About this episode
Building B2B analytics and AI tools that people will actually pay for and use is hard. The reality is, your product won’t deliver ROI if no one’s using it. That’s why first principles thinking says you have to solve the usage problem first.
In this episode, I’ll explain why the key to user adoption is designing with the flow of work—building your solution around the natural workflows of your users to minimize the behavior changes you’re asking them to make. When users clearly see the value in your product, it becomes easier to sell and removes many product-related blockers along the way.
We’ll explore how product design impacts sales, the difference between buyers and users in enterprise contexts, and why challenging the “data/AI-first” mindset is essential. I’ll also share practical ways to align features with user needs, reduce friction, and drive long-term adoption and impact.
If you’re ready to move beyond the dashboard and start building products that truly fit the way people work, this episode is for you.
Highlights/Skip to:
The core argument: why solving for user adoption first helps demonstrate ROI and facilitate sales in B2B analytics and AI products (1:34)
How showing the value to actual end users—not just buyers—makes it easier to sell your product (2:33)
Why designing for outcomes instead of outputs (dashboards, etc) leads to better adoption and long-term product value (8:16)
How to “see” beyond users’ surface-level feature requests and solutions so you can solve for the actual, unspoken need—leading to an indispensable product (10:23)
Reframing feature requests as design-actionable problems (12:07)
Solving for unspoken needs vs. customer-requested features and functions (15:51)
Why “disruption” is the wrong approach for product development (21:19)
Quotes:
“Customers’ tolerance for poorly designed B2B software has decreased significantly over the last decade. People now expect enterprise tools to function as smoothly and intuitively as the consumer apps they use every day.
Clunky software that slows down workflows is no longer acceptable, regardless of the data it provides. If your product frustrates users or requires extra effort to achieve results, adoption will suffer.
Even the most powerful AI or analytics engine cannot compensate for a confusing or poorly structured interface. Enterprises now demand experiences that are seamless, efficient, and aligned with real workflows.
This shift means that product design is no longer a secondary consideration; it is critical to commercial success. Founders and product leaders must prioritize usability, clarity, and delight in every interaction. Soft
