One of the pitfalls many companies make when rolling out a new product or feature is a lack of structured planning. While getting the project rolling is exciting, you want to be as prepared as possible. This is where a product requirements document (PRD) comes in handy.
Think of a PRD as a blueprint for your product, outlining everything you need to know to bring your vision to life.
In this post, we provide an overview of what a PRD is and what it should include, as well as a PRD template to help you get started. We also provide some examples of completed PRDs to get your gears turning. Utilizing a PRD template the right way will help you build a solid foundation to turn your next product into a masterpiece.
For a more granular breakdown of how to build out this document, head over to our post on how to write a PRD.
Product Requirements Document Template
What Is a Product Requirements Document (PRD)?
A PRD is a roadmap that outlines a product’s features, functionalities, and overall purpose. It’s typically created by a project manager and serves as a communication tool that bridges the gap between the different teams working on the project, like design, engineering, and marketing.
The PRD also creates a cornerstone for complex product designs by providing goals, features, and technical specifications. A clear and concise PRD ensures everyone involved in the creation process has a shared understanding of the product’s goals and how it should function.
What Should a PRD Include?
To ensure your PRD is effective, it should include the following key components:
- Product overview: Add the product and project name, project manager, version, and other essential information.
- Purpose: Write out the product’s objectives, including what it will do and what problem it aims to solve.
- Success metrics: Have clear KPIs to ensure the product meets your internal goals for the project.
- Features: Outline the primary features and be specific about how they will make things easier or better for the user. Include any product compatibility notes, including how it works with other products in an ecosystem.
- Scope: Define what the current development cycle includes, like core features, functionalities, and integrations. Also, clarify what the current version or phase will not address.
- Target market and audience: Identify who this product is for (e.g., medical professionals, parents, music producers), and then get more specific with customer segmentation.
- Competition: List some of the top competitors in this market and the names of their competing products.
- User interaction: Describe how users interact with the product and any haptic or auditory feedback. Outline the number of buttons and displays as well as its functionality.
- Design: Describe how the product will align with the brand. Include information for dimensions, weight, colors, packaging, and presentation. You can also list out some branding adjectives like modern, durable, sleek, etc.
- Technical requirements: Explain any distinct features to prioritize along with technical requirements. The technical requirements should include the feature functionality, specifications, expected behavior, and information about the sensors, actuators, and other technical aspects.
- Environmental and safety requirements: Explain the expected operating conditions and regulatory standards it should meet.
- Software architecture and data processing: Outline any firmware functions and algorithms that the product may need to operate properly. Give an overview of any cloud infrastructure it may need. If it has a smartphone application, define the app’s core features.
- Cost and manufacturing: Specify the minimum order quantity for the initial product run and the annual expected volume. Define any target cost goals for manufacturing and preferred production methods.
- Servicing and updates: Explain how to service the product.
- Milestones and timelines: Create separate milestones with start and completion dates for design, engineering, prototyping, and manufacturing. A Gantt chart or timeline view of project phases may also be helpful.
- Additional information: Include any potentially helpful information, like diagrams, schematics, and any supporting documentation or research.
- Open issues: List any product development challenges that still need solutions.
How To Use a PRD Template
Depending on the project, you may not use all of the sections, so you can remove them if needed. For example, if you’re working on an app, you can remove the rows for form factor and materials.
Then, replace any italicized text with the specifics of your project.
1. Have a Clear Objective and Measurable Success Metrics
A well-defined objective for your product provides a North Star for the entire project, guiding decision-making and making sure everyone is aligned on the product’s purpose.
Measurable success metrics provide tangible evidence of whether or not the product is meeting your internal goals while also delivering value to users. When you have focused and actionable guidelines, you can keep the project on track and aligned with your organization’s overall strategy.
2. List and Address Assumptions
As you draft your PRD, it’s helpful to list out assumptions and ask questions. You may assume how or when a person will use the product. There may also be assumptions about how much a person is willing to pay for the product. What if these assumptions are wrong? How will you address them?
These are the questions you want to ask as you fill out your PRD because it will help you be proactive about finding solutions.
Let’s use a medical product as an example. Pretend you’re working on a tablet doctors can use while visiting patients. An assumption may be that they’ll primarily use it while walking, but what if they also want to use it at a desk? Will using the tablet at a desk lead to any challenges with design or features?
You can then take notes and prioritize any additional issues you may need to address during the project.
3. Be Prepared for Questions
As you fill out your PRD, anticipate questions from the various stakeholders who will be involved in the project. It’s also helpful to consider questions from people outside of the product development process, like marketing teams and executives.
For example, the marketing team may ask how this new product fits in with other products you’re currently working on. Executives may focus more on the money side and ask for more detailed information about the target market size and growth potential.
Anticipate questions can help you get more buy-in and potentially avoid costly and time-consuming revisions.
4. Share and Get Feedback
You can prepare as much as you want for questions, but cross-functional stakeholders will have questions when you share the PRD. Questions and feedback are beneficial because others may offer perspectives you hadn’t considered before, helping you flesh out the PRD before presenting it to senior management.
While feedback is useful, scope creep can be the downfall of a new product. Take notes and consider all feedback, but be mindful of priorities to achieve goals and objectives for the project.
Product Requirements Document Examples
Below, we have PRD examples for both physical and digital products to give you an idea of how they look.
Note: The names, emails, and numbers used in the following examples are not real.
1. YogaSense Smart Yoga Mat
This first PRD example is for a potential product for yoga enthusiasts. This smart yoga mat is designed for people looking to elevate their yoga practice with the latest in fitness technology. It combines both physical and digital products.
You’ll see in the example that the two primary aspects of this product are the smart yoga mat that has sensors to track posture and alignment and the app. The app can be used for pre-recorded audio or video sessions and live classes. Future plans include implementing community features to connect people through the app to join challenges and share their stories.
2. WealthWatcher
For teams developing a digital product, this next example is for a fictional app called WealthWatcher. Its goal is to provide users with credit score monitoring and the ability to track their spending.
The success metrics for this product are slightly different. With apps, the example company Wealth Solutions wants to focus on monthly active users, a high app store rating, and an average of 10 minutes spent in the app per session by users.
Streamline Your Next Project With StudioRed
A well-crafted PRD plays a key role in successfully launching a new product. By utilizing a product requirements document template and following best practices, all stakeholders can become aligned on the project’s development and goals to ensure it runs smoothly.
If you’re ready to turn your product idea into a reality, StudioRed specializes in creating innovative, user-friendly products. Our team of experienced designers, engineers, and strategists develop comprehensive PRDs for every project.
We meet with each client to fully understand their vision, and our structured process allows us to stay on track to meet each milestone on time while creating a great product that’s within budget.
We specialize in everything from industrial design to UX/UI and prototyping. To learn more about how we can help with your next project, get in touch today!
