Consider this situation by Dave, a Product Manager at a Data Company…
What are some of the things on Dave’s mind when considering a new product strategy – rational approach, logical thinking, solid documentation and careful planning. Rejecting to offer months of massive discounts, he reaches a self-devised strategy that works well using a data-driven approach. This data driven methodology was a more powerful framework to use than other market practices. By choosing to focus on fewer clients exclusively, Dave was able to provide faster delivery for his product, while maintaining confidence for his clients. A win-win approach for sure!
As a coach one must know the importance of processes, tasks and doing things that head into a practical direction. Always consider that the value of thinking out of the box logically with careful planning can never go wrong. Now, how does one know if this approach was successful? As a coach, it’s important to define what success looks like through a data driven mindset. Are you improving your coaching skills? Can you teach and transfer your knowledge to others readily (a sign of a good leader and communicator)? Do you articulate your ideas and concepts well enough so others know what to do? These are some of the questions we’ll answer throughout this article.
Table of Contents
- Gathering New Insights as a Coach
- Enhanced Performance
- Improved Communication
NEW INSIGHTS – GRAVITATING “WHAT” AND ‘WHY”
As a coach, ‘what’ is the “why” of your product and your unique selling proposition. The position to understand is, what makes your customer gravitate towards you and not others. Performance can be insightful by looking at the right metrics, customer growth, revenue generation or market penetration.
Your client’s goal is to be attached with these performing metrics and figure out his or her blind spots. Shout from the roof top to communicate to the right audience or whisper as needed. Find out the RACI matrix to know who is placed where and based on that, clients need to fine tune their communication. Analytically, a product expert needs to keep in mind quantitative & qualitative analysis and demographics of customers. In short, how to drive 80% value from the 20% customers. Coaches should consider that clients learn from the competition, and what gravitates customers, like:
- Price point
- Favored Features
- Missing features
A coach needs to keep the target market in consideration , be it analysing either the whole spectrum or a specific segment only. Consider the iphone, which is not an entry level product, so the target market is also unique. Playing on target marks individual success for your clients in the long run.
ENHANCED PERFORMANCE – RACING “DISTANCE” AND “TIME“
Remember Dave, the Product Manager – he knew that customer on-boarding is up to 15 days due to manual steps involved in the execution. He did a storyboard to navigate his product reducing friction including company bureaucracy, steps to achieve a goal and signing off multiple team contracts. This created an ideal flow for the customer. He came back to the business to make this a reality and subsequently went with a product roadmap to achieve the goal from 15 days to 15 minutes. Reducing noise and restraints successfully brought business stakeholders on board.
As a coach, you know the PM needs to think about moving from 10 miles to 100 miles an hour and think outside the conventional realm. Drilling how they can help customers with reduced friction and enhance their product experience delivers required value.
With the right tools and coaching guidance, Managers can develop the leadership that they need and must behave as an outside observer to be their own auditors. As a coach, you lead your client to achieve this milestone.
Free thinking develops strategic communication without any stress. Even if their thought looks pointless at times, it does create meaning at a stage and helps people understand perspectives in a true detached and an outside-observer mode.
IMPROVED COMMUNICATION – CLARITY COMES THROUGH A “SHOUT” AND “WHISPER” ALIKE
Because an analytical person speaks in data, information and facts, it is important to communicate accurately and orderly. Place of any stakeholder is important to understand the RACI matrix and a product leader must make sure to provide meaningful information at all times. Clarity about actions from the customers helps one make the actionable plans. Communicative effectiveness makes your client achieve this preliminary analytical requirement. Be direct about good and bad news for clarity, an unambiguous PM is the right representative for the client to interact for real time needs.
Try these practical approaches with your client and it might sound like a mimic and a coach’s shout out but teaches the right attitude to:
- Organize authentic material
- Learn free style storytelling
- Grab attention
- Use the right body language
Coaching doesn’t target perfection but it brings the best out of people as dependable, change oriented and confident leaders, who learn and adapt to changing needs.
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Ambreen Salman is a freelance writer, specialized in writing clear marketing copy to promote products/services. She has been preparing well-structured content using various Content Management Systems. Her marketing research has focused on various industries including recruitment, coaching , marketing and IT as a Content Manager / Copywriter.
