Hi there -
Here is this week’s “1 principle, 2 strategies, and 3 actionable tactics” for running lean…
1 Universal Principle
“There’s no such thing as an impulse buy.”
Behind every purchase is a string of causal events and forces that influence customer behavior.
Inspired by the work of Clayton Christensen on Jobs-to-be-done and early collaboration with Bob Moesta, I created the following mental model that captures a customer journey using six building blocks:
Think of these building blocks as insights that unlock better positioning, channels, and outcomes for your customers.
While I use this mental model throughout the customer journey (sales, marketing, customer success, product development), today, I’m going to focus on how to apply them to generate more sales.
Unlock (Why + How) = More Sales
2 Underlying Strategies at Play
I. Why people buy reveals: context and desired outcomes.
Want to grab a pizza? Well, that depends. On what? Context.
Pizza may be a good fit when:
- you’re watching a game with friends,
- hosting a kid's party,
- for takeout, etc.
A pizza may NOT be a good fit when:
- it’s your wedding anniversary,
- or celebrating some other big occasion,
- for breakfast, etc.
The same person but in a different context can turn a customer into a non-customer. When > WhoContext also shapes desired outcomes. Each scenario above has a different vibe; what you pick depends on your desired outcome.
What > Who
The combination of the two shapes the job. It forms the basis of the more powerful job-based versus demographic-based customer segmentation required to attract more customers at the right time:
When + What > Who
II. How people buy reveals: hiring criteria and tradeoffs.
While context and desired outcomes initiate the buying process, what people ultimately buy depends on their more specific job requirements, which they learn and formulate during this process. Sticking with pizza, would you like to buy:
- A $25 or $10 pizza?
- From the place that delivers or one you have to pick up?
- From your regular place or the new place that just opened?
Hiring criteria and tradeoffs shape job requirements.
Understanding how people buy helps you amplify the pull and reduce the friction of your offer. So, what’s the best way to unpack these six building blocks? Not by guessing but through one-on-one customer interviews. Here are some guidelines for running good customer interviews:
3 Actionable Tactics
I. Target recent buyers, not shoppers
Notice I said customer interviews, not users or active buyers. This is probably the most common mistake founders make when interviewing: They target future customers.
However, future customers may never become actual customers.
If you want to learn how customers buy, talk to customers, not non-customers.
II. First, establish the global story (why)
Another common mistake is staying stuck in the solution context. When you over-index on product features versus desired outcomes, you open the door for other products to out-innovate you, i.e., get the job done with a different (and better) product:
Instead of diving straight into pizza toppings, first frame the global story with context and desired outcomes:
III. Then, explore details (how)
Once you identify the right job scope, then spend the rest of the conversation diving into how. This is where you’ll find problems worth solving disguised as pet peeves, struggles, and workarounds.
Problems create new spaces for innovation.
“Good problem discovery” is the flywheel that powers continuous innovation. It’s also its Achilles’ heel.
Incorrect prioritization of problems is a recipe for chasing down the wrong rabbit hole, and a false-positive problem can do more potential harm than a true-negative. The good news is that problem discovery is a skill that can be systematically learned and mastered. If you’d like to improve your problem-discovery skills, consider joining LEANFoundry.
Membership includes my Demand Validation (sell before you build) course and the Customer Forces Copilot, which teaches best practices for customer interviews and helps you unpack customer forces and other insights. Join here.
That’s all for today. See you next week.
Ash
Author of Running Lean and creator of Lean Canvas
.
.
P.S.
The Science of Why Customers Buy:
.
.
P.P.S.
Whenever you're ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:
1 - Join LEANFoundry: Join 21k+ founders who use our tools, courses, and coaching resources to build and launch their products to paying customers. Works like a gym membership. Cancel anytime.
2 - Take the 30-day Business Model Design Challenge: If you're an aspiring or early-stage founder looking to launch a new idea in 2025, join my next Business Model Design Challenge, where you'll learn how to design and stress-test your idea without wasting resources.
3 - Get my Foundations Course: If you're new to this framework, you'll learn the key mindsets for building the next generation of products that matter.
