API Best Practices Blog
Right product at the right time: API Product Management »
Recently we were asked by a SaaS company exec "can't we just hire someone to come in here and build our API for us?"
Danger, Will Robinson. Just like any other product in your stable, your API needs to go through your product management practice. Successful APIs usually have a dedicated API product manager that creates the 'right product at the right time" by continually focusing helping the team stay on target by driving:
1. What is the vision for the API? How do you go from an idea to great product? Start by asking what is your vision? if you were sitting around with your top 5 execs..would they agree? One good PM framework we've seen really focus an effort is explicitly defining the "VMSO" or "Vision, Mission, Strategy, Objectives" before every major release. For example:
- Vision - what is "the dream" (example: be the most widely used widget catalog on the planet)
- MIssion - what do we do every day to achieve the dream? (example: have the easiest catalog API to learn and use)
- Strategy - what is our unique approach for achieving our mission? (example: have the smoothest sign up, clearest REST API and best community support)
- Objectives - what are our 1-3 key API metrics to determine if the strategy is working? (example: developer apps, API transactions, API revenue)
2. What is the target customer segment for the API? Mobile developers? Your top 10 partners? Affliate marketers? Each segments may need different features, policies, or marketing approaches. Do a customer or developer segmentation analysis and force rank priority segments.
And if you ask your API team who their target segment is and the answer is 'everybody' - get worried.
3. Develop use cases. Ask how little, not how much, you can launch with your API. Taking back functionality is difficult once it's out there. Identify and prioritize the minimum set of use cases (or user scenarios - such as 'browse catalog information') and consider throwing out anything outside what's needed for each use case.
4. Iterate quickly. It's rare to find a successful API program where the PM doesn't say something like "and after we launched our customers took us in a completely different direction." Consider agile development techniques to help your team iterate quickly.
5. Differentiate your API. How is your API or content different than competing APIs in your vertical? Why should I drop what I'm doing now and use your API? Using a well-worn PM 'positioning framework' can help the team agree on this beforehand. For example:
| For the (target customer) |
(example: Mobile developers) |
| Who needs (primary pain point or need) |
(ex: a free and complete widget catalog for commerce apps) |
| Our solution (our API is.) |
(ex: the most comprehensive, open widget catalog that is incredibly easy to use) |
| That (key benefit) |
(ex: provides comprehensive and accurate widget product data for 3rd party apps) |
| Unlike (the compeition) |
(ex: 'for pay' catalog APIs or catalogs with low rate limits inaccurate, incomplete catalogs or APIs that are hard to use) |
|
Solution is (greatest differentation) |
(ex: free and easy to get started with - with amazing community support ) |
What other PM processes do you recommend?
(and thanks to respres for the great photo.)
