I really enjoyed this article because it introduced a new perspective on product development. I realized the importance of understanding that as a product manager, you are creating products for users, and these users must be on board with your idea, regardless of how innovative or superior your product may be compared to others or previous versions. In fact, a successful product should be measured not by its superiority or efficiency compared to other products, but by how much behavior change it requires and the ratio between the scale of improvement and the scale of behavior change.
This concept — particularly the importance of considering what kind of change we’re demanding of consumers when we release a new product or feature — has significantly shifted my thinking about what we should prioritize in product development and feature updates. Product managers can balance innovation and accommodate buyer resistance by designing systems and updates that align with the behavior required by the previous product. A notable example from the article is Toyota’s approach with the Prius. The Prius allows drivers to still fill their cars with gas while employing electric battery power for the engine, achieving not only greater mileage than other cars — a positive from the customer’s perspective — but also requiring no change in behavior, thus avoiding negatives. Another effective approach is to focus on audiences that are so passionate about a particular aspect that they are indifferent to behavior change, such as those involved in social, environmental, and political movements and trends.
