business-model-canvas

Overview

Based on "The Lean Startup" by Eric Ries and the Build-Measure-Learn framework. Ries argues that a startup is not a small version of a big company - it is an organization searching for a repeatable, scalable business model. The business model canvas is the artifact of that search. Each block is a hypothesis, not a fact. The job is to identify which blocks carry the most uncertainty and run the cheapest possible experiment to resolve that uncertainty before committing resources.

Workflow

Step 1: Fill each canvas block as a hypothesis

Work through all 9 blocks. Write each as a testable belief, not a statement of fact.

Customer Segments Who specifically suffers from this problem? Not "SMBs" or "enterprise" - get to a job title, company size, industry, and behavior. Example: "Series A SaaS founders with 5-15 person teams who do not yet have a dedicated finance hire."

Value Proposition What specific outcome do you deliver, for which segment, better than any alternative? Format: "We help [segment] achieve [outcome] by [mechanism], unlike [alternative] which [limitation]."