Initiation
We define the project’s objectives, identify key stakeholders, and outline the initial goals and expectations. Deliverables: a project kickoff plan, stakeholder analysis, and a clear project timeline.
Research
We research competitors, market trends, and users through interviews and surveys, analyze existing product analytics, conduct UX audits, and interview stakeholders. Deliverables: detailed user and market research reports, competitor landscape/SWOT analysis, benchmarking, personas, Jobs to Be Done, and value proposition canvases.
Ideation
We facilitate brainstorming sessions to generate ideas and potential solutions for an identified problem or need. Deliverables: customer journey maps, mood boards, UI concepts, user flows, story mapping, wireframes, prototypes, and information architecture.
Validation
We validate concepts through user testing to ensure alignment with user and market needs and organize feasibility checks with developers. Deliverables: User testing reports and feasibility assessments.
Specification
We prioritize features, define the feature requirements, and technical specifications, create a backlog, and other documentation necessary for design and development teams. Deliverables: BRD, WBS, SRS documents, backlog, project estimation, and detailed roadmaps.
Support
We provide ongoing support to the development team to address questions or issues that arise during the implementation phase. Deliverables: Knowledge transfer documentation and support throughout the development lifecycle.
Discovery helps you understand the market landscape, identify gaps, and pinpoint user needs and motivations. With data-driven insights, you make informed decisions rather than relying on intuition. It leads to better alignment between your product and market demand.
Digital product Discovery enables thorough requirements management, precise project planning, and resource allocation. With a clear backlog, budget, and timeline estimations, we minimize costly deviations and the project stays on track.
By assessing risks early and creating mitigation strategies, we better anticipate and prepare for potential disruptions. This reduces surprises during development and leads to continuity throughout the project.
With clearly defined roles, responsibilities, and a detailed backlog, the team has full clarity on tasks, objectives, and priorities. This leads to improved collaboration, accountability, and smoother project execution.
Launching a startup
You are turning an idea into a startup and need to define a clear path from concept to execution, including validating your initial assumptions.
Developing an MVP
You have a potential MVP in mind but need help with requirements, timelines, and understanding how to best prioritize features for a successful launch.
Expanding into new markets
Your established product is entering a new market or industry, and you need insights to align your product with market needs and expectations.
Exploring new features
You have a new feature concept but require validation to ensure it’s worth pursuing and aligns with user needs and business goals.
Planning for redesign
You’re planning a major product redesign or overhaul and need help gathering the right requirements and aligning all stakeholders on the new vision.
Facing high uncertainty
There’s a lot of uncertainty or unclear requirements, making it difficult to plan or move forward without structured guidance and validation.
Dealing with misaligned stakeholders
You’re dealing with multiple stakeholders or knowledge holders who have differing priorities, and you need clarity and alignment to define the project scope.
Need a rapid validation
You need to quickly validate and test your ideas with real users to avoid wasting time and resources on development that may not meet their needs.
VP Engineering at BeBop Technology
Within just a few weeks, Cieden had conceptualized the entire project with detailed UX designs, user flow diagrams, and detailed user stories. This provided the developers with a complete picture of the project, allowing them to initiate development with minimal friction.
CMO at Fiksu Ruoka Oy
With their in-depth understanding of the brand's goals, Cieden was able to navigate the project without a hitch. Their new designs had a strong impact on the brand's visual style, and customers also responded positively.
CTO at RivaEngine.com
Cieden has met the outcomes from each of the project's milestones. They bring an outstanding balance of skill sets, from project management and ideation feedback to requirements definition and deep knowledge of user expectations. The team is open to feedback and leads an effective workflow using the Agile methodology with weekly meetings and demo sessions. Their balance of skill sets and deep knowledge of user expectations stand out.
CEO & Managing Director at Openiq
Project management was perfect. They were spot on with the budget and product delivery predictions. Organizations are often open-ended with the budget, but Cieden was excellent at tracking the budget. Communication was also excellent; there wasn’t a time when I couldn’t get a hold of them. We can’t praise their professionalism enough.
Education Startup Founder
They were enthusiastic about the product and excited to give suggestions regarding features and subtleties of the app that I hadn’t considered. The project manager was incredibly responsive to my emails and kept me updated on the progress. They shared a tool that allowed me to see everything they were working on, as well.
CEO of Whim Technologies
My business partner and I are both quite impressed at how Cieden is providing way more than just business analysis or designs for us. They’re fundamentally improving the way we do business and in ways that we’re already able to act on.
