--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Predictable marketing requires an…" description: "\"“Predictable marketing requires an understanding of the circumstances in which customers buy or use things. Specifically, customers—people and companie..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/clayton-m-christensen-6841_learning_predictable-marketing-requires-an-unders_1587371.jpg" --- # Predictable marketing requires an understanding of the… ![“Predictable marketing requires an understanding of the circumstances in which customers buy or use things. Specifically, customers—people and companies—have “jobs” that arise regularly and need to get done. When customers become aware of a job that they need to get done in their lives, they look…” quote by Clayton M. Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/clayton-m-christensen-6841_learning_predictable-marketing-requires-an-unders_1587371.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/clayton-m-christensen-6841_learning_predictable-marketing-requires-an-unders_1587371.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97c/clayton-m-christensen-6841_learning_predictable-marketing-requires-an-unders_1587371.jpg) > ““Predictable marketing requires an understanding of the circumstances in which customers buy or use things. Specifically, customers—people and companies—have “jobs” that arise regularly and need to get done. When customers become aware of a job that they need to get done in their lives, they look around for a product or service that they can “hire” to get the job done.”” [Clayton M. Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-m-christensen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Christensen describes “jobs to be done” theory: understanding the specific tasks customers need to accomplish guides product design. **In simple terms:** Know the tasks customers want to accomplish. Key Takeaway Design products that fit real customer jobs. Themes marketing innovation customer focus Mood analytical strategic Type business insight When to use this quote - product development - service design - market research Key Concepts jobs theory value proposition Questions to Reflect On - What job does your product truly serve? - How can you discover unmet jobs? A Different Perspective Customers may have hidden or evolving jobs that are hard to identify. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Circumstances Customers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/circumstances-customers-6008508/) [Customer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer/) [Job Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job-done/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Marketing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marketing/) [Marketing Requires](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marketing-requires-2678011/) [Need Customers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/need-customers-262231/) [Predictable Marketing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/predictable-marketing-6008507/) ## Related quotes > [“The functional, emotional, and social dimensions of the jobs that customers need to get done constitute the circumstances in which they buy. In other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-m-christensen/the-functional-emotional-and-social-dimensions-of-the-jobs-that/) [Clayton M. 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But if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ries/most-entrepreneurs-don-t-need-as-many-customers-as-they-think-a-lot/) [Eric Ries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ries/) > [“The job done least well by project managers is to utilize the technical genius who is not strong on management talent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-p-brooks-jr/the-job-done-least-well-by-project-managers-is-to-utilize-the/) [Frederick P. Brooks Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-p-brooks-jr/) > [This is my smokin' song. It ain't very long, but guaranteed to get the job done. 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I push myself; I get my job done, and at the end of the day,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-momoa/i-m-an-early-riser-i-work-out-really-hard-i-push-myself-i-get-my-job/) [Jason Momoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-momoa/) > [“She was every bit of everything he remembered about her, all at once and all at the same time. That was Kerry McCrae in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-kauffman/she-was-every-bit-of-everything-he-remembered-about-her-all-at-once/) [Donna Kauffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-kauffman/) > [Australians can trust me to get the job done. They can have the confidence that in the heart of the circumstances I will win…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-gillard/australians-can-trust-me-to-get-the-job-done-they-can-have-the/) [Julia Gillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-gillard/) > [“Courage is a fleeting commodity and can be crushed effortlessly by a single fond memory of home. A backyard barbecue, a fragmented flashback to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-parnell/courage-is-a-fleeting-commodity-and-can-be-crushed-effortlessly-by-a/) [Sean Parnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-parnell/) > [Usually male directors have to use foul language to get the job done. But I never came down to that level as being a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-khosla-kumar/usually-male-directors-have-to-use-foul-language-to-get-the-job-done/) [Divya Khosla Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-khosla-kumar/) ## More by Clayton M. Christensen > [“Identifying disruptive footholds means connecting with specific jobs that people—your future customers—are trying to get done in their lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-m-christensen/identifying-disruptive-footholds-means-connecting-with-specific-jobs/) [Clayton M. Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-m-christensen/) > [“In the words of Andy Grove: “To understand a company’s strategy, look at what they actually do rather than what they say they will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-m-christensen/in-the-words-of-andy-grove-to-understand-a-company-s-strategy-look-at/) [Clayton M. Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-m-christensen/) > [The concept of disruption is about competitive response; it is not a theory of growth. It's adjacent to growth. But it's not about growth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-m-christensen/the-concept-of-disruption-is-about-competitive-response-it-is-not-a/) [Clayton M. Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-m-christensen/) > [“disruptive technology should be framed as a marketing challenge, not a technological one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-m-christensen/disruptive-technology-should-be-framed-as-a-marketing-challenge-not-a/) [Clayton M. 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This allows those who are looking for “an answer” to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-m-christensen/the-breakthrough-researcher-first-discovers-the-fundamental-causal/) [Clayton M. Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-m-christensen/) > [“In contrast, investing time and energy in your relationship with your spouse and children typically doesn’t offer that same immediate sense of achievement. Kids…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-m-christensen/in-contrast-investing-time-and-energy-in-your-relationship-with-your/) [Clayton M. Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-m-christensen/) > [In our personal lives, we have a lot of businesses going on. I have a profession, I'm a father, a spouse, a good member…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-m-christensen/in-our-personal-lives-we-have-a-lot-of-businesses-going-on-i-have-a/) [Clayton M. 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Think AS the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-fishman/don-t-think-of-the-market-think-as-the-market/) [Michael Fishman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-fishman/) > [If Wall Street crashes, does Main Street follow? Not necessarily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-bernanke/if-wall-street-crashes-does-main-street-follow-not-necessarily/) [Ben Bernanke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-bernanke/) > [The exact details of how you practice value investing will vary investor to investor, but the fundamental principle of scouring the world, looking for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-tilson/the-exact-details-of-how-you-practice-value-investing-will-vary/) [Whitney Tilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-tilson/) > [The best way to hold customers is to constantly figure out how to give them more for less.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-kotler/the-best-way-to-hold-customers-is-to-constantly-figure-out-how-to/) [Philip Kotler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-kotler/) > [Perhaps the most important reason to be skeptical of government inflation numbers is that the government, like a fox campaigning to guard a hen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/perhaps-the-most-important-reason-to-be-skeptical-of-government/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [When the dollar collapses, it's not doing it in a vacuum. 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