How to create a Value Proposition Canvas

Oscar de la Hera Gomez
A flower that represents Strategy with the text “Value Proposition Canvas” beneath it.

A four step process for creating a Value Proposition Canvas.

A value proposition canvas is a tool created by Alexander Osterwalder from Strategyzer that is often combined with a Business Model Canvas which is intended to help marketing experts, product owners and value creators tie products and services to gains and pain points that have a defined target audience.

An example of a Value Proposition Canvas

We recommend that you consult the two videos below to see an example of a Value Proposition Canvas for Tesla that was created by Strategyzer.

How to create a Value Proposition Canvas

Before creating the value proposition canvas we suggest you familiarize yourself with its intention.

If you have already carried out and synthesized the research, jump to step four.

Step One: Write a Hypothesis

Before you can create a value proposition canvas, you must define the problem that you are trying to solve or the idea that you want to validate.

Please note that this hypothesis could relate to an existing feature, product, service or experience and could pertain to an entirely new creation or an addition to an existing creation.

Step Two: Define the target audience

A value proposition canvas is meant to define products and services that bring value you bring to a target audience by resolving pains and providing gains.

In order to know who to create for, you must define your target audience.

Step Three: Carry out the Research

Perform user research, desk research and carry out interviews and remember to record your findings in ways that can be synthesized into insights and other products that augment your ability to generate meaningful solutions for your target audience.

To learn more about the products that could arise from synthesizing your research consult the link below.

Part of the synthesis should be uncovering what the customers "jobs" are and how a product, service or experience could reduce the Bio-Cost, which is known as amount of energy or time required to carry out the "job."

For more information, consult the Harvard Business School article linked below.

Step Four: Define the Value Proposition Canvas

An empty Value Proposition Canvas. The template was taken from Strategyzers page on the Value Proposition Canvas.

The Value Proposition Canvas template.

Consult the insights and products of research synthesis and define the value proposition canvas.

We recommend that you use the personas synthesized from your research and the insights uncovered from the In-Depth Interviews and Focus groups to populate the canvas.

You may wish to use the value proposition canvas to define your value proposition statement and business model canvas.

Learn about different design thinking products and methodologies

We recommend that you consult our Methods for Synthesizing User Research article linked below to learn about design thinking products that could come out of the research that you have conducted.

These products are created using popular design research methodologies which are intended to help you and your organization innovate effectively.

Always remember, the work is never done

A visual that demonstrates a circular iterative process that goes from define, which is symbolized as a document, to clarify, which is symbolized as a geometric alignment, through creation which is symbolized as a nucleus.

delasign's process

When creating a value proposition canvas, it is important to note that they are neither a start nor an end.

They should serve as a way to visualize your products and services, along with the value that they provide and the pain points that they resolve in a way that is meaningful, intentional and focused on the target audience and which result in a return on investment.

As you transform the lives of your users, they might change. This is what you're looking for and will mean that you will have to redo this process to produce a meaningful addition to your value proposition canvas.

Looking to learn more about Research and Strategy?

Search our blog to find educational content on research and strategy.

Any Questions?

We are actively looking for feedback on how to improve this resource. Please send us a note to inquiries@delasign.com with any thoughts or feedback you may have.
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