Entries Tagged 'Win/Loss Analysis' ↓

Over the past 6 months (almost half-year anniversary!) I have jumped in and out of a few topics including roadmaps, strategy and win loss analysis. From time to time, I recall some of the posts and the following question pops into my head – “How does doing X make me strategic?” It doesn’t. Just having a roadmap doesn’t make you strategic. Just doing win/loss doesn’t make you strategic. They are, however excellent supporting activities.

As we know from previous articles, your roadmap is the record of communication for your strategy. Included in that document is the plan, the vision, your mission, your value network and all of the supporting material that you have accumulated for your roadmap.

So just doing win loss analysis won’t make you strategic, but if you tie it back as either an activity that extends or validates your roadmap then it is strategic.

You might be wondering about roadmap because in one paragraph I said having a roadmap doesn’t make you strategic but in the other I said that it is strategy. Having a roadmap where you plot out these features in these releases at these times is hardly being strategic. However, if you have put the time in to document the plan, why it is the plan and what the end looks like, you now have a strategic document and can consider yourself strategic.

Strategy is hard and you have to put a lot of time and effort into it. Every activity has (should have?) potential to affect your roadmap and you need to be prepared to record and articulate it.

More on these topics through time. I would like to take the time to thank the readers, the commenters and the people who share my posts. Much appreciated!

For an added bonus to this post and in case you missed them, here are the three most viewed posts since the start of this blog:

• What is Strategy? Not Operational Effectiveness
• Your Strategic Friend, Mrs. Win/Loss Analysis
• Roadmap: Product Vision Statement

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If you enjoyed this post, please leave a comment or subscribe to the feed to receive future updates. You can also follow me on Twitter. Tell other people about this post.

The reasons (excuses?) for not doing win/loss analysis range from: lack of management support, to no time, to not sure how and no access to customers and prospects. Unless you are in the unique situation where your product is not being sold, how can you turn away from an opportunity to increase revenue?

Win/loss analysis is a defining activity for two reasons, product and sales improvements and career development. With respect to the latter, imagine the leg up you will have with future employers if you can recount the results of your last win/loss analysis project.

The important thing to remember, you do not have to tackle this alone. There are organizations dedicated to helping you specifically with win/loss analysis and there is technology to help you keep it organized. And the vendors will help you get executive support.

I have compiled the beginnings of a list of win/loss resources. Anyone have any other bits and pieces that they thought were useful in helping them begin a win/loss exercise?

Blog Posts:
• Win/Loss Analysis « On Product Management
• Who Should Do Win-Loss Analysis? by Sue Raisty-Egami

Webinars:
• The Eight Rules of Successful Win/Loss Analysis by Roger Allison
• Why Are We Winning? Why Are We Losing? By Barbara Nelson
• Taming the Win/Loss Monster by Peter Ganza
• Win/Loss Analysis: With this hammer, the whole world is a nail by Alan Armstrong

Articles:
• Win/Loss Analysis Checklist for Product Managers by Sue Duris

Image source: State Symbols USA

Here is a simple definition of win/loss analysis from Graff Group:

A Win/Loss Analysis is a business-to-business research tool that gives you the highest quality information fast and cost-effectively. We tactfully find out, from the mouths of your current and prospective clients, why you did or did not make a sale.

You have been tasked with creating or updating a roadmap, you have done your diligence to understand the business drivers and you have some semblance as to what it means to be successful. What changes do you need to make to your product to help you achieve the success that you strive for? I suppose you could talk to some customers or root through your inbox for all your feature requests. Just keep building what they ask for, right? Maybe, see assumption below. A big part of being successful is to refine what is working today and make it better. Not so much from a “make faster horses” perspective, but maybe you can extend the reach to a new market or better enable the sales team to win some of the losses with stronger positioning.

It is well documented that your largest market out there is not a bigger slice of the market currently with a solution but the market prospects who seek a solution. How can you possibly engage them without changes that directly enable you to engage them or without solutions that benefit them? Generally the feature gaps or process deficiencies that are identified from your loss analysis can have the largest positive effect on your product. They are also easier to quantify for ROI and are easier to get support for.

The key take away from the win/loss method is to understand: 1) who the prospective buyers are; 2) what they looking for; and 3) what criteria and methods are used in their buying process.

The big assumption in all of this is that your business driver and success statement push you towards new customers and new revenue. If it is customer satisfaction and retention you seek, then maybe you better start looking at those feature requests.

Last two notes on win/loss analysis: 1) it is WIN/loss analysis and not just LOSS analysis; and 2) to understand why you are doing win/loss analysis.