Why do Products fail to grow?
Most products fail not because they are not good products, but because most growth challenges companies face are rooted in internal challenges.
Products fail more often because of internal misalignment and misinformed decisions.
Investing in go-to-market (marketing and sales) before Product Market Fit):
Lack of product market fit is the number one reason startups fail.
A clear understanding of your target market and the problem you're solving for them is a prerequisite to growth.
Without PMF, what are you even trying to grow?
Not doing a Total Addressable Market (TAM) analysis to understand the market depth.
Without a TAM analysis, you could be pursuing an opportunity that is too small to be viable.
A TAM could also help in doing an ROI analysis on your R&D investment if your product succeeds.
Hiring the wrong team/wrong skill set match for the industry:
You'll struggle to achieve your desired outcomes and growth if you don't hire for the required skillset.
And to retain this talent, you'll need a strong culture of empowerment, recognition, and feedback.
Misaligned objectives and competing priorities between team leaders:
As an early-stage company, teams and departments always have multiple competing priorities.
Continual misalignment of goals or the ways to get there results in sub-optimal decisions and increased growth risks.
Lack of measuring what matters:
Once company direction is set, quantifying the goal is the most critical step to rally teams around the same objective.
After that, departments must collaborate internally and cross-functionally to set KPIs that align with overall company objectives.
Tracking these KPIs in a time-bound manner helps gauge whether different departments are working towards common company objectives.
Struggle to let go of the sunken cost fallacy:
Time and resources are the most essential resources for an early-stage product.
Any delays in pivoting to an alternate opportunity or growth strategy can set you back by years.
Being mindful of the sunken cost fallacy and cutting your losses is sometimes the best way forward.