An Amazing, Predictable Way to Innovate (That Most Companies Miss): Nail the Customer’s Job

I enjoyed reading about a new startup called Visor recently. It’s an app designed to improve the car-buying experience.

According to Columbus Business First (11/5/24), “Without a single ad, Visor has attracted some 8,000 users since its August debut, many leaving effusive reviews.” Now, it’s boldly taking on established players like Carvana, CarMax, and Autotrader.

Seem brash? Even farfetched? Not if you understand their strategy.

They’re pursuing a highly effective, predictable way to innovate. I know, claiming there’s a  “predictable way to innovate” might seem absurd – after all, we’ve been taught that “innovation is inherently risky and messy.” But what if that’s not the whole story?

Research shows that misunderstanding target customers’ needs is the top reason for new business and product failure. In other words, innovation becomes risky when you don’t know:

1. Who your target customers are
2. What job(s) they’re trying to accomplish
3. How they measure success
4. Which of their needs remain unmet by the market

But here’s the good news: this information is readily available if you focus on understanding customer needs through the lens of their Jobs to Be Done (JTBD). These needs must be articulated as clear, actionable tasks that are distinct from products and services.

Any market misaligned with the core job(s) customers are trying to get done is ripe for disruption. It appears Visor’s founders understand this:

“(The established players’) sites help dealers sell you a car. They do not help consumers buy a car.” – Craig Smith, Visor ’s CEO

This is a classic winning strategy right out of the Jobs-to-Be-Done handbook: nail the job your target customers are trying to get done. This approach isn’t just theoretical – it’s backed by hard evidence.

Nielsen’s research found that out of over twenty thousand product launches in 2012-2016, only 92 of them generated over $50 million per year for at least two years. While these successful products spanned diverse categories, their success was not random. Each one shared a critical success factor: they nailed a job that their target customers considered important but unmet by existing solutions. (Competing Against Luck, p. 57-58)

The big established players might not be concerned about Visor given its humble beginnings. But that would be a mistake.

Visor’s strategy echoes that of an investment firm founded in 1974, which disrupted its industry by aligning with customer needs in a way competitors hadn’t considered. At that time, investment firms were primarily serving themselves by focusing on high fees and active management, positioning their services to help consumers outperform the market through complex strategies and exclusivity.

Then John Bogle started Vanguard to help consumers grow their retirement savings safely and cost-efficiently. By introducing low-cost index funds, he eliminated unnecessary fees and aligned with customer goals. Today, Vanguard is one of the most respected companies in investing, with $9.3 trillion in global assets under management – second only to BlackRock, which manages over $10 trillion.

Innovation is “the process of discovering your target customers’ unmet needs and then devising solutions to address them.” At its core, it involves two key steps: first, define the problem, then devise solution ideas to address them. The sequence matters.

There will always be some risk in innovation, even when you know exactly what customers want, because your solution may not fully address their needs. But that’s rarely the problem.

The real challenge is understanding what your customers are truly trying to get done. Focus on their jobs to be done, and you can predictably drive growth.

So, what job are your customers hiring you to get done – and are you truly nailing it?