How to Complete a Value Proposition Canvas?

There’s a never-ending sea of new apps entering the market. If you want to stand out from the crowd, it’s critical that you express mobile app value clearly.

A value proposition canvas is a vital tool that can help you to do just that. It’s part of a business model canvas.

In fact, this important tool will help you to develop the value proposition for your app business model. Moreover, it will help you to establish the link to the most important part of your app—your end-users.

To learn more about how to create a value proposition canvas, keep reading.

In short, a value proposition canvas is a tool that will help you to describe your app value. It will also help you to pinpoint your customer segments.

With your value proposition canvas, you’d review these points in detail. You’ll also uncover the expectations of your customers.

In the end, you’ll develop a map that will help you to make informed decisions. You’ll use the map before, during and after developing in-depth knowledge about your customers.

Before the assessment, you’ll use your value proposition canvas to evaluate your customers. You’ll also use it to test your value propositions. After developing your value proposition canvas, you’ll use the resulting map to evaluate whether your app is a fitting solution.

You can use a value proposition canvas for both new and existing value propositions. Likewise, you can use it for both new and existing customer segments.

In any case, a value proposition canvas will help you structure your thinking. It will also help to make your ideas more tangible. With a value proposition canvas, you’ll validate whether what seems like a great idea is truly viable.

As you perform your value proposition canvas, there are a few things that you should consider. For example, you might want to use a blank value proposition map and fill in the blanks. However, there’s a much better alternative.

Instead, use sticky notes to record your ideas. By using sticky notes, you can move things around. They also make it easier for you to add and remove items as you develop your map.

A value proposition canvas is a dynamic exercise. You’ll find that your views change as you go through the process.

Accordingly, your value proposition will evolve. Likewise, your understanding of your ideal customer will change and develop as you walk through the steps.

Also, don’t use your sticky notes to record several bullet points. For example, if you have two separate elements, use two separate sticky notes.

You might record customers values, such as lower pricing, on one sticky note. On another note, you’d record other values such as improved performance.

By keeping your ideas segmented, you can play around with them. More importantly, you can modify things that you learn.

As an aside, a considerable amount of the points for your notes should come directly from speaking with potential customers.

You’ll build your value proposition canvas, or map, by sketching out four top-level areas. These areas include:

• Customer jobs
• Pains and gains
• Products and services
• How you’ll create value

These elements will represent your canvas. You’ll complete the canvas using your sticky notes.

You can start formulating value proposition ideas by thinking about customer jobs. In other words, think about the tasks that your app users want to accomplish.

Create a sticky note for each job in the “Customer Jobs” box. You’ll also want to create a sticky note for each ancillary job that customers will perform using your app.

Now, you can move on to “Pains and Gains.” Create a sticky note for every pain that your customer might experience. This experience might come before, during or after using your app to perform a job.

Create a sticky note for every gain that will create a benefit for your customers. A gain is something that your customers expect or desire. Alternatively, a gain may serve as a benefit that would surprise your customers.

Now, you’ll need to describe your “Products and Services.” List all the products and services provided by your value proposition on individual sticky notes. You’ll put these notes in the “Products and Services” box.

Finally, you’ll describe “How your app provides value.” For example, your app may eliminate customer pains.

Alternatively, certain benefits of your app might create customer gains. In either case, you’d create a sticky note for each element that you add to your canvas.

As you work through painting your canvas with sticky notes, a few helpful tips can help you stay focused. For example, use different coloured sticky notes. By using different coloured notes, you can read your map faster.

For example, you can use yellow sticky notes for “Products and Services.” Meanwhile, you might use orange sticky notes for customer pains.

Everything else relates to value creation. Accordingly, you might use green sticky notes for those items.

Also, combine images and words. This practice is a more powerful way to describe the elements of your map.

The mind processes images faster than words. Resultantly, images will help people who view your map to get the big picture.

Finally, it’s important to draw on customer knowledge. Start by working with stakeholders who are in frequent contact with your ideal app user. These individuals have a deep understanding of your intended users.

When creating your value proposition canvas, don’t try to target every pain and gain. An ineffective value proposition tries to address every customer need. Often, these wide-ranging propositions fail to deliver as promised.

An excellent value proposition, however, is quite focused. It centres on a limited number of pains and gains. More importantly, it does a great job of tackling focused issues and providing specific benefits.

It’s also essential to think about the timing of your value proposition. For example, you must clearly distinguish between present, existing and future concepts. Mixing app concepts with different timelines can prove confusing.

You can distinguish concept tense using colours. However, it’s an even better idea to develop separate maps.

Also, your canvas should only include one value proposition. Sketching out multiple value propositions and customer segments on the same map is a fast route to confusion.

Instead, focus your value proposition on a specific customer segment. Likewise, make a new map for each different value proposition.

A value proposition canvas is a great way to organise your thoughts. As its name suggests, during a value proposition canvas, you’d create a canvas that highlights your app’s value. Most importantly, it will help you to present tangible mobile app value.

At this stage, however, your app is still on paper. Until you test your concept, it’s still just a fantasy.

Accordingly, you need to do real-world investigations to validate your assumptions. This investigation is vital for assessing whether you truly understand what jobs are important to your app users.

A real-world assessment will also help you to establish your customers’ genuine pains and gains. Furthermore, real-world testing will help you to establish whether the current pains and gains of your value proposition are valid.

Often, marketers bypass real-world testing. However, it’s important not to overlook real-world testing after developing your value proposition canvas.

More than half of marketers fail to optimise their value propositions. For this reason, with real-world testing, you can outperform more than half of your competitors.

Real-world testing will also help you to answer important questions. For example, imagine that you’re an end-user that’s considering your app over a competitor’s.

Real-world testing will help you to establish why a potential user should try your app. It will also help you to assess whether your value proposition sets you apart from your competitors. Moreover, it will show you if your value proposition provides benefits that aren’t offered by your competition.

During real-world testing, it’s important to recruit unbiased users. Many app marketers recruit people who are already familiar with their brand.

The problem with this method is that these individuals have most likely already formed their opinion about the app brand. For this reason, familiar end-users are most often biased. They’ll have already formed their opinion before seeing a new concept.

Instead, look for real-world testing candidates who are unfamiliar with your brand. It’s these individuals that can give you an unbiased impression of your value proposition.

Now you know more about how to create and test a value proposition canvas. What you need now is a digital agency that can help you to avoid the pitfalls of app development.

EB Pearls is a leading website and mobile development agency. We’ve engineered and delivered innovative digital products for more than 16 years. During that time, we’ve grown into one of the top full-service digital agencies in Sydney.

At EB Pearls, you’ll have access to the expertise of nearly 200 skilled designers and developers. Moreover, we’re committed to delivering award-winning digital solutions.

Contact EB Pearls today at 02 8880 7857 or connect with us online to book your free consultation.