Value Proposition Canvas

Use it when you need to ensure your product's features perfectly match what customers truly care about.

What is it?

The Value Proposition Canvas is a visual tool by Alexander Osterwalder designed to help you systematically craft and validate your product's core value proposition.

It splits into two halves: the Customer Profile, where you detail jobs-to-be-done, pains, and desired gains, and the Value Map, where you list your products & services alongside specific pain relievers and gain creators. By mapping customer realities against your proposed solutions, you eliminate guesswork and focus on what truly matters: solving real problems and delivering clear benefits. This framework tackles the challenge of product-market fit by forcing you to nail down precise customer segments and tie every feature back to a defined need or aspiration.

Whether you're launching a new feature, refining your positioning, or iterating on an existing service, the Value Proposition Canvas guides you to validate assumptions quickly, prioritize the highest-impact solutions, and build offerings that resonate with your target users.

Why it matters?

Hitting product-market fit is the holy grail for sustainable growth, and the Value Proposition Canvas cuts straight to the chase. By forcing you to align every feature with a real customer job, pain, or gain, you boost activation, reduce churn, and increase conversion rates. It's the fastest path to building solutions that users love and pay for.

How it works

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

Define Your Customer Segment

Start by identifying a specific customer archetype and list their key functional, social, and emotional jobs-to-be-done.

Map Customer Pains

Document what frustrates them, blocks their progress, or risks failure, think time wasted, high costs, or poor user experience.

Outline Desired Gains

Pinpoint the outcomes they're seeking, from efficiency boosts to emotional satisfactions or status improvements.

Inventory Your Products & Services

List every feature, tool, or service you offer that could address those jobs, pains, and gains.

Design Pain Relievers

For each pain, describe exactly how your solution removes or mitigates that friction, be concrete.

Craft Gain Creators

Tie each desired gain back to a feature or service, showing how you deliver extra value or exceed expectations.

Validate the Fit

Review the canvas and run customer interviews or tests to confirm your pain relievers and gain creators truly resonate.

Frequently asked questions

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

How does the Value Proposition Canvas differ from the Business Model Canvas?

The VPC drills down into customer jobs, pains, and gains to validate your value proposition, while the BMC covers the broader business model. Use VPC when you need granular customer insight before fleshing out the full model.

How does the Value Proposition Canvas differ from the Business Model Canvas?

When should I use the Value Proposition Canvas?

At any stage you need to nail product-market fit, whether you're ideating features or iterating on an existing product. It's especially powerful before your first launch or when growth stalls.

When should I use the Value Proposition Canvas?

At any stage you need to nail product-market fit, whether you're ideating features or iterating on an existing product. It's especially powerful before your first launch or when growth stalls.

What counts as a “job-to-be-done” in the Customer Profile?

Jobs aren't just tasks; include functional, social, and emotional objectives your customer tries to achieve. Be specific, e.g., “sync remote team feedback in real time,” not just “manage communications.”

What counts as a “job-to-be-done” in the Customer Profile?

Can I use the VPC alone, or do I need additional research?

Sketching the canvas alone sparks clarity, but you'll still need interviews, surveys, or analytics to validate your assumptions on pains, gains, and fit with real users.

Can I use the VPC alone, or do I need additional research?

Sketching the canvas alone sparks clarity, but you'll still need interviews, surveys, or analytics to validate your assumptions on pains, gains, and fit with real users.

What common mistakes should I avoid with the Value Proposition Canvas?

Avoid generic claims like “easy to use.” Instead, dig into concrete pains (e.g., “50% slower workflow”) and gains (e.g., “cut approval time by 70%”) that resonate with customers.

What common mistakes should I avoid with the Value Proposition Canvas?

Avoid generic claims like “easy to use.” Instead, dig into concrete pains (e.g., “50% slower workflow”) and gains (e.g., “cut approval time by 70%”) that resonate with customers.

You've mapped your customer pains and gains, now supercharge your insights by running a CrackGrowth diagnostic on your onboarding flow to uncover hidden friction and launch targeted experiments.

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