M1: Add a Parking Spot Finder to Google Maps

Most product managers approach feature requests by jumping straight to obvious solutions—like "add a parking spot finder" in Google Maps. But strategic product thinking rewards going beyond surface-level features to uncover underserved opportunities.

This analysis demonstrates advanced product sense through:

• Smart User Segmentation: Moving beyond demographics to psychographics (Time Optimizers, Value Seekers, Experience Enhancers, Social Coordinators)

• Strategic Prioritization: Choosing Time Optimizers as the highest-value segment with clear unmet needs

• Mission Alignment: Connecting every solution back to company core mission and competitive advantages

• Strategic Depth: Evaluating solutions across multiple dimensions with clear trade-offs

The key insight: Focus on the user segment that creates the highest strategic value through frequency and engagement, not just the largest addressable market.

Over to you: When designing products, do you prioritize the biggest user segment or the most strategically valuable one?

Add a Parking Spot Finder to Google Maps

C: Clarify the Goal and Boundaries:

Plan: Explore why parking matters, identify user segments, explore challenges, develop solutions, make recommendations

Role/Context: PM at Google Maps responsible for end-to-end navigation experience

Geography: Dense urban areas where parking is constrained

Platform: Mobile-first with web support, integrated with Google Maps

Timeframe: 3-month MVP, 12-month expansion

Why This Matters:

• Mission: Organizes parking information to make it accessible for navigation

• Human Value: Reduces parking anxiety, saves time, improves mobility

• Business Value: Strengthens Google Maps position, increases user engagement

Product Mission: "Complete the navigation journey by providing parking solutions that reduce friction and improve destination access"

I: Identify Customers + Stakeholders:

Stakeholders:

• Drivers: Users seeking parking

• Parking Providers: Garages, lots, street parking authorities

• Local Businesses: Benefit from improved customer access

• Maps Platform Team: Integration with mapping functionality

• Google Assistant Team: Voice-activated parking search

• Municipal Authorities: City parking management departments

User Segments (Psychographic):

Time Optimizers: Value efficiency above all else

• Professionals with packed schedules

• Pay premium for guaranteed spots and predictability

• Challenge: Uncertainty creates punctuality anxiety

• Currently circle blocks searching for spots