Data Vanguards.
Problem-Framing Field Guide
Your recommended method
Jobs to Be Done
Understand the real job your fans or members are hiring you for.
Why this method
Sports clubs often build apps fans never open, loyalty programmes that don't retain, and features nobody asked for. Jobs to Be Done asks a different question: what progress are fans or members actually trying to make? A supporter isn't just buying a ticket — they're hiring you to give them a great afternoon out with their mates.
The method works by finding the 'job' — the progress the person is trying to make in their own life — and building the product around that job, not the one you assumed. Clubs that get this right build things people actually use, and stop building things they don't.
Your next move
Interview five season ticket holders or lapsed members about the last time they engaged — or didn't. Write each job as "When …, I want to …, so I can …," then prioritise the one job that's most important and least well served by what you offer today.
Your template — the JTBD statement
Fill this in after your five conversations
When [the trigger moment — what happened that made them reach out to your club],
I want to [the action they wanted to take],
so I can [the outcome or progress they were trying to make].
e.g. "When the new season fixture list drops, I want to renew my seat in one click, so I can lock in the same spot before it's gone."
Three quick-start steps
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1
Choose your segment. Season ticket holders, lapsed members, or new joiners — pick one group and recruit five people for a 30-minute conversation. Specificity is everything: the right segment reveals the right job.
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2
Ask the trigger question. "Walk me through the last time you [engaged / renewed / didn't renew]." Listen for what they were trying to get done — not what your club was trying to achieve. Record it or take verbatim notes.
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3
Write and prioritise. Fill in the template above for each conversation. Identify the one job that is most important and least well served today — that is your brief. If the team disagrees on the prioritisation, you've found the real conversation to have first.
Turn this into a build plan.
A Data Vanguards diagnostic takes your JTBD brief and turns it into the product decision and build plan — in one focused session.
Book a diagnostic →