STEP 12:
Define the Solution

Up to this point, you’ve had in mind at least a rough concept of your solution, but now it’s time to define it more concretely. In the last step, you developed a detailed understanding of your customers. Use that understanding to flesh out a more complete picture of the solution you’ll create for them—what it does, how it works, and why it’s valuable. As part of that process, you’ll map out how your customers interact with your solution at every stage of their journey, from learning about it to adopting it to becoming loyal advocates.

First and foremost, this is an internal exercise that benefits your team. Clearly defining the solution ensures that everyone has a consistent vision of what they're building, so that they can then collectively work towards that vision.

Defining the solution is also critical for communicating your solution externally. A simple description of the offering is especially important for climate and energy entrepreneurs developing complex technologies. When done well, it conveys what you’re doing right away to customers, investors, and other stakeholders, without requiring them to get deep in the weeds of the science.

An image of the solution is also important, even if it is just a simple diagram. It can be tempting to start with the intricacies of the technical breakthroughs that have enabled your solution, but that’s likely to overcomplicate things. At a high level, the offering usually comes down to a set of inputs that gets turned into a useful output through some sort of innovative process or device.

By completing Step 12, you’ll have a well-defined solution that you can actually work towards building.