Clay Christensen’s approach to marketing is very fascinating.

In his post, he talks about how people “hire” a product to accomplish a specific task or job for them. For example, we would hire a muffin to keep us full or a glass of beer to keep our thirst quenched.

The word “hire” is a great word to use in marketing, specifically in determining a consumer segment of a market. A great product is a product that is able to GET THE JOB DONE.

Clay gave an example of a restaurant that sells milkshakes. The restaurant wanted to increase sales; so they tried to switch up the flavours and so on but nothing happened. They then proceeded to observe and analyse when consumers normally purchase the milkshake and why. Surprisingly, the main job that these consumers want to accomplish is to fill their stomachs until 10am and to keep them entertained during the long train ride. The restaurant then increased their sales significantly by creating thicker milkshakes.

Business is all about creating a product or service that is able to satisfy consumer’s wants and needs which leads to PROFIT. Despite how simple this theory sounds, it is very difficult to determine what job/task that consumers want to accomplish. It requires research of past data, setting up focus groups, etc.

HOWEVER, if a company is able to determine what their product will be hired for, they are GOLDEN. This information can then be used in marketing, advertising and so on. It will be the company’s Unique Selling Proposition.

Link to the original blogpost: http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/6496.html