545: A product management case study on unlocking customer insights – with Kristyn Corrigan

Product Mastery Now for Product Managers, Leaders, and Innovators

How PDMA used VOC research to drive innovation

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TLDR

In this episode, Kristyn Corrigan shares insights from a recent Voice of the Customer (VOC) research project for the Product Development and Management Association (PDMA). We explore how product professionals can move beyond assumptions to capture meaningful customer insights, the methodologies behind robust VOC research, and actionable findings that can transform both products and organizations. Key takeaways include practical steps for conducting qualitative and quantitative VOC and understanding how to identify the most valuable unmet customer needs.

Introduction

Here’s the brutal truth about customer research: Most product managers and innovators think they know their customers, but they’re building products for assumptions, not real people. In this discussion, we are detailing a recently completed Voice of the Customer project that’s helping the longest existing professional association for—guess who—product managers and innovators! That’s right—the VOC project was to better understand who the ideal customers of the professional association are and what their needs are. The association is one I’ve talked about before—PDMA, the Product Development and Management Association. If you’ve ever struggled to get meaningful customer insights, felt overwhelmed by diverse customer segments, or wondered how to turn research findings into actual product changes, this episode is for you.

Our guest is Kristyn Corrigan, Principal at Applied Marketing Science and PDMA Board of Directors member. With 17 years of consulting experience, she’s helped companies transform customer insights into successful products. She leads the Insights for Innovation practice, has published work in Fast Company, and guest lectured at MIT Sloan.

Summary of Concepts Discussed for Product Managers

• Genesis of the PDMA VOC Project:
  Motivation behind conducting formal VOC research for PDMA after a 20-year gap—driven by the need to understand current and prospective members’ needs, retention, and engagement strategies.
• Segmentation Strategy:
  PDMA membership includes academics, practitioners, and service providers. The research intentionally sampled a mix across these segments and various career stages (early, mid, late).
• Methodological Approach:
  • Qualitative, in-depth interviews kicked off at the 2024 PDMA conference (21 interviews with diverse participants).
  • Ensured unbiased sampling, including non-members and attendees at other industry events.
  • Use of open-ended discussion guides and a focus on eliciting stories and real experiences to minimize bias and dig deeper into needs.
• Transcription and Analysis:
  • All interviews were transcribed verbatim.
  • Introduction of a fine-tuned AI model specifically developed for qualitative VOC analysis, trained on numerous past studies.
  • Side-by-side analysis showed high overlap between AI and human analysts, but each also uncovered unique needs.
• Quantitative Follow-Up:
  • Validated qualitative insights with a broader online survey.
  • Built an opportunity matrix based on need importance and market performance, highlighting areas for innovation.
• Insights PDMA Learned from VOC Research:
  • Certification is important, but well met in the market—opportunities for innovation exist in building meaningful community, providing personalized and actionable knowledge, and enabling networking.
  • The dangers of jargon and acronyms for newcomers—need to create an inclusive onboarding experience.
  • Emphasis on listening, story-based interviewing, and detaching from bias or defensiveness during research.
• Tips for Conducting VOC Interviews:
  • Start with easy, open-ended questions.
  • Move from broad to specific, anchoring discussions in the customer’s actual experiences.
  • Build trust, clarify you’re there to listen (not sell), and focus on what genuinely matters to the customer.

Useful Links

• Learn more about Applied Marketing Science
• Connect with Kristyn on LinkedIn
• Listen to episode 071: How product managers can conduct Voice of the Customer research
• Listen to episode 529: Is this the best AI-powered market research approach? – with Carmel Dibner

Innovation Quote

“It takes as much time to solve a bad problem as it does a good problem. And if you’re not working on good problems, you’re really wasting your time.” – Abbie Griffin

Application Questions

1. What assumptions about your customers guide your current product decisions, and how might VOC research challenge or refine them?
2. How does your team currently segment customer research participants, and are you capturing the full spectrum of user experiences and needs?
3. What practices could you adopt to ensure interviews produce genuine, story-driven insights rather than surface-level feedback or solution requests?
4. Where could incorporating AI tools into your VOC process save time or reveal new types of customer needs not easily visible through manual analysis?
5. How can findings from VOC research be incorporated into operations in your organization, especially when new insights reveal unmet needs outside your current core offerings?

Bio

Kristyn Corrigan is a principal at Applied Marketing Science (AMS) where she leads the Insights for Innovation Practice. In her over 20 years of consulting experience, she has helped dozens of companies use customer insights to create more successful products, services, and customer experiences. Kristyn has extensive experience leading both domestic and international research engagements in business-to-business and consumer markets. She specializes in helping her clients to not only understand customer needs through in-depth interviewing and ethnographic observation, but also with how to measure their criticality to innovation.  In addition to consulting work, Kristyn trains companies to implement their own in-house insights and Voice of the Customer (VOC) programs and is a frequent presenter at leading industry conferences. Kristyn currently serves on the Product Development and Management Association (PDMA) Board of Directors. 

Thanks!

Thank you for taking the journey to product mastery and learning with me from the successes and failures of product innovators, managers, and developers. If you enjoyed the discussion, help out a fellow product manager by sharing it using the social media buttons you see below.

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