What It Means To Build With Your Customers In Mind (With Keap's Rob Stevenson) - Build with Maggie Crowley Recap

Podcast: Build with Maggie Crowley

Published: 2023-01-03

Duration: 21 min

Guests: Rob Stevenson

Summary

Maggie Crowley speaks with Rob Stevenson about the intricacies of building products with customer collaboration at the forefront, sharing insights from their partnership over the past year.

What Happened

Rob Stevenson, from Keap, shares his experience working closely with a product team, highlighting the clarity and structure provided by the team at Drift. He explains how this approach influenced his own team's customer interactions, emphasizing the importance of setting clear expectations and deliverables.

Maggie and Rob discuss the challenges of maintaining honesty and transparency while managing customer demands. Rob stresses the need for a clear product roadmap to avoid wasting resources on non-scalable customer requests.

They explore the dynamics of customer relationships, underscoring the importance of selecting partners whose needs align with the company's capabilities and goals. This alignment is crucial for effective product development and long-term customer satisfaction.

The conversation touches on the pitfalls of anecdotal feedback and the necessity of empirical data to drive product decisions. Rob illustrates this by sharing his experiences with various CRM providers and the challenges in getting them to address specific product needs.

Rob and Maggie discuss the evolution of their partnership, with Rob noting how Drift's innovative approach to communication through automation has significantly impacted Keap's operations. He highlights the benefits of engaging customers in a conversational manner that enhances conversion rates.

Maggie and Rob reflect on the importance of building products that are adaptable to the rapidly changing needs of early-stage startups. They agree that focusing on outcomes rather than specific features can lead to more meaningful customer interactions and product innovations.

Finally, Rob shares his perspective on the future of B2B product development, emphasizing the need for strong partnerships and mutual understanding between vendors and customers. He advocates for a shift from transactional to collaborative relationships for lasting success.

Key Insights