Charity product model canvas – iteration 5
About the canvas
This version includes quite a lot more than iteration 4.
Strategic goal
Show how this opportunity fits with the organisations strategy. If it isn’t clear to everyone how this opportunity contributes to those goals then it should prompt the question of whether to continue to explore the opportunity.
Project name
So everyone knows which project this canvas is about.
Project team
Those working on the project should be the ones using the canvas.
Others involved
Opportunity type
Is this a new opportunity for the charity or are we replacing/improving on an existing one? Is it about income generation or service delivery or something else?
Delivery method
This might be a bit specific, but if you have different delivery methods (and you should) then it’s useful for reminding the team how they are approaching this project.
Date
When the canvas was last updated.
Users
Put the people you are trying to help in the centre. Be as specific as you can. “Everyone” is not the user.
Problems
What problems are those people facing that you are going to try to solve?
Barriers
What barriers prevent people from solving this problem, or from accessing other solutions? There could be a bit of market analysis here to understand other solutions.
Solutions
How will you solve the problems people are facing?
Outcomes
What will people be able to do if they are using your solution that they can’t do without it? How will life be improved for them?
Acquisition
How are people going to find your solution?
Retention
How are you going to keep people using the solution?
Resolution
How are you going to solve the problem in a way that means your solution becomes redundant?
Positioning
Why should this organisation be tackling this problem? Should be thought about from legitimacy and marketing point-of-view rather then philosophically. If your organisation doesn’t already have a natural fit to the opportunity or problem then it’ll be much harder to get traction for your solution.
Channels
Simple logistics question. Will the solution be in-person, over the phone, on a website, etc.
Feedback
How are you going to get feedback from users on your solution and iterate to keep meeting their needs.
Cost to build & cost to maintain
How much is the solution going to cost? Helps with planning budgets and knowing if the solution is viable.
Resources to build and resources to maintain
What things need to be in place to make the solution feasible? Does it need a CRM or email service provider, or buildings, etc., etc.
Launch metrics and ongoing metrics
How will you measure whether the solution is achieving the outcomes you defined?
Using the canvas
Start in the middle with the users.
Fill the canvas organically, not as a linear sequence. Add to each of the boxes, and as that makes you think of other things in other boxes, add them to.
Think about how you might show which things on the canvas are proven and which are assumptions (which shows you where you need to work on validating things).
Little tip – if you can’t fit everything in the boxes then you’re probably trying to tackle too big a problem. Focus.