Marketing Canvas - Budget

Last update: 10/12/2024

In a nutshell

Discover the importance of a well-structured marketing budget in our comprehensive guide. We delve into the critical role of budgeting within the Marketing Canvas method by Laurent Bouty. Learn how to track and manage marketing expenses, whether you're a multinational corporation or a budding startup. Understand the significance of budgeting in terms of industry benchmarks, and discover strategies to spend wisely. Our guide offers practical tools to translate your budget into action, from understanding your audience to tracking expenses effectively. Moreover, learn to evaluate and improve your budgeting practices with our score-based self-assessment. Lastly, get inspired by a real-life example of green clean use case. Whether you're a marketing novice or an entrepreneur seeking new insights, this article offers an essential exploration of the powerful tool that is your marketing budget.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is BUDGET, which falls under the METRICS meta-category.

Defining Budget

The Marketing Canvas model proposed by Laurent Bouty offers an in-depth methodology to conceptualize and structure your marketing plan. The fundamental section Bouty underscores is "Metrics," and the sub-dimension "Budget" within it. This sub-dimension serves as a barometer to quantify and keep track of your marketing expenditure, a crucial determinant of your company's marketing efforts' overall success.

The Budget dimension's relevance is ubiquitous, regardless of your company's size. For larger conglomerates, where tracking expenses becomes a standard protocol, marketing becomes an essential cog in the wheel. Conversely, smaller entities like startups or SMEs may not implement such stringent measures, overlooking the importance of earmarking a designated marketing budget, which could potentially hinder growth.

Renowned benchmarks, Gartner and CMOsurvey, offer a broad understanding of how companies, across industries and sizes, allocate their marketing budgets. These benchmarks divulge that, on average, about 11% of the yearly budget is dedicated to marketing expenditure. An alternative way of approaching this is by calculating the ratio between your marketing budget and your revenue. The marketing budget generally represents 6% to 10% of your revenue, a number that can fluctuate depending on your revenue size.

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Marketing Canvas Method by Laurent Bouty - Marketing Budget

As per the industry suggestions, startups could consider setting aside up to 20% of the anticipated gross revenue for the marketing budget. However, the crucial takeaway here is that it is not solely about allocating funds to marketing, but ensuring that these funds are utilized judiciously. This involves associating your expenses with your actions – if you plan to perform action X to achieve objective Y, how much will Z (the budget) amount to?

Underutilizing your marketing budget can pose problems. It may create a negative impression of your leadership, indicating a lack of execution on planned strategies. Similarly, if your marketing budget falls below the market average, it may indicate under-investment compared to your competitors, acting as an impediment to your business's growth.

A survey by Sortlist conducted in 2021 revealed that the Covid19 pandemic had either positively or negatively impacted the marketing budget for SMBs. On average, the annual budget hovered around a maximum of 10,000€ for 50% of the companies surveyed. However, this figure only accounted for media and content expenses, excluding human resources and platform investments.

Tools for Budget

Having a well-planned budget is a keystone to any successful marketing strategy. However, to implement this successfully, certain tools can provide a great deal of assistance. Software platforms like QuickBooks, Zoho Books, or Sage 50cloud are excellent options for maintaining and tracking your budget. They not only help you keep your budget in check but also ensure the finances are appropriately aligned with your marketing goals.

Spreadsheets can also play a significant role in managing your budget. They provide a straightforward and uncomplicated way to input and track your budget figures. Excel or Google Sheets, with their various functions, can aid in organizing and categorizing your budget.

Moreover, platforms like HubSpot offer a dedicated Marketing Hub that includes budget management tools within their software. This feature enables companies to plan, track, and measure their marketing budgets and ROI from a single platform.

Translating Budget into Action

Translating your budget into action entails strategic decision-making. It involves a deep understanding of your audience and consistent engagement, preparedness for budget variability, consideration of the marketing lifecycle, tracking expenses, and balancing creativity with cost.

For instance, if your target audience is primarily online, then directing a significant portion of your budget to digital marketing would be a wise decision. However, for a local audience, traditional advertising methods, such as billboards or local press, may be more effective.

Maintaining consistency in your marketing approach can result in more significant outcomes than sporadic, high-cost campaigns. This strategy requires planning for sustained engagement with your audience.

Marketing budget needs can change with time. It is vital to remain flexible and adapt your budget based on business needs, market trends, and campaign results.

In marketing, some initiatives, like SEO or content marketing, may take a longer time to deliver results. It's crucial to account for these long-term strategies in your budget, alongside short-term ones.

By using accounting or budgeting software, you can keep an accurate record of your marketing expenditures. This data can provide valuable insights for future budgeting decisions.

While high-cost campaigns may appear more attractive, the most creative ideas are often the most cost-effective. Always seek to balance creativity and budget constraints.

Statements for self-assessment

Is your Marketing Budget helping you achieve your goals?

Evaluating the effectiveness of your marketing budget is a critical step towards its optimization. Here, you assess if your budget is helping you reach your goals.

For a comprehensive evaluation, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. Your marketing budget allocation is based on several factors, including your industry sector, your business capacity, your goals, and how quickly you need to make an impact.

2. Your marketing budget is a component of your overall business plan, outlining the costs of how you are going to achieve your marketing goals within a certain timeframe.

3. You constantly monitor your marketing efforts. If something in your marketing plan is not working, you move that spending into another area.

4. You leave a portion of your budget (10%?) in exploring new ways, figuring out what works and what doesn’t, and exercising your creative muscles

Each of these statements evaluates a critical aspect of your marketing budget. Your scores would indicate which areas need improvement, and which areas are effectively managed.

Marketing Canvas Method - Question - Marketing Budget

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Indicate significant gaps in your budgeting process. Resource allocation may lack strategic alignment, monitoring may be insufficient, and there may be little or no investment in innovation.

• A score of zero (0): Reflects partial effectiveness. While the budget is functional, it may not be fully aligned with goals, flexible, or innovative enough to drive optimal results.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Suggest a well-optimized budget strategy. Allocation is strategic, monitoring is robust, and there is a deliberate focus on testing and innovation.

Case Study: Green Clean’s Budget strategy

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean allocates its marketing budget without clear alignment to business goals. The budget lacks flexibility, with no resources reserved for experimentation, leading to stagnation in results.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean allocates a functional budget aligned with its business plan but struggles to reallocate funds from underperforming initiatives. There is minimal investment in innovation, limiting growth potential.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean’s budget is strategically allocated across campaigns, aligned with business goals, and includes 10% for experimentation. Performance is closely monitored, with resources reallocated dynamically to maximize impact.

Conclusion

The Budget sub-dimension emphasizes the importance of strategic allocation, continuous monitoring, and innovation in marketing. A well-structured budget not only aligns with business goals but also ensures flexibility and encourages creative exploration, enabling sustainable growth and competitive differentiation.

Sources

1. Gartner CMO Spend Survey 2020-2021, Gartner, https://www.gartner.com/en/marketing/research/annual-cmo-spend-survey-research

2. CMO Survey 2020, Deloitte, pdf, https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/CMO/us-cmo-survey-highlights-and-insights-report-feb-2020.pdf

3. Sortlist, 2021 Marketing Survey: Budgets, Trends and Inspiration for SMBs, https://www.sortlist.com/blog/marketing-survey-smbs-budgets-trends-inspiration/

4. Medium, 5 Steps to Creating a Small Business Marketing Budget, https://medium.com/@the_manifest/5-steps-to-creating-a-small-business-marketing-budget-2f807065068a

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Marketing Canvas - Lifetime

Last update: 10/12/2024

In a nutshell

This comprehensive guide delves into the significance of Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) as a potent metric in business success. Through this exploration, businesses can better understand how much revenue they generate per user and how they stack up against industry competitors. The article not only explains how to calculate and evaluate ARPU but also provides practical strategies to leverage it for sustainable growth. This includes segmenting customer bases, forecasting revenues, and even assessing the effectiveness of various growth strategies like upselling or price optimization. To illustrate the concepts, the article incorporates a real-world case study from the green cleaning industry. Whether you're an entrepreneur, marketer, or non-marketer interested in business strategy, this guide equips you with the knowledge and tools to transform ARPU from a simple number into actionable business insights.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is LIFETIME, which falls under the METRICS meta-category.

Defining Lifetime

Customer Retention has become a pivotal concern for subscription-based businesses in recent years. The idea of prolonging your subscribers' association with your business becomes indispensable if the ultimate objective is to generate profits. The long-established belief is that retaining existing customers is more cost-efficient than acquiring new ones, typically by a ratio of 1 to 6. Although the ratio might differ, we can all concur that spending money to acquire new customers is higher than retaining existing ones. Either way, the effect on your customer base is the same (+1 customer -1 lost or evading the loss of 1 customer). We often use the concept of churn (or attrition) to gauge the number of customers departing from your service during a specified period.

Churn rate, a critical metric, represents the percentage of customers discontinuing a company's product or service over a given timeframe. This metric is critical because it provides insights into the health of a company's customer base and its ability to retain its customers. Calculating the churn rate involves dividing the number of customers lost during a specific time period (e.g., a quarter) by the number of customers the company had at the beginning of that time period.

Monitoring churn rate is paramount for companies as it offers a clear image of the number of customers leaving the company, which directly impacts the company's profitability. A high churn rate could signify subpar customer service, inadequate product offerings, or even stiff competition in the market. Hence, it becomes imperative for companies to pinpoint the reasons behind a high churn rate and initiate corrective measures to curtail it.

Furthermore, tracking customer churn enables companies to evaluate how effectively they are retaining their customer base, thereby helping them adjust their customer retention strategies. Companies can exploit customer data to better comprehend their customers' needs, preferences, and behaviors, and modify their offerings and services to meet those needs. By proactively addressing the factors driving churn, companies can cultivate a more loyal customer base and secure long-term success.

Lifetime is an alternative perspective on this phenomenon. Lifetime refers to the duration (often in months) a customer stays with you. The exact specification of this definition can vary across different industries. For instance, in the mobile business, a customer must have received or made a call/SMS/data transaction during the specified period to be considered "active." One method to estimate the lifetime is by dividing 1 by your churn rate percentage. Lifetime is indicative of how successful you are at satisfying existing customers.

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Marketing Canvas Method by Laurent Bouty - Lifetime

In the Marketing Canvas framework, we consider Lifetime as a pivotal metric. It's not a standalone number but tied intricately to your business objectives. Let's explore how it works in a scenario.

Imagine owning a business that generates €1000 a month from 1000 customers, with each spending €1. If you have a churn rate of 10%, you would lose 100 customers by the end of the first month, reducing your customer base to 900. Consequently, your revenue for the month drops to €900, presuming that the remaining customers continue to spend €1 each.

If the trend continues, you'll witness another 10% reduction in customers, leading to the loss of 90 more customers, and leaving you with only 810 customers. The impact on your revenue will be corresponding, reduced to €810. This continuous decline in revenue has a direct bearing on your business goals, making it increasingly challenging to generate profits, let alone achieve growth, when the customer base is shrinking rapidly.

To balance the loss of customers and stabilize revenue, you would need to acquire new customers at a rate faster than you are losing them. This, however, can be a costly and time-consuming task. Therefore, customer retention becomes a cornerstone for the long-term sustainability of your business.

Tools for Lifetime

A plethora of tools exist in the market today, aimed at aiding businesses in calculating and improving the lifetime of their customers.

1. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Systems: CRM systems like Salesforce or HubSpot help businesses track and manage customer interactions, allowing them to understand better and increase customer lifetime value.

2. Subscription Management Platforms: Platforms like Chargebee or Zuora help businesses manage their subscription billing and provide insights into metrics such as churn rate and customer lifetime value.

3. Customer Analytics Platforms: Tools like Mixpanel or Amplitude allow businesses to track user behavior and engagement, enabling them to identify potential churn risks and take proactive measures.

4. Customer Feedback Tools: Tools like SurveyMonkey or Qualtrics allow businesses to gather feedback directly from customers, helping them understand the reasons for customer churn and find ways to improve customer retention.

Translating Lifetime into Action

Transforming the concept of 'Lifetime' into tangible action involves a thorough understanding of your customer base, their needs, their behaviours, and effectively addressing their pain points.

1. Segment Your Customers: Divide your customer base into segments based on their behaviour, usage, or revenue generated. This allows you to understand the different types of customers you have and develop strategies tailored to each segment.

2. Develop Customer Retention Programs: Develop strategies aimed at improving customer loyalty. This could be through a loyalty rewards program, personalized communication, or by improving customer service.

3. Identify At-Risk Customers: Use predictive analytics to identify customers who are at risk of churning. Once identified, you can take proactive measures to retain them.

4. Improve Customer Experience: Regularly review and improve your product or service based on customer feedback. Ensuring a high-quality customer experience is one of the best ways to improve customer lifetime.

Statements for self-assessment

Is the Lifetime of your users helping you achieve your goals?

It is crucial to evaluate whether your user lifetime is aiding you in achieving your business goals. For a comprehensive evaluation, you can rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You are capable to measure user's lifetime (1/churn) because you know who is buying and using your products and services.

2. Your churn level is below or equal to average market churn level

3. The historical trend of your churn evolution is positive (growth) and present a positive outlook for next year. 

4. Your CRC (Customer Retention Cost) is aligned with your CAC (Customer Acquistion Cost). CAC+CRC is 20-30% for mature business and 50-70% for startups (% of revenue).

Your scores can help pinpoint areas of strength and those requiring attention. The higher the score, the more effective your customer retention strategy is, and vice versa. It's always a good practice to revisit these scores periodically to gauge improvement or diagnose worsening situations.

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Marketing Canvas Method - User Lifetime and Churn

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Indicate significant gaps in measuring or optimizing customer lifetime. High churn rates, poorly aligned CAC and CRC, or negative historical trends suggest the need for immediate intervention.

• A score of zero (0): Reflects partial effectiveness. While some aspects of lifetime strategy are functional, inefficiencies in retention efforts or unclear data may limit overall impact.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Suggest a well-optimized lifetime strategy. Churn is low, retention costs are aligned with CAC, and historical trends indicate sustainable growth and profitability.

