How I think about new products

Product Products
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This post outlines how I think about new products right now.

The Index Coop is on a mission to make crypto investing accessible to everyone. To that end, we are considering a number of exciting new products (i.e. MVI, BED, TTI) with more to come.

Yet, we have not nailed down how to think about new products.

Gitbook (Aspects of a Successful Product) does offer some guidance, but I found myself needing more. This is an unordered list of the factors I think about:

  • Technical Feasibility
  • Product-market fit
  • Index Coop fit
  • Methodologist reach
  • Index Coop brand
  • Methodologist as a long-term partner

I expect my thoughts on this topic to evolve as we continue to learn how to assess and maintain products.

Technical Feasibility

This is a baseline requirement. If a product is not technically feasible, it is a non-starter for now.

Question to ask: Is the product technically feasible?

Product-market fit

Products must have a high-likelihood of serving users’ needs (whether DeFi Minnow, High-networth, DAO, etc…). This is often evidenced by a product cleanly fitting with an existing narrative or meme, or solving a known problem.

Questions to ask:

  1. Does this product have a high-likelihood of serving a user’s needs?
  2. Does that need exist today? How do you know?
  3. How could it blow up (in a positive sense) in the future?

Index Coop Fit

It is important to take into account how a product fits into the suite of products the Coop supports. New products should be additive.

Questions to ask:

  1. Is the product under consideration additive to our suite of products?
  2. If so, how?

Methodologist Reach

Anyone can create an index product using Tokensets and other technology.

Massive success instead depends on distribution. Methodologists with large platforms (i.e. Twitter presence, podcast, website with lots of traffic) are critical for product success.

Questions to ask:

  1. How much reach does the methodologist have?
  2. What is the marketing benefit to the Coop?

Index Coop Brand

We are still early in our existence as a community. The quality of methodologists we work with today will impact who we can work with tomorrow.

Question to ask: Would the methodologist improve the Coop’s brand?

Methodologist as a long-term partner

7.5% of all INDEX tokens for the next year will be distributed to methodologists. Whoever earns this allotment will have outsized effect over The Index Coop.

Question to ask: Would we be excited to have the methodologist as an active, long-term community participant?

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