Value

The central concept of our framework is value. We will pay special attention to this foundation. Understanding value is crucial, as all subsequent steps in the framework depend on it. It serves as the theoretical base upon which every other stage is built.

When you understand how value is created and how customers perceive it, you gain the ability to modify different aspects of the product-customer exchange process and influence profitability. If we look at the root causes of business growth, we see that growth happens by creating value for people—the more effectively a business does this, the more revenue it generates.

So, let’s dive into what value actually is.

First, there is no such thing as a single, universally fixed value for everyone. Different groups of people view the same product from different perspectives. Here’s what this looks like:

Group 1, 2, and 3 perceive the product from different perspectives and understand it to varying degrees. This leads to an important conclusion: a product, by definition, cannot be universal—it holds value for a specific group of people, in other words, a segment.

Even if we take something as essential as drinking water, a bottle of Bonaqua may have no value to some people, while for others, it could be critically important. It all depends on the initial position of the buyer.

In this simple model, we can identify the key "actors" in this situation: the customer, the product, and the process of product perception by the customer.

As we can see, even with the same product, its perceived value varies. This brings us to a crucial insight: value exists primarily in the perception of the buyer.

Alright, but what exactly creates a sense of value in people’s perception? The answer lies in the right architecture of meaning in the exchange process. That might sound complex, but let’s break it down step by step, using Marquiz as an example.

Customer

Who are customers? Customers are a segment of people who share a common characteristic: they experience a conflict (a gap or tension) between what they desire and their current reality.

They also have a specific behavioral pattern, which manifests in habits and alternative ways of solving this existing conflict.

So, we analyze the customer on three levels:

• Segment
• Conflict: desires vs. barriers
• Habits and alternatives

Let’s start with the first level—segmentation.

Customer Segmentation

A customer always belongs to a specific segment. Even when we use the term “mass consumer,” we are oversimplifying reality. In essence, we are referring to a collection of sub-segments—groups of people who prioritize low prices and certain product benefits.

Creating value for an undefined audience is extremely difficult—it’s more like gambling. You’re placing a bet at random, hoping you get lucky. Instead, we recommend treating customers as distinct segments and analyzing each one individually.

Here’s an example of a poorly defined segment:
"A marketer who wants to earn more money."

Why is this bad? First, everyone wants to earn more, not just marketers. And even within the profession, “marketer” is too broad—are we talking about a PPC specialist or a short-form video scriptwriter? A segment like this is too vague to work with effectively.

A well-defined segment would be:
"A newly appointed Head of Marketing in a company whose goal is to optimize expenses and find more cost-effective acquisition strategies."

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Conflict

The tension between what is desired and what currently exists is a key factor in understanding customer motivation. In JTBD, this is referred to as the driver and the barrier. The greater the distance between them, the stronger the tension.

Imagine a stretched rubber band—the more you pull it apart, the greater the tension.

Identifying a segment does not automatically mean you understand the inner conflict of your customer. A Head of Marketing doesn’t spend all day thinking about your product—they reach a buying moment at a specific point in time. This moment is what we call conflict.

From the perspective of the universal Hero’s Journey, the customer encounters a problem or an antagonist that prevents them from achieving their desired outcome. Along the way, they meet a guide (you) who offers a solution.

The strength of motivation is directly proportional to the gap between what is desired and what currently exists.

For example, a Head of Marketing faces a situation where their team needs two weeks to build a landing page and launch traffic to test a hypothesis, while the CEO demands results by next week. If their reputation is on the line, their motivation reaches a critical phase. In this state, the customer actively searches for a solution, willing to break old habits and explore new options.

Habits and Alternatives

A Head of Marketing already has an established way of achieving results. For example, to generate leads, they turn to a PPC specialist, provide them with a technical brief, pay for the service, and simultaneously work with a copywriter and designer to update the website. Under normal circumstances, they would continue following this familiar process. However, a conflict arises—they need to get results twice as fast as they currently do.

Their habit is to delegate traffic management to a PPC specialist and build a website with a designer.
An alternative solution could be a website builder like Tilda.

Why is understanding this stage important? Old habits are stronger than new ideas.

It’s not enough to offer a solution that is "just as good" as the existing alternative. You need to exceed the customer’s sensitivity threshold. Only then will they be willing to consider a new purchase. If they are satisfied with their current approach or feel only mild, non-critical discomfort, they will likely postpone buying. Such potential customers are often referred to as “cold leads”—they show interest, but without urgency. Later in the guide, we will discuss how to work with them.

Product

Now, let’s return to the product. What is it made of?

