Traditional surveys have long been a standard tool in market research. They are quick to deploy, scalable across large sample sizes, and effective at gathering quantitative data – like preferences, usage patterns, and satisfaction levels. But sometimes, the answers surveys provide only scratch the surface.

The Jobs to Be Done framework goes several layers deeper. JTBD starts by asking not just what a customer did, but what they were trying to accomplish and why. It frames consumption not as a transaction, but as a decision-making journey driven by context, emotion, and goals. This shift in perspective unlocks insights that surveys usually overlook.

How JTBD Uncovers Deeper Customer Motivations

Think of a consumer deciding to buy noise-canceling headphones. A survey might tell you they want “better sound” or “wireless features.” JTBD, however, would explore the situation leading up to that decision. Were they frustrated by loud coworkers and looking for focus? Or overwhelmed by work and using music as a form of escape?

These underlying goals – or jobs – are critical to shaping product messaging, feature prioritization, and innovation. While traditional surveys report what happened, JTBD reveals why it happened.

Advantages of Jobs to Be Done Research

• Context-rich insights: JTBD uses qualitative interviews to explore the customer’s environment, emotions, and thought processes.
• Unbiased discovery: Unlike surveys with pre-set choices, JTBD lets participants tell their own stories in their own words.
• Focuses on progress: JTBD explores what problem the customer sought to solve, bringing clarity into what they really value.
• Identifies unmet needs: By looking at the job, not just the product, JTBD helps uncover white space opportunities.

When Surveys Are Limited

Surveys are extremely useful for validation and measurement, but they have constraints:

They assume participants know what they want. They limit answer options. And they can't always capture the complexity of human decision-making. This is where qualitative methods for understanding customer behavior – like JTBD – play a vital role.

In practice, many research teams use both methods together. For example, JTBD interviews might surface hypotheses that can later be validated through traditional surveys. This pairing often leads to more confident decision-making and richer customer insights.

While traditional surveys are a trusted part of most research strategies, not every business question can be answered with tick boxes and rating scales. There are certain scenarios where JTBD is not only helpful but essential for capturing the voice of the customer in a more nuanced, actionable way.

1. When Launching a New Product or Service

If you’re entering a new market or developing a new product, Jobs to Be Done research helps you understand what customers are trying to achieve – and what solutions they’re cobbling together today. These consumer insights drive innovation beyond feature improvements and toward real need-filling solutions.

Example: Instead of surveying consumers about what they’d like in a meal kit service, JTBD might reveal that busy young professionals “hire” these kits to reduce decision fatigue and reclaim time in their evenings. That directs a brand to emphasize simplicity and time-savings, not just recipe variety.

2. When Surveys Are Inconclusive or Contradictory

Have your survey results left you with more questions than answers? Sometimes, customers give answers they think you want to hear – or they’re simply unaware of their deeper motivations. JTBD interviews dig into real-life experiences, pulling out the motivations behind each step in their journey.

3. When You Need to Understand Switching Behavior

One of the strengths of the JTBD framework is its ability to examine the switching moment – when and why a customer stopped using one solution and chose another. This helps reveal the functional, emotional, and social triggers that drive real decisions.

Example: A B2B software brand may discover clients “switch” from a competitor not because of price or features but due to a breakdown in trust or lack of responsive support.

4. When You’re Seeking Breakthrough Innovation

For growth-minded brands looking to disrupt rather than optimize, JTBD uncovers unmet or underserved needs that haven’t been addressed by existing products. It finds the jobs customers are struggling to fulfill – even if those customers can’t articulate the need themselves.

Where JTBD Fits in the Research Mix

JTBD doesn't replace quantitative research – it enriches it. Used early in the research process, JTBD identifies themes that can be measured later at scale through traditional surveys. This combination helps teams build empathy and confidence, making sure strategies are grounded in real human behavior.

So, when should you use Jobs to Be Done over surveys? When you're exploring fresh territory, when you need to fuel innovation, or when numbers alone aren't telling the whole story. JTBD fills those gaps, offering grounded, human-centered insights that lead to better business outcomes.

Not every business question is best answered by a survey. In fact, when you're trying to dig beneath the surface of customer behavior and understand the deeper reasons why people make decisions, the Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) framework often delivers more actionable insights. JTBD is especially useful when your goal is to explore motivations and context, rather than validate metrics or preferences. So, when should you turn to JTBD instead of traditional surveys?

