When businesses first start out, developing their product is usually a reactive process—and it’s hard to tell which new features make a difference. Ching Pei, VP of product at EasyPost, explains what product managers do to make the development process more proactive and effective.

The role of product teams

Product teams are involved with every part of the business: customer success, sales, marketing, and more. Ching explains how she views product’s role: “I think of product as a center spoke of a wheel, with each of your departments surrounding it. [Product managers are] hearing feedback [from] external customers and internal customers, and it’s their job to come in and prioritize.”

Meeting the logistics industry where it is

If you’re a logistics tech company, you know that the industry is traditionally slow to adopt new, innovative solutions. But product teams still have an opportunity to design technology that makes a difference.

As Ching puts it, “Logistics [technology] is a little bit more tangible [than other types of software] … so you don't always get to push the boundaries of innovation. You have to meet the industry where it is. You may not be the forerunner in innovating and technology, [but] you're bringing in forward-thinking tech to an industry that has traditionally been a laggard in change.” 

How to get customer feedback 

Customers should be involved with product development from day one, but you don’t want to overwhelm them with requests for feedback. Ching’s team finds a balance by “piggybacking off of already existing calls with customer success or support. If support faces an interesting topic, we may say, can I jump on the call with the customer when you explain this?”

“You should never be afraid to let your customers talk to your product team.”

Links

• Connect with Ching on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chingpei/ 
• Visit EasyPost’s website: https://www.easypost.com/