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Architecture

Product roadmap prioritization

Product roadmap prioritization

The product roadmap is a visualization of a product’s vision, direction and progress, plotted over time. Too often people prioritize in the delusion of the day. This makes the last idea seem the most important. The result is that people work on all sorts of things at once.

A product roadmap is not set in stone but should help to respond to changing customer feedback and changes in the market. You do this by weighing new insights against items on the roadmap. Should we move with it or stick to our plan? So it is primarily a communication tool.

How to use the product roadmap

Product owners use the product roadmap prioritization to foster collaboration with the development team, and it helps them reach consensus on how the product will evolve over time. In doing so, it strengthens the connection between teams and stakeholders. Teams sometimes have no idea why they are working on certain user stories. With a good product roadmap, you show the bigger picture. To get you started, here are our tips for a good product roadmap prioritization.

How to create a product roadmap?

A good product roadmap prioritization stands or falls with a crystal clear product vision. If you do not know where you are going, any route is good. So first make sure you have a shared product vision with the team and stakeholders. Once this is clear you can start building the roadmap.

We start building a roadmap by looking at the existing features and ideas on the backlog. That’s our starting point. Often there is a glut of backlog items. Therefore, for each feature, ask the following questions:

  • What is the relative priority?
  • When can it be worked on?
  • How many sprints are needed for it?
  • What is the split between design and development?

By answering these questions during a product roadmap workshop, you can have a tight roadmap in as little as two hours.

The importance of a product roadmap prioritization

For management, the roadmap helps to understand where the team is and what it will be working on in the coming period. Therefore, limit technical terms and choose words that everyone can understand. Try to avoid that when you show the roadmap people ask again what is meant by certain items. Focus on what it brings to the customer and make it understandable. A good product roadmap helps you respond to changing customer needs by weighing new features against existing roadmap items.

Why use a customer journey map?

Once your customer’s customer journey map is mapped, you can look at where the customer is experiencing difficulties. All of the customer’s experiences are compiled into a customer journey map. That customer journey map then shows, for example, that the customer has trouble finding the checkout button on your website or that they completely overlook your flyers with offers. Another conclusion could be that customers often have to wait a while at the fitting rooms and that there is not enough seating. The moment you have this information, adjustments can be made that will improve the customer experience and increase customer satisfaction.

Read more about customer journey map!