Ask a friend or colleague about the last book they read, and you’ll probably hear people recount lessons they learned from a good historical biography or something tied to their professional area of interest. But ask them about a recent read they most enjoyed, and you’ll often hear: “A mystery!”  

This should not be surprising — mysteries have long been a literary staple, as well as a genre frequently explored in movies and on television. There’s a reason why the works of Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie adorn so many bookshelves. The human desire to solve a good mystery is part of our deep-seated desire to know and understand. 

Are You A “Product Detective?” 

When we think about what product management professionals do every day, they’re often trying to solve mysteries: 

  • Who is using our product?
  • How are they using it?
  • How many net users do we have? Why do people keep coming back? Why do they leave?

We could call product professionals “product detectives.” They use product analytics as a key tool to gather clues about customer desires and needs. 

Product Analytics: The Product Manager’s Magnifying Glass 

Product analytics is a critical tool for product detectives looking to uncover valuable insights into user behavior, product performance, and market trends. The discipline has evolved significantly over the years from the simple tracking of user actions on early websites to sophisticated tools and techniques that provide deep insights into user behavior and product performance.  

The rise of digital products and the increasing importance of timely, data-driven decision-making have fueled the growth of product analytics. Today, product analytics is an essential part of any digital product strategy. Product analytics can help product professionals: 

  • Understand user behavior and needs and optimize product performance.
  • Enable data-driven decision-making and move away from opinion-driven tactics.
  • Identify market trends and provide a feedback mechanism to inform objectives, key results, and product strategies.

The Business Impact Of Product Insight Maturity 

Many data and analytics professionals have moved beyond basics, but an equal number haven’t progressed past an intermediate state, and very few (less than 10%) have become truly advanced. Product professionals should be dissatisfied with this state of affairs. Forrester data indicates a correlation between analytics maturity and revenue growth. Analytics maturity also affects more than just revenue. According to Forrester’s Data And Analytics Survey, 2023, advanced data and analytics decision-makers are 1.3 times more likely to display faster time to market, and 1.4 times more likely to enjoy better relationships with their customers. 

Let’s Solve The Case Together! 

We’ll dive deeper into the current status of product analytics and share content on other highly consequential topics of interest to leaders of product, marketing, and other key functional areas during this year’s B2B Summit North America. Please join us May 5–8 either in-person in Austin, Texas, or digitally.