Find your people, do their jobs: JTBD interviews as the quest for the right customer segment
You’ve got a product idea. Or maybe you already have customers, but you’re not sure who they really are or why they choose you or don’t choose you. You’re not alone and we, Rainex, have been there.
That’s where the Jobs To Be Done (JTBD) methodology swoops in like a helpful sidekick in your startup journey.
In this article, we want to dive into one of the most misunderstood parts of JTBD, in our opinion, and share our experience.
So, how to find the right customer segment based on what jobs they’re trying to get done—and how that helps you build better stuff and grow your business.
Wait, What Even Is a Segment in JTBD Land?
When most people hear the word segment, they think of demographics. "Oh, we’re targeting 25–34-year-old urban dog parents who drink oat milk and do yoga." That’s cute, but JTBD sees the world differently.
In JTBD, a segment isn’t defined by who someone is—it’s defined by what they’re trying to accomplish.
A JTBD segment is a group of people who are trying to solve the same problem, in the same context, for the same reasons.
It doesn’t matter if they’re 25 or 55, live in Chicago or Berlin. If they’re all saying “I just want to stop forgetting my passwords without writing them down,” then that’s a segment. And that segment is hiring solutions—like password managers, notebooks, or even browser autofill—to do that job.
Why Go Digging for These Segments?
Because once you find them, you’ve got gold.
Identifying the right JTBD segments helps you:
Understand the real reasons people buy or don’t buy
Build products that actually help people do what they need to do
Target marketing that speaks directly to the job
Unlock new revenue by discovering unmet or underserved jobs
Find more people who can fulfill the job through your solution
One of the most memorable examples in JTBD: you don’t want to sell drill bits, you want to sell the perfect hole in the wall. Your segments are the people who need to hang a family photo, attach a shelf in the bathroom, or put a TV up on the wall. That’s the job.
What Can You Do With JTBD Segments?
Once you know the jobs your segments are trying to get done, you can do some serious business magic.
Target Your Messaging Like a Sniper
No more generic "save time and money" copy. You can say:
“For freelancers who just want to know if they can pay rent this month.” Boom. Felt.
Prioritize Features Based on Jobs
Instead of guessing what’s “cool,” you focus on what actually helps. If one segment says their main pain is tracking invoice payments, that’s your next feature.
Unlock New Revenue Paths
You might find an underserved job that nobody’s addressing well - a big opportunity. Maybe your budgeting app could spin off a feature just for couples managing shared finances. New segment, new job, new revenue.
How Do You Actually Find These Magical Segments?
It all starts with JTBD interviews - and no, it’s not just asking, “Why did you buy this?” It’s a bit of detective work. Here’s how to dig in:
1. Start With Recent Buyers
People who recently made a purchase decision (including choosing a competitor or doing nothing) are full of insights. They’ve still got the emotional residue from their decision.
2. Rewind the Tape
Ask them to walk you through the moment they first thought, “Ugh, I need something better.” Then trace their journey forward. What happened next? What did they Google? Who did they talk to? What did they almost buy?
3. Look for the Push and Pull
In JTBD interviews, you're looking for:
The push: what triggered the need
The pull: what attracted them to a solution
The anxieties: what hesitations they had
The habits: what they were doing before
4. Pattern Spotting
After a few interviews, you’ll start to see repeating stories. Same problems. Similar motivations. That’s your segment.
Example: You’re building a budgeting app. Some people are trying to break free from credit card debt. Others are freelancers trying to track irregular income. Both might use your app - but they have very different jobs. And they need different messages and features.
So You’ve Found a Segment… Now What?
First of all—high five! Finding a clear, actionable JTBD segment is like spotting land after sailing through foggy seas. But don’t pop the champagne just yet—there’s work to do.
1. Document the Story
Write down everything you’ve learned about that segment:
The job they’re trying to get done
The context and triggers (when, where, what causes it)
The emotional and functional needs
The competing solutions they considered
This becomes your go-to JTBD profile - like a user persona, but based on actual behavior and motivation instead of age or job title.
2. Sharpen Your Positioning
Now that you know what this group really cares about, go back to your messaging, website, and onboarding.
Ask:
Does our copy speak to the job?
Are we addressing their anxieties?
Are we emphasizing the outcomes they want?
Make your product feel like it was designed just for them. Because, honestly, now it is.
3. Rally the Team
Share these insights with everyone—product, marketing, sales, support. The segment’s job should become the lens through which you make decisions.
“Would this new feature help Segment A get their job done faster or easier?”
If not, back to the drawing board.
4. Test, Measure, Iterate
Create experiments around your segment:
Landing pages tailored to their job
New onboarding flows
Feature tweaks
Targeted ads
Then watch how they respond. If engagement, retention, and revenue go up—you’re onto something.
A Little Caveat: Not All Segments Are Worth Building For
Sometimes you’ll find a job that’s real but too niche or too low-value to serve profitably. That’s okay. JTBD helps you avoid wasting time on the wrong people.
It’s about focus—and focusing on the right job, for the right group, at the right time.
Flip the Script: What It’s Like to Be Interviewed and Why It Matters
Now let’s talk about something people don’t often mention: being the interviewee in a JTBD interview is also helpful.
It’s not just valuable for the person doing the research—it can be surprisingly insightful and validating for the person sharing their story.
Here’s why:
You realize things you hadn’t consciously noticed
People often say, “Wow, I never thought about it that way before.” Talking it out makes the invisible visible.
You see your own journey more clearly
Whether you’re a power user or just stumbled into a solution, you get to reflect on your own needs and decisions.
You help shape better products
Your story might directly influence what a team builds next. You’re literally helping make something better—not just for you, but for people like you.
Come Talk to Us: JTBD Interviews at Rainex
We’re currently looking for thoughtful
1. founders of SaaS products with a flow without a sales manager (for example, customers go to the site themselves, sign up, pay and start using)
2. marketers and sales managers of SaaS products the flow of which requires direct interaction with customers to sell
to chat with us for about 45 minutes about how you execute customer prospecting and engagement in your company, as well as your previous experience.
No selling, no judgment—just a relaxed conversation that helps us understand what you’re really trying to get done.
What you get:
A peek behind the scenes of product development
The warm fuzzy feeling of making tools better for others
A little thank-you gift in the form of warm leads
Interested? Book a meeting at your convenience and say, “I’m in!”
Wrapping It All Up: JTBD Segments = Your Growth Blueprint
So here’s the TL;DR:
JTBD segments are about shared goals, not shared traits.
You find them through story-driven interviews, not surveys or stats.
Once you know the job, you can build and market more effectively.
Better fit = happier customers = more revenue. (Math checks out.)
Start asking not “Who is this person?” but “What job are they trying to get done?” That’s when the lights turn on, the fog clears, and your product starts to click with the right people.
If you're just starting out with JTBD interviews, take a notebook, grab a few recent users, and start digging into their story. The jobs are out there. You just have to listen for them.