A product is an artifact with specific characteristics that enable it to solve the customer’s conflict. We analyze the product on three levels:

• Artifact
• Attributes of the artifact
• Benefits

Artifact

An artifact is a physical product, service, or information that promises to resolve the customer’s conflict. It’s important to note that the artifact is what the customer perceives, not the entire product as you see it. We use this term deliberately to distinguish it from the broader concept of a product.

For the customer, the artifact may be access to a service with certain features and information that can solve their problem. However, this is only a part of how you understand your product.

Attribute

Attributes are characteristics and features of the artifact.

For example, in Marquiz, there is a quiz analytics feature that shows the conversion rate for each question. This allows users to analyze their funnel performance and identify drop-off points.

Attributes are often grouped by themes, such as analytics, collaborative editing, or design settings.

Many product teams are surprised when customers don’t use certain features that are available to them. The reason is simple: these features don’t contribute to solving the customer’s conflict. As a result, they are perceived as useless in the customer’s world. Different segments value different attributes, which is why it’s essential to understand what makes an attribute useful.

Benefit

A benefit is different from an attribute. A benefit is an attribute that directly contributes to resolving the customer’s conflict and differentiates you from alternatives.

For example, Marquiz offers visitor segmentation based on quiz responses. This allows clients to separate leads into warm and hot categories, prioritize them for the sales team, and develop tailored scripts for sales reps—ultimately increasing the number of monthly sales.

Segmentation by quiz responses is a benefit because it solves the customer’s conflict—in this case, weak sales due to low-quality, cold leads.

At this point, you already understand who the customer is, what motivates them, and what makes up a product. This brings you much closer to understanding value. Now, we need to examine the final component that connects the product to the customer—the exchange process.

Exchange Process

Understanding this step is crucial.

You may have a great product that can fully solve the customer’s problem, but if the communication process at this stage is broken, the exchange of value won’t happen—and the customer won’t pay you.

As mentioned earlier, value exists in the customer’s perception. When considering your product as a solution, the customer evaluates four key factors:

• Probability of success
• Time required
• Effort needed
• Price

1. Probability of success is the customer’s belief in achieving a positive outcome based on proof of results, such as guarantees, reviews, ratings, success stories, brand authority, and recommendations.
2. Time is the period between the moment of purchase and the successful resolution of the conflict.
3. Effort is the energy required to overcome old habits and familiarize oneself with the new product.
4. Price is the monetary equivalent that the customer gives you in exchange for the perceived value of solving their conflict.

Everything we have explored so far is structured into a simple value formula, which looks like this:

Value Formula

Value = (Conflict + Benefits) * Probability of Success / (Time * Effort * Price)

The value formula is useful because it highlights the relationship between different aspects of the transaction. A strong conflict, relevant benefits, and a high probability of success are only half of the equation. When selling, always consider the effort and time required for the customer to use the product.

A free product is never truly free—customers always pay with their time and effort. By reading this guide, for example, you are investing your time in us instead of watching YouTube as usual.

Self-Check Checklist

• Conduct interviews with customers: how are they segmented, what conflicts do they face, and what are their existing habits?
• Analyze your product from the customer's perspective: how do they describe the artifact, and which attributes matter most to them?
• Reevaluate the exchange process: how easy is it to use your solution, how much time does it require, and are you convincing enough?

Crafting Offers That Are Impossible to Refuse

Once you’ve done all the groundwork, you will know exactly what to say to potential customers to achieve explosive sales growth.

Imagine you sell personal training for people struggling with weight loss and decide to attract clients through Instagram Stories:

"Hey guys! Do you know someone who is struggling with (conflict between desired and actual state) and wants to see results in (time frame)? Right now, I'm taking on five people for a personalized program of bodyweight training (artifact and benefit). I’ll help them achieve their goal without exhausting diets (effort).

This method really works—one of my clients, [Name], finally achieved [desired result] after struggling with [conflict challenge] for years, and it only took 8 sessions (time). I also guarantee that if someone doesn’t see results in two months, I won’t abandon them—I’ll keep training them at my own expense until they do (guarantee).

Another client, [Name], got in shape effortlessly (effort) in just (time), and I’m so confident in my approach that I want to collect more success stories to prove how well it works for different people.”

Understanding Value as a Team

Previously, stakeholders, product managers, sales, marketing, and support would improvise on the fly about what the product is, what makes it unique, and who it’s for. Now, with this model, teams can align their understanding of value.

A vague, inconsistent perception of value is what disrupts teamwork. People use the same words but don’t truly understand each other: marketers write one thing, designers create something different, and sales teams promise things that don’t even exist. As a result, customers get a confusing impression of the product, which weakens the exchange process.

We recommend holding a team session with members from different departments to develop a shared understanding of value and create an action plan for new communication strategies.

Very soon, you’ll see how clarity of value works in practice—click-through rates will improve, conversion rates will increase, sales will grow, and customer satisfaction will rise.