Case study: Green Clean’s Lifetime strategy

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean does not track churn accurately and struggles to identify who is using its services. Retention efforts are costly, uncoordinated, and misaligned with CAC, resulting in unsustainable operations.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean measures churn but lacks actionable insights. While CAC and CRC are within acceptable ranges, historical trends show inconsistent retention efforts, limiting future growth potential.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean accurately measures churn and tracks customer lifetime. It reduces churn through personalized engagement and aligns CAC and CRC efficiently. Historical trends show consistent improvement, supported by sustainable retention strategies.

Conclusion

The Lifetime sub-dimension emphasizes the importance of tracking and optimizing customer lifetime to ensure sustainable growth and profitability. By reducing churn, balancing CAC and CRC, and analyzing historical trends, businesses can build stronger customer relationships and achieve long-term success.

Sources

1. HUBSPOT, What is customer churn, https://blog.hubspot.com/service/what-is-customer-churn

2. HBR, The Value of keeping the right customers, https://hbr.org/2014/10/the-value-of-keeping-the-right-customers

3. Hubspot, Here’s Why Customer Retention is So Important for ROI, Customer Loyalty, and Growth, https://blog.hubspot.com/service/customer-retention

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Marketing Canvas - ARPU

Last update: 27/12/2024

In a nutshell

This comprehensive guide delves into the significance of Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) as a potent metric in business success. Through this exploration, businesses can better understand how much revenue they generate per user and how they stack up against industry competitors. The article not only explains how to calculate and evaluate ARPU but also provides practical strategies to leverage it for sustainable growth. This includes segmenting customer bases, forecasting revenues, and even assessing the effectiveness of various growth strategies like upselling or price optimization. To illustrate the concepts, the article incorporates a real-world case study from the green cleaning industry. Whether you're an entrepreneur, marketer, or non-marketer interested in business strategy, this guide equips you with the knowledge and tools to transform ARPU from a simple number into actionable business insights.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is ARPU, which falls under the METRICS meta-category.

Defining ARPU

ARPU, an acronym for Average Revenue Per User, holds significant weight in mobile telecom businesses and, indeed, any business that operates on a user-based model. This value-oriented metric is calculated by dividing the total revenue by the number of active users within a specific time frame, typically a month. The active users, in this context, generally refer to paying customers.

At its core, ARPU is a simple and unambiguous measure that facilitates direct comparisons with competitors, customer base segmentation, and financial forecasting. A business with a higher ARPU, assuming all other factors are constant, enjoys superior profitability.

ARPU's importance is twofold. Firstly, it serves as a testament to a business's customer-centricity, if measured accurately. A company that keeps track of its ARPU has a precise understanding of which clients contribute most significantly to their revenues (the top 10%), and those whose contribution is more modest (the bottom 10%). This metric also reveals the elements contributing to the revenues for each client.

Secondly, a strategy that focuses on improving ARPU is an effective approach to business growth. In the Marketing Canvas framework, we assess whether your ARPU aligns with and advances your business goals. A low ARPU, in comparison to your competitors, implies that each new customer acquired will generate less revenue than a new customer for your competitors. This scenario represents a hurdle that may be overcome by attracting more high-value customers through a stronger brand and value proposition.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Metrics - ARPU

Guidelines

• ARPU provides an easy, high-level benchmark to compare how much revenue one company generates from its users relative to another.

• Examining ARPU by customer segments can yield valuable insights, particularly when paired with other metrics.

• Many financial models start by forecasting your user numbers based on customer acquisition and retention assumptions. By multiplying this number by your ARPU, you can generate a revenue forecast.

Tools for ARPU

Calculating and tracking ARPU is straightforward, but requires the right tools. Revenue tracking software and business intelligence platforms can facilitate the process by automatically calculating ARPU over a given time period. Tools like Tableau, Microsoft Power BI, or Google Analytics are widely used for this purpose. It's crucial to ensure that these tools integrate seamlessly with your accounting or CRM systems to deliver accurate results.

Customer segmentation tools can also be helpful in analysing ARPU across different groups. For example, you might find that customers in a particular geographic area or of a certain age group have a higher ARPU. You can then focus your marketing efforts on attracting more of these high-ARPU customers.

Translating ARPU into Action

After calculating and analysing ARPU, it's time to leverage this metric to inform strategic decisions. A high ARPU relative to your competitors suggests a strong value proposition and efficient monetization. Conversely, a low ARPU may indicate the need for improvement.

If your ARPU is lower than desired, consider strategies such as upselling or cross-selling to existing customers. You could also revise your pricing strategy or explore new revenue streams. For instance, a SaaS company with a low ARPU might consider launching a premium tier of service.

Another way to increase ARPU is by refining your marketing efforts to attract high-value customers. By analyzing customer segments, you can identify the characteristics of your highest-value customers and then target similar prospects.

Statements for self-assessment

Is the ARPU of your users helping you achieve your goals?

Assessing ARPU is vital to gauge whether it aids in attaining your objectives. To evaluate comprehensively, rate your agreement with the below statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You are capable to measure Average Revenue per User because you know who is buying and using your products and services.

2. The average purchase frequency of your users is above industry average and above direct competitors. 

3. The average spending of each purchase of your users is above industry average and above direct competitors. 

4. The historical trend of your ARPU evolution is positive (growth) and present a positive outlook for next year. 

In addition to these statements, consider how ARPU interacts with other important metrics like Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) and Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV). For example, a high ARPU is even more beneficial if it is combined with a low CAC, leading to a high CLTV/CAC ratio.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Metrics - ARPU

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Indicate significant gaps in understanding or optimizing ARPU. You may lack the data or strategies needed to measure purchase behavior, spending, and trends effectively, resulting in missed growth opportunities.

• A score of zero (0): Reflects partial effectiveness. While ARPU is tracked, there are inconsistencies in measurement or missed opportunities for improvement. Additional focus on frequency, spending, or sustainability is needed.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Suggest a strong ARPU strategy. Metrics are well-tracked and aligned with business goals, exceeding industry benchmarks while supporting long-term customer value and sustainability.

Case study: Green Clean’s ARPU strategy

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean lacks clear data on who buys and uses its products. Purchase frequency is sporadic, spending per transaction is low, and historical ARPU trends show stagnation or decline.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean measures ARPU but struggles to align it with industry benchmarks. While some strategies to improve purchase frequency or spending exist, they lack consistency or long-term planning.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean uses customer data to track ARPU effectively. The brand encourages frequent purchases through a subscription model and increases average spend with bundle offers. Historical ARPU trends show steady growth, and future projections align with the company’s sustainability goals.

Conclusion

The ARPU sub-dimension is critical for understanding and optimizing revenue per user. By accurately measuring ARPU, analyzing trends, and implementing strategies to improve frequency and spending, businesses can drive growth and ensure long-term success. Aligning ARPU with sustainability principles further reinforces customer loyalty and brand integrity.

Sources

1. Definition, Investopedia, https://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/average-revenue-user-arpu.asp

2. HUBSPOT, ARPU: How to Calculate and Interpret Average Revenue Per User, https://blog.hubspot.com/service/arpu

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Marketing Canvas - Acquisition

Last update: 15/06/2023

In a nutshell

This article dives deep into the intricacies of Customer Acquisition, a critical aspect of any marketing strategy. It defines key performance indicators - Customer Acquisition Rate (CAR) and Cost of Customer Acquisition (COCA or CAC), and elucidates their relevance and calculation methods. The importance of measuring these metrics is brought to life using practical examples and industry insights. The piece further delves into the arsenal of tools available for customer acquisition, and how these can be effectively harnessed to drive growth. From there, we outline how to turn acquisition strategies into action, evaluate their performance, and make necessary improvements. Through the lens of a real-world 'Green Clean' use case, we demonstrate the practical application of these principles. An essential read for entrepreneurs and marketers aspiring to master the art of customer acquisition.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is ACQUISITION, which falls under the METRICS meta-category.

Defining ACQUISITION

Every successful venture has customer acquisition as its cornerstone metric. The reality is, regardless of how innovative or unique your product or service may be, its relevance is directly proportional to the number of users it attracts and retains. Hence, we will delve deeper into the concept of Acquisition, one of the sub-dimensions of the Marketing Canvas, in this chapter.

Acquisition, as it pertains to marketing, refers to the process of attracting and converting potential consumers into actual customers. A healthy business is characterized not just by acquiring more users but also transitioning them into paid customers, thereby increasing revenue and profitability. It's worth mentioning that the current 'Growth Hacking' trend has reinforced the emphasis on acquisition strategies.

Measurement of Customer Acquisition occurs via two key performance indicators (KPIs):

1. Customer Acquisition Rate (CAR): This is the ratio of the number of customers acquired to the length of the time period.

2. Cost of Customer Acquisition (CAC): This represents the total expenditure on marketing efforts divided by the number of customers acquired during that period.

Both CAR and CAC play crucial roles in comprehending the speed at which you're gaining new customers and the investment required to achieve this. According to marketing guru Neil Patel, CAC signifies the cost involved in convincing a potential customer to purchase a product or service. Comparing your CAC per media to industry standards and competitors will provide an insight into your performance.

If your CAR falls below your competitors, it implies a slower customer acquisition rate. Although this isn't a cause for immediate alarm, considering other dimensions like Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) will help understand if it is a serious issue or not.

Some may argue that these metrics are only applicable to service businesses, not products. However, the underlying philosophy of the Marketing Canvas is to thoroughly understand your customers, be it a product or service. If your business relies on indirect distribution and lacks customer data, it might hinder personalizing your offerings. Inability to measure CAR and CAC due to a lack of direct customer interaction is a stumbling block in the application of the Marketing Canvas Method.

Tools for ACQUISITION

Effective acquisition isn't a matter of luck or chance; it's the result of strategically leveraging an array of tools and techniques. Here are a few tools that can significantly improve your acquisition metrics:

1. SEO Tools: Platforms like Moz, SEMrush, and Google's Keyword Planner can help you optimize your online presence and improve organic traffic, leading to higher acquisition.

2. Content Marketing Tools: Tools like HubSpot, WordPress, and Grammarly can assist in creating compelling content that drives customer interest and engagement.

3. Social Media Advertising: Platforms like Facebook Ads Manager and LinkedIn Campaign Manager can help you reach a wider audience and target potential customers more effectively.

4. Email Marketing: Tools like Mailchimp or ConvertKit can help you build and maintain relationships with potential customers, fostering trust and improving acquisition rates.

Translating Acquisition into Action

Once you've mastered the principles and tools of acquisition, it's time to put this knowledge into practice.

1. Set Clear Goals: Begin by identifying specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals for your acquisition efforts.

2. Identify Your Audience: Understand your potential customers, their needs, and their preferences.

3. Optimize Your Channels: Improve your visibility on all the platforms your target audience frequents.

4. Test, Measure, Refine: Regularly review your CAR and CAC metrics, identify areas of improvement, and refine your strategy accordingly.

Statements for self-assessment

Is the Acquisition of new users helping you achieve your goals?

Evaluation is the pillar on which successful businesses are built. Regular monitoring and reassessment are essential to improving your acquisition strategy. To evaluate your acquisition efforts, consider the following statements, rating your agreement from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. Your Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is below industry average and is below your direct competitors.

2. Your conversion rate (from lead to buyer) is above industry average and is above your direct competitors.

3. Your CLTV/CAC is above industry average with a ratio above 3:1 and below 5:1

4. Your time to conversion rate (from lead to buyer) is above industry average and is above your direct competitors.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Metrics - Acquisition by Laurent Bouty

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Suggest inefficiencies in your acquisition strategy. CAC may be high, conversion rates low, and CLTV/CAC ratios misaligned, indicating missed opportunities for improvement.

• A score of zero (0): Reflects a functional but unoptimized strategy. While some metrics may meet industry benchmarks, there are gaps preventing full efficiency and profitability.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Indicate an effective acquisition strategy with competitive CAC, high conversion rates, a healthy CLTV/CAC ratio, and short time-to-conversion periods.

Case study: Green Clean’s Acquisition strategy

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean’s CAC is significantly higher than competitors, with low conversion rates and a CLTV/CAC ratio below 3:1. The time to conversion is long, indicating inefficiencies in the sales funnel.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean’s CAC and conversion rates are in line with industry averages but lack optimization. The CLTV/CAC ratio is acceptable but not optimized for long-term growth. Time to conversion is adequate but could be reduced with better targeting.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean optimizes CAC by focusing on high-performing channels and using automation. Conversion rates are improved through a streamlined funnel and personalized engagement. The CLTV/CAC ratio exceeds 4:1, and time to conversion is reduced through quick onboarding and targeted offers.

Conclusion

The Acquisition sub-dimension highlights the importance of optimizing CAC, conversion rates, CLTV/CAC ratios, and time to conversion for sustainable growth. A well-executed acquisition strategy ensures that your business attracts the right customers, maximizes profitability, and remains competitive in the market.

Sources

1. Neil Patel, Customer Acquisition Cost, https://neilpatel.com/blog/customer-acquisition-cost/

2. Hubspot, https://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/34054/the-6-marketing-metrics-your-ceo-actually-cares-about-cheat-sheet.aspx

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Marketing Canvas - Influencers

Last update: 1 January 2021

In a nutshell

In today's digital landscape, influencers play a significant role in shaping consumer perceptions and buying decisions. This comprehensive guide dives into the world of influencer marketing, discussing different types of influencers and their potential impact on your marketing strategy. It examines how influencers fit into the Marketing Canvas, a framework for conceptualizing and structuring your marketing strategy. Practical examples are provided to illustrate the potential of effective influencer collaborations. Furthermore, the guide highlights essential tools for influencer management and ways to translate influencer activities into tangible actions. The guide concludes with an emphasis on the need for continuous evaluation and improvement of your influencer strategy, providing a robust assessment framework and practical tips for scoring and improvement. The information in this guide is indispensable for marketers seeking to harness the power of influencers in their marketing strategy.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is INFLUENCERS, which falls under the CONVERSATION meta-category

Defining Influencers

In the vast and evolving landscape of digital marketing, the role of influencers has grown exponentially. These influencers span various types, each with unique attributes and reach. According to Hubspot[1], there are five different types of influencers:

1. Micro-influencer: With a modest following ranging from thousands to tens of thousands, micro-influencers can have a profound impact within their specific niche. They have developed trust and rapport with their followers, making them highly effective in influencing their followers' decisions.

