Customer Problem Stack Rank

Use it when you've collected a backlog of customer pain points and need to pick which to fix first.

What is it?

Customer Problem Stack Rank is Shreyas Doshi's straightforward framework for prioritizing customer pain points by combining frequency, impact, and strategic fit into a single ranked list.

Instead of guessing which problem matters most, you gather real data, support tickets, user interviews, usage metrics, and score each issue against transparent criteria. The end result: a living backlog ordered by your highest-leverage opportunities, not politics or gut feel.

Core components include problem discovery, custom scoring dimensions (e.g., revenue threat, user frequency, competitive risk), score calculation, and iterative validation. Whether you're facing a feature flop or waning retention, Customer Problem Stack Rank cuts through noise and surfaces the top issues worth solving now.

Why it matters?

By forcing you to quantify and rank every customer pain point, this framework ensures your team tackles the biggest levers first, driving faster wins in activation, retention, and advocacy. No more wasted cycles on low-impact fixes; instead, you channel resources into solutions that measurably boost growth metrics.

How it works

Growth co-pilot turns your toughest product questions into clear, data-backed recommendations you can act on immediately.

Gather customer problems

Pull support logs, interview notes, NPS feedback, and analytics logs to build a master list of pain points. Make sure each entry is concise and user-centric.

Define scoring criteria

Choose 3–5 dimensions, like frequency (how often users hit this issue), severity (revenue or retention impact), and strategic alignment, then assign a 1–5 scale for each.

Score every problem

Rate each pain point against your criteria. Use actual data where possible, e.g., % of users reporting an issue versus a guess.

Calculate composite scores

Sum or weight each rating to get a single score per problem, then sort your list from highest to lowest.

Validate and iterate

Share the ranked list with stakeholders and customers, run quick experiments on top problems, and adjust scores based on new insights.

Frequently asked questions

Growth co-pilot turns your toughest product questions into clear, data-backed recommendations you can act on immediately.

What data sources should I use for scoring?

Lean on qualitative interviews, support tickets, analytics events, and in-app feedback. Mix hard numbers with direct user quotes to avoid bias.

What data sources should I use for scoring?

Lean on qualitative interviews, support tickets, analytics events, and in-app feedback. Mix hard numbers with direct user quotes to avoid bias.

How many problems should I include in the stack?

Start with your top 20–30 pain points. Too few and you risk tunnel vision; too many and you'll dilute the focus. Pare down as you validate.

How many problems should I include in the stack?

Start with your top 20–30 pain points. Too few and you risk tunnel vision; too many and you'll dilute the focus. Pare down as you validate.

How do I pick the right scoring criteria?

Align each criterion with your business goals, like reducing churn or increasing ARR. Keep the list short (3–5) to maintain clarity and speed.

How do I pick the right scoring criteria?

Align each criterion with your business goals, like reducing churn or increasing ARR. Keep the list short (3–5) to maintain clarity and speed.

How often should I update the rankings?

Treat it as a living document. Update monthly after new interviews or ticket surges, or immediately post-launch of a major feature.

How often should I update the rankings?

Treat it as a living document. Update monthly after new interviews or ticket surges, or immediately post-launch of a major feature.

How is this different from the RICE framework?

RICE prioritizes ideas by reach, impact, confidence, and effort. Customer Problem Stack Rank zeroes in on user pain points first, then you can apply RICE on the solution side.

How is this different from the RICE framework?

RICE prioritizes ideas by reach, impact, confidence, and effort. Customer Problem Stack Rank zeroes in on user pain points first, then you can apply RICE on the solution side.

You've stack-ranked your customer problems. Don't build it blind, run those top issues through the CrackGrowth diagnostic to uncover hidden UX blockers and craft high-ROI experiments before you write a line of code.

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