Mike Reynolds revisits the big idea behind our show: why the business of product is never just about the product. As the co-founder & CEO of Innovatemap, a full-service digital product agency in Indianapolis and NYC, Mike explores from decades of personal experience what it takes to build a successful product business. Spoiler: Doing so takes so much more than a good product idea. In today's environment, Mike explains that success hinges on knowing which ideas are worth building a business around. This episode will give you the roadmap you need to make that big decision.

Follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter to see the latest from the Better Product Community powered by Innovatemap. The community is the connection point for product leaders & practitioners to learn and share what it takes to design, build, market, and sell better products. Learn more at betterproduct.community.

Takeaways:

• It might be easier to become an entrepreneur; it is NOT easier to be one.
• Building a business requires going beyond product ideas.
• Seek product experts to build the right business around your product.

Things To Listen For:

• [1:30] What founders need to consider after finding their product idea
• [2:00] How to think about product-market fit and product differentiation
• [2:30] When to balance building your product with promoting your product
• [3:30] The pros & cons of more entrepreneurs coming from specialized industries, not just tech
• [6:00] Why you need a team of product experts to advance your business—and what to look for when building one of your own
• [8:00] The difference between becoming and being an entrepreneur
• [11:00] Mike's predictions for the future of digital products & business

The past few months have been full of amazing conversations with high-growth founders and CEOs.

We've noticed a few themes from this inaugural season of Business of Product:

• Preserving the human side of tech
• Considering new ways of fundraising
• The power of the pivot

In this episode we breakdown these takeaways and, as you know, we believe that the Business of Product is never just about the product. So we're also reflecting on what the Business of Product means to each of our guests.

You might think of psychology and tech as being worlds apart from each other.

But Annie Miller, a former therapist turned tech founder believes the exact opposite is true. As she began building her company, w/you, she found others who believe it, too.

Michael Fulwiler is someone Annie admires in this space. He's a digital marketing expert for mental health startups, and has built a career on understanding the people behind the screen.

Annie and Michael join us for this episode, where we dive into the parallels between therapy and tech, the importance of ethics in business, and how ignoring "experts" lead to products that solve hard problems.