My review process for deciding on products or services is to use a product comparison matrix, which I will use throughout this blog. It’s a simple breakdown of needs & wants based on a weighted score, tabulated to give me a final score for each product. While completely subjective to my needs it does give me a good baseline to propose products to purchase or how to proceed with projects. The product comparison is also an easy way to capture your audience. Customers and executives like the simplicity of it, without going into too much technical detail.
Product Comparison Matrix
| Product | Need1 | Need2 | NEed3 | Need4 | Need5 | Total Max Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight | 10 | 5 | 5 | 10 | .5 | Scored out of 10 Max potential score 305 |
| Product1 | 10 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 217 |
| Product2 | 10 | 9 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 222 |
| Product3 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 160 |
As you can see from this product comparison matrix, the process is relatively simple. I may also put in a negative column if I find something I dislike so much I want to review it down. I can see from the total that in this case Product2 suits me quite a bit better. Now I need to individually evaluate some key factors.
- Need 4 falls under 50% for my two highest products. Do I care? Do I want all of my needs to meet a certain score? Do Needs vs Wants weight immediately higher?
- Do I want a minimum value? For example if I am reviewing a number of products, I can designate a high minimum score. 80 or 90% at times. Other times this high a score isn’t feasible since products just don’t meet my requirements, so I would lower my score to find an appropriate product.
- I then also have to decide if there is simply a cutoff. So many decisions in IT are made by people who aren’t technical. If I can’t find a product that meets my Needs and Wants, and the total score is too low. Do I then create a case against moving ahead. As you can see, the matrix I create gives me a baseline to then make decisions. The final score isn’t always the final factor, but this helps me quickly eliminate products that just don’t fit the bill. The highest score is only around 72%. How much am I sacrificing to go with one of these products listed in this product comparison? Should I change my needs or change what I can pay, to find something to meet my needs?
This product comparison matrix will be used in most of my reviews. I will be as transparent as possible so that in my reviews people can find commonalities that they can utilize.
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