The stark reality of product innovation is that many new products fail. According to research cited by Qualtrics, which references Gartner and McKinsey, only 55% of product launches occur on schedule, and a significant portion of revenue relies on new, successful products. The primary challenge? Ensuring a product solves a real, important customer problem. At thrv, we use our proprietary Jobs to be Done (JTBD) framework for rigorous JTBD product validation, a method designed to significantly reduce development risk and guide our portfolio companies toward creating offerings that customers will actually hire. This article explains our approach.
Product concept confirmation is the process of testing a new product idea with target customers before committing significant resources to development and launch. It's a critical step to reduce product development risk.
Key benefits include:
At thrv, we view this not just as a best practice, but as a fundamental component of our equity value creation strategy for our portfolio companies.
The Jobs to be Done (JTBD) framework operates on a core tenet: customers "hire" products or services to get specific "jobs" done. This perspective, popularized by Clayton Christensen, shifts the focus from product features to the customer's underlying motivation and desired progress.
Key principles of JTBD relevant to JTBD product validation include:
JTBD is profoundly effective for finding deep insights that drive meaningful innovation because it centers on the "why" behind customer actions. Understanding the job provides a stable target for product development, unlike fleeting feature requests. Our AI-powered platform accelerates the analysis of JTBD insights, helping our teams generate actionable strategies swiftly.
Our approach to JTBD product validation is systematic, integrating JTBD principles at every stage. This ensures that concepts are rigorously tested against actual customer jobs and needs.
We begin by deeply understanding the customer's job. This is not about what features they want, but what fundamental problem they are trying to solve or goal they are trying to achieve.
Once the job is defined, we identify how customers measure successful job completion. These are the customer needs or desired progress metrics.
With a clear understanding of the job and associated unmet needs (areas with high CES), we guide our portfolio companies to ideate concepts specifically designed to address these gaps.
Before testing, we formulate hypotheses grounded in JTBD.
Our confirmation tests are designed to directly assess how well a concept helps customers get their job done.
We use a blend of methods, always framed by the customer's job.
After initial qualitative signals, we may use quantitative methods to assess broader appeal.
While traditional usability testing (as described by Nielsen Norman Group) often focuses on ease of use of features, our approach to user testing JTBD reframes it:
All feedback is analyzed through the JTBD framework.
JTBD product validation is an iterative process.
Our proprietary thrv platform is instrumental in implementing this JTBD-driven confirmation process within our portfolio companies. It includes:
This comprehensive solution enables product, marketing, and sales teams in our portfolio companies to align their strategies with customer needs, fostering growth and enhancing equity value. Explore Our JTBD Software Solutions to see how we operationalize this.
Consider a generic example similar to transformations seen in the market: A company initially developed a note-taking app focused on features like "faster note creation." Through JTBD interviews, they found the core job users were trying to get done was "ensure critical information from meetings is captured and retrievable so important decisions are well-informed and follow-ups are not missed."
The initial concept, focused on speed of entry, had a high Customer Effort Score for the actual job of retrieval and action. By re-focusing on the true job and its related needs (e.g., "locate specific meeting notes," "identify action items from notes," "share relevant note sections"), the team developed a more successful product concept. This shift, driven by JTBD product validation, prevented investment in a product that only superficially addressed the customer's real struggle. First Round Review often highlights such JTBD-driven pivots.
A structured, customer-job-centric approach to JTBD product validation minimizes assumptions and builds market-verified confidence before significant investment. This is how we aim to reduce product development risk for our portfolio companies.
Learn more about Our Process for Accelerating Growth.
Applying the Jobs to be Done framework to product concept confirmation transforms innovation from a high-stakes gamble into a more predictable process of value creation. By deeply understanding and validating against the customer's true job and their struggle (measured by Customer Effort Scores), we enable our portfolio companies to build products that not only meet needs but also drive significant growth and superior equity returns.
To see how our platform can help your teams implement these strategies, Explore Our Platform for Equity Value Creation.
Q1: What is JTBD product validation?
JTBD product validation is a process where new product concepts are rigorously tested against the customer's "Job to be Done"—the fundamental problem they are trying to solve or goal they are trying to achieve. It focuses on confirming that a concept helps customers make progress on their job more effectively and with less effort, thereby reducing the risk of developing products that don't meet real needs.
Q2: How does JTBD differ from traditional user testing?
While traditional user testing often focuses on the usability of features (e.g., "Is this button easy to find?"), user testing JTBD goes deeper. It assesses how well the product or concept helps the user accomplish their entire job. A feature might be usable but still not effectively help the customer make progress on their core job, which JTBD aims to find. We focus on Customer Effort Scores related to the job.
Q3: What are common concept testing methods used within a JTBD framework?
Common concept testing methods adapted for JTBD include in-depth qualitative interviews (often using "switch" interview techniques) with low-fidelity prototypes, observational studies focused on job completion, and quantitative surveys measuring perceived value for the job and impact on Customer Effort Scores.
Q4: How does using JTBD help reduce product development risk?
JTBD helps reduce product development risk by ensuring that innovation is focused on stable, unmet customer needs rather than fleeting feature requests. By validating concepts against the core job, companies can avoid investing in solutions that don't address fundamental customer struggles, leading to more efficient resource allocation and a higher likelihood of market success.
Q5: What role does Customer Effort Score (CES) play in JTBD product validation?
Customer Effort Score (CES) is a key metric in our JTBD approach. It measures the percentage of customers who report difficulty in getting a specific job step done (based on effort, speed, and accuracy). High CES indicates significant unmet needs. During product validation, we assess if a new concept can lower CES for critical job steps.
Q6: Can AI be used in JTBD product validation?
Yes, at thrv, our AI-powered platform is integral to our JTBD methodology. AI helps accelerate the analysis of qualitative data from customer interviews, identify patterns in unmet needs and job steps with high Customer Effort Scores, and translate these insights into actionable product roadmap decisions more quickly. Read more about Our Approach to AI in JTBD.
For further information on our services, visit thrv.com or explore our JTBD Training Programs. If you are a portfolio company executive looking to drive growth, Contact Us for a Discussion.