Demographic segmentation – dividing customers by age, income, gender, or location – has long been a staple in marketing and product planning. It’s straightforward and easy to gather data for. But it has its limits. Knowing someone is a 35-year-old living in a city doesn’t truly explain why they choose one brand over another or what problem they’re trying to solve.

Jobs To Be Done offers a different lens. Instead of asking who the customer is, it asks: What are they trying to accomplish? What is the specific goal, task, or 'job' they need help with? This shift from traits to intent is what sets JTBD apart – and why it’s particularly useful in uncovering customer motivations that demographics can’t capture.

What is a ‘job’ in JTBD?

In this framework, a 'job' is not a job title or occupation; it’s the progress a customer is trying to make in a particular context. This could be something simple, like wanting a quick and healthy weekday lunch, or more emotional, like feeling secure about a financial decision. In JTBD, customers "hire" products or services to complete these jobs.

Why this approach matters

Jobs-based segmentation helps businesses look beyond traditional groups and see patterns tied to real-life situations. This opens the door to discovering new customer segments that aren't tied to fixed identities but to changing needs and contexts. For example, two people from wildly different age groups may still hire the same meal delivery service for the same reason: saving time while managing a busy schedule. JTBD helps identify these shared jobs – not just shared demographics.

Comparing the two approaches

• Demographic segmentation: Based on who the customer is (e.g., 25- to 34-year-old males in urban areas)
• JTBD segmentation: Based on what the customer is trying to accomplish (e.g., “I need a healthy meal I can eat in under 10 minutes at my desk”)

Demographics describe the customer. JTBD explains their motivations. When building a product, refining a go-to-market strategy, or running consumer insights research, this difference is crucial. It allows categories to emerge based on context and need – producing more meaningful understanding and guiding more precise decision-making.

One of the biggest strengths of Jobs To Be Done is its ability to spotlight customer needs that are often missed using traditional segmentation models. By understanding why people seek out a solution – not just who they are – businesses can surface entirely new customer segments that were previously hidden in plain sight.

This is especially valuable during go-to-market planning. Rather than targeting broad categories, JTBD identifies focused customer scenarios where your product or service fits a specific job. These scenarios often emerge from rich user research and observing real-world behavior – not from assumptions based on age or preferences alone.

Uncovering hidden segments through JTBD

When applied in market research, JTBD helps brands run contextual segmentation: grouping users not by who they are, but by the circumstances in which they need help. This difference makes it easier to spot:

• Emerging needs in overlooked use cases
• Cross-demographic patterns based on behavior
• Niche segments underserved by current market offerings

For example, imagine a fitness brand exploring growth strategy. Instead of targeting “millennials interested in fitness,” they explore customer jobs like, “I need a simple routine I can follow from home before my kids wake up.” This job could apply to parents of various ages – a segment not captured in traditional demographic surveys. Using JTBD for customer segmentation helps reveal these specific opportunities.

Real-world applications for growth

Jobs-based segmentation can inform a variety of business strategies:

1. Product design

Build features or experiences that directly support high-priority customer jobs.

2. Marketing strategy

Create messaging that resonates with real customer scenarios, instead of relying on generic personas.

3. New market entry

Identify job-based niches underserved by competitors – even if they span multiple demographics.

By focusing on intent, JTBD allows teams to better understand customer needs using jobs theory and fuel smarter consumer insights. For business leaders, this can mean discovering unforeseen paths to growth – whether by repositioning existing offerings or tailoring new ones to clear, unmet jobs.

Ultimately, using JTBD for customer segmentation supports more agile, customer-centered decisions – offering not just data, but real understanding. And in today’s competitive landscape, understanding what people really need is one of the most effective ways to unlock new growth opportunities.

Translating strong consumer understanding into a go to market strategy can be challenging—especially when typical segmentation focuses on basic demographics or personas. That’s where the Jobs To Be Done (JTBD) framework becomes particularly valuable.

One of the biggest advantages of JTBD is that it bases a growth strategy on the real needs and motivations behind customer behavior. Instead of asking who the customer is, JTBD asks why they are hiring a product or service in a specific context. This mindset shift lays the foundation for more effective messaging, positioning and product development decisions.

Why JTBD is Effective for GTM Planning

Many companies struggle with launching new products or shifting their GTM approach because traditional targeting methods overlook why people make specific choices. With JTBD, companies can build strategies that are deeply connected to their audience’s goals, helping them stand out in crowded markets. This customer-centered strategy improves not just brand communication but also product fit and adoption.

