Product Research Rules – C. Todd Lombardo & Aras Bilgen on The Product Experience

It's been drilled into our heads time and time again – as product people, we know that we are not the customer.  What follows is that we need to get to know our customers, to figure out what their problems are, how they perceive and prioritise them, and how they react to the solutions we might provide. The theory is easy – but how do we do it? That's the question that Aras Bilgen and C Todd Lombardo cover in their new book, Product Research Rules – and what we chatted to them about in this week's episode.

In this episode, sponsored by Amplitude, listen to learn about:

• Product research
• Using data effectively from the start
• The difference between market research, user research, and analytics

Quote of the Episode

I think it’s hard to have true unbiased data – I think all data is biased to some degree. So part of it is admitting that and understanding that, and doing your best to identify where the bias might be upfront, and finding ways to mitigate that. 

(C.Todd Lombardo)

Related Links

• Follow C. Todd on Twitter, LinkedIn and his Website
• Follow Aras on Twitter, LinkedIn and his Website
• Buy their new book Product Research Rules
• Understanding data bias (article)
• Understanding the difference betweeen Market Research Vs User Research (article)

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Our Hosts

The Product Experience is hosted by Lily Smith and Randy Silver.

Lily enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She's currently Head of Innovation at Go Compare and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She's worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol (which now has 800+ members!) and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath.

Randy is a product consultant and coach who has been working as an interactive producer and product manager across the US and UK for nearly 20 years. A recovering music journalist and editor, he launched Amazon’s music stores in the US and UK, and has worked across sectors including museums and arts groups, online education, media and entertainment, retail and financial services. He’s held Head of Product roles at HSBC and Sainsbury’s, where he also directed their 100+-person product community. Randy's book, What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager's Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19 is out now, with all profits going to COVID-19 relief efforts.