Understand user needs

When starting product discovery, the first step is to understand your users’ needs and challenges. This involves gathering as much information as possible by talking to users, observing how they interact with products, and identifying common patterns in their feedback.

Let's say you're working on a fitness app. Instead of jumping straight into designing its features, you first focus on understanding broader problems your users face, like staying motivated to exercise regularly or finding time for workouts in a busy schedule. To do this, you could use techniques like surveys, customer interviews, focus groups, empathy mapping, journey mapping, and observational studies. This will help you zero in on the key issues that your product should address.

It’s also a good idea to do some market research during this stage to see what competitors are doing and find potential opportunities. This thorough understanding of user needs sets a strong foundation for the rest of the product discovery process.