JTBD Core
Primary Job
The most important job a user hires a product for, which determines feature priority and product positioning.
The primary job is the job that, if unserved, would cause the user to fire the product. A product might do many things, but it is hired for one primary job. For Slack, the primary job is not "send messages" — it is "keep the team aligned without meetings." For ChatGPT, the primary job is not "generate text" — it is "think through problems faster." Products that lose sight of their primary job accumulate features for secondary jobs and become Frankenapps. Products that stay focused on the primary job build defensible positions because no competitor can serve that specific job as well.