Extract product ideas through guided questions and generate PRD
Extract product ideas from your head through guided questioning, then generate a detailed Product Requirements Document (PRD). Designed for product people who have a vision but need help articulating it clearly.
You have an idea for a product or feature in your mind, but struggle to explain it comprehensively. This command acts as your product thought partner — asking the right questions to extract what you're envisioning, then structuring it into a PRD ready for a team to execute.
/product-brief [initial idea]
Examples:
/product-brief Add a notification system to our app/product-brief Build a customer feedback portal/product-brief Create an onboarding flow for new users/product-brief (prompts you for the idea)If no idea is provided: Ask: "What product or feature are you thinking about?"
If idea is provided: Start with whatever the user provides:
Display:
## Initial Idea
[User's description]
---
**Next:** I'll ask a few questions to understand this better.
Important: Ask questions conversationally, not as a survey. 2-3 questions at a time, then wait for answers before asking more.
Question Strategy:
Round 1 (Critical Context):
Round 2 (Constraints & Scope): Based on Round 1 answers, ask about:
Round 3 (User Experience):
Round 4 (Success & Validation):
Adaptive questioning: If user mentions stakeholders, budget, or other context early, adjust questions accordingly. Don't ask what you already know.
After each round, acknowledge answers briefly and transition naturally:
"Got it. That helps me understand [X]. A few more questions about [Y]..."
Before moving forward, confirm you captured the vision correctly:
## What I Heard
**The Problem:**
[Synthesized problem statement]
**Target Users:**
[Who this is for]
**Core Value:**
[The main benefit/outcome]
**Key Constraints:**
[Timeline, technical, scope boundaries]
**Assumptions to Validate:**
[Things we're assuming but should test]
---
**Does this capture your vision? Type "yes" to continue or correct anything above.**
If user corrects, update and re-confirm.
User triggers with: spec doc or create spec
Generate structured product spec:
# Product Spec: [Feature/Product Name]
**Date:** YYYY-MM-DD
**Owner:** [User's name]
**Status:** Draft
---
## Executive Summary
[2-3 sentence pitch: what this is and why it matters]
---
## Problem Statement
### Current Situation
[What exists today]
### Pain Points
- [Specific pain 1]
- [Specific pain 2]
- [Specific pain 3]
### Impact of Inaction
[What happens if we don't build this]
---
## Target Audience
### Primary Users
[Who will use this most]
### Secondary Users
[Who else benefits]
### User Characteristics
- [Key trait 1]
- [Key trait 2]
- [Key trait 3]
---
## Solution Overview
[High-level description of what we're building]
---
## Key Features & Functionality
### Must Have (MVP)
1. **[Feature 1]**
- Description
- Why it's critical
2. **[Feature 2]**
- Description
- Why it's critical
### Should Have (Phase 2)
1. **[Feature 3]**
- Description
- Why it's valuable
### Nice to Have (Future)
1. **[Feature 4]**
- Description
- Why it's desirable
---
## Success Metrics
### Primary Metric
[The one number that matters most]
### Secondary Metrics
- [Metric 2]
- [Metric 3]
### Leading Indicators
[Early signals of success/failure]
---
## Assumptions & Risks
### Key Assumptions
1. [Assumption 1]
- How to validate: [Test method]
2. [Assumption 2]
- How to validate: [Test method]
### Risks
1. **[Risk 1]** — [Mitigation strategy]
2. **[Risk 2]** — [Mitigation strategy]
---
## Dependencies
### Technical
- [System/API/service dependency]
### Team
- [Who needs to be involved]
### External
- [Third-party dependencies]
---
## Out of Scope
Explicitly not included:
- [Thing 1]
- [Thing 2]
- [Thing 3]
---
## Open Questions
- [ ] [Question 1]
- [ ] [Question 2]
- [ ] [Question 3]
---
**Next Steps:**
- Type `prioritize` to rank features by effort/impact
- Type `design flows` to create detailed user flows
- Type `create prd` to generate final PRD
- Type `back` to revise anything above
User triggers with: prioritize
Create effort/impact matrix:
