We all have our blind spots and biases regarding the application of thought towards a problem or solution. Depending on the strategic outcome you’re looking to reach, resources available or time constraints, it can be easy to lose sight of the overall user experience. In doing so, we often rally behind ideas that get us towards the shift of a commercial needle instead of the desired outcome of a user.

As a Product Manager at Envato, I am guilty of applying an opaque commercial lens at times, building momentum behind numbers instead of user outcomes. Fortunately, i’m surrounded by awesome designers that always try and rebalance the scales and ensure the users get the voice and value they deserve. Without having a solid relationship with the design team, scenarios such as this would play out differently, impacting users’ experience and the potential value obtained from our products.

Building The Relationship

A one-size-fits-all approach to marketing isn’t an effective strategy for 2023. When promoting a special, an event or even when focusing on a specific goal, it won’t be successful unless it’s communicated to customers who will actually be interested in it. And the only way to know who will be interested is through segmentation. Let’s use a Rib Night as an example.

Your franchise has acquired customer data through its free WiFi hotspot and is looking to gain more customers for the Rib Night, so the customer data is segmented and customers can be targeted and receive more personalized messages that align with their behavior. The following demonstrates how messaging is personalized based on insights gleaned through consumer data:

Customers who have visited for dinner Monday through Thursday receive a message alerting them that you’re bringing back Rib Night on Tuesdays during the month of January.

Anyone who has previously been to Rib Night receives an early announcement inviting them to it and asking how they liked the last one with a link to a survey.

Customers who are weekend regulars receive a message alerting them not to miss Rib Night on Tuesdays and to show the text for a BOGO dinner with their favorite rib buddy.


Maintaining the relationship

Now that you’ve got a solid foundation built upon trust, it is vital to put in the effort to maintain it. Transparent and frequent communication is crucial in sustaining a robust and trusting relationship between Product and UX.
If you’re a Product Manager and you’ve not spoken to UX today (and vice versa), why not? If the answer is anything other than “it’s their day off, they’re on holiday etc.”, you should seriously challenge and rethink that.

A frequent and open dialogue will help increase effectiveness, transparency and alignment across the design, build, ship and learn processes. Such communications remove ambiguity early on and save precious time down the line; as a result, users get access to better products and features faster. In addition, this clarity is a preventative measure for friction between Product and UX, especially when both parties will likely (and often justifiably) assume the right of way in the face of conflict.