Most products start out as a response to a problem. An inconvenience is slowing people down, a situation is diminishing quality of life, and either no solution exists or the one that does exist is insufficient.

Something new is needed. So creative people come up with an original or improved way to fix the problem.

All product development teams start with the problem. But many become so enamored with their solution that they lose sight of the problem they’re solving during the development process.

They come up with new ideas to work into the product and functionality that’s “cool,” and they build the product the way they think users want it.

But the end result is a product that, while mostly meeting the need they set out to fill, misses the...