Sonos' Redesign Debacle: How to Avoid Common Pitfalls in Product Upgrades w/ Kurt Schrader

Join host Fareed Mosavat on 'Unsolicited Feedback' as he delves into the latest Sonos app controversy with guest Kurt Schrader, CEO and founder of Shortcut, a platform that helps product and engineering teams unify to build collaboratively. This episode covers the major issues faced by Sonos power users, strategies for effective feature deprecation, the risks of big product redesigns, and how to manage user feedback and trust. Additionally, the episode touches on strategic pre-mortems, real-world scenarios from Slack and Shortcut, and insights into balancing innovation with user experience.

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Check out a full summary of the takeaways and lessons from this episode at ➡️ https://www.unsolicitedfeedback.co/

00:00 Introduction

01:44 Diving Into the Sonos App Update Controversy

05:16 The Challenges of Redesigning with Power Users in Mind

15:49 Learning from Slack's IRC Gateway Deprecation

18:26 Strategies for Managing Feature Deprecation and User Transition

24:31 Navigating the Challenges of Product Redesigns

26:18 Evaluating Redesign Feedback: Timing and Approach

28:50 The Pre-Mortem Strategy: Anticipating User Feedback

34:00 The Lock-In Factor: Navigating Customer Loyalty and Alternatives

37:33 Innovating in a Market Dominated by Incumbents