12 Ways to Pinpoint Features SaaS Users Actually Value

The problem with SaaS teams is that they are so innovative, they often over-innovate. Internal brainstorming sessions and “wouldn’t it be cool if…” discussions can quickly lead to bloated roadmaps full of features that don’t move the needle.

The better way? Market research. Market research keeps you from building your products in a vacuum. It tells you exactly which features solve real-world problems, which ones are nice-to-have, and which are noise to your customers. When you understand what users actually value, you can prioritize better, market smarter, and drive more adoption.

Here are twelve proven research tactics to determine what matters most to your users before the brilliant minds of your developers just start running. 

1. Run User Interviews (The Right Way)

User interviews are the gold standard, but only if you do them correctly. Don’t just ask, “Do you like this feature?” Ask questions that reveal pain points and priorities:

• “Walk me through your day and where this tool fits.”

• “What’s the most frustrating part of your current workflow?”

• “If we could only fix one thing for you, what would it be?”

Listen for patterns. If every user brings up the same friction point, you’ve found a feature worth building or improving.

2. Map Jobs-to-Be-Done

Jobs-to-Be-Done (JTBD) research digs deeper than “what feature do you want?” It uncovers what job your users are trying to accomplish and why they “hire” your product for it.

For example, users don’t want “task comments.” They want to stop pinging teammates in three separate chat apps. When you understand the job behind the request, you can build a feature that solves the root problem, not just the symptom.

3. Use Product Analytics Aggressively

Data tells you what users say they value versus what they actually use. Track these data points internally:

• Feature adoption rates

• Frequency of use

• Drop-off points

• Time spent in workflows

If a feature is widely requested but rarely used, dig deeper. Maybe it’s hard to find, poorly explained, or not as helpful as users thought.

4. Analyze Support Tickets

Support tickets are a gold mine of feature insight. Look for:

• Repeated questions about missing functionality

• Confusion that could be solved by UX tweaks

• “Workaround” requests that hint at unmet needs

If 40% of tickets are about one feature, you’ve either built something confusing or stumbled on a feature that’s more critical than you realized.

5. Study Churn Reasons

When users cancel, ask “why?” Then keep a clean log of their answers. Common responses like “too expensive” or “too complicated” often hide feature gaps. However, if multiple churned users say, “We switched to X because they have [feature],” that’s a roadmap insight.

6. Run Win/Loss Analysis

Every deal you win or lose is data. Interview prospects who chose you and those who didn’t. Ask:

• “Which features tipped the scale toward us?”

• “Which missing features made you choose a competitor?”

Analysis keeps your roadmap aligned with what the market rewards, not just what your current users ask for.

7. Monitor User Communities and Forums

Users talk and not always to you. They talk in Reddit threads, LinkedIn groups, Twitter conversations, and niche Slack communities. These communities can reveal what your audience praises, complains about, and hacks together.

The unfiltered language they use is as valuable as the insights themselves. It tells you how to frame features in their words, not just marketing speak.

8. Send Targeted Surveys

Surveys work best when they’re short and focused. Instead of asking for a feature wishlist, ask users to rank existing features by importance and satisfaction. Then plot results on an importance/satisfaction matrix to find:

• High importance, low satisfaction: Your top priority

• High importance, high satisfaction: Your differentiators

• Low importance, high satisfaction: Features you may be over-investing in

  
  

9. Test Value Propositions Before You Build

Don’t wait until after development to see if a feature resonates with users. Use fake door testing by adding a button or teaser in your UI, tracking clicks, and measuring interest before committing to dev time. If no one clicks, the feature request might be loud but not widespread. If everyone clicks, you have a winner.

10. Watch Session Recordings

Tools like Hotjar or FullStory let you see where users struggle, rage-click, or abandon workflows. Session recordings reveal usability problems and highlight where a feature isn’t delivering the value you think it is.

11. Analyze Competitive Messaging

Competitor research can help you see what buyers expect. If every major competitor highlights a feature you lack, it may be table stakes. If they all brag about one thing but your users never mention it, you may have found an opportunity to differentiate.

12. Close the Feedback Loop

Collecting data is useless if you don’t act on it. Share insights across product, marketing, and sales. When you prioritize a feature based on research, tell users you heard them. Closing the loop boosts engagement and makes users more likely to give feedback next time.

Pinpointing the features users value requires layering multiple sources of insight until the picture is clear:

• Interviews show intent. 

• Analytics show behavior. 

• Surveys show priorities. 

• Support logs show pain points. 

• Churn and win/loss data show stakes.

When you combine them, you stop guessing and start building features users adopt and rave about on social media and recommend to their peers.

Stop guessing what users care about. Ask them, watch them, measure them, and keep listening. The result is a leaner roadmap, happier users, and a product that grows because it actually solves problems.

At Borrowed Pen, we turn messy research data into clear strategies that help SaaS teams build features users love. Work with us, and let’s make your next roadmap a growth engine, not a guessing game.