When we use the word product, it forces us to think in terms of physical objects, because products want to be things. But digital products are not primarily made of things. They are made of interactions. It’s useful to think of digital products as groups of systems. Systems that are used by people to interact with each other to achieve many results.

This is what makes great digital products so amazing, almost magical. It’s also what makes them so hard to develop and manage. Interactive tools require us to ask the audience to engage in two-way communication. But when we think of products we think of one person using a tool to do something by themselves.