Here’s how using JTBD can strengthen go-to-market planning:

• Improved messaging: Your communication connects better because it speaks to the specific job your product solves – not generalized preferences.
• Clear market prioritization: JTBD reveals which jobs are underserved, helping teams determine where to enter or expand in the market.
• Product alignment: Development teams can focus on features that help accomplish high-priority jobs, improving relevance and value.
• Cross-functional alignment: Everyone – from marketing to product to sales – rallies around a clear understanding of what customers are trying to get done.

For example, instead of launching a home fitness app to “millennials interested in health,” a JTBD-driven go to market plan might target people trying to “stay active without leaving their house due to time constraints.” This adds nuance to both positioning and outreach channels.

Ultimately, JiTBD enables businesses to align their offering with the lived experience of their audience, making growth more intuitive and grounded in real-world motivations.

To truly understand how JTBD leads to stronger customer segmentation, let’s look at a few industries where it’s made a real impact. These examples illustrate how businesses move beyond demographics to uncover new customer segments based on situational context and goals – what some call contextual segmentation.

Quick-Service Restaurant: More Than ‘Busy Young Adults’

A fast-casual dining brand used JTBD research to shift its understanding of lunchtime customers. Rather than targeting 'young professionals,' the team discovered distinct jobs such as:

• “I want a quick meal that lets me eat while driving between job sites.”
• “I need to grab food fast so I can get back to my desk without missing a meeting.”

Each of these jobs speaks to different environments and customer needs – even if the age range or income level was similar. The result? Customized menu options and drive-through optimizations that boosted relevance across multiple new customer segments.

Retail Banking: Uncovering Emotional Triggers

A national bank used JTBD to explore why consumers were switching accounts. Traditional market research pointed to great rates and convenience. But a deeper look at customer jobs revealed emotional drivers like:

• “I need to feel confident that my money is safe and I understand where it goes.”
• “I want a bank that helps me grow, not just store, my savings.”

This enabled the bank to tailor financial products and digital tools to each use case – helping them differentiate from competitors with meaningful positioning.

Health & Wellness: Serving Diverse Motivations

In the wellness industry, one company aimed to segment users of its sleep tracking device. Instead of grouping them by age or profession, they identified jobs such as:

• “I’m trying to learn how my newborn affects my sleep so I can adapt faster.”
• “I want to improve my rest so I perform better at my job.”

These diverse motivations uncovered product opportunities in education, app integrations, and customer support tailored to specific user journeys.

Examples like these reflect how jobs based segmentation allows for smarter, more relevant marketing – and often reveals high-potential segments that otherwise remain hidden. Whether you're in tech, hospitality, finance, or healthcare, understanding the job provides a durable lens for long-term growth.

Adopting the Jobs To Be Done mindset doesn't require a massive overhaul right away. Small, thoughtful steps can help teams begin to unlock its value and uncover new revenue pathways. Whether you're testing market fit, developing new offerings, or refining segments, JTBD is a powerful addition to your customer insight toolkit.

First Steps Toward Jobs-Based Insights

Understanding customer jobs begins with curiosity and deep listening. It's about uncovering not just what your customers are doing, but why they're doing it – and what they're hoping to achieve.

Common ways teams get started include:

• Qualitative interviews: These capture the narratives around product choices, frustrations, and alternative solutions. Knowing what customers used ‘instead of’ your product can be highly revealing.
• Customer journey mapping: Looking at a customer’s process over time often highlights decision points tied to specific jobs and needs.
• Surveys informed by JTBD: You can structure surveys to explore key contexts or desired outcomes across customer groups, helping quantifiably assess job appeal and frequency.

What to Look For in JTBD Research

As you dig into your research, patterns will start to emerge:

• Moments of struggle – When are customers most open to change or help?
• Triggers – What causes them to ‘hire’ a new solution?
• Desired outcomes – What results are they actually trying to achieve?

Organizing insights around these themes can shape product roadmaps, customer segmentation, and broader business strategy. Many teams use JTBD as the foundation for identifying white space in the market – where few (if any) competitors are currently playing.

Combining JTBD with Other Market Research Methods

JTBD doesn’t need to replace traditional segmentation or persona work – it can enhance it. Applied well, it adds empathy and nuance to data you already have. At SIVO, for example, we often blend JTBD with qualitative and quantitative approaches to deliver well-rounded consumer insights. The goal is clear: make the complex simple, and surface the why behind customer behavior that drives innovation and growth.