2. Celebrity influencer: With enormous followings usually in the millions, celebrity influencers are famous individuals known across many industries. They have the power to influence people through their fame and high public visibility.

3. Blog influencer: Blog influencers have a loyal readership that subscribes to their content. They are skilled in crafting narratives that can engage, inform, and influence their readership.

4. Social media influencer: These influencers have significant recognition across social media platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or Twitter. They interact with their followers directly and shape opinions and trends.

5. Key opinion leader: KOLs are high-level experts on specialized topics within a particular field. They have in-depth knowledge and expertise, making their opinions highly respected and influential. 

Hubspot[1] is defining influencers (also brand influencers) as:

A brand influencer refers to someone who has a following within a specific niche that they engage with regularly. Because of this, they have the power to impact their purchase decisions. The major types of brand influencers include micro-influencer, celebrity influencer, blog influencer, social media influencer, and key opinion leader (each of which we’ll define momentarily).

Introducing the Influencers dimension to the Marketing Canvas was a deliberative decision. While it's easy to group influencers under the Media umbrella, such an approach could underestimate their unique roles and significance in shaping public opinion and influencing consumer behaviors.

A brand influencer is a person who commands a following within a particular niche and engages with them frequently. This relationship allows them to exert considerable influence on their followers' purchase decisions.

In an era where people's trust in brands is increasingly mediated through personal relationships, influencers play a crucial role. They create user-generated content (UGC), a key form of communication thanks to social media and digital publishing tools.

Influencer marketing, therefore, becomes a critical dimension of a business's marketing strategy. It's not just about establishing a specific influencer strategy, but recognizing the important role influencers play within your overall marketing strategy.

To realize the potential benefits of influencer marketing, businesses need to evaluate if and how an Influencer Strategy aligns with their brand purpose, customer profiles, and value proposition.

Examples of successful influencer strategies include Gleam's Electric Adventures campaign for EDF Energy, which reached over 1 million people in the UK through 59 pieces of unique content, and Dell Technologies' influencer-hosted podcast, which fostered strong relationships with industry influencers.

Tools for Influencers

Identifying and engaging with the right influencers necessitates the use of specialized tools. These tools help you discover influencers, manage relationships, track metrics, and more. Examples of such tools include:

1. BuzzSumo: This tool helps businesses find influencers related to specific topics or industries. It also tracks your brand's mentions and engagement across various social media platforms.

2. Hootsuite: Beyond its well-known scheduling capabilities, Hootsuite can assist in identifying influencers by monitoring mentions and hashtags related to your brand or industry.

3. Traackr: This is an influencer relationship management tool that helps you manage and track your engagement with influencers.

Translating Influencers into Action

Influencer marketing is more than just gaining visibility—it's about translating that visibility into actionable results. To do this, consider the following steps:

1. Set Clear Goals: Establish what you want to achieve through the influencer partnership. This could be increased brand awareness, lead generation, or direct sales.

2. Collaborate on Content: Work with the influencer to develop content that aligns with your brand values and message, but also resonates with the influencer's audience.

3. Track Metrics: Monitor the performance of your influencer marketing campaigns, tracking metrics like engagement rate, click-through rate, conversions, etc.

4. Adjust Strategy: Based on the metrics and feedback, adjust your influencer strategy as needed.

Examples

Gleam created Electric Adventures – a standout consumer-focused social media video series that enabled personal stories to be brought to life whilst busting the common myths around electric vehicles and maintaining EDF Energy’s reputation. The campaign created far more in-depth brand engagement than a 30-second TV advert could achieve, reaching more than 1 million people in the UK via 59 pieces of content (source: 2020, https://influencermarketingawards.com/winners/).

Dell Technologies launched a podcast hosted by influencers featuring conversations with technology visionaries. The interesting thing about this program is that Dell is able to develop strong relationships with industry influencers. (source: https://artplusmarketing.com/5-b2b-influencer-marketing-strategies-you-should-try-149e369fd4ae).

Statements for self-assessment

Are your INFLUENCERS helping you achieve your goals?

Evaluating your influencer strategy helps you understand its effectiveness in achieving your marketing goals. Consider the following statements, rating your agreement on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You are working with influencers that match your brand purpose and are your brand ambassadors.

2. You have defined clear and actionable goals for your influencer strategy aligned with your marketing strategy goals.

3. You let your influencers develop content that tells a story for their audience in their voice while highlighting your brand.

4. You have set long term metrics for your influencers, preferably annual ROI target in brand image and community engagement.

5. You are working with influencers showcasing a sustainable behavior and you are optimizing the sustainability impact of your influencer strategy

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Marketing Canvas Method - Conversations - Influencers by Laurent Bouty

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Indicate misalignment or ineffectiveness in your influencer strategy. Influencers may not represent your brand purpose, and your goals, content, or sustainability efforts may be unclear or poorly executed.

• A score of zero (0): Reflects partial effectiveness. While some aspects of your influencer strategy are functional, others require improvement to maximize impact and alignment with your brand purpose.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Suggest a well-rounded and effective influencer strategy. Your partnerships align with your brand’s purpose, deliver meaningful content, and prioritize sustainability, driving long-term engagement and ROI.

Case study: Green Clean’s Influencer strategy

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean collaborates with influencers who lack alignment with its sustainability mission. Campaigns are disjointed, with no clear goals or metrics, resulting in low engagement and limited brand impact.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean partners with influencers who share its values but fails to set clear objectives or provide creative freedom. As a result, campaigns generate moderate traction but lack authenticity and measurable outcomes.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean partners with eco-conscious influencers who embody its mission. Campaigns include compelling stories about sustainable living, measurable goals for engagement and brand awareness, and a strong focus on reducing environmental impact.

Conclusion

The Influencers sub-dimension underscores the importance of thoughtful collaboration with individuals who align with your brand’s purpose and sustainability goals. By setting clear objectives, empowering authentic storytelling, and measuring long-term impact, your influencer strategy can drive meaningful engagement and reinforce your brand’s values.

Sources

1. Hubspot, 2019, Ultimate Guide to Influencer Marketing, https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/how-to-work-with-influencers

2. Adweek, 2018, http://www.adnews.com.au/news/people-trust-people-but-they-don-t-necessarily-trust-brands

3. SproutSocial, Influencer Marketing, https://sproutsocial.com/insights/influencer-marketing/

4. Harvard Business Review, 2019, https://hbr.org/2019/04/how-brands-can-build-successful-relationships-with-influencers

More on the Marketing Canvas

• Marketing Canvas and Job To Be Done

• Marketing Canvas and Aspirations

• Marketing Canvas and Pains/Gains

• Marketing Canvas and Engagement

• Marketing Canvas and Purpose

• Marketing Canvas and Positioning

• Marketing Canvas and Values

• Marketing Canvas and Visual Identity

• Marketing Canvas and Features

• Marketing Canvas and Emotions

• Marketing Canvas and Pricing

• Marketing Canvas and Proofs

• Marketing Canvas and Moments

• Marketing Canvas and Experience

• Marketing Canvas and Channels

• Marketing Canvas and Magic

• Marketing Canvas and Listening to

• Marketing Canvas and Content & Stories

• Marketing Canvas and Media

• Marketing Canvas and Influencers

• Marketing Canvas and Acquisition

• Marketing Canvas and ARPU

• Marketing Canvas and Lifetime

• Marketing Canvas and Budget

Marketing Canvas - Media

Last update: 15/6/2023

In a nutshell

This comprehensive guide delves deep into the role of media in marketing, helping entrepreneurs and marketers, novice or experienced, understand the subtleties of different media channels and how they can be leveraged for success. We explore Owned, Earned, Shared, and Paid media, providing examples and practical tips for each. This guide also outlines how to translate these theories into effective actions and offers a scoring system for evaluating your current media strategy. It covers potential reasons behind scores and offers insights for strategic improvement. The article concludes with a case study from Green Clean to illustrate how a well-executed media strategy can propel a business forward. This guide serves as an essential read for anyone looking to harness the power of media in their marketing strategy.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is MEDIA, which falls under the CONVERSATION meta-category

Defining Media

In any given relationship, communication is vital. The same is true for your business, where the exchange of messages is constant between you and your audience—your prospects, clients, customers. You initiate conversations using your stories and content. But where do these discussions take place? This leads us to a rather colossal industry that encapsulated $629 billion in 2018: media advertising.

A look into the past reveals how companies carpet-bombed potential and existing clients with advertising—a unidirectional monologue that is now more commonly referred to as "Push Communication." As times evolved and technology advanced, the internet and digital marketing gave birth to a more targeted and pertinent approach, transiting towards a pull mechanism.

In today's world, you could adopt a minimalistic approach requiring almost no budget, or you could choose a more sophisticated and expensive strategy. Your media strategy depends entirely on your business's scale, budget, audience, and objectives.

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PESO model from Spinsucks (credentials: https://spinsucks.com/communication/peso-model-breakdown/)

To comprehend this vast landscape, we employ the PESO model. As a business, you already possess some media assets—your website, an email database of your clients or visitors, business cards collected during events, and more. This is your Owned Media. You don't need to shell out extra money to publish content on these channels. This is an excellent start for any business, particularly startups or SMEs.

The second type is Earned Media. Earned media refers to publicity or media relations. It's when you secure a mention in a newspaper or a trade publication, or you make an appearance on a news show to discuss your product. This has been the traditional domain of PR.

Shared Media, also known as social media, is the next facet. It has evolved beyond just marketing or customer service, becoming a primary means of communication both internally and externally for many businesses.

Finally, we have Paid Media. These are channels that you pay for to distribute your content. It could be mass media like TV, billboards, newspapers (also known as above the line), or direct marketing media like mailing lists (referred to as below the line media). Social media platforms such as Facebook also offer paid advertising options.

Your media strategy should be in alignment with your customers, your purpose, and the touchpoints of your journey. An imbalance in your efforts across these four media types, or a lack of alignment of your media strategy with your customers and goals, can compromise the effectiveness of your campaign.

Tools for Media

In the constantly evolving digital era, having the right set of tools is key to managing and optimizing your media presence. Here, we delve into some of the tools essential for each type of media.

For Owned Media, a CMS (Content Management System) like WordPress or Squarespace is necessary to manage your website. Email marketing software such as MailChimp or Constant Contact can assist with email campaigns.

For Earned Media, consider tools like HARO (Help a Reporter Out) to connect with journalists looking for expert quotes or BuzzSumo to analyze which content performs best.

For Shared Media, social media management tools like Hootsuite or Buffer can help manage and schedule posts. Social listening tools such as Sprout Social or Brandwatch can monitor mentions of your brand across various platforms.

For Paid Media, platforms like Google Ads or Facebook Business Manager can help with ad creation and tracking. Tools like SEMrush or SpyFu can provide insights into your competitors' ad strategies.

Each of these tools helps manage different aspects of your media strategy, making your campaigns more effective and efficient.

Translating Media into Action

The effective usage of the media mix is not an end in itself. It's about converting that usage into concrete actions – which ultimately results in achieving your organizational goals.

Firstly, Owned Media, if used effectively, can create a strong brand identity and serve as a reliable information source about your products or services. An action point here is to optimize your website and other owned media to convert visitors into leads or sales.

For Earned Media, the goal is often to build credibility. Positive press mentions can be leveraged to foster trust among your audience. The resultant action would be to convert this trust into customer loyalty and advocacy.

In Shared Media, the action can be twofold. Firstly, it can serve to foster a community around your brand, driving engagement through shares, likes, and comments. Secondly, it can be used to provide customer service, addressing concerns and queries in real-time.

Lastly, Paid Media can drive a variety of actions, from awareness to conversions. The key here is to design the creative and copy in a way that resonates with your target audience and prompts them to take the desired action.

Statements for self-assessment

Is the current Media strategy helping you achieve your goals?

To understand whether your Media strategy is helping you achieve your goals, comprehensive evaluation is critical. Rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. Your owned media are solid, consistent with your goals and serve as the foundation for your media strategy.

2. Your earned media strategy helps you to secure authority and credibility of your business to your audience.

3. You have created engagement and community for your customers through your shared media strategy.

4. You have amplified your targeting for achieving your goals through paid off-line and on-line media.

5. Your media strategy is compatible with the concept of sustainability

This scoring system will help you identify areas where your strategy is strong, as well as areas for improvement. For instance, a low score in the earned media strategy may indicate a need for stronger PR efforts.

Remember, media strategy is a dynamic process that requires constant refinement. Regularly evaluating your strategy and making necessary improvements can lead to better alignment with your business objectives, ultimately improving your return on investment.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Conversation - Media Strategy

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): These scores suggest significant gaps in your media strategy. Your owned media may lack consistency, your earned media efforts may fail to build credibility, and your shared or paid media may not engage customers effectively or align with sustainability.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score indicates partial effectiveness. While some media aspects may work, others are underdeveloped, limiting the overall impact of your strategy.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores suggest a well-rounded and effective media strategy. Your owned, earned, shared, and paid media are aligned with your goals and sustainability principles, creating a cohesive and impactful presence.

Case study: Green Clean’s Media strategy

• Misaligned Understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean’s owned media (e.g., website) lacks regular updates and optimization. Earned media efforts are sporadic, and shared media fails to engage customers meaningfully. Paid campaigns are generic and do not target specific audience segments effectively.

• Surface Understanding (0): Green Clean has a functional website and earns occasional media coverage but lacks a cohesive strategy. Shared media posts generate limited engagement, and paid campaigns are not optimized for ROI or sustainability.

• Deep Understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean uses a regularly updated, sustainability-focused website as the cornerstone of its strategy. Earned media features testimonials from eco-conscious influencers, while shared media fosters a community through engaging posts about reducing waste. Paid campaigns use targeted ads promoting green initiatives, all while minimizing environmental impact.

