Q:How do I build product sense?

Product sense is a learnable skill, not a fixed gift, and the sources agree on building it through deliberate immersion in customers and products. Jules Walter argues it is a learned skill built through practice², and Marty Cagan says it comes from deep product knowledge earned by sustained immersion in a specific space⁴.

01Get close to customers

• Observe people using products and ask open-ended questions about why they react as they do².
• Spend real time with customers and study the data, not just the roadmap⁴.
• Keep interviewing customers regularly so you hear needs firsthand³.

02Study products and the market

• Deconstruct everyday products and compare similar ones to uncover their strategies and trade-offs².
• Follow competitors, industry analysts, and enabling technologies to see where the market is heading⁴.
• Cagan notes that watching consumers use everyday products is a favorite technique for spotting unmet needs⁸.

03Don't mistake it for certainty

• Expertise in one domain does not automatically transfer to another, so re-earn knowledge in new spaces⁴.
• Use product sense to speed up discovery, but still validate ideas through testing⁴⁶.