When you need to understand customer motivations

Surveys might tell you what people do, but JTBD helps uncover why they do it. If you're trying to understand why consumers choose one product over another, or why they abandon a service, JTBD dives into the real-world forces of change that drive behavior.

When innovating or developing new products

During early-stage product research, JTBD can reveal unmet needs and emotional drivers that typical survey questions may overlook. These insights become a foundation for innovation – helping you design offerings that solve meaningful, not just functional, problems.

When customer behavior seems inconsistent or puzzling

Sometimes survey results leave gaps in understanding. JTBD fills in the context by identifying progress customers are trying to make in their lives. If survey data shows contradictory patterns, JTBD research can reconcile that by highlighting non-obvious needs or trade-offs.

When you're rethinking your value proposition or brand positioning

JTBD is a powerful tool for repositioning because it focuses on the outcomes customers care about – not just demographics or market segments. It helps identify the language, benefits, and messaging that matter to customers in their actual decision-making moments.

• Example: A home insurance company used JTBD to uncover that peace of mind around life transitions – not price – was the true purchase driver for many customers.

In short, if you're stuck with data that doesn't explain behavior or need to explore whitespace for innovation, JTBD offers a strong alternative to standard surveys. It helps uncover the functional, emotional, and social dimensions behind customer choices – offering clarity that broad survey questions often miss.

While Jobs to Be Done is powerful on its own, it doesn’t have to replace traditional surveys. In fact, many of the most successful market research efforts combine both methods – leveraging the strengths of each to create a more complete picture of the customer.

Start with JTBD to discover deep insights

JTBD is ideal at the beginning of the research process because it captures qualitative insights that inform direction. By conducting in-depth interviews, you learn the real-world struggles, expectations, and progress people seek when they interact with your brand or category.

Once you understand those core jobs, you can translate them into survey questions that reach a broader audience. This ensures that what you're measuring is grounded in authentic human behavior, not assumptions or guesswork.

Use surveys to validate and prioritize

After identifying key Jobs to Be Done through qualitative research, a traditional survey can help quantify how widespread those needs are, how often they occur, and how much people value solving them. This is where surveys shine – helping you measure and prioritize based on larger samples.

Benefits of integrating both approaches

• Deeper context + broader scale: JTBD explains the “why,” surveys extend the “how many.”
• Customer-first strategy: Your research starts with real pain points, not assumptions.
• Stronger voice of customer: You capture lived experiences and statistical validation.

For example, a fitness brand might use JTBD interviews to uncover that customers “hire” their workout app to feel confident starting a new routine. Then, a follow-up survey can assess how many users share this job and which features best support it.

By combining the JTBD framework for customer insights with traditional quantitative research methods, you’re not choosing one over the other. You’re building a more holistic understanding of consumer behavior – one that drives informed decisions and more resonant solutions.

Many companies think of Jobs to Be Done as a tool for innovation – and while that’s true, it also plays a critical role at a foundational level. JTBD doesn’t just spark ideas; it builds the strategic groundwork for everything from product roadmaps to marketing messaging.

Set a clear lens for future research

By using JTBD early in your research process, you ensure that all future surveys, brand trackers, and campaign evaluations stay grounded in what really matters to customers. It’s a filter for decision-making – pointing your efforts toward the progress your customers are trying to make.

Align teams around shared customer understanding

One of the biggest advantages of Jobs to Be Done research is that it creates a unified view of the customer across teams. Product, marketing, CX, and executive leaders can all rally around the same customer jobs – making collaboration and strategy much more aligned.

Build more human, actionable personas

Traditional market segmentation often relies on demographics or usage patterns. JTBD goes further by layering in the emotional and situational context behind behavior. This allows you to develop personas that aren’t just data points – they’re based on lived experiences and real motivations.

Guide product and brand decisions with confidence

Whether refining existing offerings or exploring new categories, the JTBD framework informs decisions with purpose. You’re not just building features – you’re solving jobs. And that clarity becomes a compass that guides strategy across functions.

In this way, JTBD isn't just another qualitative method. It's a market research mindset – one that prioritizes empathy, clarity, and customer-defined success over assumptions. Especially in fast-changing industries, grounding your strategy with solid JTBD insights helps you stay focused on what customers are truly trying to achieve.

From voice of customer programs to long-term innovation pipelines, JTBD delivers foundational clarity that sets everything else up for success.