Conclusion

The Media sub-dimension ensures that your marketing efforts are strategically aligned across owned, earned, shared, and paid channels. By focusing on integration, engagement, and sustainability, you can amplify your brand's reach, credibility, and impact, fostering stronger connections with your audience and supporting your business goals.

Sources

1. PESO Marketing Model, https://iterativemarketing.net/peso-model-marketing/

2. Spinsucks.com, https://spinsucks.com/communication/peso-model-breakdown/

More on the Marketing Canvas

Marketing Canvas - Content and Stories

Last update: 15/6/2023

In a nutshell

The Content & Stories sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas emphasizes the importance of crafting compelling narratives that reflect your organization’s goals, resonate with your audience, and inspire action. Effective content and stories are built on a deep understanding of how users think and speak about a subject, leveraging appropriate mediums to maximize impact. Furthermore, these stories should be truthful, align with sustainability principles, and contribute to building trust with your audience.

For example, Green Clean might tell stories of families creating healthier homes by choosing eco-friendly products, illustrating both the emotional and practical benefits of sustainability.

Introduction

The Content & Stories sub-dimension within the Conversation category focuses on how organizations communicate with their audience. Stories and content are powerful tools for sharing your brand’s purpose, values, and solutions. To be impactful, they must address user needs, convey clear messages, and inspire desired actions while remaining authentic and aligned with sustainability.

Content and storytelling are not just about information—they are about connection, inspiring loyalty, and reinforcing your brand's relevance.

What are Content & Stories?

Content and stories are integral components of a successful marketing strategy. They represent how your brand communicates value, connects with its audience, and inspires action. Content marketing takes a strategic approach to creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and engage a clearly defined audience. Its ultimate goal? To drive profitable customer actions.

"Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action."

The true power of content and stories lies in their ability to act as catalysts within your Marketing Strategy. Reflecting on the concept of inbound marketing, the idea of engaging with suspects, prospects, or customers through an ongoing, positive dialogue immediately resonated with me. By designing thoughtful inbound funnels, we can craft compelling stories and create meaningful content that adds value and aligns with customer needs.

Creating impactful content requires more than just originality. Beyond producing your own content, alternative approaches include:

• Curating: Sharing content from trusted sources that align with your brand values.

• Co-creating: Collaborating with others to produce content that reflects your shared vision.

A quote from the CMO of General Electric encapsulates the essence of effective content:

"Content that tries to sell, doesn’t! Content that tries to help, does!"

Your content should resonate with your Purpose, align with your customers' Job-to-Be-Done and Aspirations, and consistently reflect your Value Proposition. Most importantly, it must integrate seamlessly into your funnels and customer Journey.

Marketing Canvas by Laurent Bouty - Stories

The role of storytelling

Storytelling elevates content by weaving narratives that captivate and resonate with your audience. It’s an age-old art that combines facts with engaging delivery to communicate a message effectively. Stories can be grounded in reality or creatively enhanced to emphasize core messages.

What makes a good story? According to HubSpot, great stories share these qualities:

• Entertaining: They capture and hold attention.

• Educational: They provide value and new insights.

• Universal: They appeal to diverse audiences.

• Well-Organized: They follow a clear, logical structure.

• Memorable: They leave a lasting impression.

A strong story keeps readers engaged, ignites curiosity, and establishes an emotional connection. For example, Green Clean could share a customer’s journey toward sustainable living, highlighting how their products played a transformative role.

Aligning Content and Stories with strategy

For content and storytelling to be effective, they must align with your audience’s needs and aspirations. A fragmented or irrelevant strategy will fail to resonate and drive action. When aligned, content and stories:

• Reflect your brand’s Purpose and connect to your audience’s identity.

• Address the Journey by mapping to critical moments.

• Reinforce your Value Proposition with relevance and authenticity.

The power of stories and content lies in their ability to make your brand unforgettable, fostering loyalty and driving sustainable growth.

Content & Stories: an in-depth perspective

To create effective content and stories, businesses must:

1. Align goals with needs: Ensure that storytelling serves both organizational objectives and user expectations, striking a balance between informing and inspiring.

2. Adopt a user-centric approach: Understand how your audience thinks and communicates to ensure your stories resonate authentically.

3. Include clear CTAs: Guide users toward meaningful actions that align with your goals, such as making a purchase or signing up for a newsletter.

4. Optimize medium selection: Choose the right channel or format to maximize the story’s impact, considering both the audience and resource constraints.

5. Communicate sustainability: Use truthful, engaging content to share your sustainability efforts without exaggeration or greenwashing.

For example:

• User-centric: Green Clean’s content addresses common questions about eco-friendly cleaning, reflecting customer concerns and language.

• Sustainability focus: The brand publishes blog articles about reducing plastic waste through refillable packaging.

Translating Content & Stories into action

Content and stories should seamlessly connect organizational goals with customer expectations. To achieve this:

• Plan strategically: Ensure all content aligns with both business objectives and audience aspirations.

• Engage authentically: Use user-friendly language and relatable narratives.

• Inspire action: Include clear, actionable CTAs to guide customers effectively.

• Leverage the right channels: Adapt your content to the medium that maximizes impact.

• Maintain transparency: Build trust through truthful storytelling, especially around sustainability.

Questions to consider:

• Do your content and stories reflect both your organization’s goals and your users’ needs?

• Are your content and stories structured based on how your audience thinks and speaks?

• Do your stories include clear and actionable CTAs?

• Have you chosen the right medium for your content, balancing impact with resource constraints?

• Are your stories truthful and aligned with sustainability principles?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Content & Stories concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. Your content and stories goals are reflecting your organisation's goals and user's needs.

2. Your content and stories are created and structured based on your understanding of how users think and speak about a subject.

3. Your content and stories have clear calls to action. You know exactly what you want your users to do after reading.

4. You have chosen your content and stories medium adequately in function of your type of story as well as resources, like time and money.

5. Your content and stories are truthful and communicate about sustainability.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Conversation - Content and Stories by Laurent Bouty

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores indicate that your content and stories are disconnected from your goals, fail to meet user needs, or lack clarity and credibility. These issues can lead to disengagement, confusion, and mistrust. Immediate action is needed to realign your storytelling with audience expectations and organizational values.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects partial alignment of your content and storytelling efforts with user needs and organizational goals. While some aspects may be effective, gaps remain in structure, messaging, or authenticity. Additional effort is required to refine your approach and ensure consistent impact.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores suggest that your content and stories are well-aligned with organizational goals, user needs, and sustainability principles. They are structured effectively, include clear CTAs, and leverage the right mediums to maximize engagement and impact.

Case study: Green Clean’s Content & Stories

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean’s content is generic and fails to connect with its audience. The brand uses overly technical language that alienates users and lacks clear CTAs, making it unclear what actions customers should take after engaging with the content.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean’s content addresses some user needs but lacks consistency and focus. For example, while blog articles discuss sustainability, the storytelling is not user-centric, and calls to action are vague or absent, limiting engagement.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean creates compelling content that reflects user concerns about sustainability and provides actionable insights. Stories about families using eco-friendly cleaning solutions are shared through engaging videos on social media, with clear CTAs to subscribe to the brand’s services. The content is authentic, transparent, and highlights the brand’s commitment to sustainability.

Conclusion

The Content & Stories sub-dimension is vital for crafting narratives that connect with your audience, inspire action, and reinforce your brand’s values. By aligning storytelling with organizational goals, user needs, and sustainability principles, businesses can create impactful content that fosters trust, loyalty, and engagement.

Sources

1. Download first chapter of ebook on content here

2. Download ebook on content: https://qualifio.com/blog/en/content-marketing-professional-practical-guide/

3. Ultimate guide of storytelling (Hubspot), https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/storytelling

More on the Marketing Canvas

Originally published August 2019, updated December 2020

Marketing Canvas - Listening to

Last update: 06/12/2024

In a nutshell

The Listening To sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas focuses on the systematic collection and analysis of customer voices (Voice of Customer, or VOC) to understand their perceptions, needs, and expectations. By implementing a robust VOC system, businesses can ensure they listen to what customers are saying about their brand and value proposition, enabling data-driven decisions and continuous improvement. This includes capturing customer feedback on sustainability, an increasingly critical aspect of modern business.

For example, Green Clean may use surveys, social media monitoring, and feedback forms to collect customer insights, helping refine its eco-friendly cleaning products and sustainability messaging.

Introduction

The Listening To sub-dimension within the Conversation category is about actively capturing and analyzing customer feedback to better understand their experiences and expectations. A strong VOC system ensures that businesses make decisions based on real customer data rather than assumptions, aligning their strategies with customer needs and preferences.

Listening effectively to customers enables brands to:

1. Build trust by showing customers their voices are heard.

2. Improve the customer journey by addressing pain points and unmet needs.

3. Strengthen their sustainability commitments by understanding customer expectations in this area.

What is Listening To?

Listening To involves the systematic capture, analysis, and application of customer feedback. Key elements include:

1. Comprehensive VOC System: Tools and processes to gather customer feedback across multiple channels.

2. Data-Driven Insights: Decisions based on accurate and objective data rather than assumptions.

3. Journey and Lifecycle Understanding: VOC systems tailored to specific points in the customer journey and lifecycle.

4. Multi-Technique Approach: Combining methods such as surveys, interviews, social media monitoring, and analytics.

5. Sustainability Insights: Capturing feedback on customer views regarding environmental and social responsibility.

For example:

• Green Clean might use a survey to understand customer satisfaction with its eco-friendly packaging while also analyzing social media for sentiment around its sustainability claims.

“Listening to the needs of your customers isn’t an optional exercise; it’s mandatory. Even if you don’t intend to differentiate on customer experience (and you’re in a small minority if so), the value of listening to customers is real, measurable, and immediate.” CMO.com

Listening To: an in-depth perspective

To create an effective VOC process, businesses must:

1. Establish a VOC System: Implement systems to capture customer feedback across all relevant touchpoints.

2. Leverage Data-Driven Processes: Use advanced analytics to eliminate assumptions and focus on actionable insights.

3. Understand the Customer Journey: Tailor feedback mechanisms to reflect the unique needs and touchpoints of the customer lifecycle.

4. Combine Techniques: Use a mix of qualitative and quantitative research methods for a comprehensive understanding.

5. Focus on Sustainability: Ensure that customer feedback includes views on sustainability, a key driver of modern consumer behavior.

For instance:

• Green Clean could use feedback forms at checkout, analyze product reviews for sustainability comments, and track brand mentions on social media to capture a holistic view of customer perceptions.

Translating listening to into action

To listen effectively to customers, businesses need a structured and consistent approach:

• Design Your VOC System: Identify key touchpoints and feedback mechanisms across the customer journey.

• Implement Data Analytics: Ensure your VOC process is data-driven and includes tools to analyze qualitative and quantitative feedback.

• Integrate Sustainability: Include questions and feedback opportunities focused on environmental and social impact.

Questions to consider:

• Have you set up a comprehensive VOC system to capture customer feedback across multiple channels?

• Is your VOC process entirely data-driven, avoiding assumptions at every stage?

• Does your VOC system reflect an in-depth understanding of the customer journey and lifecycle?

• Are you using a variety of techniques to gather and validate customer feedback?

• Does your VOC system capture your customers’ views on sustainability effectively?

But listening is not the same as understanding. How you listen, and to whom you listen, is critical. Even a smart, high-end business can be led astray by misunderstanding the strengths and weaknesses of different customer feedback channels. HBR[2]

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Listening To concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have set a VOC system that captures everything that customers are saying about your brand and your value proposition.

2. Your entire VOC process is data-driven, and at no point are you making any assumptions.

3. Your VOC process is based on an in-depth knowledge of your user's journey and customer lifecycle.

4. You are using a few different techniques together to ensure you're getting the most that you can from your research.

5. Your VOC system captures your customers' views on sustainability.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Conversation - Listening To

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores indicate significant gaps in your VOC process, such as a lack of data-driven decision-making, insufficient understanding of the customer journey, or a failure to address sustainability. These shortcomings may result in missed opportunities to align with customer expectations and improve brand perception. Immediate action is needed to develop a structured VOC approach.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects partial implementation or limited effectiveness of your VOC system. While some processes may exist, they are not comprehensive or data-driven enough to provide actionable insights. Additional effort is needed to refine your VOC strategy and incorporate sustainability feedback.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores suggest that your VOC system is robust, comprehensive, and data-driven. It effectively captures feedback at all relevant touchpoints, aligns with the customer journey, and includes insights on sustainability. This ensures you are well-equipped to adapt to customer needs, improve experiences, and strengthen brand loyalty.

Case study: Green Clean’s VOC system

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean lacks a structured VOC system, relying on anecdotal feedback or assumptions. The brand misses key insights into customer needs, such as the demand for more refill options, and fails to capture sustainability-related feedback, weakening its eco-friendly positioning.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean has implemented some feedback mechanisms, such as a customer satisfaction survey, but these are not integrated into a comprehensive VOC system. The feedback collected is limited in scope, failing to address the full customer journey or provide meaningful insights into sustainability.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean has a robust VOC system that captures feedback across multiple channels, including surveys, product reviews, and social media. The system is fully data-driven, with advanced analytics identifying trends and customer pain points. Sustainability feedback is a core component, helping the brand continuously refine its eco-friendly initiatives.

Conclusion

The Listening To sub-dimension is essential for understanding and responding to customer needs, preferences, and expectations. A comprehensive, data-driven VOC system that integrates sustainability insights enables businesses to make informed decisions, enhance the customer journey, and strengthen brand loyalty. By actively listening to customers, brands can stay ahead of the curve and build lasting relationships.

