When JTBD Is Your Ace in the Hole
Forget focusing on your product’s slick features or the marketing buzzwords for a moment. The Jobs To Be Done (JTBD) framework shines a spotlight on the true, sometimes messy, underlying reasons why people “hire” solutions like yours in the first place. This framework comes in especially handy when you’re itching to innovate and explore new markets or need to understand why a current product isn’t hitting the mark. JTBD helps you dig into the less obvious motivations, the emotional side of the equation that truly drives user choices.
When to Leave JTBD on the Shelf
Don’t get me wrong, JTBD is a powerful tool, but it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. There are times when other approaches might be a better fit. For instance, if you’re in the early stages of validation and simply want basic feedback on a feature set, a straightforward “What do you want?” approach can be perfectly fine. Moreover, if you need granular insights into how people interact with an interface, usability testing with techniques like eye-tracking offers a level of detail JTBD doesn’t. Additionally, if you already have a specific design solution and need targeted “like/dislike” feedback, that’s better gathered through card sorting and methods other than JTBD.
The Bigger Picture: Job Mapping
Think of a single JTBD interview as uncovering a single puzzle piece. Job Mapping is how you assemble those pieces into a cohesive image. To truly grasp the value of JTBD, we need to consider that people rarely have just one singular “job” they need doing. Their needs tend to unfold as a chain of smaller, interconnected tasks. Understanding the motivations behind each of these steps gives you a detailed map of the user’s whole journey. Here’s where things get exciting — the real opportunities for innovation often lie in the friction points along that path.
Consider the classic Clayton Christensen example of the McDonald’s milkshake. Early morning commuters weren’t “hiring” a milkshake for its deliciousness. Their underlying job was to find something convenient that would keep them occupied and stave off hunger during their drive to work. That’s an entirely different problem to solve — and one McDonald’s capitalised on handsomely.
The Art of the JTBD Interview (Bias Not Included)
Successful JTBD interviews are less about rigid scripts and more about thoughtful conversations and careful listening. It’s crucial to create an environment where the person feels comfortable opening up. Let’s talk about some interview techniques for gathering great insights while minimising bias.
Interviewing is a skill like any other — it gets better with practice. Start by being mindful of your own phrasing and body language. Avoid steering the conversation in a way that confirms your preconceived notions and instead, allow for tangents and be genuinely curious about the process. Here are some things to consider:
- The Timeline Trick: Don’t ask “Why do you use X?” Get them to walk you through the LAST time they did it. Details matter!
- “Five Whys” Are Your Friend: Cliché, but true. Unpack those initial answers like a curious toddler.
- Emotion is Data: Words like “frustrating,” “relieved,” etc., point to pain points and hidden desires.
- Body Language Speaks Volumes: Hesitation, excitement…it’s all a clue worth noting alongside their words.
- It’s NOT About Your Product (Yet): Start broad, understand their whole process, then find where you fit in.
- Silence is Golden: Let them fill the awkward pauses. That’s when the insights often spill out.
- No Leading Questions: “It must be hard to…”, right? Wrong. You’re planting ideas now. Stay open.
- Digress on Purpose: Unexpected tangents can be the most revealing. Don’t immediately shut them down.
- Record (If You Can): Notes are good, but getting voice/video lets you replay for nuance later.
- It Takes Practice: Your first few will be bumpy. Keep analyzing your own technique, not just the results.
Scoring Answers: The Hunt for the Underserved
After you’ve run your interviews, it’s not just about transcribing the answers; it’s about analysing them for clues about the most valuable underserved needs that you’ve uncovered. Think of yourself as a bit of a detective, looking for some of the following signs:
Strong emotions, whether frustration or sheer relief, signal that the person cares deeply about getting this “job” done right. Additionally, if they’ve resorted to elaborate workarounds or hacks, it reveals both a significant pain point and the lack of a good current solution. The frequency of the problem also matters — are we talking about a rare annoyance or a daily struggle? And importantly, if they’ve actively tried (and failed) to find a solution that truly works, the market opportunity is clear. Finally, a hypothetical willingness to pay indicates just how desperate they are for a breakthrough.
The Opportunity Algorithm Tie-In
Alan Klement (and his managed Medium site) proposed a powerful formula: Importance + Satisfaction = Opportunity. Your JTBD interviews directly feed into this. The emotions, workarounds, and complaints you uncover translate into the “importance” score. Their hints about current solutions (or lack thereof) give you a sense of the “satisfaction” level. Multiply those together, and the areas with the highest scores tell you where to target your innovative efforts.
The JTBD Magic
When done well, JTBD has a way of getting you truly invested in your users’ struggles, wins, and secret wishes. It helps you see them not just as data points, but as real people searching for something better. Your job now is to provide the solution that finally meets those needs head-on.
