What is customer value creation?

Customer value creation is the process of developing products and services that help customers achieve their goals faster, more accurately, and with less effort than alternative solutions. From a Jobs To Be Done perspective, value creation isn't about adding features or cutting prices—it's about improving the speed and accuracy with which customers can execute their jobs.

This definition shifts the focus from what a company thinks is valuable to what actually helps customers make progress in their lives or work. True customer value emerges when a solution reduces the time, effort, uncertainty, or resources required to accomplish a goal that matters to the customer.

Why is a Jobs To Be Done approach to value creation superior?

Traditional approaches to customer value often focus on product attributes or abstract concepts like "quality" and "innovation." These approaches have several limitations:

1. Subjective interpretation - What constitutes "quality" or "innovation" is highly subjective and may not translate to customer benefits.
2. Competitive vulnerability - Feature-based value can be easily copied by competitors, leading to commoditization.
3. Disconnection from purchase motivation - Features and attributes often don't address why customers actually buy and use products.

A JTBD approach addresses these limitations by:

1. Objective measurement - Value is measured by improvements in job execution speed and accuracy, which can be objectively quantified.
2. Sustainable differentiation - Understanding underserved needs reveals opportunities for value creation that competitors may not see.
3. Direct connection to purchase motivation - JTBD connects value directly to the progress customers are trying to make, explaining why they buy.

How do we identify opportunities for customer value creation?

1. Map the customer's job-to-be-done

The foundation of value creation is understanding what customers are trying to accomplish:

• Define the functional job customers need to get done
• Break down the job into 15-20 sequential steps
• Identify 5-10 needs within each job step that measure execution speed and accuracy
• Validate the job map through customer research

This detailed job map reveals the complete landscape of potential value creation opportunities.

2. Measure customer struggle

Not all job steps and needs represent equal value creation opportunities. Prioritize based on:

• Which needs are most important to customers
• How satisfied customers are with current solutions
• The gap between importance and satisfaction (opportunity score)
• Patterns of struggle that define valuable customer segments

The largest gaps between importance and satisfaction represent the highest-value opportunities.

3. Analyze the economics of job execution

Value isn't just about struggle—it's also about economics:

• What is the customer's current cost to execute the job?
• What is the economic impact of executing the job better?
• How much time do customers currently spend on each job step?
• What risks or uncertainties make job execution costly?

These economic factors help quantify the potential value of improvements.

4. Identify value creation white space

The most valuable opportunities often exist where:

• Multiple important needs are underserved simultaneously
• No current solution effectively addresses certain job steps
• Significant economic benefits would result from improved execution
• Emerging contexts create new requirements for job execution

This white space analysis reveals where transformative value creation is possible.

What are the different types of customer value from a Jobs To Be Done perspective?

Functional Value

Functional value comes from helping customers execute their practical job more effectively:

• Reducing the time required to complete job steps
• Increasing the accuracy of decisions and actions
• Eliminating unnecessary steps in the job
• Making complex aspects of the job simpler
• Providing better information for job execution

Functional value directly impacts how well customers can achieve their practical goals.

Emotional Value

Emotional value addresses how customers want to feel when executing their job:

• Reducing anxiety about job outcomes
• Creating confidence in decision-making
• Eliminating frustration with complex processes
• Providing satisfaction from successful completion
• Generating excitement about possibilities

These emotional aspects often drive purchase decisions as much as functional benefits.

Social Value

Social value relates to how customers want to be perceived by others:

• Helping them appear competent to peers
• Enabling them to demonstrate expertise
• Supporting their professional identity
• Facilitating connection with others
• Enhancing their status within their community

Social value is particularly important in B2B contexts where professional reputation matters.

Financial Value

Financial value involves the economic aspects of job execution:

• Reducing direct costs associated with the job
• Minimizing opportunity costs from time spent
• Increasing revenue or profit from better job execution
• Reducing risks that have financial implications
• Enabling more valuable activities by freeing up resources

Financial value creates a clear ROI case for purchasing decisions.

How do we measure customer value creation?

