Personas are crucial for effective marketing. Many brands create personas, but the process is perceived as time-consuming. Particularly for smaller campaigns. Fortunately, it can be done simpler. There are really only three elements that make up a core persona profile: jobs, pains and gains. The value proposition canvas model can help you create this core persona profile in very little time. Here’s how.
What is the value proposition canvas?
The value proposition canvas is an effective tool for businesses to align their products with what customers really need and want. It's all about making sure what you offer is exactly what your customers are looking for. The canvas consists of the customer profile, which we’ll discuss today, and the value proposition.
What is the customer profile?
The customer profile, an essential component of the value proposition canvas, helps businesses understand their customers on a deeper level. It consists of three key elements: customer jobs, customer pains, and customer gains.
Customer jobs - Identifying needs and goals
In the customer profile of the value proposition canvas, understanding your customers' jobs is the first step in creating a more customer-centric marketing approach. Customer jobs refer to the tasks, needs, and goals that your customers are trying to accomplish. Jobs can be separated into three categories: functional, social or emotional.
Check out this fun video by Clayton Christensen, a former Harvard Business School professor. He explains the concept of jobs to be done by the example of something that everyone loves: the milkshake.
Customer pains - addressing challenges
Customer pains refer to the challenges, frustrations, and negative aspects that customers encounter or experience while trying to accomplish a specific job or task. In our experience, the pain points are the most essential for content marketing and SEO success. Painkillers sell better than vitamins ;).
An example of a pain point is a commuter facing the challenge of daily traffic congestion. The customer pain here involves frustration and wasted time during the commute to work. Understanding this pain could lead a transportation service to develop a solution, such as a reliable and efficient carpooling app, aimed at alleviating the stress of traffic, saving time, and enhancing the overall commuting experience for users.
Customer Gains - Delivering Value
Gains represent the extra benefits customers experience when they choose a product or service. It is often misinterpreted that gains is about meeting expectations, covering outcomes such as time savings, cost-effectiveness, or improved performance, but it is about surpassing these expectations. Understanding these gains is critical for crafting a powerful customer profile, ensuring that customers not only get what they expect but also enjoy the added positive outcomes.
Let's take the example of a fitness app. The customer gains in this scenario could include not just the obvious physical benefits of improved health and fitness but also time savings. Users might appreciate the convenience of exercising at home or on the go, saving time they would have spent commuting to a gym.
Practical Steps for Creating a Customer Profile
Creating a customer profile isn't as complex as it may sound. Here is how to get started:
The first step involves customer segmentation. For instance by applying the Pareto principle, we focus on the 20% of customers contributing to 80% of the revenue. It is within this specific customer segment that we aim to craft a detailed and insightful persona. The most straightforward approach is to assemble a group of customer-facing colleagues and conduct a brainstorming session to document the jobs, pains, and gains. This initial step establishes a core persona. If you want to move beyond this core persona, it’s of course possible to collect additional information. For this we employ surveys, interviews, and feedback forms, ensuring a more refined understanding of the customer.
Case Study - Movelo
Let's look at an example from bike company Movelo.
Movelo provides a convenient solution by offering shared e-bikes for businesses. Since 2019, Movelo has been part of the larger Pon.Bike group, assisting organizations in transitioning to sustainable mobility.
Movelo refined their understanding of their customer profile through a review of past projects and the effectiveness of past sales campaigns. This way, we identified that facility managers were the key segment. Created a persona for Movelo and in collaboration with the Movelo team, helped to start up their content marketing and lead generation, ensuring a more targeted and impactful approach to engaging their audience.
Conclusion
Often, the task of understanding the customer gets sidelined due to time constraints. Yet, for impactful marketing, it's essential. With the Value Proposition Canvas, it doesn't take much time to map out the core. By understanding your customers' jobs, gains, and pains, you can create a more customer-centric approach that resonates with your target audience. Whether you're an established business or a startup, the Customer Profile of the Value Proposition Canvas is a game-changer that can help you unlock the full potential of your offerings. So, why wait?
Download the Value proposition canvas template here:
Interested in applying the Value Proposition Canvas to elevate your brand, or perhaps diving even deeper? We're here to assist. Reach out to the Digital Marketing Lab and let's explore the possibilities together.
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