Two-sided platforms have been some of the most successful startups of the day. Examples include eBay, Uber, AirBnB, oDesk, and Yelp. And while they are highly valuable, building such a company offers a unique challenge - you have to get both sides on the platform. One such startup is Pratilipi.com - a platform for readers …
Tag: Products
More is more
You don't need minimalism for great design. Apple has convinced us that great design is minimal. Less is more. That great design is all about smoothness, reduction and elegance. Take a look at the Red-dot Design Award winning Apple Magic Mouse, which is described as "an intelligent pet." I have been using this mouse for …
Why companies need user-centred designers
Because brilliant engineers can make brilliant technology, but from their perspective, the user will look like a stick figure - just another label in a complex system, just another part in a big machine. The above image is taken from Google OAuth 2.0 page to access Google APIs. But when you want to create a …
Beyond the ‘Toothbrush test’
Some time ago, I mentioned 'The Toothbrush Test' - which offers a shorthand to judge potential success of products. If people use it twice a day, the product will be successful. But of course, this is not always true. Andrew Chen's new post talks about it in detail, and I suggest you have a look. A …
Lindy Effect & Design Tools
Today I tried out the prototyping tool called Axure RP, for a few hours, just for practice. It kind of blew my mind. For designing previous products, I have always used Sketch + InVision (and Adobe Illustrator in early learning phase). And played a bit with Facebook's custom made Origami. I was delighted by the …
Start with the people you care for
Yesterday I met an entrepreneur who had developed solid NLP (Natural Language Processing) technology. I saw the product and immediately got its value. I would buy it. But he was not clear on what customer base he wanted to address. He had two types in mind, researchers (like those in Management Consulting or VC firms), …
The best ideas are not yours
Came across this insight-packed tweet today which sums up a lot of what I think about product management. "I know I am doing my job right when the best ideas are not my own." https://twitter.com/leahjaako/status/700151224268488704 The best ideas come from consumers' minds, from the external world, or from your deep unconscious; in any case, they …
