The marketing framework I use to get someone to buy

What is Jobs-to-be-Done?

The Job-to-be-Done is a framework that shifts focus from product features to desired outcomes when considering products and services.

Marketing, essentially, revolves around narrating how a product benefits the consumer.

When products align with the expectations set by the marketing message, individuals are more likely to choose that brand or product the next time they have a similar need. Effective marketing strengthens these connections.

The JTBD framework is different from other frameworks / other marketing personas.

Personas are often defined with attributes that have nothing to do with why someone would buy something. Example:

Demographic or firmographic attributes should be used to find people and understand them, but it won't tell you much about their behaviour or desires.

Instead, personas define the different jobs someone should use the product or service for.

How do you build these personas focused on what customers hire your product for?

The most effective approach involves using a particular interview style that centres on the emotional triggers related to the specific circumstances leading to a person either “hiring” or “firing” a product.

The interview revolves around 4 essential components:

1. The driving factors behind the decision: 

Extract the first thought behind a purchase. Dive into the mindset of the customer might of been in during the purchase. When did they start looking for something, and what made them look for a product?

Questions you can ask:

• What were you using before you brought our software?

• Were you also involved in the buying process?

• What is it like working in the department you are in?

• Can you remember if anyone else was involved in the decision and what was their role?

• Tell us about the old tool you were using, can you tell me how well it was working? 

• Was it only you using it or are other departments too?

Answers could be: 

• Better support than before

• Not getting results

• Not working for them

2. The attraction of a new solution:  

Find out their thought process for hiring a new product or service. 

Questions you can ask:

• Once you figured you wanted to buy something new, did you do much research to figure out what was right for you?

• Were you the only one looking for something at the time?

• Where did you first hear about the product or service you picked?

• Can you recall how you made that decision? 

• What was important to you and why?

• Did you try anything else when looking around?

• How did they work for you /how did they not work for you?

• How long did you look around before deciding to pull the trigger and make a decision?

Answers could be: 

• They wanted to find something easy to use

• They heard another product/service was better

• Being able to get a hold of someone about their issues

• Maybe another tool will help them reach their goals 

3. The concerns of what could happen with the new solution: 

Everyone is going to have reservations and you want to understand what would prevent them from buying your product or service.

Questions you can ask:

• Is there anything that almost prevented you from going with what you eventually chose

• Why didn't you choose something else instead?

• Why didn't the other options work for you?

Answers could be: 

• What if isn't easy to use as imagined?

• Already brought and tried multiple things but did not work as they wanted.

• I wasn't sure if it was tailored for someone like them.

• Other options didn't have the specific feature they were after. 

4. The attachment to the current product:

Getting someone to take action is not easy,  you need to know how to uncover how to get someone into motion and make a decision 

Questions you can ask:

• Is there anything you will be losing by switching?

• What needed to happen for you to buy or switch?

• What’s changed since you’ve started using this product?

Answers could be: 

• They've been doing things this way for a while 

• We’ll have to retrain everyone

• Can be a pain to migrate

• They had it for years and cost them a lot

The end result

Be able to create personas that will do your job better and help you to build better products, produce better marketing campaigns and understand how to reach your goals.

The cost of switching is often overlooked. The way you motivate someone to make a switch identify the struggling moments your customers are going through and build around that.

The reason magic JTBD is figuring out who your real competitors are. There are 3 different kinds of competitors:

4 forces drive a switch:

• Intensify the push away: Highlight the inadequacies of their current product.

• Boost your product's appeal: Emphasise how effectively your product resolves their issues.

• Minimize the fear and uncertainty of change: Ensure a smooth and simple transition.

• Reduce their attachment to the status quo: Help them let go of their unwarranted attachment to the current situation.

You have a winning formula when:

The problem with their current product and attraction to the new product outweigh the existing habits and allegiances and the headache and uncertainty of change

A good practical template to start using JTBD is to fill in the blanks of this sentence:

When ___, the customer wants to ___, so they can ____.

There you have it. Here's a TL;DR for you:

Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD) is a framework that shifts focus from product features to desired outcomes. Effective marketing uses JTBD to understand why customers hire or fire a product.

To build personas, use an interview style focused on emotional triggers with four key components:
1) decision factors
2) attraction to a new solution
3) concerns
4) attachment to the current product.

This approach helps create better personas, develop better products, and produce effective marketing campaigns. Identifying competitors and using four driving forces can motivate customers to switch to your product.

The winning formula balances the problem with their current product, attraction to the new product, and the reluctance to change.

A practical template for JTBD is "When ___, the customer wants to ___, so they can ____."