Product Manager at Gridics
Interactions with them are wonderful. They’re extremely responsive and easy to get along with. They anticipate our wishes and translate our business needs into the design. They often deliver exactly what we want in the first round.
Founder of TMA
Within just a few weeks, Cieden had conceptualized the entire project with detailed UX designs, user flow diagrams, and detailed user stories. This provided the developers with a complete picture of the project, allowing them to initiate development with minimal friction.
Founder of Shop Suki
They managed to break down our complex business processes into VERY clear, and actionable solutions that can easily be understood by all stakeholders in the operations team.
Book a free, no-obligation consultation with Anastasia, Head of Product Management at Cieden. Discuss your project and discover the value we can add as a vendor.
In our Product Discovery process, we follow the Double Diamond framework, which divides the journey into two key areas: Problem and Solution, broken down into four phases:
This product discovery framework ensures we thoroughly understand and address the right problems before implementing solutions.
Guided by facts and numbers
Not a gut feeling. Our team is all about numbers and facts, using data-driven insights to identify and resolve issues, validate hypotheses, and enhance the performance of product design.
Eyes on the prize
We always keep our eyes on the bigger picture, ensuring our insights and design-related efforts are perfectly aligned with your business objectives.
Impacting, not just doing
We won’t just execute tasks; we will actively shape the product strategy, driving changes and innovations to keep your product in a leading market position.
No need for micromanagement
Our team takes a proactive and self-directed approach, ensuring an independent and seamless workflow that aligns with your project goals and timelines.
Enterprise-level experience
We have experience collaborating with industry giants like Apollo, MedEntry, and Blizzard, managing complex enterprise business processes and structures, uncovering new opportunities, and helping them scale.
Well-established processes and scalable resources
At Cieden, our well-established processes ensure efficiency and consistency in project execution. We adapt seamlessly to your project's needs, scaling our resources up or down as required. This flexibility allows us to handle projects of any size and complexity, ensuring timely delivery and optimal outcomes.
Faster turnaround times
With Cieden, you benefit from our streamlined workflows and efficient management, leading to faster turnaround times. Our specialists are usually dedicated to one project and specific areas of responsibility, ensuring quicker and more efficient work without the distractions of juggling multiple tasks.
Expertise in diverse domains
We have successfully delivered projects across various industries including healthcare, edtech, BPM & ERP, real estate, fintech, and more.
Ideal for projects where you need a clear budget and want to minimize risks. We’ll define the scope, provide a detailed estimate of time and costs, and deliver within the agreed budget.
Best for projects with evolving requirements or flexible timelines. You’ll pay only for the effective hours worked. Our rates start at $50 per hour, with a minimum commitment of 1 week.
What is Discovery as a Service?
Discovery phase of a project involves researching users, market, and competitors to define product vision, as well as project scope and prioritize key features. It ensures you know what to build and for whom, reducing guesswork and uncertainty.
What are the main deliverables of the Discovery phase?
Deliverables include detailed user and market research reports, competitor analysis, personas, benchmarking, user flows, UI concepts, wireframes, prototypes, information architecture, user testing reports, feasibility assessments, BRD, WBS, SRS documents, backlog, project estimation, and detailed roadmaps, among others.
How does Discovery help with product-market fit?
By conducting thorough market and user research through user interviews and surveys, Discovery identifies gaps and needs in the market, ensuring that your product is aligned with real user demands.
When should I consider Discovery phase services for product development?
Discovery is essential when launching a startup, developing an MVP, planning a redesign, exploring new features, expanding into new markets, or dealing with high levels of uncertainty and misaligned stakeholders.
How does the Product Discovery phase minimize risks in product development?
It anticipates potential risks early on, enabling the creation of risk mitigation strategies, clear timelines, and budget estimates, which reduce surprises during development.
What are the costs associated with Discovery phase services?
Costs vary depending on team composition, project size, and complexity. Each project is budgeted individually. During our free consultation, we’ll provide rough estimates, or you can use our Price Calculator for an initial assessment.
We offer both fixed-price and time & material models, with rates starting at $50 per hour and a minimum commitment of 1 week. The Discovery stage typically starts at $6,500.
How long does the Discovery phase usually take?
The duration depends on the project's requirements, but we can provide an estimated timeline during the Initiation phase. Most Discovery projects take a few weeks to a few months, with more complex projects lasting up to six months.
