For every new feature you need to:
1. Come up with the concept.
2. Say no.
3. Force the feature to prove its value.
4. If “no” again, end here. If “yes,” continue…
5. Sketch the screen(s)/UI.
6. Design the screen(s)/UI.
7. Code it.
8-16. Test, tweak, test, tweak, test, tweak, test, tweak…
17. Check to see if help text needs to be modified.
18. Update the product tour (if necessary).
19. Update the marketing copy (if necessary).
20. Update the terms of service (if necessary).
21. Check to see if any promises were broken.
22. Check to see if pricing structure is affected.
23. Launch.
24. Hold breath.
Jason Fried on 37 Signals.
This is probably sage advice for many, if not most, companies. But if we had actually followed i.e. steps 1, 2 and 3 and tried to figure out in advance if features were worthy, Flickr would not exist at all.
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