The Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) framework is a way to understand why customers buy—or don’t buy—certain products. The core idea is simple: customers “hire” products or services to help them complete a specific job in their life. These ‘jobs’ aren’t necessarily tied to a category, industry, or brand. They're rooted in real-life problems people need to solve or goals they’re trying to achieve.

For example, someone buying a smoothie on their morning commute might not just want a drink—they might be hiring it as a quick breakfast, a pick-me-up, or even a replacement for something else they don’t have time for at home. Understanding the job at hand reveals more than just demographics; it highlights motivation and expectation.

Why JTBD Offers a New Lens for Innovation

Traditional market research methods often focus on what people are doing, but not why. JTBD helps fill that gap. Instead of sorting your audience by age, income, or usage habits, it looks at their circumstances and desired outcomes to segment based on purpose. This approach opens up a different kind of thinking—one that leads directly to opportunity identification and truly customer-focused solutions.

Core Elements of JTBD Thinking

• The Job: The progress or task the customer is trying to accomplish in a specific situation
• The Struggle: The pain points or challenges preventing them from achieving that goal today
• The Hiring Criteria: What the customer expects the solution to do or deliver to deem it successful

By framing your research around these elements, you move beyond surface-level behavior and into meaningful insight. Brands that use JTBD thinking are better equipped to drive product innovation, create competitive advantage, and build more relevant experiences.

At SIVO Insights, we often incorporate the JTBD framework as part of custom market research to help companies zoom out from product features and instead dive into context and intention. This translates into smarter roadmaps and consumer-centric strategy. It’s not just about creating a better product—it’s about solving a more valuable job.

One of the biggest strengths of the JTBD framework is its ability to surface needs your customers haven’t directly expressed. When you uncover the real job someone is trying to get done, you also discover pain points, workarounds, and areas of dissatisfaction that open the door to innovation.

Let’s take a fictional example: Imagine a company that makes note-taking apps. Traditional customer research might show that people want more features or integrations. But applying Jobs to Be Done thinking could uncover a deeper insight: many users are actually trying to “clear mental clutter quickly without losing track of tasks.” That’s a different job than “taking notes”—and it might inspire a new kind of tool altogether, like an idea triage system or a voice-to-action assistant.

Understanding the Struggle Behind the Solution

Unmet customer needs often lie in that messy space between intention and execution—the part where people feel friction, frustration, or forced compromise. JTBD research helps you zoom in on those moments.

Here’s what that might look like during a research process:

• Conducting interviews that explore real-life use situations rather than general preferences
• Asking questions focused on context, emotion, and workarounds (e.g. “What do you do when this option isn’t available?”)
• Mapping customer decisions from the point of need to the final action to identify breakdowns in satisfaction

Through this lens, businesses can identify product gaps, customer frustrations, and overlooked segments. The benefits of Jobs to Be Done framework for innovation stretch beyond making better products—they help teams align on purpose, prioritize the right features, and build for outcomes rather than assumptions.

Turning Unmet Needs into Innovation Opportunities

Once you’ve uncovered hidden jobs and unmet needs, the next step is translating those insights into action. This doesn’t have to mean developing entirely new products. It might be a smarter feature set, a clearer communication strategy, or a new service model that better supports your customers’ goals.

Here are a few ways using JTBD to uncover unmet customer needs can guide opportunity identification:

• Enhancing existing offerings to better fit the job they’re “hired” to do
• Repositioning your product for a job it already serves, but hasn’t been marketed that way
• Spotting underserved markets where customers are struggling to find effective solutions

At SIVO Insights, we help clients use JTBD research to clarify what their customers actually need—often uncovering insights that were hiding in plain sight. By focusing on the jobs people are really trying to get done, your team can build with greater confidence and deliver solutions that customers truly value.

Seeing how the Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) framework plays out in real scenarios can help bring the concept to life. Whether you're looking to uncover unmet customer needs, improve product innovation, or recognize white space in the market, JTBD gives you a practical lens to explore market opportunities. Below are fictional examples that demonstrate how simple shifts in perspective can lead to breakthrough ideas.

Example 1: Redefining the Job in Fast Casual Dining

A fast-casual restaurant chain wanted to grow sales during non-peak hours. Traditional data pointed to low foot traffic as the issue. But through JTBD interviews, they discovered that many customers were not just buying lunch – they were trying to "take a mental break from a stressful day" or "feel reenergized before their next meeting." This insight led to introducing a special afternoon menu, quieter seating areas, and quick grab-and-go meal kits framed around recharging during the day. The result? A rise in afternoon traffic and better customer satisfaction ratings.

