Modern Fertility CEO on Building Scientific Products (Part 3)
“In developing our product strategy, we started with an existing laboratory test. Specifically, we focused on increasing its accessibility. There are a limited amount of fertility clinics in the US – which presents an opportunity for scientific products to deliver new solutions for women. On the R&D side, we looked at making the sample collection easier as well as bringing together existing literature on fertility into an accessible format.”
From the repackaging standpoint, we didn’t just take everything that’s already out there, but we took a very analytical approach instead. For instance, not all studies have optimal design and others are outdated. In the end, we try to present a comprehensive explanation and empower our customers to make their own decisions.
Let Them Tell You
Product strategy should also include a lot of user research, and we collect feedback from all across the country. Our customer experience team is amazing, and we have women writing into us all the time with their questions which gives us tons of insight. Finally, we also have an online community which allows for conversations to unfold and provides even more perspectives to consider.
Due Diligence
For our brand, product development instinct falls into a different context. For example, before we even got started, we had many conversations with physicians. This eventually helped us develop an advisory board. We listened to their experiences and advice carefully to truly understand every aspect around infertility. Our product strategy took all this, combined it with the medical literature. Most importantly, we used this knowledge as a starting point for developing our product. Based on all the information we gathered, we developed a gut instinct on how to move forward.
I sent a lot of cold emails and went to a lot of conferences at first. It was a big challenge to get doctors to talk to us, and it required a lot of persistence. In the end, we made sure we partnered with professionals whose goals were intimately aligned with our product strategy. We wanted to provide clinically sound, unbiased information to empower women, and we only partnered with others who felt the same.
Be Conscious Of Decisions
I think there’s plenty of opportunity in the health and science arenas for similar kinds of products. Still, you have to think very deeply about it – since healthcare can be very sensitive. True empathy with your customer is of the utmost importance.