Value Proposition Canvas Template

When it comes time to really understand your customers – including their jobs-to-be-done, pains, and gains, as well as your offer to them – the Value Proposition Canvas is the tool of choice many growth marketers and entrepreneurs use. The tool helps you organize all of the critical details behind how you deliver value to your audience.

There are several methods of developing a value proposition, but we like the Value Proposition Canvas Template outlined by Alex Osterwalder. We’ve adapted it to help you understand your customer and test your ideas with them.

1. Persona

Fill in the name of your persona. Which customer segment do you have in mind for this proposition?

2. Jobs to be done

What jobs-to-be-done might the persona be trying to get done? You can use this space to brainstorm different jobs or list them as they come to mind (E.g. “to have fun” or “to meet new people”).

3. Gains

What gains could your potential customers be looking for when searching for a solution to their problem? Are there any new opportunities that you can help them take advantage of?

4. Pain points

What pain points or problems could your persona be experiencing while trying to get those jobs done? Consider these questions: What is frustrating them? What are they worried about?

5. Gain creator

Define what your product or service does to create a gain for the consumer. Are there any features that can be removed? Are there any new features that could be added?

6. Pain relievers

List all pain relievers for each job-to-be-done in this section. What are the negative emotions of the job to be done? How does it make them feel?

7. Products/services

What product or service could you offer that would help address the pain points and enable the gains of your potential customers?

6. Value proposition hypotheses

With the information from above, hypothesize how your product or service will solve their problems, provide desired gains and enhance their lives overall.

Why use the Value Proposition Canvas?

1. Precisely define your customer profiles (Customer Segments).
2. Identify your customer’s major Jobs-to-be-done, the pains they face when trying to accomplish their Jobs-to-be-done and the gains they perceive by getting their jobs done.
3. Brainstorm a list of product or service features that can address your customer’s pains and gains.
4. Identify which value propositions are really desirable for your customers (customer value), feasible (company capabilities) and viable (economic desirability).

The final result is a business model that illustrates the best way to create products or services that satisfy your customers’ needs.

Final Thought

The Value Proposition Canvas is a great tool for any business or product team. You can analyze your strategies and improve your products. It helps you to understand your market, customers, and product capabilities. It encourages a bottom-up method that is scalable and repeatable. And finally, it helps you to find your unique selling proposition and customer value.