Sources

1. Hubspot, 12 Voice of the Customer Methodologies To Generate a Goldmine of Customer Feedback, https://blog.hubspot.com/service/voice-of-the-customer-methodologies

2. Harvard Business Review, 2015, Everyone Says They Listen to Their Customers—Here’s How to Really Do It, https://hbr.org/2015/10/everyone-says-they-listen-to-their-customers-heres-how-to-really-do-it

3. McKinsey, Are you really listening to what your customers are saying?, https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/operations/our-insights/are-you-really-listening-to-what-your-customers-are-saying

4. Futurelab, Your VoC Programme is underperforming - and you know it, https://www.futurelab.net/slide/your-voc-programme-underperforming-and-you-know-it

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Marketing Canvas by Laurent Bouty

Marketing Canvas - Magic

Last update: 06/12/2024

In a nutshell

The Magic sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas is about creating exceptional moments in the customer journey that go beyond functionality. By removing obstacles, reducing stress, and delivering sensory delight, brands can elevate the customer experience and foster emotional connections. When combined with sustainability, these moments become transformative, leaving a lasting impression.

For instance, Green Clean might make its eco-friendly cleaning products a magical part of the customer journey by offering beautifully designed, refillable containers and a seamless subscription service that eliminates hassle.

Introduction

The Magic sub-dimension within the Journey category focuses on enhancing the customer experience by creating memorable, delightful, and impactful interactions. It’s not just about solving problems—it’s about exceeding expectations, protecting customers from stress, and delivering experiences that elevate their sense of identity and well-being. Infusing sustainability into these moments further strengthens the brand’s emotional resonance with its audience.

Exceptional customer experiences transform mundane interactions into magical ones, fostering loyalty and advocacy.

What is Magic?

Magic refers to the unexpected, delightful elements that enhance the customer journey. These moments are carefully crafted to:

1. Eliminate Friction: Identify and reduce obstacles or points of stress in the customer journey.

2. Deliver Comfort and Reassurance: Protect customers from uncertainty or anxiety.

3. Delight the Senses: Provide sensory pleasure, such as appealing visuals, sounds, or textures.

4. Elevate Status: Make customers feel special, appreciated, or empowered.

5. Integrate Sustainability: Create magical moments that are environmentally and socially responsible.

For example:

• Friction Reduction: Green Clean provides auto-refill options to ensure customers never run out of cleaning supplies.

• Sensory Delight: Using naturally scented, eco-friendly products that enhance the cleaning experience.

• Elevated Status: Highlighting the customer’s role in supporting sustainability through their purchase.

Magic: an in-depth perspective

To create magical customer experiences, brands must:

1. Remove Obstacles: Identify pain points in the customer journey and minimize them to reduce undue effort.

2. Protect Customers from Stress: Offer clarity and reassurance at every touchpoint, eliminating confusion and uncertainty.

3. Delight the Senses: Infuse the customer journey with sensory experiences that engage and uplift.

4. Elevate Customer Status: Recognize and celebrate customers in ways that make them feel valued and important.

5. Prioritize Sustainable Magic: Reduce the environmental impact of creating magical moments while ensuring they align with the brand’s sustainability goals.

For instance:

• Stress-Free Experience: Green Clean ensures clear, concise instructions for using its products, reducing confusion.

• Sensory Appeal: Beautifully designed packaging and refreshing, natural scents create a pleasant experience.

• Sustainability: All magical moments, such as eco-friendly rewards programs, are designed with minimal environmental impact.

Translating Magic into action

Crafting magical moments requires a blend of creativity, customer insight, and operational efficiency. Brands must consistently deliver experiences that surprise and delight while aligning with their values.

Questions to consider:

• Have you identified and reduced obstacles in your customer journey to minimize undue energy expenditure?

• How effectively do you eliminate confusion, uncertainty, and anxiety in your customer interactions?

• Are your customer experiences designed to delight the senses and create memorable moments?

• Do your interactions elevate your customers’ status, making them feel valued and appreciated?

• How have you integrated sustainability into your magical moments to ensure they are impactful and responsible?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Magic concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have identified obstacles across your customer journey and have reduced them where customers are expending undue energy.

2. You have eliminated confusion, uncertainty, and anxiety across your customer journey. Your customers are protected from stressful situations.

3. You have delighted the senses of your customer, as they all look for sensory pleasure (from delicious food to relaxing music).

4. You have provided a customer experience that elevates your customers' status.

5. You reduced the social and environmental impact of your efforts to create moments of truth and made sustainable moments magical.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Journey - Magic

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores indicate that your customer journey is filled with obstacles, stress points, or uninspired interactions. These gaps diminish customer satisfaction and loyalty. Immediate action is required to reduce friction, alleviate stress, and introduce sensory and emotional elements that create memorable experiences.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects partial success in delivering magical moments. While some aspects of the journey may be effective, others lack the delight, clarity, or sustainability required to make them impactful. Further refinement is needed to enhance the emotional and sensory dimensions of the experience.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores suggest that your customer journey consistently removes friction, protects customers from stress, and delivers delightful, sustainable experiences that elevate their status. These magical moments strengthen emotional connections with your brand, fostering loyalty and advocacy.

Case study: Green Clean’s Magic

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean’s customer journey is filled with obstacles, such as unclear product usage instructions and difficult navigation on its website. Customers feel frustrated and undervalued, with no sensory or emotional engagement to make the experience enjoyable.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean addresses some customer needs but fails to consistently deliver magical moments. For example, while the packaging design is visually appealing, the online ordering process is cumbersome, and sustainability claims are not clearly communicated, leaving customers with a mixed experience.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean delivers a seamless and delightful experience. Its website provides easy navigation and clear instructions, while the unboxing experience features eco-friendly, beautifully designed packaging. Customers are celebrated through personalized thank-you messages and loyalty rewards, reinforcing their status as contributors to sustainability.

Conclusion

The Magic sub-dimension is about turning ordinary customer interactions into extraordinary moments. By addressing obstacles, eliminating stress, and delivering sensory and emotional delight, brands can create lasting impressions. When combined with sustainability, these magical moments not only enhance customer satisfaction but also align with modern values, strengthening the brand’s reputation and loyalty.

Sources

1. Matt Watkinson, Book, The 10 Principles Behind Great Customer Experiences.

2. Google, Zero Moment of Truth, https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/marketing-resources/micro-moments/zero-moment-truth/

3. Brian Solis, 2013, Ultimate Moment of Truth and the art of engagement, https://www.briansolis.com/2013/11/the-ultimate-moment-of-truth-and-the-art-of-engagement/

4. customer experience.io, Great Customer Experiences Are Effortless, https://medium.com/@_cxio/great-customer-experiences-are-effortless-2dea2f300d4e

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Marketing Canvas - Channels

Last update: 5/12/2024

In a Nutshell

The Channels sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas focuses on the platforms and touchpoints through which customers interact with your brand. An effective channel strategy ensures that customers can access relevant and personalized experiences seamlessly, whether physical or digital, while maintaining consistency and minimizing environmental impact.

For instance, Green Clean might use both physical stores and an e-commerce platform, ensuring that customers have access to personalized product recommendations, consistent information, and eco-friendly packaging, regardless of the channel they choose.

Introduction

The Channels sub-dimension in the Journey category is essential for creating seamless and engaging customer interactions. Channels serve as the interface between your brand and your customers, facilitating communication, transactions, and service delivery. A well-orchestrated channel strategy not only meets customer expectations but also enhances their experience by ensuring relevance, personalization, and sustainability.

Effective channels are not just a means of delivering your value proposition—they are integral to shaping the overall customer journey and reinforcing your brand’s values.

What are channels?

Channels are the pathways and platforms through which customers interact with your brand. These can include:

1. Physical Channels: Retail stores, kiosks, in-person consultations.

2. Digital Channels: Websites, mobile apps, social media, and email.

3. Omnichannel Integration: The seamless connection of physical and digital channels to create a unified customer experience.

Effective channels:

• Adapt to the customer’s context at each moment.

• Offer personalized and seamless interactions.

• Deliver consistent, accurate, and real-time information.

• Ensure orchestration across platforms, avoiding silos.

• Minimize social and environmental impact.

For example:

• Physical Channel: Green Clean’s eco-friendly cleaning products are available at local stores with clear labeling.

• Digital Channel: The brand’s app provides personalized recommendations and subscription services.

• Omnichannel: Customers can browse online, pick up in-store, or arrange delivery with eco-friendly packaging.

Channels: an in-depth perspective

To optimize channel performance, businesses must:

1. Adapt to Context: Ensure customers can access the most relevant channel based on their needs at each moment.

2. Enable Omnichannel Integration: Provide a unified experience across physical and digital platforms, avoiding disjointed interactions.

3. Maintain Consistency and Accuracy: Deliver real-time, useful, and personalized information across all channels.

4. Orchestrate Seamlessly: Connect all channels to allow customers to transition smoothly between them.

5. Focus on Sustainability: Optimize physical and digital channels to reduce environmental impact and promote social responsibility.

For example:

• Customer Context: Green Clean offers an app that helps customers locate nearby stockists or order online for delivery.

• Omnichannel: The app integrates with in-store experiences, allowing customers to scan products for additional information or place orders for out-of-stock items.

• Sustainability: All digital communications are optimized to minimize energy use, and physical deliveries are made using eco-friendly packaging.

Translating channels into action

An effective channel strategy requires alignment with customer expectations, brand values, and operational efficiency:

• Customer Context: Identify customer needs and ensure channels are available and relevant at each stage of their journey.

• Orchestration: Integrate all channels to avoid silos and create a seamless experience.

• Sustainability: Incorporate eco-friendly practices in both physical and digital channels to reduce the brand’s environmental footprint.

Questions to consider:

• Are your channels tailored to your customers’ specific context and needs at every moment?

• Do your physical and digital channels offer clear, personalized, and seamless interactions?

• Is the information shared across channels consistent, real-time, personalized, useful, and accurate?

• Have you orchestrated your channels to eliminate silos, ensuring customers can navigate seamlessly?

• How do your channels optimize social and environmental impact?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Channels concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. Your customers can use the most relevant channel in function of their specific context at each moment.

2. Your channels are physical and digital. You provide clear, personalized, and seamless interactions, anywhere, anytime.

3. Information captured or shared in your channels is consistent, real-time, personalized, useful, and accurate.

4. You have orchestrated all your channels, and there is no silo between them. Your customers can navigate seamlessly through them at each moment.

5. You optimize the social and environmental impact of your physical and digital channels.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Journey - Channels by Laurent Bouty

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores indicate significant gaps in your channel strategy, such as disjointed experiences, inconsistent information, or poor adaptation to customer context. These gaps can lead to customer frustration, weakened brand perception, and missed opportunities to promote sustainability. Immediate action is required to enhance channel integration and alignment.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects partial alignment or incomplete execution of your channel strategy. While some elements may be effective, inconsistencies or silos between channels may hinder a seamless customer experience. Additional efforts are needed to fully integrate channels and optimize their social and environmental impact.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores suggest that your channels are well-orchestrated, tailored to customer context, and consistently deliver personalized, accurate information. Your strategy integrates physical and digital channels seamlessly, enhancing customer satisfaction while promoting sustainability.

Case study: Green Clean’s channels

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean’s channels are poorly coordinated, with no integration between its website and physical stores. Customers experience inconsistent information and limited options for switching between channels, leading to frustration and disengagement.

• Surface Understanding (0): Green Clean offers basic functionality across its channels, such as a website and in-store availability, but fails to fully integrate them. While customers can purchase products online or in-store, they cannot seamlessly transition between these options, and sustainability efforts are minimal.

• Deep Understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean delivers a fully integrated channel strategy. Customers can explore products online, check in-store availability, and order for delivery or pick-up seamlessly. The brand provides consistent, personalized information across all touchpoints, while minimizing environmental impact through eco-friendly packaging and sustainable delivery practices.

Conclusion

The Channels sub-dimension is critical for delivering seamless, customer-centric interactions that align with brand values and sustainability goals. By integrating physical and digital channels, maintaining consistency and accuracy, and optimizing environmental impact, businesses can create a cohesive and impactful customer journey.

Sources

1. Wikipedia, Omnichannel, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omnichannel

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Marketing Canvas - Experience

Last update: 03/12/2024

In a nutshell

The Experience sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas emphasizes how your brand interacts with customers at each moment of their journey. It ensures that every response is tailored to customer identity, goal-oriented, consistent, clear, and aligned with sustainability. A well-designed experience fosters trust, loyalty, and satisfaction, creating a seamless connection between the customer and the brand.

For instance, Green Clean might ensure that every customer interaction—from website navigation to product use—reflects its commitment to eco-friendliness, customer care, and reliability.

Introduction

The Experience sub-dimension within the Journey category focuses on the quality and consistency of your brand’s interactions across all customer touchpoints. It ensures that your brand provides meaningful, goal-driven answers tailored to customer expectations and values. Delivering exceptional experiences is essential for building trust, enhancing satisfaction, and nurturing long-term relationships.

Experience goes beyond functionality; it aligns with customer identity, fulfills their objectives, and leaves a lasting impression.

What is experience?

Experience represents the totality of interactions customers have with your brand, encompassing:

1. Tailored Responses: Addressing customer needs and reflecting their identity.

2. Goal Fulfillment: Helping customers achieve their objectives at every touchpoint.

3. Consistency: Delivering the same level of quality and messaging across channels and moments.

4. Clarity and Reliability: Setting and meeting clear expectations for customers.

5. Sustainability Alignment: Demonstrating environmental and social responsibility throughout the customer journey.

For example:

• Before Purchase: Providing clear, personalized guidance on choosing the right product.

• During Purchase: Offering a smooth and intuitive buying process.

• After Purchase: Following up with useful tips, support, and opportunities for feedback.

Experience: an in-depth perspective

To deliver a high-quality customer experience, brands must:

1. Adapt to Customer Identity: Understand and reflect customer values, preferences, and expectations in every interaction.

2. Focus on Customer Goals: Ensure that every response aligns with and supports customer objectives.

3. Ensure Consistency: Provide a seamless experience across all touchpoints, from marketing to post-purchase support.

4. Set and Meet Clear Expectations: Communicate what customers can expect and deliver consistently to build trust.

5. Embed Sustainability: Highlight and act on your commitment to sustainable practices at every stage.

For example:

• Customer Identity: Green Clean recognizes that its customers value health and eco-friendliness and tailors messaging to highlight these benefits.

• Goal Achievement: The brand ensures its products deliver effective cleaning without harmful chemicals, fulfilling customer expectations.

