In the mid-2000s, Amazon developed the Working Backwards PR FAQ method for new product innovation. While many focus on the PR (Press Release) aspect of this method, the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) isn’t an afterthought.
The press release defines the customer, the problem, and the solution. As I frequently tell people new to this process, the PR should be (at least in part) a work of science fiction. It should describe a product solution that does not exist today and that requires some level of invention to build.
The FAQ is where you figure out how to turn fiction into reality. To figure out how you’ll actually deliver it. It’s where you start asking all the tough, practical questions. This is where you describe the hard problems you need to solve to bring the product to life. The act of solving those hard problems on behalf of consumers is how companies create value.
This FAQ also forces you to look ahead, around corners, and into the details. It helps you surface hidden assumptions, clarify unknowns, and identify hurdles before they get in your way. Expect to revise it many times as your thinking evolves.
To get the most value from the FAQ, you’ll want to write both external and internal questions. External FAQs are the kinds of things customers or the press might ask at launch. For example:
→ “What’s the price?”
→ “How does it work?”
→ “Where can I buy it?”
→ “Do I need to talk to a salesperson?”
→ “Is it online-only?”
→ “How can I get help?”
Cover all of these in your external FAQ to ensure a strong narrative at launch.
The second section is for Internal FAQs, which focus on questions and considerations for stakeholders across the company, such as operations, finance, legal, HR, and engineering.
Four categories of questions should be addressed up front:
1. Customer definition and Total Addressable Market (TAM)
2. Problems, solutions and assumptions
3. Economics
4. Dependencies
Here are the most essential FAQs related to Customer and Total Addressable Market (TAM)
→ Who is the target customer?
→ How many people or companies (target customers) have this problem?
→ What products do they use today to solve this problem, and how much do they spend?
→ What customer data and/or insights are the drivers behind this product idea?
Here are the most essential FAQs related to problems, solutions, and assumptions
→ What are the most significant problems we will have to solve to build this product?
→ How will we solve each problem?
→ What needs to be true for this product to be successful?
→ What are the reasons why this product may not be successful?
Here are the most essential FAQs related to Dependencies:
→ What are your internal dependencies on other teams, systems, etc?
→ What are your external dependencies on third-party software, suppliers, partnerships, etc?
→ What legal or regulatory requirements need to be addressed?
(cont. in comments)
