How to Identify the Unique Benefits of Your Business Idea
A Practical Exercise for Founders
I wanted to expand on this topic which is covered in my book and provide a practical guide for a deep dive.
How does my business idea uniquely benefit potential customers? I know many founders have not spoken to their prospective customers. Often, they don’t even know who might be a prospective customer.
Let’s dig in.
Step 1: Define Your Target Customer
Before understanding your product's benefits, you need to know who your customers are. Often, founders have a vague idea of their customer base but haven’t truly narrowed it down.
Start by asking:
Who is my ideal customer?
What problems are they facing that my product can solve?
What do they value the most in a product like mine?
Exercise: Create a detailed customer profile. Include demographics (age, gender, income, location), psychographics (lifestyle, values, habits), and behaviors (buying patterns, preferences). Write down 2-3 key problems this customer faces that your product can solve. Don’t worry if you can't get them all correct, you still have to go deep into these questions. Often the market expands or a new market is created so getting an improved understanding always helps. This can be an iterative exercise. Every time you pivot or create a new version, the reflection on these questions will give a better insight on the direction to take.
Step 2: Engage with Potential Customers
One of the biggest mistakes founders make is building a product without speaking to potential customers. Don’t skip this step! Now that you’ve identified your ideal customer, it's time to engage with them. Warren Buffet has flagged this issue as winking at a girl in the dark. The problem with that is no one notices.
Who should I speak to? Identify a group of people who fit your target profile.
What should I ask? Focus on understanding their pain points, desires, and how they currently solve the problem your product addresses. Creating some empathy
Exercise: Reach out to 10-15 potential customers and ask these questions:
What’s the biggest challenge you face when dealing with [the problem your product solves]?
How are you currently solving this problem?
What would an ideal solution look like to you?
You have to be mindful that your product may not solve a problem or the market may not be ready for it. Either way, the needle may not look like moving.
Record their answers, looking for common themes and patterns.
Step 3: Identify Your Unique Value Proposition (UVP)
After gathering insights from your potential customers, it’s time to define how your product stands out. A unique value proposition (UVP) explains what makes your product different and why it’s better than the alternatives.
What makes my product different? Is it faster, cheaper, more reliable, or more convenient than competitors?
Why would customers choose my product over others? Your product may still be an idea in its infancy.
Exercise: Based on the feedback you gathered, fill in the following UVP template:
“My product helps [target customer] solve [problem] by providing [unique benefit]. Unlike [competitor], it does [differentiating feature/benefit].”
This will help you clearly articulate what sets your product apart. This will also help you articulate your #pitch, which may ben an exercise you may have to take for raising funds or attract talent.
Step 4: Map Features to Benefits
Founders often get excited about the features of their products. But remember, customers care about the benefits—how those features improve their lives.
How do the features of my product translate into benefits for the customer? Refrain from a feature-focused mindset.
Exercise: Make a list of your product’s key features and ask yourself:
What does this feature do for the customer?
How does this feature improve the customer’s life, save time, or solve a pain point?
For example:
Feature: Automated reminders.
Benefit: Saves the customer time by ensuring they never miss an important deadline. If you cant think of a benefit a feature gives then you may be better off removing it.
Complete this exercise for each feature, focusing on the customer benefit rather than the technical details.
Step 5: Validate and Test Your Idea
You’ve gathered insights, mapped features to benefits, and articulated your UVP. Now it’s time to test your assumptions. The goal here is to validate whether your unique benefits resonate with your target audience.
How can I test whether customers value my product’s benefits?
Exercise: Create a simple MVP (Minimum Viable Product) or prototype ( even a PowerPoint presentation often has been helpful) that demonstrates your core benefits. Offer this to a small group of potential customers and observe their reactions:
Do they find the benefits valuable?
Does your solution solve their problem effectively?
Are they willing to pay for it?
Gather feedback, refine your offering, and iterate based on real customer responses.
Step 6: Refine and Focus
After testing your product, it’s important to refine your messaging and product based on what you’ve learned. Sometimes, your initial idea may need tweaks or pivots based on customer feedback.
What aspects of my product should I improve?
How can I better communicate the benefits?
Exercise: Review your UVP and feature-benefit mapping. Adjust your product or messaging if needed, making sure every feature is tied directly to a customer benefit.
Step 7: Reiterate Your Focus on Benefits
A benefit-centric approach isn’t a one-time task—it should be a continuous process throughout your startup’s journey. Always keep the focus on how your product improves your customer’s life. As your product evolves, make sure the benefits stay clear and compelling.
Exercise: Regularly revisit this process, especially as you develop new features or enter new markets. Ensure that every new development adds tangible value to your customers.
This topic is an expanded article from my book THE ‘BENEFIT’ BLUEPRINT FOR STARTUP SUCCESS Chapter 3, Question 1.
© Sameer Babbar
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Disclaimer: This is for information only. It does not take into account your objectives, financial situation, or needs. The author, his company, his associates, his directors, his staff, his consultants, and his advisors do not accept liability for any loss or damage, including, without limitation, any loss that may arise directly or indirectly from the use of or reliance on the information provided