How and when to sunset features - Roni Ben Aharon (CPO, Craft.io, Booking.com, Wix)
Sunsetting features is rarely a celebrated milestone in product, but it’s often one of the most critical. In this episode, Ronie Ben Aharon CPO and CTO of Craft.io, joins Lily and Randy to share how his team made the tough call to retire a key feature—and what they learned in the process.Ronie walks us through a real-world example of removing Craft.io’s visual spec tool, why trying to compete with established platforms like Figma didn’t make sense, and how they approached the transition with both technical rigour and user empathy. He also explains what happens when a sunset strategy goes wrong, and the lingering costs of keeping legacy features alive.Key takeaways- Sunsetting is about creating space for more impactful product work.- Features that seem harmless because they’re underused often introduce hidden costs, especially when they complicate onboarding, UX, and development cycles.- Data-related features are the hardest to retire. Plan for thoughtful migration and clear communication with users.- Soft approaches, like “feature starvation,” can backfire and prolong technical debt.- Strong collaboration between product, customer success, and engineering is key to pulling off a successful sunset.Chapters0:00 – Why announcing a feature sunset is rarely met with applause1:58 – What makes sunsetting necessary, and why underused features are a risk5:01 – How to recognise when it’s time to kill a feature6:10 – The story behind Craft.io’s visual spec feature and why they let it go9:01 – Navigating the difficult conversations with users who still rely on a dying feature12:27 – Handling data migration without compromising user trust14:04 – A sunset that didn’t go as planned: learning from the feedback portal misstep22:44 – Managing engineering expectations and avoiding unnecessary rebuilds24:38 – How sunsetting shapes the way new features are designed26:11 – Final reflections on doing it right—and why it’s worth itFeatured Link: Follow Roni on LinkedIn | Craft.io | Figma | 'Sunsetting success: How to strategically phase out products in the digital age' feature by Balaji Ananthanpilla and Sabah Qazi at Mind The ProductOur HostsLily Smith enjoys working as a consultant product manager with early-stage and growing startups and as a mentor to other product managers. She’s currently Chief Product Officer at BBC Maestro, and has spent 13 years in the tech industry working with startups in the SaaS and mobile space. She’s worked on a diverse range of products – leading the product teams through discovery, prototyping, testing and delivery. Lily also founded ProductTank Bristol and runs ProductCamp in Bristol and Bath. Randy Silver is a Leadership & Product Coach and Consultant. He gets teams unstuck, helping you to supercharge your results. Randy's held interim CPO and Leadership roles at scale-ups and SMEs, advised start-ups, and been Head of Product at HSBC and Sainsbury’s. He participated in Silicon Valley Product Group’s Coaching the Coaches forum, and speaks frequently at conferences and events. You can join one of communities he runs for CPOs (CPO Circles), Product Managers (Product In the {A}ether) and Product Coaches. He’s the author of What Do We Do Now? A Product Manager’s Guide to Strategy in the Time of COVID-19. A recovering music journalist and editor, Randy also launched Amazon’s music stores in the US & UK.
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