A working backwards press release is an announcement written before building the product, as if it were already launching. It forces you to explain the problem, the solution and the benefit in the customer’s language, and it comes with external and internal FAQs. The method was popularised by a large online retailer: if the story does not convince on paper, the idea needs work before it turns into code.
How to use
- Give the product a working name and say who the customer is and when the launch would happen.
- Describe the problem and the solution the way the customer would, without technical jargon.
- List the benefits and the first steps to start using it.
- Write the product leadership quote and a typical customer’s quote, always without names.
- Answer the internal questions (metric and biggest risk), read the result as a customer would and export it.
What each field asks for
| Field | What to enter |
|---|---|
| Product name | A working name will do. |
| Customer | Who the customer is, in the plural. |
| When it arrives | Optional. The imagined month or quarter. |
| Problem | The customer pain, in their words. |
| Solution | What the product does for the customer, without technical jargon. |
| Benefits | Up to 5 concrete outcomes for the customer. |
| How to start | The customer’s first steps. |
| Quote from product leadership | Why the product exists. Attributed to the role, never a name. |
| Customer quote | What a typical (fictional) customer would say. |
| Price or model | Optional. Answers "how much is it?" in the FAQ. |
| Success metric | Answers "how will we know it worked?" in the internal FAQ. |
| Biggest risk | Answers "what could go wrong?" in the internal FAQ. |
Example
A fictional till app for small coffee shops arrives in March. The headline reads "SimpleTill: till closed in 5 minutes for owners of small coffee shops", and the subheading brings the three benefits together. The problem is closing the till by hand, which takes almost an hour. Product leadership explains why the product exists, a typical customer says they now check the summary on the phone and go home, and the internal FAQ records the metric (coffee shops that close the till in the app 5 days a week) and the biggest risk.
When to use
- Before approving a product or a large feature, to test whether the benefit is clear.
- When the team is debating the solution and has lost sight of the customer problem.
- To align leadership, marketing and product on the promise of the launch.
- As a discovery exercise, comparing two announcements for two different ideas.
Frequently asked questions
What is the working backwards method?
It means starting from the outcome for the customer and working back to what needs to be built. The future press release is the first step: if it does not convince, it is not worth starting to build.
Why write a press release before building?
Because writing forces clarity. A short text in the customer’s language quickly shows whether the benefit is strong, the audience is right and the solution really solves the problem.
What goes in the internal FAQ?
The questions the team and leadership will ask: which problem we are solving, how we will know it worked, what could go wrong and what is left out of the first version.
Why do the quotes have no names?
The tool attributes quotes to roles (product leadership, a typical customer) so the document works as an exercise and is not mistaken for a real announcement. For a real launch, communications chooses the spokespeople.
How long should it be?
One page for the announcement, plus the FAQ. If the problem or the solution needs many paragraphs, the idea is probably not clear yet.
Can I publish the generated text?
It is a working document for testing the idea. For a real launch, use it as a starting point and put it through marketing and legal review.