Job Execution Metrics

The most direct measures of value creation focus on job execution:

• Time savings - How much faster can customers execute their job?
• Error reduction - How much more accurately can they complete job steps?
• Completion rate - What percentage successfully accomplish their goal?
• Effort reduction - How much mental and physical effort is eliminated?
• Success rate - How consistently can they achieve desired outcomes?

These metrics directly connect product capabilities to customer progress.

Economic Impact Metrics

Economic measures translate job improvements into financial terms:

• Cost reduction - How much less does it cost to execute the job?
• Revenue increase - How much additional revenue results from better execution?
• Time value - What is the value of time saved through faster execution?
• Risk reduction - What is the value of reduced uncertainty or error?
• Opportunity creation - What new possibilities are enabled by better job execution?

These metrics help justify pricing and demonstrate ROI.

Competitive Comparison Metrics

Value is relative to alternatives, making competitive metrics important:

• Relative job satisfaction - How much better do customers execute the job compared to competitive solutions?
• Switching motivation - How motivated are customers to switch from alternatives?
• Value premium - How much more are customers willing to pay compared to alternatives?
• Value perception - How do customers rate value received compared to alternatives?

These comparative metrics reveal your value creation advantage in the market.

How do we communicate customer value effectively?

Job-Based Value Propositions

Effective value propositions connect directly to the customer's job:

• Focus on the job outcome, not product features
• Highlight improvements in speed, accuracy, or completeness
• Address both functional and emotional aspects of value
• Contrast with the limitations of alternative approaches
• Use the customer's language to describe the job

For example, instead of "Our CRM has advanced contact management features," say "Help your sales team identify the highest-potential leads in half the time."

Value Demonstration Through Job Stories

Stories are powerful tools for communicating value:

• Structure around the job steps customers struggle with
• Illustrate the before/after contrast in job execution
• Include specific metrics of improvement
• Connect to both functional and emotional outcomes
• Make the value concrete through specific examples

These job stories make abstract value concrete and memorable.

Value-Based Marketing Content

All marketing content should reinforce value creation:

• Blog posts addressing specific job challenges
• Case studies organized around job execution improvements
• Comparison guides based on job performance, not features
• ROI calculators that quantify value from job improvement
• Demonstrations that show job execution, not just features

This consistent value messaging creates a clear, compelling market position.

How do we sustain customer value creation over time?

Continuous Job Monitoring

Jobs evolve over time, requiring ongoing monitoring:

• Track changing customer expectations for job execution
• Identify emerging job steps or needs
• Monitor how new technologies affect job execution
• Observe how regulatory or market changes impact the job

This ongoing monitoring prevents value erosion as jobs evolve.

Value-Based Roadmapping

Product roadmaps should focus explicitly on value enhancement:

• Prioritize initiatives based on customer struggle and economic impact
• Balance immediate value creation with long-term strategic opportunities
• Create explicit success metrics based on job execution improvement
• Maintain a portfolio of incremental and breakthrough value initiatives

This approach ensures sustained value creation rather than feature proliferation.

Feedback Loops Focused on Job Progress

Traditional feedback mechanisms often miss value creation opportunities:

• Implement usage analytics that track job completion, not just feature usage
• Conduct regular job progress interviews to identify evolving needs
• Create customer advisory boards focused on job execution
• Analyze support and service interactions for job execution barriers

These job-centered feedback loops provide early signals of value creation opportunities.

Common value creation pitfalls

Confusing features with value

Many companies mistake feature additions for value creation. A new feature only creates value if it helps customers execute their job better. Focus on job outcomes, not feature lists.

Ignoring consumption jobs

Companies often focus exclusively on the functional job while neglecting consumption jobs like "learn to use the product" or "integrate with existing systems." These consumption jobs are often where value leaks occur.

Value assumption without validation

Assuming what creates value without customer validation leads to wasted development. Always verify that proposed solutions actually improve job execution before full investment.

Value communication failure

Even when real value is created, failure to communicate it effectively prevents customers from recognizing and appreciating that value, undermining both acquisition and retention.

How thrv helps with customer value creation

thrv provides specialized tools and methodologies to help companies identify, develop, and deliver superior customer value through a Jobs To Be Done approach. The thrv platform enables companies to map customer jobs, quantify value creation opportunities, and build roadmaps that systematically deliver greater value.