As a product manager, you’re always looking for ways to make your products better and more customer-focused. What if I told you there’s a powerful tool that could help you do just that? It’s called the Amazon PR FAQ framework, and it’s one of Amazon’s best-kept secrets for creating amazing products and improving customer experience.
Let’s dive into what makes this framework so special and how you can use it to supercharge your own product development process and vet ideas more effectively.
What is the PR/FAQ Framework?
At its core, the PR/FAQ framework is a way to think about your product idea from the target customer’s point of view before you even start building it. It’s part of Amazon’s “Working Backwards” process, which flips traditional product management on its head.
Instead of starting with what you think customers want, you begin by imagining your product launch has already happened. You write a hypothetical press release announcing it to the world and answer common questions customers might have. This simple shift in perspective can lead to big breakthroughs in how product teams approach design concepts and development.
The Three Parts of a PR/FAQ
1 – The Press Release (PR)
Think of this as a sneak peek into the future. You’re writing a concise press release as if your actual product is ready to go. This isn’t just a fun exercise – it forces you to clearly explain why your product matters and how it will provide customer benefits.
When writing your release headline and body, focus on:
- The problem your product solves
- How it’s different from what’s already out there
- The key design elements that make it special
- Why your target audience should care
2 – The External FAQ
Now put yourself in your potential customer’s shoes. What questions would they have after reading your press release? This section is where you answer those questions clearly and simply. Cover things like:
- How the product works
- When and where customers can get it
- What they need to know to use it
- Any concerns they might have about the customer experience
3 – The Internal FAQ
This last part is for your internal stakeholders, including your design team, engineering team, and sales teams. It’s where you get into the nitty-gritty details of how you’ll actually build and launch the product. Think about questions like:
- What technical challenges do we need to solve?
- How will we measure impact for customers?
- What could go wrong, and how will we handle it?
- What development resources do we need to make this happen?
Why PR/FAQs Work Magic for Product Managers
You might be wondering, “Why go through all this trouble before we’ve even started building?” Great question! The PR/FAQ framework has some big benefits that can save you time, money, and headaches down the road.
It Keeps You Focused on What Matters
By starting with the customer’s perspective, you’re forced to think hard about the real value of your product. This helps you avoid the trap of adding cool features that don’t actually solve a problem or meet a need in your addressable market.
It Gets Everyone on the Same Page
The PR/FAQ becomes a shared product vision for your team. It helps align your product teams, stakeholders, and even executives around what you’re trying to achieve. This common understanding can smooth out many bumps in the development process, especially for complicated products or internal products.
It Catches Problems Early
By thinking through potential questions and challenges upfront, you can spot issues before they become expensive mistakes. This proactive approach can save your team countless hours of rework later on and help you better allocate engineering resources.
It Evolves With Your Product
The PR/FAQ isn’t set in stone. As you learn more and get customer feedback, you can update it. This creates living product documents that grow and change with your product, keeping everyone in sync as things progress.
Real-World PR/FAQ Success Stories
Let’s look at how Amazon has used this framework to create some game-changing major products:
AWS (Amazon Web Services)
When Amazon was developing its cloud computing services like S3 and EC2, they used PR/FAQs to clarify the problems they were solving for businesses. This laser focus on customer needs helped AWS grow into a massive business that powers a huge chunk of the internet today.
The PR/FAQ process forced the team to think deeply about things like:
- How to make cloud storage simple and affordable
- What features businesses really needed (vs. what was just nice to have)
- How to explain the benefits of cloud computing to companies used to running their own servers
- Potential solutions for caching solutions and other technical challenges
Kindle E-Reader
The Kindle is another great example of the PR/FAQ in action. When Amazon decided to enter the e-reader market, they used this framework to:
- Define what made the Kindle different from other e-readers and physical books
- Address concerns about battery life, ease of use, and available content
- Plan for challenges like creating a new e-book ecosystem and working with publishers
- Craft hypothetical customer quotes to better understand the target customer’s needs
By thinking through these issues early, Amazon was able to create a product that revolutionized how people read books and expanded their customer base.
Certainly! I’ll edit the content to fit the style of the rest of the post, maintaining a conversational tone, simplifying the language, and focusing on practical advice for product managers. Here’s the revised version:
Putting PR/FAQs to Work for You
Now that you understand the power of the PR/FAQ framework, you’re probably wondering how to actually use it in your day-to-day work as a product manager. Don’t worry – I’ve got you covered. Here’s a practical guide to help you get started:
Get to Know Your Customer
Before you write a single word of your PR/FAQ, you need to really understand who you’re building for. This means:
- Creating user personas: Think about who your target customer is. What are their goals? What frustrates them? What makes them tick?
- Mapping the customer journey: Walk through how your customer would use your product. Where do they get stuck? What could make their life easier?
Write Your Press Release
Now comes the fun part – imagining your product is ready to launch. Your press release should include:
- A catchy headline: Sum up your product’s biggest benefit in one line.
- A brief intro: Explain what your product is and who it’s for.
- The problem you’re solving: What issues are your customers facing?
- Your solution: How does your product make things better?
- A quote from a company leader: Why is this product important to your company?
- A made-up customer quote: How might a happy customer describe your product?
- How to get started: Tell people how they can use your product.
Remember, keep it short and sweet – aim for just one page.
Create Your FAQs
Next, put yourself in your customers’ shoes and think about what questions they might have. Then do the same for your team and other folks in your company. Split your FAQs into two parts:
- External FAQs: Answer questions your customers or the media might ask.
- Internal FAQs: Address concerns your team or other departments might have.
Get Feedback and Improve
Don’t keep your PR/FAQ to yourself! Share it with your team, other departments, and even some trusted customers if you can. Ask for their honest feedback and use it to make your document better.
Test Your Ideas
Before you go all-in on development, it’s smart to test some of your assumptions:
- Do some market research: Make sure there’s really a need for what you’re building.
- Run small experiments: Try out key parts of your product idea with real users.
Use Your PR/FAQ to Guide Development
Once you’re confident in your PR/FAQ, use it to:
- Get everyone on the same page: Make sure your whole team understands and buys into the vision.
- Keep development on track: Use the PR/FAQ to guide decisions and prioritize features.
- Pitch your idea: Share it with higher-ups or investors to get support for your product.
Keep Improving
Remember, your PR/FAQ isn’t set in stone. As you learn more and get feedback, don’t be afraid to update it. It should grow and change along with your product.
By following these steps, you’ll be using the PR/FAQ framework like a pro in no time. It might feel a bit strange at first to write about a product that doesn’t exist yet, but stick with it. This process can lead to some amazing insights and help you build products your customers will love.
Good luck.
P.S. You can use this Custom GPT to write like an Amazon exec: https://chatgpt.com/g/g-XN091ulbF-write-like-an-amazonian-writing-style-editor