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Value Proposition Canvas

Align your value proposition with what the customer really wants.

The Value Proposition Canvas zooms in on one block of the Business Model Canvas: the fit between your offer (the value map) and your customer (the customer profile). Essential when your products or services are not catching on even though you think you are making something good.

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BoldcasterValue Proposition Canvas · template

What is the Value Proposition Canvas?

Alexander Osterwalder and his team developed the Value Proposition Canvas (VPC) in 2014 as a deeper layer beneath the Business Model Canvas. It describes two sides that need to meet: the customer side (Customer Jobs, Pains, Gains) and the offer side (Products & Services, Pain Relievers, Gain Creators). The fit between the two decides whether your proposition lands.

The VPC solves a specific problem: companies build products nobody really wants. By working out the customer profile first (what is the customer trying to get done, where does it hurt, what would be a big win) you avoid filling your value map with assumptions about what is 'cool'.

Where the VPC falls short: it says nothing about how you deliver that value (channels, costs, partners) or about market dynamics. It is a zoom lens, not a complete strategy. Combine it with a Business Model Canvas or Lean Canvas for the full picture.

When do you use it?

Use the Value Proposition Canvas when a product or service is not getting the traction you expected, when you enter a new segment, or when you want to sharpen a value proposition for a specific persona. It works best once your segment is sharply defined: make a separate VPC for each segment.

No overview of your whole business model yet? Start with the Business Model Canvas. Building a new startup idea? Use the Lean Canvas first, then the VPC to dig deeper into the value proposition.

How to fill it in

Fill in the customer side first (right): jobs, pains, gains. Only then the offer side (left): products, pain relievers, gain creators. Fit comes from linking them consistently: every pain reliever belongs to a pain, every gain creator to a gain.

01

Customer Jobs

What is the customer trying to get done in their work or life? Functional jobs (completing a task), social jobs (looking good to others) and emotional jobs (feeling secure). A customer does not just buy a product; they hire it to do a job.

Questions that help

  • ·Which task is the customer trying to complete?
  • ·Which social role are they trying to fulfil?
  • ·Which emotional state are they trying to reach or avoid?

Example

Functional job: making a weekly schedule that works. Social job: being seen as competent by staff. Emotional job: heading into the weekend calmly, without interruptions.

Common mistake

Naming only functional jobs and skipping the social and emotional ones, even though those are often the real reason to buy.

02

Pains

Negative outcomes, risks and obstacles around the jobs. Frustrations while doing them, unwanted side effects, or barriers to getting started at all. Pains are specific, measurable and recognisable, not 'it is a hassle'.

Questions that help

  • ·What costs the customer too much time, money or effort?
  • ·Which negative emotions do they experience around this job?
  • ·Which risks do they fear?

Example

Two hours a week lost to planning. Frustration with last-minute changes. The risk that a scheduling error leads to an angry customer or a delay.

Common mistake

Writing down vague pains ('it is cumbersome'). Make them concrete and, where possible, put numbers on them: how many hours, how many euros, how often.

03

Gains

The outcomes and benefits the customer wants. Expected gains (the basics they simply expect), desired gains (things they would love) and unexpected gains (things they would never ask for but that would delight them). Making that distinction is the difference between meeting expectations and wowing.

Questions that help

  • ·Which saving or benefit would make them happy?
  • ·Which outcomes do they expect as a minimum, the basics they no longer mention?
  • ·What would surprise them in a positive way?

Example

Expected: the planning works without bugs. Desired: 15 minutes a week instead of 2 hours. Unexpected: automatic suggestions for the best schedule based on previous weeks.

Common mistake

Describing gains as features of your product instead of as outcomes the customer experiences.

04

Products & Services

The list of products and services that make up your value proposition. Physical (a product), digital (an app), service (consultancy), financial (leasing, a subscription). Not a one-liner about your company, just the concrete things you sell.

Questions that help

  • ·Which products and services do you offer this segment?
  • ·Which of them help with which jobs?
  • ·Which combination delivers the most value for this segment?

Example

1. Planning software (SaaS), 2. A 4-hour onboarding service, 3. A WhatsApp integration as an add-on, 4. Annual on-site training for planners.

Common mistake

Writing a marketing story instead of a factual list. This block is descriptive, not promotional.