Example 2: Innovation in Personal Care Products

A skincare company originally marketed one of its lotions as a product to "prevent dry skin." But JTBD research showed customers were actually using the lotion to "feel more confident before social outings" or "send a signal of professionalism." This deeper understanding led to repositioning the product with branding that emphasized lasting freshness and self-presentation. It also sparked a new line tailored for pre-meeting or pre-date routines – a clear case of identifying business opportunities with JTBD insights.

Example 3: Rethinking Home Fitness Equipment

A fitness startup developing compact equipment assumed customers wanted “the most advanced workout at home.” Through a JTBD approach, they uncovered that people were really trying to “stick to a new routine without disrupting family life.” That insight shifted development toward foldable, quiet, and easy-to-use gear that fit into shared spaces. This allowed the company to enter a niche market segment that many competitors had overlooked.

Each of these examples showcases how Jobs to Be Done helps uncover hidden drivers of behavior – not just what people do, but why they do it. When leveraged in market research, these insights fuel smarter opportunity identification and long-term business growth.

Whether you're launching a new product or rethinking an existing service, the JTBD framework can guide product development with meaningful consumer insights. By focusing on what customers are truly trying to accomplish – the real progress they seek – you reduce guesswork and design solutions that truly resonate.

Start with Discovery

Your first step is qualitative research. This means talking directly to users, past customers, or even switchers who chose a competitor. Through open-ended interviews or field observation, you can uncover the deeper motivations behind customer behavior.

Ask questions such as:

• "Walk me through the last time you chose [this product or service]. What led up to that decision?"
• "What did success look like after you used it?"
• "What frustrations or workarounds did you encounter?"

This helps surface both functional and emotional goals – jobs people are hiring your product to do.

Identify Opportunities for Product Innovation

Once you've gathered these real-use stories, you can organize them into job themes. Look for:
- Unmet needs or gaps in current options
- Over-served segments where complexity outweighs value
- Emotional triggers that matter more than features

This insight fuels product innovation by showing where you can uniquely solve unmet customer needs. Not only does this reduce the risk of launching irrelevant features, it increases the chance your solution becomes a “must-have.”

Design With the Job in Mind

Create product features that directly support the job. For example, if users want to “feel focused and calm before bed,” design a feature that promotes relaxing routines, rather than simply tracking sleep data. JTBD helps align product decisions with real-world expectations, elevating the entire customer experience.

Cross-functional Value

JTBD-based insights aren’t just useful to your product or innovation teams. They also inspire messaging for marketing, streamline support experiences, and ground business decisions in what customers actually want. When the entire team aligns around the job, the outcome is a unified, growth-driven strategy.

You might be wondering, when is the right time to bring in a Jobs to Be Done research approach? Whether you’re developing a new offering or re-evaluating an existing one, JTBD fits multiple points in the product and customer lifecycle. It’s especially powerful when traditional metrics no longer explain what’s changing – or what to do next.

Key Signs You Should Use JTBD

• Slow or stalled growth: Sales are flat, and it’s unclear why. JTBD research can uncover hidden needs not currently being addressed.
• Confusing customer behavior: People aren’t using your product as expected – or are switching to alternatives for unexpected reasons.
• Planning a product refresh or new launch: Before investing in features or designs, understanding the job your product needs to do for your audience keeps innovation aligned.
• Entering a new market: JTBD helps you learn how potential customers currently solve their core problems and where your offer can fit in, even in unfamiliar space.
• Cultivating breakthrough ideas: If you're ideating for future business growth, JTBD delivers insight that inspires differentiated, need-based strategies.

JTBD as a Complement to Existing Market Research

One misconception is that Jobs to Be Done replaces everything else – it doesn't. JTBD fits beautifully alongside quantitative surveys, usage and attitude studies, or customer segmentation work. While these tools show you what is happening, JTBD uncovers why – adding the context that turns insights into strategy.

SIVO often blends the JTBD framework with other market research tools to fit your specific challenge. Whether you need to understand customer motivation, pinpoint product-market fit, or track long-term business momentum, JTBD is a flexible and valuable approach within a bigger insights plan.

In short, if you're looking for deeper understanding, clearer direction, or unexpected opportunities in your market – JTBD is a great place to start.