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# Product Diagnostics Through JTBD Lens

## Checklist: Do You Know Your Product's Job?

### Level 1: Basic Understanding

- [ ] You can describe the job in one sentence without using the product name
- [ ] You know the circumstances in which the job arises
- [ ] You know what customer did BEFORE using your product
- [ ] You understand the functional, emotional, AND social dimensions

### Level 2: Deep Understanding

- [ ] You know what you really compete with (not just "direct competitors")
- [ ] You understand push/pull and habit/anxiety forces for your customer
- [ ] You can distinguish Big Hire from Little Hire
- [ ] You know why customers "fire" your product

### Level 3: Organizational Implementation

- [ ] Product decisions are filtered through the job lens
- [ ] Metrics measure job completion, not just usage
- [ ] Roadmap is oriented toward better job execution
- [ ] Team can articulate the customer's job

## Red Flags - Signs You Don't Know the Job

1. **You describe product through features** - "it's a tool for X with Y feature"
2. **Competition is only "similar products"** - you don't see non-obvious competitors
3. **You segment by demographics** - "target is men 25-35"
4. **High acquisition, low retention** - you win Big Hire, lose Little Hire
5. **Customers use product "wrong"** - they create workarounds

## Diagnostic Framework

### Why Aren't Customers Buying?

| Symptom | Probable Cause | Action |
|---------|----------------|--------|
| They don't know we exist | Job is poorly articulated in messaging | Rewrite messaging around the job |
| They know but don't try | Anxiety about new > Pull | Reduce friction, offer guarantees |
| They try but don't buy | Product doesn't do the job | Investigate gap between promise and reality |
| They buy but don't use | Little Hire lost | Redesign the moment of use |
| They use but churn | Job changed or better "employee" appeared | Investigate "firing" reasons |

### "Firing" Interview (Churn Interview)

Questions for customers who left:

1. "What did you do before us? Why did you come to us?"
2. "What changed that made you start looking for alternatives?"
3. "What ultimately convinced you to leave?"
4. "What do you do now instead of us? Does it do the job better?"
5. "If we could change one thing, what would it be?"

### "Hiring" Interview (New Customer Interview)

Questions for new customers (within 2 weeks):

1. "When did you first think about looking for a solution?"
2. "What was the trigger - what was happening then?"
3. "What alternatives did you look for? What disqualified them?"
4. "What ultimately convinced you to choose us?"
5. "What were you afraid of before buying?"
6. "Is the product doing what you expected?"

## JTBD Metrics

### Instead of Traditional Metrics:

| Traditional Metric | Problem | JTBD Metric |
|-------------------|---------|-------------|
| DAU/MAU | Doesn't tell if job is being done | % of completed "jobs" |
| Time in app | More ≠ better | Time to job completion |
| Feature adoption | Features ≠ value | Does feature help with job? |
| NPS | General satisfaction | Would you hire us again for this job? |
| Churn rate | Retrospective | Leading indicators of "searching for alternatives" |

### Job Completion Rate

Define what "job done" means and measure:
- % of sessions where job was completed
- Time to first success (Time to Value)
- Repeatability of "hiring" (hire frequency)

---

## Post-Launch Iteration

### Continuous Job Discovery

After launch, keep learning:

**Usage data signals:**
- Features used ≠ Features valued (may use out of necessity)
- Time spent ≠ Job done (frustration can increase time)
- Feature requests often describe solutions, not jobs

**Ongoing research:**
- Interview new customers within 2 weeks of purchase
- Interview churned customers within 1 week of leaving
- Observe actual usage (session recordings, support tickets)
- Track "aha moments" that predict retention

### Iteration Framework

| Signal | What It Means | Action |
|--------|---------------|--------|
| High acquisition, low retention | Win Big Hire, lose Little Hire | Investigate moment of use |
| Feature used but low satisfaction | Functional works, emotional doesn't | Research emotional dimension |
| Unexpected use patterns | Hidden jobs emerging | Interview these users |
| Power users vs. casual users | Different jobs being done | May need segmentation |

---

## Churn Analysis Through JTBD Lens

### Why "Firing" Happens

Customers fire products when:
1. **Job changed** - Circumstances evolved (company grew, life changed)
2. **Better "employee" appeared** - Competitor does job better
3. **Job wasn't being done** - Product never delivered on promise
4. **Friction accumulated** - Too hard to use, not worth the effort
5. **Priorities shifted** - Other jobs became more important

### Churn Interview Framework

**Timing:** Within 1 week of cancellation (memory fresh)

**Questions:**

| Phase | Questions |
|-------|-----------|
| Original hiring | "When you first signed up, what were you hoping to accomplish?" |
| Experience | "How well did we help you with that?" |
| The turn | "When did you start thinking about leaving?" |
| Alternatives | "What will you do instead? How did you find it?" |
| The switch | "What ultimately convinced you to leave?" |
| Retrospective | "If we could change one thing, what would make you stay?" |

### Churn Patterns to Watch

| Pattern | Probable Cause | Investigation |
|---------|----------------|---------------|
| Early churn (<30 days) | Never got job done | Onboarding + activation issues |
| Churn after initial success | Job completed, no ongoing need | Is this a one-time job? |
| Churn after competitor mention | Better employee exists | Competitive analysis |
| Churn with "too complicated" | Friction > value | UX and simplification |
| Churn without replacement | Job deprioritized | Were we targeting right customers? |

### Acting on Churn Insights

**If job changed:** Consider segments, expansion products, or accepting churn as natural
**If competitor wins:** Investigate which dimension they're serving better
**If job wasn't done:** Product or onboarding needs improvement
**If friction accumulated:** UX improvements, training, simplification
**If priorities shifted:** May be targeting wrong customer profile