05

Pain Relievers

How do your products and services reduce or remove the customer's pains? Every pain reliever should address a specific pain: not all pains, just the relevant ones. Better to truly solve three pains than to touch ten lightly.

Questions that help

  • ·Which pain does your product take away?
  • ·Which negative emotions do you ease?
  • ·Which risks do you reduce?

Example

Cuts planning time from 2 hours to 15 minutes. Removes double bookings through automatic clash detection. Lowers the risk of errors with version history and undo.

Common mistake

Listing features without linking them to a specific pain on the customer side. If a pain reliever does not address a pain, it does not belong here.

06

Gain Creators

How do you create gains for your customer? Distinguish between meeting expected gains, delivering desired gains and exceeding them with unexpected gains. You do not need to hit every gain: focus on the few that make the biggest difference.

Questions that help

  • ·Which savings in time, money or effort do you deliver?
  • ·Which desired outcomes do you make happen?
  • ·Which unexpected benefits could you add?

Example

Saves 7 hours a week, every week. Gives the director real-time insight into capacity. Proactively suggests a better schedule based on historical data.

Common mistake

Aiming every gain creator at expected gains. Then you are 'good enough', but never distinctive.

Common mistakes

Filling in the offer before the customer profile

The whole point of the VPC is that the customer is the starting point. Complete the right side (customer) first, and only then the left (offer). The other way round, you force a fit that is not there.

One canvas for several segments

Different segments have different jobs, pains and gains. Make a separate VPC for each segment and compare where the propositions overlap or clash.

Not linking pain relievers to pains

Literally draw the lines: this pain reliever solves this pain. Pain relievers without a matching pain are features nobody asked for.

Assuming you know the customer

A VPC filled in from assumptions is worth no more than a guess. Test the jobs, pains and gains against at least five customer conversations before you consider it finished.

In Boldcaster

How Boldcaster helps you with this

Fill it in interactively

No stray PDF lost in your downloads folder. Fill in the canvas in the app, with version history and comment threads.

Bold AI does the groundwork

Paste in your business plan, annual report or rough notes and Bold AI fills in the canvas for you. Or ask it for suggestions block by block.

Connected to your strategy

Send an insight from this Proposition to your Priorities, KPIs or strategy in one click, instead of leaving it on a whiteboard.

All canvases in one place

Pilot users get access to BMC, Lean Canvas, Value Proposition Canvas and whatever comes next. One platform, one system.

Create a free account and use every canvas

Prefer some guidance?

You don't need to know the models: Bold AI helps you block by block. Want someone alongside you to run the sessions with your leadership team? Start with the scale-up audit. After that, we're happy to introduce you to a coach from our network who works with Boldcaster.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Value Proposition Canvas free to use?

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Yes, the VPC is freely available under a Creative Commons licence. You can download a blank template above as a PDF. If you want to fill it in interactively and link it to your strategy, you can do that in Boldcaster.

What is the difference between the Value Proposition Canvas and the Business Model Canvas?

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The BMC describes your whole business model (9 blocks). The VPC zooms in on one block, the value proposition, and links it explicitly to the customer profile. Use the VPC to go deeper into the BMC, not to replace it.

How long does it take to fill in a Value Proposition Canvas?

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You can make a first version in an hour. A well-founded version in which every job, pain and gain has been tested against customer conversations takes two to four weeks, spread across your normal work.

Who is the Value Proposition Canvas for?

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For anyone sharpening a product or service for a specific customer segment: founders, product managers, marketers and strategists. It works for both B2B and B2C.

Does the Value Proposition Canvas work for service providers?

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Yes, and that is where it is especially powerful. Services are often abstract; by naming the jobs, pains and gains sharply you make your service far more concrete and easier to sell.

Further reading

What does a filled-in Value Proposition Canvas look like?

An empty canvas is the easy part. The hard part is what goes in it. I'll send you a completed Value Proposition Canvas: a fictional company, real wording, sharp enough to base decisions on.

See a completed example

The strategy canvas of a fictional installation company, fully completed. Plus five signs that a canvas actually steers the business, rather than just being filled in. Four pages, PDF.

You'll see the example straight away and get a copy by email. We keep your address so we can help with your strategy; unsubscribe any time in one click.