, and these outcomes (revenue, cost-cutting, or efficiency) will not materialise.


Product or service?

Products can vary in size. Multiple products can also be grouped together and integrated to create a service.

In government, a service is a group of transactions, products and content that work together to help a user to achieve their goal.

For example, Apply online for a UK passport on GOV.UK is a service.

There are a number of passport-related services on GOV.UK. They all use the same basic digital architecture and all are made up of several products.

When you apply for a passport, you use several individual products during your journey through the service, including GOV.UK Pay (to make a payment) and GOV.UK Notify (to get notifications about your application).


Government Service Standard

The Government Service Standard details the 14 criteria that teams in government follow to ensure that they are building good and reliable services. You can click the link to read more about how product managers in government operate.

For example, Point 2: Solve a whole problem for users, is central to the design of Apply online for a UK passport on GOV.UK. The multiple products used on the journey through the service solve the whole problem of getting a passport without disrupting or creating new problems for the user along the way.

You can read more about how the government defines a service on the GOV.UK blog.


Products and their components

Just as services can comprise several products, products can be made up of different components.

A product can be made up of different technical components (for example, GOV.UK uses various publishing tools that allow publishers to upload content) or features (such as the search engine on GOV.UK). In government, we try to make our services similar so that they are familiar to people. We have a design system where we store different patterns and components, so that we can reuse what works.


Task

Think about products you frequently use or that you particularly like, both digital and non-digital. What is your favourite product and why? Perhaps you like it because it is very well-designed, or because it is essential for your daily life. Share your thoughts in the comments below.

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Introduction to Product Management

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