• Consistency: Its eco-friendly mission is evident across packaging, advertising, and customer support.

• Clear Expectations: Green Clean provides transparent product usage instructions and reliable delivery timelines.

• Sustainability: All interactions reinforce the brand’s commitment to reducing environmental impact.

Translating experience into action

Creating exceptional experiences requires a structured approach:

• Understand Customer Expectations: Use research and feedback to tailor responses to customer identity and goals.

• Map the Customer Journey: Identify touchpoints and ensure consistent, goal-driven interactions.

• Align with Sustainability: Integrate environmentally and socially responsible practices into every customer experience.

Questions to consider:

• Are your brand responses tailored to your customers’ identity at each touchpoint?

• Does your brand help customers achieve their goals in every interaction?

• Are your responses consistent across time, channels, and moments?

• Do you set clear expectations and deliver consistently to meet them?

• How does your brand incorporate sustainability into the customer experience?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Experience concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. For each moment, your brand answer has been adapted to your customers' identity.

2. For each moment, your brand answer has helped customers to achieve their goals.

3. For each moment, your brand answer is consistent in time and space, leaving nothing to chance.

4. For each moment, your brand answer has clear expectations and delivers it consistently.

5. For each moment, your brand answer is compatible with the concept of sustainability.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Journey - Experience

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores indicate significant gaps in the quality and consistency of your brand’s customer experience. This may result in confusion, unmet expectations, and weak customer relationships. Immediate efforts are needed to improve customer alignment, goal orientation, and sustainability integration.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects partial execution or incomplete alignment of brand responses with customer expectations. While some aspects of the experience may be effective, inconsistencies or unclear messaging may hinder trust and satisfaction. Refinement is needed to ensure a cohesive and impactful experience.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores suggest that your brand consistently delivers tailored, reliable, and sustainable experiences. This ensures that customers feel understood, supported, and aligned with your values, fostering trust, loyalty, and advocacy.

Case study: Green Clean’s experience

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean fails to adapt its responses to customer identity or goals, providing inconsistent and unclear interactions. For instance, its advertising highlights sustainability, but product instructions lack clarity, creating confusion and mistrust.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean delivers partially effective experiences. While its packaging reflects eco-friendliness, its website and customer support fail to align with these values consistently, leaving customers with mixed impressions.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean ensures that every touchpoint reflects its eco-friendly mission and supports customer objectives. Its website provides personalized product recommendations, packaging is fully sustainable, and customer support offers clear, consistent answers. These efforts create a seamless and satisfying experience that builds trust and loyalty.

Conclusion

The Experience sub-dimension is critical for ensuring your brand delivers consistent, meaningful, and sustainable interactions throughout the customer journey. By tailoring your responses to customer identity, supporting their goals, and maintaining clear and reliable messaging, you can enhance satisfaction and build stronger, lasting relationships with your audience.

Sources

1. Matt Watkinson, Book, The 10 Principles Behind Great Customer Experiences.

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Marketing Canvas by Laurent Bouty

Marketing Canvas - Moments

Last update: 4/12/2024

In a nutshell

The Moments sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas focuses on identifying and understanding the critical points in the customer journey before, during, and after engaging with your value proposition. These moments capture customer actions, thoughts, and emotions, revealing their objectives and pain points. Understanding these moments helps businesses design experiences that resonate with customers, foster loyalty, and improve satisfaction.

For example, Green Clean might analyze moments such as researching eco-friendly cleaning products, comparing options, purchasing a product, and using it at home. By understanding what customers think, feel, and do at each stage, Green Clean can tailor its messaging, support, and product experience.

Introduction

The Moments sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas is part of the Journey category, focusing on mapping the customer’s experience with your brand. Moments are the key touchpoints where customers interact with your value proposition and form impressions of your brand. By understanding these moments in detail, you can align your strategies to meet customer expectations and create memorable experiences.

Unlike other elements that focus on broad strategies, Moments zooms into the specific instances that shape customer perceptions, ensuring that your value proposition delivers value consistently.

What are moments?

Moments are the specific instances in the customer journey where they engage with your brand or value proposition. These can occur before, during, or after a purchase, encompassing everything from initial awareness to post-purchase advocacy.

For example:

• Before Purchase: Researching sustainable cleaning products online.

• During Purchase: Comparing Green Clean to competitors and making a buying decision.

• After Purchase: Using the product and deciding whether to repurchase or recommend it.

Moments are characterized by:

1. Customer Observations: Based on real customer behavior and feedback.

2. Actions, Thoughts, and Feelings: Capturing what customers do, think, and feel at each touchpoint.

3. Customer Objectives: Understanding the goals customers aim to achieve during each moment.

Moments: an in-depth perspective

Mapping moments requires detailed insights into customer behavior, focusing on:

1. Observations and Identity: Moments must reflect real customer behaviors and identities, gathered through interviews and observations.

2. Comprehensive Coverage: Identifying all relevant moments before, during, and after engaging with your value proposition.

3. Customer Emotions and Actions: Capturing the thoughts, feelings, and actions of customers at each stage.

4. Customer Objectives: Understanding what customers aim to achieve during each moment and aligning your strategy accordingly.

For example:

• Observations: Green Clean might discover that customers feel overwhelmed by the variety of “eco-friendly” claims during research.

• Emotions: Customers may feel relief when they find a transparent and trustworthy brand.

• Actions: Comparing labels or searching for certifications like “EcoCert.”

• Objectives: Finding a safe and sustainable cleaning solution for their family.

Mental Models - Moments in the Marketing Canvas

Translating moments into action

To enhance the customer experience, businesses must identify and refine the moments that matter most to their audience. This involves:

• Mapping the Journey: Defining moments across all stages of the customer journey.

• Aligning with Objectives: Ensuring each moment supports the customer’s goals and minimizes friction.

• Optimizing Touchpoints: Improving interactions to meet customer expectations and create positive experiences.

Questions to consider:

• Have you based your moments on real customer observations and interviews?

• Have you identified moments before, during, and after the purchase?

• Do you understand what your customers think, feel, and do at each moment?

• Have you clearly identified the objectives your customers aim to achieve during each moment?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Moments concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. Your moments have been defined based on customer observations and interviews. It reflects his/her identity.

2. You have identified all moments before, during, and after buying your value proposition.

3. For each moment, you have clearly identified what your customers think, feel, and do.

4. For each moment, you have clearly identified what are the customer objectives.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Journey - Moments

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores indicate a lack of understanding or incomplete mapping of customer moments. This may result in missed opportunities to address customer needs, leading to friction in the journey and reduced satisfaction. Immediate action is needed to observe, analyze, and map customer behaviors more effectively.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects partial insights or an incomplete understanding of customer moments. While you may have identified some key touchpoints, gaps remain in addressing customer thoughts, feelings, or objectives. Further research and refinement are required to create a comprehensive journey map.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores suggest that you have a thorough understanding of customer moments and have effectively mapped their actions, thoughts, feelings, and objectives. This deep insight allows you to create seamless, satisfying experiences that align with customer expectations and foster loyalty.

Case study: Green Clean’s moments

• Misaligned Understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean fails to map critical customer moments, focusing only on the purchase stage. The brand overlooks key interactions, such as research or post-purchase usage, resulting in a disconnected customer experience that fails to meet expectations.

• Surface Understanding (0): Green Clean identifies some customer moments but does not fully capture customer thoughts, feelings, or objectives. For example, while the brand recognizes that customers compare products, it does not address the emotional stress of choosing among eco-friendly options.

• Deep Understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean comprehensively maps customer moments, from initial awareness to post-purchase advocacy. By identifying what customers think, feel, and do at each stage, the brand tailors its messaging, simplifies decision-making, and provides ongoing support. For instance, Green Clean offers an online guide to decoding eco-labels, addressing customer stress during the research phase and aligning with their objective of making informed choices.

Conclusion

The Moments sub-dimension is essential for understanding the key touchpoints that shape the customer journey. By observing real customer behavior, identifying actions, emotions, and objectives, and refining interactions, businesses can create seamless and satisfying experiences. A well-mapped journey fosters loyalty, trust, and advocacy, ensuring your value proposition resonates with customers at every stage.

Sources

1. Mental Models, Wikipedia, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mental_model

2. Google, Micro-Moments, https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/marketing-resources/micro-moments/micro-moments-understand-new-consumer-behavior/

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Marketing Canvas - Proofs

Last update: 8/11/2024

In a nutshell

The Proofs sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas focuses on the evidence and validation that support your value proposition. Proofs help build trust and credibility by demonstrating how your offering delivers on its promises, reducing customer uncertainty and reinforcing your brand’s reputation. This evidence may include testimonials, case studies, certifications, third-party endorsements, and other trust-building tools.

For example, Green Clean might use certifications like "Certified Organic" or endorsements from environmental organizations to validate its claims of sustainability and safety, reassuring customers of its commitment to quality and eco-conscious practices.

Introduction

The Proofs sub-dimension is a vital element of the Value Proposition category in the Marketing Canvas. It addresses the need to substantiate your claims with clear and credible evidence. In an age of increasing skepticism, especially around sustainability claims, providing proof is critical to gaining customer trust, avoiding greenwashing, and reinforcing your brand's reputation.

Proofs help bridge the gap between what a brand promises and what customers believe, ensuring alignment and confidence in your value proposition.

What are proofs?

Proofs are the tangible and credible elements that validate your value proposition, providing customers with the confidence to trust and invest in your offering. These can include:

• Operational Context: Demonstrations, examples, or case studies that show your value proposition in action.

• Clarification Tools: Detailed explanations, technical specifications, or visual aids that reassure customers about your product or service.

• Third-Party Endorsements: Recognized certifications, awards, or endorsements from trusted authorities.

• Brand Reputation: References to your brand’s history, achievements, or well-known attributes.

• Greenwashing Avoidance: Ensuring that your claims are transparent, accurate, and verifiable.

For instance, Green Clean might showcase customer testimonials, certifications like “EcoCert,” and its long-standing reputation for sustainable innovation to provide robust proof of its eco-friendly claims.

Laurent Bouty - Marketing Canvas Method - Proofs

Proofs: an in-depth perspective

To effectively reinforce your value proposition, your proofs must:

1. Show Operational Relevance: Provide real-world examples or demonstrations of how your product delivers value.

2. Reassure Through Clarity: Offer clear explanations or visualizations that address customer concerns.

3. Leverage Trusted Endorsements: Highlight third-party validations or certifications that strengthen credibility.

4. Reference Brand Reputation: Connect your value proposition to widely acknowledged elements of your brand’s history or achievements.

5. Maintain Integrity: Ensure your claims are truthful, avoiding exaggeration or greenwashing.

For example:

• Operational Context: Green Clean shares a case study showing how its products helped a customer reduce household toxins by 80%.

• Third-Party Endorsements: Certifications like “Leaping Bunny” verify its cruelty-free claims.

• Reputation: Green Clean highlights its recognition as a leader in sustainable cleaning solutions.

Translating proofs into action

Providing proof requires an intentional strategy to communicate and display evidence across all customer touchpoints. From marketing materials to customer service, every interaction should reinforce your value proposition with credible and relevant proof points.

Questions to consider:

• Have you demonstrated your value proposition in an operational context that customers can easily relate to?

• Have you clarified how your value proposition works to reassure potential customers?

• Are your claims backed by trusted third-party endorsements?

• Do you reference widely acknowledged elements of your brand’s reputation to reinforce your value proposition?

• Are you transparent in your claims, ensuring you avoid any perception of greenwashing?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Proofs concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have presented your value proposition in an operational context that makes it possible to see the promised benefit(s).

2. You have provided elements to clarify exactly how the value proposition operates and reassure the customer.

3. Your value proposition is supported by means of a recognized third party: i.e., a celebrity ambassador, a label, or other trusted sources.

4. Your value proposition has made a direct reference to a widely acknowledged element of your brand's reputation.

5. Your value proposition avoids any form of Greenwashing.

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Marketing Canvas Method - Value Proposition - Proofs by Laurent Bouty

Interpretation of the scores

Negative scores (-1 to -3): Negative scores indicate a lack of sufficient or credible proof to support your value proposition. Customers may be skeptical of your claims, leading to reduced trust and missed opportunities to build loyalty. Immediate steps are needed to integrate credible and transparent evidence into your messaging.

A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects uncertainty or incomplete application of proof elements. While you may provide some evidence, it is not compelling or consistent enough to fully reassure customers. Further development of proof strategies is necessary to strengthen customer trust and confidence.

Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores suggest that your value proposition is well-supported by clear, credible, and impactful proof elements. Your evidence reassures customers, leverages third-party endorsements, aligns with your brand’s reputation, and avoids greenwashing. This strengthens customer trust and reinforces your value proposition.

Case study: Green Clean’s proofs

Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean fails to provide sufficient proof to support its claims, relying only on vague or generic statements. Without tangible evidence, such as certifications or case studies, customers are left skeptical of its eco-friendly promises, weakening trust and reducing purchase intent.

Surface understanding (0): Green Clean offers some proof, such as basic product descriptions or minimal certifications, but lacks consistency or depth. Customers may perceive the brand as credible but not fully reassured, limiting the impact of its value proposition.

Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean provides robust proof points, including certifications like “EcoCert,” testimonials from satisfied customers, and endorsements from environmental organizations. These elements demonstrate operational relevance, clarify its value proposition, and highlight the brand’s reputation as a sustainability leader, building strong trust and loyalty.

Conclusion

The Proofs sub-dimension is essential for building trust and credibility in your value proposition. By demonstrating your claims through operational context, third-party endorsements, and references to your brand’s reputation, you reassure customers and strengthen their confidence in your offering. Transparency and honesty are critical to avoiding greenwashing and maintaining integrity, ensuring that your proofs reinforce long-term loyalty and advocacy.

Sources

1. Neil Patel, Dominate your Market, https://neilpatel.com/blog/dominate-your-market/

2. HubSpot, Principles of Persuasion, https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/cialdini-principles-of-persuasion

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Marketing Canvas by Laurent Bouty

Marketing Canvas - Engagement

Last update: 30/10/2024

In a nutshell

Engagement sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas focuses on how effectively a business can capture and sustain the interest of its customers. Engagement goes beyond simply attracting attention; it requires creating lasting connections that drive active participation, loyalty, and advocacy. By understanding the factors that influence engagement, companies can design marketing strategies that foster meaningful interactions with their audience.

