A wave of financial product launches is failing within months, industry insiders reveal, as a misguided obsession with adding features—rather than core value—cripples user retention. Dubbed the 'feature salad' approach, this practice leaves apps bloated and confusing, driving customers away.
'It's a recipe for disaster,' said a veteran product builder with over two decades in financial services. 'You throw everything at the wall, but nothing sticks—and security teams or unforeseen complexity kill what little did work.'
Background
The problem stems from what experts call feature-first development, where internal department politics overshadow customer needs. Financial apps become 'a reflection of competing internal interests rather than a clear value proposition,' one senior analyst explained.
This results in a 'feature salad'—a mix of confusing, unrelated, and ultimately unlovable experiences. The Minimum Viable Product (MVP) philosophy, popularized by Jason Fried of Getting Real fame, is often ignored. 'An MVP provides just enough value to engage users without overwhelming them,' Fried has noted, but many teams succumb to what he calls the 'Columbo Effect'—always adding just one more thing.
What This Means
To build products that stick, developers must identify their 'bedrock'—the core functionality that truly matters. In retail banking, this means perfecting daily servicing journeys like checking balances or making payments, not chasing gimmicks.
'People open a current account once in a blue moon but they look at it every day,' the product builder emphasized. 'If that bedrock isn't rock solid, no feature pile-on will save you.' The implication: a ruthless focus on fundamental value is the only path to long-term retention, rather than a scattered feature list that satisfies internal stakeholders.
- Key insight: Avoiding 'feature salad' requires courage to say no, even when internal teams push for more.
- Action step: Audit your product for its bedrock—the single function users can't live without—and double down on it.
For more on the pitfalls of feature-first approaches, revisit the background of this crisis. The message is clear: stop dumping features and start building on bedrock.