It is a set of decision making techniques which Influences product planning and also affects product strategy.
Definition of Continuous Discovery
Continuous Discovery is a Product Discovery methodology extended and applied through the product’s lifetime. It happens continuously alongside development.
Weekly touch points with customers by the team building the product, where they themselves conduct small research activities in pursuit of a desired outcome.
Product Discovery Coach and Author of Product Talk – Teresa Torres
It’s very important for product managers, designers and software engineers, those who are building the product, to have regular interaction with customers.
The Reasons Why to Adopt Continuous Discovery
- Helps building what matters the most to your users/customers, you will understand what to build and why
- Avoid conflicts of opinion within the team
- Helps to align innovation and business goals
- Gives you data-points which help you with product backlog prioritisation
Continuous Discovery works the best when …
When your product has already been launched. If not, you can start with Initial Product Discovery.
Your team is getting in touch with users on a regular/weekly basis and the team structure and agility in your company is mature.
When your stakeholders share pre-negotiated objectives with the team and are being kept in the discovery loop. This gives you their buy-in for valid ideas to be developed.
If you focus the discovery only on a single objective from your OKRs in order to have crystal clear goals.
When product metrics are connected to discovery.
Continuous Discovery is hard. You and your team has to be willing to invest time and effort in it.
Typical Source of Ideas
Coming from the users
- Continuous interviews
- Contextual inquiry on prototypes
- Analytics
- App store and Google Play reviews
Coming from within the team:
- Workshops (e.g. Design sprints)
- Management, Stakeholders
- Core product team, including developers
- Sales team
What is the Ideal Product Focus?
| Product Discovery | Product Delivery | Role |
| 80% | 20% | Product Manager, User Experience Designer |
| 20% | 80% | Software Engineers |
