Data Jujitsu: The Art of Turning Data into Product

by D.J. Patil

Before investing in a big effort, you need to answer one simple question: Does anyone want or need your product? If no one wants the product, all the analytical work you throw at it will be wasted. So, start with something simple that lets you determine whether there are any customers. To do that, you’ll have to take some clever shortcuts to get your product off the ground. Sometimes, these shortcuts will survive into the finished version because they represent some fundamentally good ideas that you might not have seen otherwise; sometimes, they’ll be replaced by more complex analytic techniques. In any case, the fundamental idea is that you shouldn’t solve the whole problem at once. Solve a simple piece that shows you whether there’s an interest. It doesn’t have to be a great solution; it just has to be good enough to let you know whether it’s worth going further (e.g., a minimum viable product).