Sep 4, 2025
Outsourcing kills your product instincts
The best way to kill your product instincts is to outsource your customer research.
When you get answers neatly packaged in a fancy PDF with cool graphs and slick design, you feel good about it. It looks like the hardest part has been done, and you just need to look at the numbers and insights. On the surface.
As you go through the research prepared by someone else, you realise you only gain surface-level knowledge of the space.
Real research is about developing a good understanding of what your customers are experiencing - the small problems they face, along with all the nuances and frustrations.
You have to speak to them. No surveys or written responses will give you true insight into their challenges.
When you outsource research, someone else builds that understanding - not you.
Your product instincts start to fade over time.
When you get answers neatly packaged in a fancy PDF with cool graphs and slick design, you feel good about it. It looks like the hardest part has been done, and you just need to look at the numbers and insights. On the surface.
As you go through the research prepared by someone else, you realise you only gain surface-level knowledge of the space.
Real research is about developing a good understanding of what your customers are experiencing - the small problems they face, along with all the nuances and frustrations.
You have to speak to them. No surveys or written responses will give you true insight into their challenges.
When you outsource research, someone else builds that understanding - not you.
Your product instincts start to fade over time.
About Max Antonov
I'm a father of three from Sydney, a Product Director and a Product Coach. I write about product management and run the Product Manager community.
Feel free to reach out: [email protected].
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