Behavior Change
Behavior change refers to shifts in how people act—specifically, changes in customer behavior that teams aim to drive through their products, and changes in team behavior toward more effective product practices.
How does behavior change apply to product discovery?
Business outcomes depend on changes in customer behavior. These might include:
- New people buying (from different countries, languages, or customer segments)
- Existing customers buying sooner, buying more, or paying higher prices
- Customers adopting new features or using the product differently
Behavior change is the critical link between product teams' work and business outcomes. Product outcomes are leading indicators that measure these specific customer behavior changes. As Josh Seiden recommends in Outcomes Over Output, teams should start with the question: "What are the customer behaviors that drive business results?"
Teams also experience behavior change as they adopt continuous discovery habits. This is a gradual process that requires patience, trial and error, and practice. Small behavior changes should be appreciated as teams become more discovery-oriented, building momentum for bigger changes.
Success criteria should be based on metrics associated with behavior change, not just feature completion or acceptance criteria.
Learn more:
- Empower Product Teams with Product Outcomes, Not Business Outcomes
- Shifting from Outputs to Outcomes: Why It Matters and How to Get Started
Related terms:
- Product Outcomes
- Business Outcome
- Leading Indicators
- Customer Behavior
Last Updated: October 25, 2025