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🤯 The Real Reason Behind Purchase Decisions According to Clayton Christensen's Jobs to Be Done Theory
Today, I want to analyze one of the most revealing videos for the marketing, design, and product industries. (Clay Christensen: The Jobs to be Done Theory)
The video starts with a fundamental explanation of why many companies fail when trying to improve their products. Often, these companies think that consumers buy a product because of its features (price, flavor, design, etc.), when in reality, people "hire" products to perform specific tasks in their daily lives. This shift in focus is crucial for effective innovation.
📌 Central Lesson: Products are hired to perform a specific job.
Christensen explains that the key to JTBD is not looking at the product itself, but rather the context in which the customer uses it. One iconic example he presents is the study of milkshakes at a fast food chain (McDonald's), which wanted to increase its sales. Initially, the company asked customers what to improve, but changes based on that feedback didn’t increase sales. Why? Because they were focusing on the product itself, instead of what the customer needed to achieve with it.
By changing their focus and investigating when, how, and why consumers bought the milkshakes, they discovered that many customers bought them in the morning to meet a completely different need: not only did they want breakfast, but they also wanted something to keep them entertained during their commute to work and fill them up until lunch.
This insight was eye-opening: milkshakes weren’t just a dessert; they were a tool that helped consumers "get through" their long and sometimes boring mornings.
📌 Key Ideas from the Video:
- Consumers don’t always know what they want: One of the main conclusions is that customers are not always able to precisely articulate what they need from a product. When asked what to improve, they respond based on what they already know. JTBD invites us to look beyond direct answers to identify patterns of behavior and context. This process is much more revealing than relying solely on surveys or interviews.
- Circumstances are more important than product features: Christensen emphasizes that what matters is not what a product "is," but what it "does" in the customer’s life. In the case of the milkshake, it wasn’t relevant to just improve its taste or size; what mattered was understanding why people bought it in the first place. This "why" is not based on the product itself, but on the task it must accomplish in a specific time and space context.
- Indirect competition: Another key point in the video is the competition you face when you understand the job the customer is trying to accomplish. In the case of the milkshake, the competition wasn’t other milkshakes or products from the same category; the real competition was bananas, cereal bars, or even donuts, because all of these products could fulfill the same job (filling up the customer in the morning and keeping them satisfied during their commute). Understanding who or what is competing for the same job is a crucial part of succeeding with this theory.
- Job-oriented innovation: When companies adopt the JTBD approach, they innovate more effectively. This happens because, instead of spending resources on unnecessary improvements, they focus on solving the job for which customers "hire" their products. The video makes it clear that this approach leads to sustained and differentiated growth because companies start competing for what really matters: making consumers’ lives easier or more satisfying.
📌 Business Applications of the JTBD Concept:
- Product development: By identifying the "jobs" customers are trying to perform, companies can design products that accomplish these tasks more effectively.
- Marketing strategy: Marketing shifts from focusing on features to communicating how the product helps the consumer get their job done.
- Competitor analysis: JTBD redefines competition by observing what other products or services fulfill the same job, even if they come from entirely different categories.
📌 Reflection for Executives and Project Leaders:
By understanding the "jobs" products are performing in the lives of consumers, business leaders can take a more strategic approach to their offerings. It’s not about adding functionalities, but about redesigning products and services to meet the true, often unspoken, needs of customers.
📌 Conclusion:
The video invites us to rethink our approach to product and service development, adopting a mindset based on the task the customer is trying to complete. In my role as Marketing Director at ITGlobers, applying this theory is a responsibility to continuously redefine strategies, create genuine, sustainable value for our customers.
At ITGlobers, we focus on fulfilling these and other pillars that have already helped over 60 companies grow in the eCommerce industry and others increase their sales in less time. 🚀
If you want to learn how we can help your digital business achieve great goals in digital commerce, schedule a demo with me today here: https://calendar.app.google/163mN9PF533JsHXL7