For example, an eco-friendly cleaning brand like Green Clean might engage customers by sharing content on sustainable living, offering loyalty rewards, or creating a community around environmental responsibility. This level of engagement helps deepen customer relationships and build a strong brand community.

Introduction

Engagement sub-dimension, within the Customer category of the Marketing Canvas, focuses on building and maintaining a connection with customers that drives ongoing interest and involvement. This connection is based on a combination of communication, value delivery, and emotional resonance, which are key to keeping customers engaged over the long term.

While Pains and Gains look at addressing customer frustrations and needs, Engagement emphasizes the importance of continuous, active interaction, aiming to build loyalty and foster a community around the brand.

In the marketing canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is “Engagement”, which falls under the CUSTOMER category.

What is engagement?

Engagement represents the emotional and behavioral commitment a customer has with a brand. This commitment might manifest as repeat purchases, sharing positive feedback, participating in brand events, or advocating for the brand. Engaging customers requires understanding their interests, delivering consistent value, and encouraging them to participate in a shared experience with the brand.

For example, Green Clean might engage its eco-conscious customers by:

• Providing resources on reducing household waste.

• Offering loyalty rewards for repeat purchases of eco-friendly products.

• Organizing community events focused on environmental sustainability.

Engagement is essential for building a brand community and transforming customers into advocates.

Engagement: an in-depth perspective

Engagement is about maintaining a two-way interaction between a brand and its customers. It requires businesses to understand what motivates their customers to stay connected and to respond proactively to their interests and feedback.

For example:

• Active Engagement: A customer who frequently interacts with Green Clean’s social media content or attends brand-hosted events feels a personal connection with the company’s mission.

• Passive Engagement: A customer may use Green Clean’s products without actively engaging with the brand’s content or events. Converting passive engagement into active participation can enhance loyalty and increase brand advocacy.

Understanding the depth and type of customer engagement helps businesses tailor their approaches to meet the specific preferences of their audience.

Tools for engagement: the NPS methodology

The NPS methodology segments customers into three groups based on their level of engagement: Promoters, Passives, and Detractors. Promoters are champions of your brand who will actively recommend your products or services. Detractors, on the other hand, may express dissatisfaction and may discourage others from interacting with your company. Passives fall in-between; they are neither actively promoting nor detracting from your brand.

The usefulness of NPS doesn't stop at categorizing customers. When you compare your NPS score with your competitors', you can gain valuable insights into your brand's standing in the market. This comparison can be achieved through an NPS study of your competitor's customer base or the broader market.

Translating engagement into action

To foster deep and lasting engagement, businesses should prioritize consistent, value-driven interactions that resonate with customer interests. Encouraging feedback, providing valuable resources, and fostering a sense of community can transform passive customers into loyal, actively engaged brand advocates.

Questions to consider:

• How do your customers prefer to engage with your brand?

• What types of content or interactions resonate most with your audience?

• How can you create opportunities for customers to share their experiences and become advocates?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Engagement concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have the right tools & systems at your disposal for measuring the engagement of your customer? e.g. NPS alike tools

2. The level of detractors amongst your customers is helping you achieve your goals.

3. The level of promoters amongst your customers is helping you achieve your goals.

4. You understand the role of sustainability in customer engagement and have aligned your strategies accordingly.

Marketing Canvas Method - Customers - Engagement by Laurent Bouty

Marketing Canvas Method - Customers - Engagement & Sustainability by Laurent Bouty

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): Suggest significant gaps in measuring and managing engagement. Detractors may be impacting your goals negatively, and promoters may not be effectively leveraged. Engagement strategies may lack alignment with sustainability principles.

• A score of zero (0): Reflects a functional but under-optimized engagement strategy. While tools and systems may exist, their use may not be systematic or effective, limiting overall impact.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Indicate a strong engagement strategy. Detractors are addressed effectively, promoters are empowered, and engagement efforts align with sustainability, driving loyalty and advocacy.

Case study: Green Clean’s Engagement strategy

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean lacks the tools to measure engagement and struggles to address customer dissatisfaction. Detractors outnumber promoters, harming the brand’s reputation, while sustainability efforts are absent from its engagement strategy.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean uses basic tools like surveys but lacks a cohesive approach to managing detractors and empowering promoters. Sustainability is a peripheral concern, limiting its appeal to eco-conscious customers.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean leverages NPS and behavioral data to track engagement effectively. It proactively resolves detractor concerns, encourages promoters to share positive reviews, and integrates sustainability into its messaging, fostering strong customer relationships.

Conclusion

The Engagement sub-dimension highlights the importance of measuring and optimizing customer interactions to build loyalty, encourage advocacy, and align with sustainability. A thoughtful engagement strategy ensures that detractors are addressed, promoters are empowered, and the brand remains relevant in an eco-conscious market.

Sources

1. Harvard Business Review, 2003, https://hbr.org/2003/12/the-one-number-you-need-to-grow

2. Moving Beyond NPS, Medium, https://link.medium.com/OHO1Mz6IGY

3. Hubspot, The ultimate guide to your Net Promoter Score (NPS)

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Marketing Canvas - Pains and Gains

Last update: 23/10/2024

The final edits focus on reviewing the scoring system and refining the Green Clean example.

In a nutshell

The Pains and Gains sub-dimension in the Marketing Canvas focuses on identifying the constraints (pains) that block your customers from solving their problems and the delights (gains) that you can provide by addressing these constraints. By thoroughly understanding the pain points and potential gains, businesses can deliver solutions that resonate with customer needs and create a more positive overall experience.

For example, Green Clean customers may experience pain from the use of harmful cleaning chemicals and the difficulty of finding eco-friendly options, but their gain would be the peace of mind that comes from knowing their home is clean and safe for both their family and the environment.

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is PAINS & GAINS, which falls under the CUSTOMER meta-dimension.

Introduction

The Pains and Gains sub-dimension is part of the Customer category in the Marketing Canvas. It focuses on understanding the constraints or barriers customers face when trying to accomplish their goals and the delights or positive outcomes they seek from resolving these pains. Identifying these elements helps businesses craft offerings that directly target customer frustrations while delivering satisfying results.

What is « pains & gains » ?

Pains are the blockers or frustrations that customers encounter when trying to achieve their goals. These pains can range from emotional concerns to practical obstacles that prevent progress.

Gains, on the other hand, represent the positive outcomes customers wish to achieve, including functional results (like efficiency or ease) and emotional or societal rewards (like feeling aligned with a cause or living up to their values).

For example, Green Clean customers may experience the following:

• Pains: Concerns over the health risks of traditional cleaning products, or the frustration of spending too much time cleaning.

• Gains: The peace of mind that comes from using eco-friendly products, or the satisfaction of contributing to a healthier environment.

Tools for Identifying Pains & Gains

Identifying your customer's Pains & Gains isn't a guessing game. Several tools and techniques can help you uncover these insights:

1. Customer Interviews & Surveys: Directly asking your customers about their experiences, frustrations, and delights related to your product or service is a simple yet effective way to identify Pains & Gains.

2. Focus Groups: This research method allows for an in-depth understanding of customer's perspectives. Hearing customers discuss their experiences can reveal Pains & Gains you might not have considered.

3. Customer Journey Mapping: This tool visualizes the process a customer goes through to achieve their JTBD, helping you identify potential Pains & Gains at each step.

4. Social Media Listening: Monitoring social media conversations about your brand or industry can yield insights into common complaints (Pains) and praises (Gains).

5. Feedback Analysis: Regularly review feedback from support tickets, product reviews, or any other customer touchpoint. This feedback often directly highlights Pains & Gains.

Let’s consider our example of Green Clean. Through a customer survey, Green Clean discovers that many customers are frustrated by the lack of clear instructions on how to responsibly dispose of the product packaging (a Pain). On the other hand, they find that customers appreciate the fresh, natural scent of their products (a Gain).

Translating Pains & Gains into Action

Addressing the pains that prevent customers from achieving their goals while also providing the gains they desire requires a comprehensive approach. Empathize with your customers’ experiences and remove the barriers standing in their way while ensuring your solutions offer clear benefits.

Questions to consider:

• What constraints block your customers from solving their problems?

• What annoys your customers during their interaction with your product or service?

• What could delight your customers and turn their experience into something positive?

• How can you measure your customers' engagement with sustainability goals?

Statements for self-assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the Pains and Gains concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have clearly identified constraints blocking your customer from solving their problem and feel comfortable addressing them.

2. You have clearly identified factors that annoy your customer during the job map and feel comfortable addressing them.

3. You have clearly identified factors that could delight your customer during the job map and feel comfortable addressing them.

4. Your identification method of factors that annoys or could delight your customers does explicitly assess sustainability. (NEW)

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Marketing Canvas Method - Customers - Pains and Gains

Interpretation of the scores

• Negative scores (-1 to -3): A negative score suggests a disconnection in your understanding of the constraints or annoyances your customers face. This indicates a lack of insight into the barriers blocking their progress or the gains they seek, which may lead to ineffective solutions.

• A score of zero (0): A neutral score reflects uncertainty or a basic awareness of your customers' pains and gains. While you may recognize that constraints and delights exist, you are not fully addressing them. More research is needed to develop a complete understanding.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores indicate a clear and thorough understanding of your customers' constraints and delights. You are confident in identifying and addressing the key pain points and gains, and you have the tools in place to measure customer engagement, especially in areas like sustainability.

Case study: Green Clean’s pains and gains

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): Green Clean fails to recognize the core constraints or frustrations their customers experience, such as concerns over the environmental impact of cleaning products. As a result, their services fall short of addressing the fundamental needs of their eco-conscious customers.

• Surface understanding (0): Green Clean has a partial understanding of customer pain points. While they acknowledge that customers want safer products, they do not fully grasp the extent of the annoyance or frustration customers feel about transparency in ingredients or sustainability claims. This limits their ability to fully delight their customers.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): Green Clean deeply understands both the constraints their customers face and the gains they seek. They recognize that their customers are concerned about using harmful chemicals and value transparency, eco-friendliness, and health. By addressing these constraints and providing clear benefits like peace of mind and environmental contribution, Green Clean fosters a loyal customer base aligned with their values.

Conclusion

Identifying and addressing the pains and gains of your customers is essential for delivering products and services that resonate with them on a deeper level. By focusing on removing the constraints that block progress and delivering meaningful delights, you can create long-lasting customer relationships and positive outcomes that extend beyond functional benefits.

Source

1. Value Proposition Canvas by Strategyzer, https://www.strategyzer.com/canvas/value-proposition-canvas

2. Outcome-Driven Innovation, Medium, https://jobs-to-be-done.com/outcome-driven-innovation-odi-is-jobs-to-be-done-theory-in-practice-2944c6ebc40e

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Marketing Canvas - Market and Economic Value

Economic value: what is it?

Economic value can be described as a measure of the benefit from a good or service to an economic agent. It is typically measured in units of currency. Another interpretation is that economic value represents the maximum amount of money an agent is willing and able to pay for a good or service. The economic value should not be confused with market value, which is the minimum amount a consumer will pay for a good or service. Thus, economic value is often greater than the market value. (Investopedia)

So in simple words, this notion of economic value will help you defining your price and indirectly your benefit. It is a subjective notion (except for past economists like Karl Marx) as it contains tangible and intangible value of the product. A coffee in beans as less value than drinking a coffee with your partner on a romantic place. Nespresso created more economic value by creating a new experience for coffee lover at home.

5 different economic values

Before deciding on your own marketing strategy, you should understand what the market is currently proposing to buyers! Based on the work done by Pine and Gilmore (HBR, The experience economy), we can identified 5 different types of offer:

1. Commodity: Buyers cannot differentiate between offers. It is often referred as commodity. The cheapest takes it all. I buy it because I need this (benzine, sugar, flour, …).

2. Product: Buyers have multiple offers that differentiate themselves on features (more of that, less of this, …) that can even create emotional differences for the buyer (make me younger, smarter, …). This is what we where and still use to see for fast moving consumer goods (chocolate, drinks, …) even if some brands are trying to elevate their product to experience by organising multiple stages (think about RedBull). I buy it because i use it.

3. Service:  Buyers receive a service in addition to the product they bought. Competitors differentiate themselves with these services (after-sales, analytics, …). I buy it because I need it and they help me using it.

4. Experience: Buyers are going through stages which are personal and potentially sensational. Products and services becomes commodities (we can find similar offer everywhere). Competitors differentiate themselves with experience (before, during and after purchase). Most of the companies are trying to build experience but few are really successful to achieve long term sustainable differentiation on this. I enjoy buying and using it and it is the reason why I bought it.

5. Transformational: Experiences are elevated from mere enjoyment to actual personal transformation. Buyers are looking to be different after the purchase and use of it. I am not buying running shoes, I become a runner! I buy it because it helps me to become someone different.

What does it mean for the Marketing Canvas Method?

When you analyse the context, just define where the market is today. The higher the market is on this curve, the higher the economic value is. When looking at your context (please use Market cards):

• Identify where your market is on the curve (1-5)

• Identify if one competitor is trying to move upward (game changer, challenger)?

• Identify where the market is on the product life cycle curve (Introduction to Decline)?

Curious

More on the method here

Buy our cards and discover our templates for your workshop here

Le Marché dans le Marketing Canvas

Marketing Strategy Design Cards

Dans l’enthousiasme de travailler sur sa stratégie marketing, on se précipite souvent et oublie l’importance de ce que je considère comme la première étape: la compréhension du marché dans lequel nous allons opérer (startup) ou nous opérons déjà (entreprise existante).

Les questions qu’il faut se poser sont les suivantes:

• Comment définir le marché?

• Comment mesurer le marché?

• Comment qualifier le marché?

Comment définir le marché?

Bien que la question puisse paraître simple et évidente, elle ne l’est pas.

