Anthony W. Ulwick

Build a digital marketing strategy around unmet outcomes

When potential customers use Google to find and evaluate product alternatives, they rarely start by entering the product name and model because they have yet to discover it.
Rather, they enter keywords or phrases that are associated with the “Job-to-be-Done,” such as a job step or a specific desired outcome they are trying to achieve. With ODI-based research, these keywords and phrases are known to the company, which can use them as the foundation for online campaigns, dramatically improving buyer awareness of its product. Any time a potential customer uses Google to find out how to address an unmet outcome they will see the
company’s ad and find its product. A similar strategy can be used to improve SEO results for those same keywords.

Assign leads to ODI-based segments

Many companies process all leads in the same way even though customers have different unmet outcomes. However, using a short 5–10 question survey (on a website or lead- generation tool), a company can accurately determine which outcome-based segment a specific prospect belongs to. With this insight, the prospect can be guided toward the solution that will best address their underserved outcomes.


Arm the sales team with effective sales tools Lastly, the sales team can be taught how to identify what outcome-based segment a customer or prospect belongs to and guide the conversation accordingly. Approaching a customer with the right value proposition and a clear
understanding of their situation and unmet needs goes a long way to building credibility. In 2014, Arm & Hammer’s Animal Nutrition Division used ODI to align its offerings, messaging, and sales efforts around certain underserved segments and outcomes it had discovered. The result was impressive: the Animal Nutrition Division achieved 30% year-to-year revenue growth from 2013 to 2014 without changing its product or pricing—a clear demonstration of the power of aligning marketing and sales efforts around the customer’s Job-to-be-Done.

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