Introduction

The author has years of experience as a product manager and is currently exploring the field of indie developers (Indiehacker). The goal is to leverage existing skills and experience while adapting to new challenges, summarizing a methodology for product development as an Indiehacker.

From Product Manager to Indiehacker

Product Manager Perspective

A Product Manager (PM) is a professional responsible for managing the entire product lifecycle, with key responsibilities including:

Market Research and Demand Analysis: Understanding market trends and user needs through user interviews, surveys, etc., providing data support for product planning.
Product Planning and Design: Based on market research results, creating detailed product plans that include features, interface design, and user experience.
Project Management and Execution: Developing project plans, assigning tasks, monitoring progress to ensure timely completion.
Product Promotion and Operations: Participating in the formulation of promotion strategies after product launch and collecting user feedback for continuous optimization.

Indiehacker Perspective

An Indiehacker refers to entrepreneurs who independently develop and operate their projects, typically characterized by the following traits:

Self-driven: Indiehackers usually start from scratch, relying on their own resources and abilities for product development.
Rapid Iteration: Indiehackers tend to adopt agile development methods, quickly launching a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and iterating based on user feedback.
Multiple Roles: They often need to wear multiple hats, including development, marketing, and customer support.
Flexibility and Innovation: Indiehackers can more easily experiment with innovations since they are not constrained by the processes of large organizations and can quickly adjust direction.

Different Success Factors

For Product Managers

Communication and Coordination Skills: Ability to effectively coordinate resources across departments to ensure smooth project progress.
Data Analysis Skills: Identifying user behavior patterns through data analysis to provide a basis for decision-making.
Project Management Skills: Developing reasonable timelines and resource allocation to improve team efficiency.

For Indiehackers

Self-learning Ability: Indiehackers need to continuously learn new technologies and market trends to maintain competitiveness.
Adaptability: Ability to quickly adjust strategies in response to market changes and user feedback.
Innovative Thinking: Encouraging experimentation with new ideas and seeking unique market entry points.

How Product Managers Build Products

The core process for product managers in building products is as follows:

Product Development Process for Product Managers

Explanation:

As part of the organization, product managers focus primarily on creating value (building valuable products with the team), delivering value (proving their worth), and capturing value (promotions, salary increases, etc.).
Goals: Break down the phased objectives of building products into understanding context >> identifying problems/needs >> defining product goals >> deeply understanding needs and scenarios >> designing product solutions >> developing products >> operating products and validating value.
Product Process: Breakdown of the product development process includes demand insight >> product planning >> product design >> product development implementation >> product operations.
- Demand Insight: Systematically collecting and analyzing user feedback and market data to form a deep understanding of user needs.
- Product Planning: Creating a detailed product roadmap that includes feature priorities, timelines, and resource allocation to guide subsequent development.
- Product Design: Designing user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) to ensure that the product meets user expectations visually and functionally.
- Product Development Implementation: Collaborating closely with the development team to ensure that development follows the plan while promptly addressing any issues that arise.
- Product Operations & Value Validation: After launch, collecting data through market promotion and user feedback to validate whether the product achieves its expected value while continuously optimizing.

How Indiehackers Build Products

(1) Demand Insight (Identifying Problems and Market Needs)

Identifying Pain Points: Observing the surrounding environment to identify specific problems or pain points faced by users. Inspiration can be drawn from personal experiences, social media, or industry forums.
Market Research: Conducting preliminary market research to understand potential users’ needs and their willingness to pay. Data can be collected using surveys or interviews.

(2) Validating Assumptions

Creating Simple Landing Pages: Before developing a product, create a landing page describing the product solution to collect potential users’ email addresses or booking information. This helps test market demand.
Manual Services: Before building a tech product, consider manually providing services to validate whether the idea is feasible.

(3) Building Minimum Viable Products (MVP)

Defining Core Features: Identify the essential features required for the MVP to effectively solve users’ primary problems. Avoid overdevelopment; keep it simple.
Using Rapid Prototyping Tools: Utilize no-code or low-code tools (like Bubble or Webflow) to quickly build an MVP for faster market entry.

(4) User Feedback & Iteration

Collecting Feedback: After releasing the MVP, actively gather user feedback. Communicate with early users to understand their experiences and suggestions for improvement.
Rapid Iteration: Make quick iterations based on user feedback to gradually refine the product. Maintain flexibility to adjust direction as needed.

(5) Marketing & Promotion

Establishing Brand Image: Build a personal brand through social media, blogs, and content marketing to attract potential users.
Utilizing Community Resources: Participate in relevant communities (like Indie Hackers) for promotion, exchanging experiences with other developers for more exposure opportunities.

(6) Monitoring & Improvement

Tracking Key Metrics: Use analytical tools to monitor product usage and user behavior to understand which features are popular and which need improvement.
Continuous Optimization: Constantly optimize the product based on data analysis results to enhance user satisfaction and retention rates.

Overall, the process for indiehackers in building products is:

Product Development Process for Indiehackers

Demand Insight (Identifying Problems & Market Needs) >> Validating Assumptions >> Building MVP >> User Feedback & Iteration >> Marketing & Promotion >> Monitoring & Improvement

Comparison of Product Development Processes

Similarities and Differences:

Commonalities: Both emphasize demand insight as a starting point while valuing user feedback and iteration processes.

Differences:

Product managers focus more on systematic planning, design, and team collaboration within their processes, while indiehackers emphasize rapid validation of assumptions, building MVPs, and adaptability.
Product managers operate within organizations with more resources supporting systematic development. In contrast, indiehackers typically work under limited resources relying more on rapid iteration and market feedback.

Differences at Various Stages:

Stage	Product Manager	Indiehacker
Idea Generation	Relies on team collaboration & market research	Individual brainstorming & inspiration capture
Product Definition	Creates detailed requirement documents & specifications	Quickly conceptualizes & creates MVP
Product Design - Prototyping	Collaborates with designers for high-fidelity prototypes	Designs simple prototypes independently
Development Testing	Conducts comprehensive testing through team collaboration	Rapid iteration testing by individuals or small teams
Operations Promotion	Develops systematic marketing strategies	Self-promotes through social media channels
User Feedback	Collects data for analysis & optimization	Directly communicates with users for feedback & adjustments

Conclusion

By reviewing experiences as a product manager and outlining methodologies for indiehackers in building products, I have initially grasped the methods required for transitioning from a product manager to an indiehacker. Whether as a product manager or an indiehacker, understanding user needs deeply is key to success. However, indiehackers need to build Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) faster, iterate quickly, and adapt flexibly to market changes—this demands a more comprehensive skill set.

In the future, I will base my practical product practices on this initial understanding system and methodology while continuously refining my approach.