## Feature Prioritization
| Feature | Impact | Effort | Priority | Rationale |
|---------|--------|--------|----------|-----------|
| [Feature 1] | High | Low | P0 | [Why] |
| [Feature 2] | High | Medium | P0 | [Why] |
| [Feature 3] | Medium | Low | P1 | [Why] |
| [Feature 4] | Low | High | P2 | [Why] |
### Recommended MVP Scope
Based on high impact + reasonable effort:
1. [Feature 1]
2. [Feature 2]
3. [Feature 3]
**Estimated Effort:** [X weeks/sprints]
---
**Next:**
- Type `design flows` to create user flows
- Type `create prd` to generate final PRD
- Type `back` to revise spec
User triggers with: design flows
Create detailed user flows and screen specs:
## User Flows & Screen Specifications
### Flow 1: [Primary User Journey]
**Entry Point:** [How user arrives]
**Steps:**
#### Step 1: [Screen Name]
**Layout:**
- [Header elements]
- [Main content area]
- [Actions/buttons]
**User Actions:**
- Click [X] → [Outcome]
- Enter [Y] → [Validation rules]
- Cancel → [State change]
**Navigation:**
- Success → [Next screen]
- Error → [Error state]
- Back → [Previous screen]
**Validation Rules:**
- [Field 1]: [Rules]
- [Field 2]: [Rules]
**States:**
- Default: [Description]
- Loading: [What user sees]
- Error: [Error message]
- Success: [Confirmation]
---
#### Step 2: [Next Screen]
[Same structure as Step 1]
---
### Flow 2: [Secondary Journey]
[Same structure as Flow 1]
---
**Next:**
- Type `create prd` to generate final PRD
- Type `back` to revise flows
User triggers with: create prd or generate prd
Generate comprehensive PRD combining all previous phases:
# Product Requirements Document
## [Product/Feature Name]
**Author:** [User name]
**Date:** YYYY-MM-DD
**Status:** Draft
**Last Updated:** YYYY-MM-DD
---
## Document Control
| Version | Date | Author | Changes |
|---------|------|--------|---------|
| 0.1 | YYYY-MM-DD | [Name] | Initial draft |
---
## Executive Summary
[2-3 paragraphs covering: what, why, who, success]
---
## Background & Context
### Current State
[What exists today]
### Problem Statement
[The problem we're solving]
### Opportunity
[Why now, why us]
---
## Goals & Success Metrics
### Primary Objective
[The main goal]
### Success Metrics
**Primary:**
- [Metric 1]: [Target]
**Secondary:**
- [Metric 2]: [Target]
- [Metric 3]: [Target]
**Leading Indicators:**
- [Early signal 1]
- [Early signal 2]
---
## Target Users
### Primary Audience
[Detailed description]
### Use Cases
1. **[Use Case 1]**
- As a [user type]
- I want to [action]
- So that [benefit]
2. **[Use Case 2]**
- As a [user type]
- I want to [action]
- So that [benefit]
---
## Solution Overview
[Comprehensive description of what we're building]
---
## Functional Requirements
### Must Have (P0)
#### Requirement 1: [Name]
- **Description:** [What it does]
- **Acceptance Criteria:**
- [ ] [Criterion 1]
- [ ] [Criterion 2]
- [ ] [Criterion 3]
- **User Story:** As a [X], I want [Y], so that [Z]
#### Requirement 2: [Name]
[Same structure]
### Should Have (P1)
[Same structure as Must Have]
### Nice to Have (P2)
[Same structure as Must Have]
---
## User Experience
### User Flows
[Reference to flows from Phase 6, or create if skipped]
### Key Screens
[High-level screen descriptions]
### Interaction Patterns
[How users interact with the feature]
---
## Technical Requirements
### Performance
- [Requirement 1]
- [Requirement 2]
### Security
- [Requirement 1]
- [Requirement 2]
### Integration Points
- [System 1]: [What needs to connect]
- [System 2]: [What needs to connect]
### Data Requirements
- [What data is collected]
- [Where it's stored]
- [How it's used]
---
## Design Requirements
### Visual Design
- [Style guide compliance]
- [Responsive requirements]
- [Accessibility standards]
### Content Requirements
- [Copy needs]
- [Translation needs]
- [Asset requirements]
---
## Dependencies & Constraints
### Dependencies
- **Technical:** [List]
- **Team:** [Who needs to be involved]
- **External:** [Third parties]
### Constraints
- **Timeline:** [Dates/milestones]
- **Budget:** [If applicable]
- **Technical:** [Platform limitations]
---
## Assumptions & Risks
### Assumptions
1. [Assumption 1]
- **Validation method:** [How to test]
