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<blockquote data-quote="Eyes of Nine" data-source="post: 9266268" data-attributes="member: 99786"><p>Comment 0 - this is very much the kind of question software product managers interviewing with Google, Amazon, etc get asked. (I was asked once by the Google interviewer "Imagine you are the Product Line Director for a new Windows phone. What would you do?" I said "Apply to Google or Apple" I don't think he got the joke, cause I didn't get the job <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite18" alt=":ROFLMAO:" title="ROFL :ROFLMAO:" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":ROFLMAO:" /> ) I have been practicing similar questions for about a year. I'm going to try to NOT write up everything; but maybe my questions and answers will give a bit of insight into how software Product folks in larger corporations think...</p><p></p><p>First thing I'd ask the leadership team - what is our goal here? Top of the list I'd ask - are there any over-arching strategic goals that need to be factored in? (for example, we want more sales via our digital channels - ok, that will adjust our strategy). At some point, we may decide on a specific geo to focus on - or maybe we'll go global. (For example, what if we decided to aggressively move into the Chinese "scripted homicide" craze to get the D&D brand into China?) I'm going to assume that we're going to focus on the geos that got us here (NA, EU, ANZAC) and that YES we want to enhance our digital channels. Also, taking the OP into consideration, the commandment comes down that we <em><strong>MUST</strong></em> build our new version on top of an old version of D&D and that data shows that no matter our success metrics, 5 - yes 5 - products are the exact and only best number of products to offer in the first year. Ok, I can work with that.</p><p></p><p>Next question - do we need to maximize profit or maximize sales or maximize users? These are not the same thing, and depending on the answer leads to very different approaches. My assumption is WotC wants to maximize profit (otherwise why have there been so many layoffs?). But I could also see a world where they want the D&D brand to be as ubiquitous as say, for example, Marvel. That's more interesting to me, so I'm going to say they want to <strong>maximize users/user growth</strong> while maintaining current profit margins.</p><p></p><p>Now we're dropping down to a bit more tactical topics - there are a lot of ways to maximize user growth. But first we need to decide - do we want just user growth (ie people signing up for D&D Beyond)? Or user <em>engagement</em>? I'm going to say we've got data showing that folks who engage with D&D brand for more than 6 months have a lifetime value of around $125. That's a wild-ass assumption by someone outside the organization. If I was in the org, I'd have access to every single piece of data they have on purchase patterns, usage patterns, sales channels, cost breakdowns etc etc. Anyway, let's say Lifetime Value (LTV) is $125 IF someone has been engaged with the D&D brand for more than 6 months. If less than that, their LTV drops to ~$30. So it behooves us to get folks excited by D&D and engaged with the brand. We'll focus on increasing user Engagement, not just initial sign-ups.</p><p></p><p>There are a number of ways to "increase user engagement". Which is the best? </p><ul> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Increase initial user sign-ups (ie on D&D Beyond, or purchase a PHB, or watch the D&D channel)? </li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Increase adoption by initial users? (they make a character on D&D Beyond; they sign up for Adventurer's League. Ummm, we have a problem - we don't have a lot of ways to assess user adoption - maybe there's an opportunity here!?)</li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Increase existing user engagement? </li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">Minimize churn? </li> <li data-xf-list-type="ul">(Note, these are literally the phrases all software product folks use when strategizing about their product. ALL. PRODUCT. PEOPLE. at least in modern software development).</li> </ul><p>I'm running out of steam writing this post, and I'm sure y'all have run out of steam reading it. Typically this sort of question is answered in an interview over the course of 20-25 minutes - which is a lot to type.</p><p></p><p>I'll answer the actual "from the heart" part in another post...</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Eyes of Nine, post: 9266268, member: 99786"] Comment 0 - this is very much the kind of question software product managers interviewing with Google, Amazon, etc get asked. (I was asked once by the Google interviewer "Imagine you are the Product Line Director for a new Windows phone. What would you do?" I said "Apply to Google or Apple" I don't think he got the joke, cause I didn't get the job :ROFLMAO: ) I have been practicing similar questions for about a year. I'm going to try to NOT write up everything; but maybe my questions and answers will give a bit of insight into how software Product folks in larger corporations think... First thing I'd ask the leadership team - what is our goal here? Top of the list I'd ask - are there any over-arching strategic goals that need to be factored in? (for example, we want more sales via our digital channels - ok, that will adjust our strategy). At some point, we may decide on a specific geo to focus on - or maybe we'll go global. (For example, what if we decided to aggressively move into the Chinese "scripted homicide" craze to get the D&D brand into China?) I'm going to assume that we're going to focus on the geos that got us here (NA, EU, ANZAC) and that YES we want to enhance our digital channels. Also, taking the OP into consideration, the commandment comes down that we [I][B]MUST[/B][/I] build our new version on top of an old version of D&D and that data shows that no matter our success metrics, 5 - yes 5 - products are the exact and only best number of products to offer in the first year. Ok, I can work with that. Next question - do we need to maximize profit or maximize sales or maximize users? These are not the same thing, and depending on the answer leads to very different approaches. My assumption is WotC wants to maximize profit (otherwise why have there been so many layoffs?). But I could also see a world where they want the D&D brand to be as ubiquitous as say, for example, Marvel. That's more interesting to me, so I'm going to say they want to [B]maximize users/user growth[/B] while maintaining current profit margins. Now we're dropping down to a bit more tactical topics - there are a lot of ways to maximize user growth. But first we need to decide - do we want just user growth (ie people signing up for D&D Beyond)? Or user [I]engagement[/I]? I'm going to say we've got data showing that folks who engage with D&D brand for more than 6 months have a lifetime value of around $125. That's a wild-ass assumption by someone outside the organization. If I was in the org, I'd have access to every single piece of data they have on purchase patterns, usage patterns, sales channels, cost breakdowns etc etc. Anyway, let's say Lifetime Value (LTV) is $125 IF someone has been engaged with the D&D brand for more than 6 months. If less than that, their LTV drops to ~$30. So it behooves us to get folks excited by D&D and engaged with the brand. We'll focus on increasing user Engagement, not just initial sign-ups. There are a number of ways to "increase user engagement". Which is the best? [LIST] [*]Increase initial user sign-ups (ie on D&D Beyond, or purchase a PHB, or watch the D&D channel)? [*]Increase adoption by initial users? (they make a character on D&D Beyond; they sign up for Adventurer's League. Ummm, we have a problem - we don't have a lot of ways to assess user adoption - maybe there's an opportunity here!?) [*]Increase existing user engagement? [*]Minimize churn? [*](Note, these are literally the phrases all software product folks use when strategizing about their product. ALL. PRODUCT. PEOPLE. at least in modern software development). [/LIST] I'm running out of steam writing this post, and I'm sure y'all have run out of steam reading it. Typically this sort of question is answered in an interview over the course of 20-25 minutes - which is a lot to type. I'll answer the actual "from the heart" part in another post... [/QUOTE]
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