Y Combinator Question 28: When You Build a New Feature, What Is the Metric That Will Improve?

This Y Combinator question is aimed at understanding how deliberate and strategic a startup is about its product development decisions.

Frederik van Lierde - May 21, 2024

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Y Combinator

Part of the series:
Y Combinator: 40 Questions and 40 Answers

It focuses on identifying specific improvements or outcomes expected from the introduction of new features or products, emphasizing the need for clear, goal-oriented planning.

1. Why Y Combinator Asks This Question

Y Combinator is interested in how well you can link product development to tangible business outcomes. This question tests whether you are adding features or products based on user demand, market trends, or business needs, and whether these additions are expected to deliver specific improvements.

It’s important to ensure that development efforts align with strategic business objectives and are not just based on intuition or assumptions.

2. How to Answer the Question

To respond effectively, specify the metric or metrics that are expected to improve with the introduction of a new feature or product. Explain why you believe this improvement will occur, based on user feedback, research, or data analysis.

Be sure to discuss how this metric aligns with broader business goals or user needs.

For instance, if your startup is launching a new chatbot feature within a customer service platform, you might anticipate improvements in the “average response time” metric, enhancing overall customer satisfaction.

3. How NOT to Answer the Question

Avoid vague or non-specific answers that don’t clearly connect the new feature or product to a specific metric.

Don’t ignore the importance of backing up your expectations with data or rational analysis.

Ensure that the metrics you mention are meaningful and not just superficial measures (avoid vanity metrics).

4. An Example, Based on a Tech Startup

Let’s take a hypothetical tech startup, HealthSync, that develops a health management app integrating medication reminders and tracking. Here’s how they might answer the question regarding a new feature that allows patients to directly communicate with pharmacists:

Targeted Metric Improvement: “The introduction of direct pharmacist communication is anticipated to improve our ‘user engagement rate’ significantly. Currently, our engagement drops off after initial setup, and user feedback indicates a need for more interactive and personalized support.”
Rationale and Impact: “By enabling users to ask questions and receive guidance directly from pharmacists, we expect to see increased daily app usage and more frequent interactions. This feature aligns with our goal to enhance user reliance on our app for daily health management, thereby increasing overall retention rates.”

Y Combinator evaluates how startups link their product development to specific business outcomes, ensuring each feature or product launched is driven by clear, strategic objectives and not just assumptions.