What is product prioritization?
Product prioritization is the process of determining the order in which features or tasks should be developed and released for a product. It involves analyzing and assessing various factors, such as customer needs, business goals, development time, resource availability, and market trends, to determine which features will provide the most value to users and the business.
Prioritization helps ensure that the most important and valuable features are developed first, which can result in a better user experience, increased user engagement and satisfaction, and ultimately, increased revenue and profitability for the business. It also helps to prevent teams from working on low-priority tasks that may not provide significant value or align with the overall goals and vision of the product. Prioritization is typically done through a combination of data analysis, stakeholder feedback, and team collaboration.
We can use several methodologies for product prioritization. We can use these methodologies alone or in combination to prioritize features based on the needs and goals of the business and the product. Some of the most commonly used methodologies include:
The MoSCoW method
The MoSCoW method is a prioritization technique used in project management to help teams prioritize requirements or features. MoSCoW stands for “Must have,” “Should have,” “Could have,” and “Won’t have.” The method comes from the idea that not all requirements or features are equally important, and prioritizing them helps ensure that we address the most important ones first.
In the MoSCoW method, requirements or features are grouped into one of the four categories mentioned above, based on their level of importance because “Must have” features are considered critical and essential for the project’s success, while “Should have” features are important but not critical. “Could have” features are desirable but not essential, and “Won’t have” features are deemed unnecessary or out of scope.
This method helps ensure the team delivers a minimum viable product that meets the most critical requirements first. Consequently, it also aids in managing project scope, prioritizing backlogs, and communicating project priorities to stakeholders.
RICE Scoring
RICE scoring is a prioritization framework used in product management to help teams evaluate and prioritize features or ideas based on a combination of factors. The acronym RICE stands for Reach, Impact, Confidence and Effort.
Reach: The number of people who will be impacted by the feature or idea. This can include the total number of users, potential users, or other stakeholders affected by the feature.
Impact: The extent to which the feature or idea will benefit the users or stakeholders is crucial. For instance, this can include metrics such as increased revenue, improved user experience, or increased efficiency.
Confidence: The level of confidence the team has in their estimates of reach and impact. This can take into account factors such as data quality, level of knowledge about the market, or past experience with similar features.
Effort: The amount of time, resources, and other costs required to implement the feature or idea. This can include factors such as development time, design time, testing, and deployment.
We assign a score to each factor, usually on a scale of 1 to 10. Then, we multiply the scores together to determine an overall RICE score for each feature or idea. We can use the RICE score to prioritize features or ideas based on their potential impact and the necessary implementation effort.
The RICE scoring method can help teams make data-driven decisions, prioritize features or ideas based on their potential impact, and communicate priorities to stakeholders. It can also help prevent bias in feature prioritization by relying on objective metrics rather than intuition.
The Kano Model
Product managers use the Kano model to help teams understand and prioritize features based on their impact on customer satisfaction. Consequently, the model graphically represents the three types of features on a two-dimensional graph, with customer satisfaction on the y-axis and the degree of feature implementation on the x-axis. Notably, the graph reveals that the relationship between customer satisfaction and feature implementation is not linear but varies based on the type of feature.
Must-haves: These are basic requirements that customers expect as a minimum standard for the product. If these requirements are not met, the customer will be dissatisfied. However, meeting these requirements will not necessarily lead to increased satisfaction.
Performance features: These features increase customer satisfaction as we improve them.Customers are satisfied when these features meet their expectations, and we can increase satisfaction further by improving these features.
Delighters: These are unexpected or unique features that create a high level of customer satisfaction. Customers may not have even known that they wanted these features, but their inclusion enhances the product experience and creates a positive emotional response.
The Kano model can also help teams prioritize features by identifying which features are essential, which features improve satisfaction as we enhance them, and which features will delight customers. By understanding these different types of features and how they impact customer satisfaction, teams can make more informed decisions about which features to include in a product or service.
Ice scoring
Ice scoring is a method or system used to evaluate or assess the potential viability or attractiveness of a business opportunity, investment, or startup. The term “ICE” is an acronym that stands for Impact, Confidence, and Ease. Each component represents a key factor considered in the scoring process:
Impact: This refers to the potential positive impact or value that the opportunity or investment can generate. It assesses the magnitude of the benefits, such as financial returns, market potential, social impact, or strategic value.
Confidence: This measures the level of confidence or certainty in the success or achievement of the opportunity. It takes into account factors such as market research, competitive analysis, team expertise, and feasibility studies to determine the likelihood of achieving the desired outcomes.
Ease: This evaluates the level of ease or difficulty associated with pursuing and executing the opportunity. It considers factors such as the required resources, time, effort, regulatory or legal considerations, and potential risks or barriers to implementation.
Typically, You assign a score or rating to each component. We combine or weight the scores to calculate an overall ICE score. The ICE score provides a quantitative or qualitative assessment of the opportunity, helping decision-makers prioritize and compare different options based on their potential impact, confidence, and ease of implementation.
I hope that through the brief introduction to the methodologies, you will better understand the need to choose a suitable methodology for prioritizing. I will go into more detail in the next articles.
Prioritization frameworks — putting it all together
Here is a relative overview of each framework and how you can decide which one to use that best suits your needs:
Kano Model
Choose when: You need to make better decisions for product improvements and add-ons
Pros: Prioritizing features based on the customers’ perception of value
Cons: It doesn’t take into account complexity or effort; customer surveys can be time-consuming
RICE
Choose when: You need an objective scoring system that we have proven instead of developing one from scratch.
Pros: Quantifies total impact per time worked
Cons: Its predefined scoring factors don’t allow for customization. May not be the perfect fit for your organization
ICE
Choose when: You’re just starting or need to exercise the discipline of prioritization in your team.
Pros: A simple scoring model that is “good enough” for relative prioritization.
Cons: Subjective; lacks data viability.
MoSCoW
Choose when: You need to include (or exclude) what in a feature release?
Pros: Identities product launch criteria.
Cons: Doesn’t set prioritization between features grouped in the same bucket.
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References
https://productschool.com/blog/product-fundamentals/prioritization-techniques-product-managers
https://roadmunk.com/guides/product-prioritization-techniques-product-managers
https://www.hotjar.com/product-prioritization/frameworks
https://www.productboard.com/glossary/product-prioritization-frameworks
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