Petit exemple: dans quel marché TESLA a-t-il décidé de se lancer avec son modèle S? La majorité des voitures électriques avant TESLA se situait dans un marché d’acheteurs urbains avec des petits déplacements. TESLA a privilégié le marché du luxe et plus particulièrement le marché des voitures sportives luxueuses dont la référence est … Porsche. En choisissant le marché, certaines constantes sont fixées telles que: le prix moyen (100k€ pour une voiture de sport de luxe) ou certaines caractéristiques clés du marché (performance, design, vitesse, …).

Comme illustré dans mon exemple, le marché conditionne certaines hypothèses de départ. On peut bien sur être un game changer et redéfinir ces règles toutefois elles restent pour l’acheteur un cadre de référence qu’il va utilisé pour comparer votre produit (lorsque vous louez une chambre chez AirbnB, vous comparez votre achat à une location dans un hotel, un gite ou un bed & breakfast).

Bien qu’il existe de nombreuses définitions d’un marché, celle que je préfère vient de Bill Aulet [1]. Il définit le marché en 3 règles:

1. Les clients dans le marché achètent tous des produits similaires.

2. Les clients dans le marché ont le même cycle d’achat et s’attendent à ce que les produits fournissent de la valeur d’une façon similaire.

3. Il y a du bouche à oreille entre les clients d’un même marché.

La première question est donc: Dans quel marché comptez-vous opérer?

Comment mesurer le marché?

Après avoir défini le marché dans le lequel vous allez opérer, il faut essayer de le mesurer afin de définir son potentiel et votre ambition. Une méthode provenant encore de l’entrepreneuriat s’appelle le TAM (pour Total Available Market), SAM (pour Serviceable Available Market) et SOM (Serviceable Obtainable Market) .

Derrière ces acronymes, ce cache des concepts assez simples:

• Le TAM correspond au marché total possible. Si on prend l’exemple de Airbnb cela correspondrait à toutes les locations de chambres dans le monde pour une année.

• le SAM correspond à la partie du marché où vous êtes actif (ou allez être actif si vous lancer votre activité). Le passage du TAM au SAM dépend de vos critères: géographique (là où vous êtes actifs), type de produit (ioS ou Android, premium ou cost), ...

• le SOM est votre objectif en part de marché. Combien de % du SAM voulez vous obtenir?

la seconde question est donc: quelle est la taille du marché ? 

Comment qualifier le marché?

Finalement, il vous reste à qualifier le marché. Qu’est ce que cela veut dire? Le marché a une vie et est dynamique comme un organisme vivant (il apparaît, grandit, se stabilise puis décline). Si vous ne comprenez pas l’etat du marché SAM dans lequel vous entrez, vous risquez de mal définir votre stratégie commerciale (le volume des ventes diffère entre chaque état).

Source: Wikipedia

La description ci-dessous provient de Wikipedia (https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycle_de_vie_(commerce))

1. Stade de lancement: Introduction du produit sur le marché

   • coûts élevés de production et de développement

   • faible volume de vente

   • pertes pour l'entreprise

   • prix élevés

2. Stade de croissance

   • coûts réduits par les économies d'échelles

   • croissance importante des volumes de vente

   • profits croissants pour l'entreprise et marges élevées

   • prix assurant une large part de marché

   • début de simplification du marché: les grandes entreprises achètent les PME innovantes

3. Stade de maturité

   • marges réduites, disparition des compétiteurs incapables d'économies d'échelle (absorption, retrait, faillite, oligopoles, stabilisation des parts de marché)coûts de production faibles, mais coûts de promotion commerciale et de services à la clientèle élevés

   • maximum des volumes de vente

   • forte sensibilité à la conjoncture

   • profits encore très importants mais stagnants

   • fortes segmentations : les gammes de produits se sont diversifiées pour répondre à une demande exigeante

   • tendance à la baisse des prix en raison de la concurrence

   • anticipation de produits de remplacement par la recherche et le développement

4. Stade de déclin

• diminution des ventes

• diminution des profits

• diminution des prix

• apparition de produits de remplacement

La dernière question est: quel est l’état du marché ?

Conclusion

En répondant à ces 3 questions clairement, vous aurez plus facile lorsque vous définirez votre stratégie commerciale. L’étape suivante dans l’exercice du Marketing Canvas est de définir la compétition.

Référence

1. Bill Aulet, Disciplined Entrepreneurship : 24 Steps to a Successful Startup, John Wiley & Sons (30 août 2013)

2. Cycle de vie, Wikipedia
   

Marketing Canvas - Job To Be Done

Last update: 16/10/2024

I have introduced a new evaluation framework for assessing Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) with a focus on sustainability. This topic is now integrated into the comprehensive marketing strategy assessment.

In a nutshell

"Job to be Done" (JTBD) is a pivotal concept in the Marketing Canvas, helping businesses to understand their customers' needs more precisely. The JTBD concept posits that customers buy products or services to fulfill a specific job or objective that goes beyond mere product functionality, including emotional and social aspects. Businesses must focus not on the product they sell, but on the job that their product is hired to do. A deep understanding of the customer's job can make marketing more effective and innovation more predictable. The JTBD framework involves identifying customers' unmet goals, constraints, and catalysts, which can lead to innovative and unique solutions.

A practical example is Green Clean, an eco-friendly cleaning company. Their customers' JTBD might not just be "getting a clean house," but also "maintaining a safe and healthy home environment," "reducing their carbon footprint," or "setting a positive example for their children about environmental responsibility." By understanding these broader jobs, Green Clean can tailor their services and marketing strategies more effectively.Introduction

In the Marketing Canvas

The Marketing Canvas is a powerful tool for entrepreneurs and non-marketers to build a robust marketing strategy. It consists of six meta-dimensions, each with four sub-dimensions, for a total of 24 sub-dimensions defining your Marketing Strategy. One of these sub-dimensions is JOB TO BE DONE (JTBD), which falls under the CUSTOMER meta-category

Introduction

"Job to be Done" is the inaugural concept in the Marketing Canvas, positioned under the Customer category. It serves as a litmus test to gauge your understanding of the people who buy, use, or may potentially purchase your products and services. Originating from the realms of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, this concept was first broached by Theodore Levitt in his ground-breaking article, "Marketing Myopia". He famously asserted, "People don't want a quarter-inch drill, they want a quarter-inch hole" (HBR, 1960).

Marketing Canvas by Laurent Bouty - Job To Be Done

What is Job To Be Done?

When devising your commercial strategy, it's paramount to understand the problems your customers are trying to solve or what they aim to achieve. This is where "Job-to-be-done" (JTBD) comes into play. Simply put, JTBD is the ultimate objective that inspires customers to buy products, services, or solutions.

The JTBD framework functions as a lens through which you can scrutinize the circumstances or problems that trigger customers to make purchase decisions. Customers are seldom swayed by what an "average" customer might do. Instead, they are more likely to buy products or services that can address a specific problem they are facing. Knowing the "job" that your customers are "hiring" a product or service for enables you to design and market products that precisely meet their needs.

A crucial aspect to remember is that JTBD is not an activity or a task (like listening to music). Rather, it encapsulates the broader purpose for which customers use a product or service.

Job To Be Done

JTBD: An In-Depth Perspective

Imagine a consumer progressing through life as they know it. Then, an opportunity for self-betterment presents itself, a chance to grow. If they find a product that helps them seize this opportunity, they can evolve into a better version of themselves. As Alan Klement puts it, "A Job To Be Done is the process a consumer goes through whenever she aims to transform her existing life-situation into a preferred one."

Thus, JTBD is about comprehending our inherent desire to evolve. This motivation changes slowly, and consequently, Jobs change slowly. However, products constantly evolve due to technological advancements that facilitate better solutions for our Jobs. Therefore, the focus should be on the JTBD and not the product itself or what the product does.

Tony Ulwick, who developed the JTBD concept, lays down nine key principles that govern the JTBD:

1. People buy products and services to get a “job” done.

2. Jobs have functional, emotional, and social aspects.

3. A Job-to-be-Done is consistent over time.

4. A Job-to-be-Done is independent of any particular solution.

5. Making the “job”, rather than the product or the customer, the unit of analysis leads to success.

6. Understanding the customer’s “job” makes marketing more effective and innovation more predictable.

7. People want products and services that help them get a job done better and/or more cheaply.

8. People prefer products and services that enable them to get the entire job done on a single platform.

9. Tying customer needs to the job-to-be-done makes innovation predictable.

A consumer goes along his life as he’s come to know it. Then things change. He is presented with an opportunity for self-betterment — that is, make changes so he can grow. When or if he finds a product that helps him realize that growth opportunity, he can evolve to that better version of himself he had imagined.

“A Job To Be Done is the process a consumer goes through whenever she aims to transform her existing life-situation into a preferred one.”

— JBTD - Alan Klement

Translating JTBD into Action

You must focus not on the product or solution you sell but on the job your customer has hired it for. The product or service they are using today might be satisfactory, but other alternatives could provide a better solution to their job tomorrow.

By observing your (potential) customer, strive to understand the problem they are trying to solve with the product (yours or an alternative). The more critical the job is to the customer, the more value you could potentially add with your solution.

The "Jobs-As-Progress" concept can

help answer several questions such as:

1. What triggers someone to buy a product for the first time?

2. How do consumers use markets to adapt in a changing world?

3. How do consumers shop and switch between products?

Understanding the 'why' behind their behavior can lead to innovative and unique solutions to their problems.

Tool(s) for JTBD

When mapping the key elements of JTBD, it's useful to separate functional outcomes and aspirations. Functional outcomes are tangible and measurable deliverables of a product or service, whereas aspirations carry significant personal value. For example, consider selling drinkable water. Evian promotes life-changing aspirations (live young) as part of their JTBD solution. So, the customer isn't drinking water just because they're thirsty, but because they want to stay young, with quenching thirst being a functional outcome.

In JTBD, we identify:

• Unmet Goals: Future experiences a consumer desires but cannot currently attain. These could be functional, emotional personal, or emotional social.

• Constraints: Factors that prevent consumers from progressing towards their unmet goals.

• Catalysts: Events that create or affect an unmet goal, constraint, or choice set.

Harvard Business School professor Clayton Christensen encapsulates it well, “Jobs aren’t just about function—they have powerful social and emotional dimensions."

Clayton Christensen, professor at Harvard Business School talks about the job to be done.

“When you start to understand the why, your mind is then open to think of creative and original ways to solve the problem.”

— JTBD - Alan Klement

Marketing Canvas - Job To Be Done

“Jobs aren’t just about function—they have powerful social and emotional dimensions.”

— HBR

Statements for Self-Assessment

For a comprehensive evaluation of your understanding and application of the "Job to be Done" concept, rate your agreement with the following statements on a scale from -3 (completely disagree) to +3 (completely agree):

1. You have clearly identified functional unmet goals and feel confident in addressing them.

2. You have clearly identified emotional personal unmet goals and feel confident in addressing them.

3. You have clearly identified emotional social unmet goals and feel confident in addressing them.

4. Your Job To Be Done is compatible with the concept of sustainability. (!!NEW!!)

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Marketing Canvas Method - Assessment - JTBD

Interpretation of the scores:

• Negative ccores (-1 to -3): These scores indicate that you disagree or strongly disagree with the statement, meaning you lack confidence in your understanding of the given dimension (whether functional, emotional, or sustainability-related). This suggests a significant gap in comprehending your customers' JTBD, potentially leading to missed opportunities for better alignment with their needs and expectations. A thorough reassessment is necessary to improve your understanding of these dimensions and adjust your strategies accordingly.

• Score of zero (0): A neutral score suggests that you are uncertain or only partially aware of your customers’ unmet goals in the specified area. While you may have a surface-level understanding, it lacks depth or clarity. This indicates a need for further research and analysis to enhance your understanding of how your customers' JTBD is evolving.

• Positive scores (+1 to +3): Positive scores indicate that you agree or strongly agree with the statement, meaning you have a clear and confident understanding of your customers' functional, emotional, or sustainability-related unmet goals. Higher scores demonstrate a well-developed knowledge, enabling you to tailor your products and marketing strategies effectively to resonate with your customers' JTBD.

The Green Clean use case

Imagine an eco-friendly cleaning company, Green Clean. The JTBD for Green Clean's customers extends beyond "getting a clean house." It might also include emotional and social goals, such as "maintaining a safe and healthy home environment," "reducing their carbon footprint," or "setting a positive example for their children about environmental responsibility." Understanding these broader jobs helps Green Clean more effectively align its services and marketing strategies with their customers' needs.

• Misaligned understanding (-3, -2, -1): A negative score reflects disagreement with the statement that Green Clean understands how sustainability fits into their customers' JTBD. If Green Clean focuses solely on the functional aspect of cleaning and fails to recognize the importance of environmental concerns, it shows a significant disconnect from the broader aspirations of its customers. This lack of understanding limits their ability to connect with eco-conscious consumers and may lead to missed opportunities in marketing and service development.

• Surface understanding (0): A neutral score indicates uncertainty or a limited grasp of how sustainability factors into their customers’ JTBD. Green Clean may recognize that some customers care about sustainability but does not fully understand how central this is to their decision-making. For example, the company might be aware that environmental responsibility is part of their customers' goals but fails to grasp the emotional and social significance of this aspect. As a result, their understanding of how deeply customers prioritize sustainability remains superficial, causing them to miss out on fully resonating with their audience’s aspirations.

• Deep understanding (+1, +2, +3): A positive score indicates agreement with the statement that Green Clean has a clear and deep understanding of the sustainability-driven goals in their customers' JTBD. Green Clean recognizes that sustainability is not just a peripheral concern but a core driver of their customers' decisions. The company understands that their customers seek to make environmentally responsible choices that align with broader personal values, such as reducing waste and contributing to a greener future. This deep understanding allows Green Clean to align their business with the emotional and social drivers behind their customers' JTBD, fostering loyalty and trust.

Sources

1. The Christensen Institute

2. Strategyn

3. The innovators Toolkit

4. JBTD - Alan Klement (www.alanklement.com)

5. The Fundamentals of Jobs-to-be-Done Theory (customerthink)

6. Know the Two — Very — Different Interpretations of Jobs to be Done 

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