Jobs-to-be-Done Framework: Complete JTBD Guide

What is Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD)?

JTBD is a framework that focuses on why customers “hire” your product. Instead of asking “who is our customer?” or “what features do they want?”, JTBD asks: “What job is the customer trying to get done?”

Core principle: People don’t buy products; they “hire” them to make progress in their lives.

Example:

• ❌ Bad thinking: “Customers want a better drill”
• ✅ JTBD thinking: “Customers want to hang a picture on the wall”

The job isn’t about the drill; it’s about the outcome (picture on wall). This insight might lead you to wall adhesives, not better drills.

The JTBD Statement Format

Template: “When [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [expected outcome].”

Examples:

Spotify: “When I’m working out, I want to listen to energizing music without interruptions, so I can stay motivated.”

Uber: “When I need to get somewhere quickly without my car, I want a reliable ride, so I can arrive on time stress-free.”

Notion: “When my team’s docs are scattered across tools, I want one place to organize everything, so we can work efficiently without constant searching.”

JTBD vs. Other Frameworks

Framework	Focus	Example Question
JTBD	Progress/outcome	”What are you trying to accomplish?”
Personas	Who	”Who is the target user?”
User Stories	Features	”What features do users need?”
Use Cases	Scenarios	”How will they use feature X?”

When to use JTBD: Early discovery, product strategy, positioning. It’s most powerful when you’re figuring out what to build, not how to build it.

The JTBD Interview Process

Questions to Ask

Step 1: Understand the switch

• “What made you start looking for a solution?”
• “What were you doing before you found us?”
• “What alternatives did you consider?”

Step 2: Identify the job

• “What were you trying to accomplish?”
• “What does success look like?”
• “What would happen if you couldn’t solve this?”

Step 3: Uncover barriers

• “What almost stopped you from buying?”
• “What concerns did you have?”
• “What questions did you need answered?”

Step 4: Find the progress

• “How is your life/work different now?”
• “What can you do now that you couldn’t before?”

What You’re Listening For

✅ Emotional language: “I was frustrated”, “It felt like…”, “Finally!” ✅ Specific events: “On Tuesday when…”, “The moment I saw…” ✅ Desired outcomes: “I wanted to…”, “I needed to…”

❌ Avoid: Generic features lists, hypothetical scenarios, “usually” statements

Real JTBD Examples

Example 1: Slack

Job: “When my team is distributed and email is overwhelming, I want to communicate in real-time without losing context, so we can move fast without miscommunication.”

Competing Solutions:

• Email (slow, cluttered)
• SMS (not work-appropriate, missing context)
• Skype (clunky, not organized)

Why Slack won: Channels (context), search (find anything), integrations (everything in one place)

Example 2: Airbnb

Job: “When I’m traveling and hotels feel generic, I want to experience a place like a local, so I can have authentic, memorable trips.”

Competing Solutions:

• Hotels (generic, expensive)
• Friends’ couches (inconvenient)
• Extended stay (limited locations)

Why Airbnb won: Unique spaces, local neighborhoods, more affordable

Example 3: Superhuman

Job: “When email overwhelms my day, I want to process it at lightning speed without losing important messages, so I can focus on high-impact work.”

Competing Solutions:

• Gmail (free but slow)
• Inbox zero methods (requires discipline)
• Assistants (expensive)

Why Superhuman won: Speed (keyboard shortcuts), triage, reminders

How to Use JTBD for Product Strategy

1. Identify the Job

Run 10-15 customer interviews. Look for patterns:

• What situations trigger the need?
• What outcomes do they desire?
• What barriers exist?

2. Map the Job

Functional job: The practical task Emotional job: How they want to feel Social job: How they want to be perceived

Example - Peloton:

• Functional: Get fit at home
• Emotional: Feel accomplished, energized
• Social: Be seen as someone who prioritizes health

3. Find Your Angle

You can’t be everything. Pick one job to own.

Zoom: “When I need to meet remotely, I want it to just work…” Loom: “When I need to explain something visually, I want to record quickly…” Calendly: “When I’m scheduling meetings, I want to avoid email ping-pong…”

All video/scheduling, but different jobs.

4. Design for the Job

Every feature should serve the job:

• ✅ Does this help users make progress?
• ❌ Is this just a nice-to-have?

Common JTBD Mistakes

❌ Confusing jobs with solutions

• Bad: “Users want a mobile app”
• Good: “Users want to check status while commuting”

❌ Making the job too broad

• Bad: “Be more productive”
• Good: “Reduce time spent in email from 2 hours to 30 minutes daily”

❌ Ignoring emotional/social jobs

• Bad: “Users want data backup”
• Good: “Users want peace of mind their work won’t disappear”

❌ Asking “What features do you want?”

• This gets solutions, not jobs
• Ask “What are you trying to accomplish?” instead

JTBD Research Template

Use this template for customer interviews:

INTERVIEW GUIDE

1. First Thought
   "Think back to when you first started looking for [product category]..."

2. The Trigger
   - What was going on in your life/work?
   - What made you decide to look for a solution?

3. The Search
   - How did you look for options?
   - What alternatives did you consider?
   - What did you like/dislike about each?

4. The Decision
   - What made you choose [your product]?
   - What almost stopped you?
   - What questions did you need answered?

5. The Outcome
   - How has your life/work changed?
   - What can you do now that you couldn't before?
   - What would happen if [product] disappeared?

Quick JTBD Exercise

For your product, fill this out:

The job: When [situation], customers want to [motivation] so they can [outcome].

Why existing solutions fail:

1. [Competitor/alternative]: [What’s wrong with it]
2. [Competitor/alternative]: [What’s wrong with it]

How we’re different: We [unique approach] which means [specific benefit].

One feature to cut: [Feature that doesn’t serve the core job]

One feature to build: [Feature that directly accelerates job progress]

Rock-n-Roll uses JTBD principles to help you discover the real problem you’re solving, then translate that into product requirements and features that serve the job.

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What you get:

• Product Strategy Brief with market research, personas, and competitor insights
• Solution Blueprint covering requirements, user journeys, and UX flows
• Implementation Plan sequencing milestones, dependency callouts, and engineering-ready prompts
• Builder handoff kits that push to Loveable, Bolt, or V0 plus prompt bundles for Cursor, Claude Code, or Codex

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