Kai-Fu Lee: the product spirit of the Internet

The production methods of the Internet era have undergone great changes, what are the changes?

In China, which attaches more importance to independent innovation today, innovation is no longer a technology, scientific research, invention, and the combination of these concepts. Many people who talk about these concepts completely ignore the problem that the first day of a product's conception must be a combination of technology, user and business model, and that the soul behind each of the company's products is the product manager who blends the three roles. So when I was at Google, my boss used to say, "I'm retiring in the future, I don't know who the successor is, but it must be a product manager."

What is the difference between the products of the Internet and the products of the past-the software age and the hardware era?

A big difference is that the cost of development has reached a record low in the past 5 years. In 5 years or 10 years ago, to make a product, VC investment is often millions, millions of dollars, but now 100,000 dollars, or even tens of thousands of dollars can start to make a new product. Of course in the venture is the case, the same inside the big company.

Why is the cost of development reaching a record low?

Three reasons: 1. Open source software; 2. Cloud computing platform, to help you save bandwidth and server leasing; 3. Network stores, so that your marketing and sales links can be done more smoothly, faster and easier. Of course there are other reasons to pay, so that we can make a product at a lower price, so it also represents the growing importance of the Product manager's role.

What exactly does a product manager do?

Many people mistakenly believe that product managers are define features,prioritize features (defining functions, prioritizing functions), making a product and launching it-not really. The product manager is overall and ongoing success of a product, that is, to launch the products and then run the product, in fact, operations are more important than the introduction, and throughout the product cycle.

I summed up 9 points to talk about the product spirit of the Internet:

First, focus on the user. Really put the user's interests before the interests of shareholders or corporate profits. At the same time, the user's pain point can certainly become a product of an opportunity, such as we see the user's pain point, think the mobile phone traffic has great challenges and difficulties, we can think whether we can help users reduce traffic, this time can have UC browser such products. Or a user does not understand a certain condition is deducted fees, this time has a mobile phone security opportunity. Focus on the user is a very core product spirit.

Second, data orientation. We want to be able to launch a product very quickly, to try, this is not the same as the previous product philosophy. It's not about research and development, two years a year and then 10 20 features, and then push the product out, but to push a very simple basic product out, and then consider it as a basis for research, and then see how users use this product, such as half of the user with a version, half of the user with the B version.

Third, fast iterations. Launch and Iterate (published and iterative), there is a corresponding analogy: we used to say "Ready,aim,shoot", is ready, aim, and then launch, but in fact, in the new era of Internet, more is "Ready,shoot,aim "Ready, launch first, then adjust again, aim here is not to aim at, that is to say, when you have a target, you throw out a little test frisbee, see where it's going to go, and then go right, and I shoot again, so it becomes an" iterative process. " The first shot out of the time also can not shoot too crooked, in the end the first launch to hit more accurate? There is a simple concept called mvp--minimally valuable product, which is that the product should be valuable, but it is a small value. Low value, but low to still valuable degree, the user is willing to use, may not particularly love it, will not build feelings, but he will give you enough track, let you know how to make the function better.

There are two other features: 1. Product update is a very short cycle, preferably every week can update one or two functions, so that users have a little expectation, said and changed, and changed well, but do not be too greedy, efforts to do 3 months, and then update 5 features. Because if you do that, the first is when you do the experiment, this is not a control experiment, you have changed 5 functions, but in the end which one brought it? The second is that there are so many things that users don't really see clearly. 2. The product team is a very small team, but also can have very large movements, these teams I think can go farther and faster. This is also supposed to be the last 5 years or so, I have a different company in the world to realize a more reasonable direction.

Four, clear positioning. There are several problems here, such as some too superstitious users of product managers, at this time will say that my products to see users, to investigate, to look at the data to see what users want. But when you're making a new product, you can't do a product like this without faith, because the user actually do not know what a new product looks like, he can be in the color is blue or red, the font should be large or small, should put left or right to help you make decisions, but your product is something, Not what, only you know, your heart must have a very clear positioning. Simply put, your product solves what kind of user problem, your point of entry is what, your product in the end is what, say a word clearly--speak not clear, it means that your position is not clear.

Five, attention to detail. Every product manager must be a hardcore user, not only for his own products, but also for competitors ' products to be at their fingertips. I believe that the Apple PM must be in-depth study of each user, his entire workflow, how each software switch over, how his learning costs to the minimum, the product switching costs how to minimize.

I give an example of a plant vs. zombies. When you play, notice that there is a main game, there are some so-called "mini game", is staggered to play. You will find that the "mini game" is also very fun, after playing, if you look back, how many of the plant zombies have an impression, how do you learn so many things? Never read the user's manual, how did you learn it? In fact, it is very clever to use the entire manual, in the process of playing the game into those "mini game", so that you can play games to learn a little things, step-by-step you can learn about fifty or sixty different plants, but do not need a user manual. Product design, innovative design, is to pay attention to the details. I think every product manager should be the product of their children, others criticized the product, each experience the problem, every speed problem, or even 0.01 seconds, you have to care about, this time the product can achieve the ultimate.

VI, the pursuit of simplicity. We tend to think that some products are very complex, the problem that people who do technology often encounter is to like to present the complexity to the user experience, rely on your product manager to hide the complex technology in the very simple user experience. When we do search engine, if you are product manager, someone told you: "I found that users search the word longer and more accurate, how can you induce users to search longer words?" "This time a lot of people who do technology say, we need to use tips, questions and answers, but a very smart product manager why want to be so complicated?" The easiest way to do this is to make the search box larger. So we often do not think too much, a simple answer is often the user's favorite.

Seven, break the stereotypes. The steering wheel is not in the beginning, the person who makes the first car really uses the reins to make a car. We tend to be locked in past thinking. We may see a lot of kik this kind of product recently, it also very wants to innovate, it is compared with IM, compared with the text message, the only big benefit is to be able to send a message, the other party read not, but this brings different user experience. Of course it also useful your address book, in the past many companies can do, but did not do, it once done will find that the virus spread is very successful.

VIII, the Integration field. We don't want to see too many Shanzhai products and want to see more innovation, but what is innovation? In fact, most of the great innovation is in the integration of different areas, different ideas, a large degree or standing on the shoulders of predecessors to do.

Ninth, insight into the future. Innovation Workshop was established 15 months ago, in fact, we have done some of the industry's strategic analysis and judgment, such as mobile phone to what price will become the tipping point? How quickly will the iphone or other product fall to this price? And how many business opportunities are there on the mobile internet? About half of the companies we invest in today are based on the perception that today's Android is going to be a big part of the price drop for Chinese handsets. And in China, the environment is very important, on the basis of this product will have a lot of applications, values and opportunities. Product Manager fusion of technology, user experience and business of these three important factors, in fact, in a correct environment and strategic direction, you are very difficult to go wrong, as long as the basic work done on it. If you want to be CEO, in addition to the first 8 pm to do a good job, but also to understand the future, do a lot of effort. I hope I can see you are becoming CEO more and more in the future.

(This article is based on the summary of the speech of "I Applied ──2010 China Internet Innovation Products" award ceremony according to the Chairman of Innovation Workshop)