- **Impact if wrong:** [Consequence]
2. [Assumption 2]
- **Validation method:** [How to test]
- **Impact if wrong:** [Consequence]
### Risks
| Risk | Likelihood | Impact | Mitigation |
|------|------------|--------|------------|
| [Risk 1] | High/Med/Low | High/Med/Low | [Strategy] |
| [Risk 2] | High/Med/Low | High/Med/Low | [Strategy] |
---
## Out of Scope
Explicitly not included in this version:
- [Item 1] — [Why/when it might be included]
- [Item 2] — [Why/when it might be included]
- [Item 3] — [Why/when it might be included]
---
## Open Questions
- [ ] [Question 1] — Owner: [Name], Due: [Date]
- [ ] [Question 2] — Owner: [Name], Due: [Date]
- [ ] [Question 3] — Owner: [Name], Due: [Date]
---
## Timeline & Milestones
| Milestone | Target Date | Status |
|-----------|-------------|--------|
| PRD Complete | [Date] | In Progress |
| Design Complete | [Date] | Not Started |
| Dev Complete | [Date] | Not Started |
| QA Complete | [Date] | Not Started |
| Launch | [Date] | Not Started |
---
## Stakeholders
| Name | Role | Involvement |
|------|------|-------------|
| [Name] | [Role] | [What they do] |
| [Name] | [Role] | [What they do] |
---
## Appendix
### Research
[Link to user research, competitive analysis, etc.]
### Design Mockups
[Links to designs when available]
### Technical Specs
[Links to technical documentation]
---
**Document Status:** Ready for Review
**Next Actions:**
- [ ] Review with stakeholders
- [ ] Refine based on feedback
- [ ] Get approval to proceed
- [ ] Hand off to design/engineering
---
*This PRD was generated using the /product-brief command. Update as needed.*
After generating the PRD:
Save the document:
04-Projects/[Product Name]/04-Projects/[Product Name]/PRD.mdCreate person pages (if stakeholders mentioned):
People/Internal/ or People/External/Link to 03-Tasks/Tasks.md:
Confirm completion:
## ✅ PRD Created
**Saved to:** `04-Projects/[Product Name]/PRD.md`
**Next Steps:**
1. Review and refine the PRD
2. Share with stakeholders for feedback
3. Use `/project-health` to track progress
4. Create tasks in 03-Tasks/Tasks.md when ready to execute
**Want to:**
- Revise any section → Just tell me what to change
- Create tasks from this PRD → Say "create tasks"
- Share with stakeholders → I can draft an email
At any phase, users can:
back or previous — Return to previous phaseskip to prd — Jump directly to final PRDrevise [section] — Edit specific sectionstart over — Begin from scratchsave — Save current progressGood:
"Interesting. If this is for enterprise customers, how do we handle single sign-on? Or is that something we're punting to Phase 2?"
Bad:
"Question 7: Please describe your authentication strategy."
User: /product-brief Add notifications to our app
Dex:
## Initial Idea
Add notifications to our app
---
Great, let's flesh this out. A few questions to start:
1. What type of notifications are we talking about — push notifications, in-app alerts, email, or all three?
2. What specific events should trigger notifications?
3. Who are these notifications for — all users, or specific roles?
User: "Push notifications for now. We want to notify sales reps when a lead takes an action in the product."
Dex:
Got it — push notifications for sales reps when leads are active. That helps narrow it.
A few more questions:
1. What actions count as notification-worthy? (e.g., login, feature usage, upgrade intent)
2. Should there be any filtering or preferences? Like "only notify me about my accounts"?
3. What's the business outcome we're driving here — faster response time, more engagement, closing deals faster?
[Conversation continues through phases until PRD is complete]
Use /product-brief when:
Don't use it for:
The PRD isn't set in stone. After creation:
Dex will update the PRD file directly and maintain version history.
Before finalizing the PRD, verify:
If any are missing, prompt user to fill gaps before finalizing.
Update System/usage_log.md to mark product brief as used.
Analytics (Silent):
Call track_event with event_name product_brief_created.
This only fires if the user has opted into analytics. No action needed if it returns "analytics_disabled".