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What is Lean Canvas?

The Lean Canvas is a business modeling tool created to help deconstruct a startup idea into its key and most risky assumptions. Deeply influenced by the lean startup methodology, the Lean Canvas servers as a tactical plan to guide entrepreneurs navigate their way from ideation to building a successful startup. The methodology has been developed by Ash Maurya , as an adaptation of Alexander Osterwalder ’s Business Model Canvas – the most used modeling canvas in the world.

The Lean Canvas is composed of nine building blocks, just as the Business Model Canvas . But, on the Lean Canvas, these blocks have their titles and purposes modified, in a logical order that begins from your customer’s problem. Let’s understand better how this modeling system works.

Why use the Lean Canvas?

It is really important clen 40 , for any kind of entrepreneur, to put their ideas on paper, so it’s possible for every stakeholder to be aware of the goals and threats of the project. That’s the best way to make everyone think of solutions and accomplish the aimed results. But this process needs to overcome two challenges:

• Translate your thoughts into some language. It is complicated to translate what’s in our mind into words, in a clear and assertive way. Often, the opposite takes place: everything gets even trickier when concepts must become something concrete and visible.
• The time this translation can take . Traditional business plans usually take weeks – sometimes even months – for elaboration. This may become a waste of time and energy. Especially when we consider that the market and the scenario where your business is can change in a few days. When we think of an unexpected crisis, they can transform drastically.

The purpose of Lean Canvas is precisely to solve both problems. Because this method is based on practical principles, with a simple user-friendly visual language, which allows the entrepreneurs to test their hypotheses more efficiently.

How does the Lean Canvas work?

Download here the Lean Canvas Template Lean Canvas puts all the information you and your team need to visualize and analyze together, in a single canvas, eliminating unrelated and irrelevant details. The focus, here, is to avoid waste – of time, energy, processes, money – just as Lean Startup methodology encourages. So, this modeling system is based, as mentioned above, on only nine building blocks, which are:

• Problem : when you want to sell a solution (whether a product or a service), there should be a demand, in other words, at least one identifiable problem. Every customer segment you are going to define has its own problems, and it’s your business’s purpose to solve them. You are going to build your whole canvas over this building block. This section, then, must contain up to three priority problems.
• Customer Segments : perhaps this is the first building block for you to establish. Because probably the first step to understanding your business will be to discover who your customer is. After all, you can only get to know what are the problems you are going to solve when you know the ones who face them. Thus, if there is more than one customer segment, you ought to develop one canvas for each.
• Unique Value Proposition : This block shows how your business differentiates from others, what the value your customer will only have through your product or service, and no one else. Therefore, list what makes your brand stand out over the competition – i.e., why your customer must buy from you rather than your rival.
• Solution : now that you know what and whose the problem is, it’s time to offer the solution. It must stand for the minimum set of functionalities and features (Minimum Viable Product) that allows you to deliver the value proposition from the previous block.
• Channels : here, you have to inform the means you are going to use to reach your audience. That includes all marketing, communication, and distribution channels that you intend to adopt, both from traditional and digital media.
• Revenue Streams : ask yourself “how much will my customer pay for my product/service?”. The price and the payment system was chosen are a very important part of your offer. That can mean the success or failure of your venture.
• Cost Structure : gather here all the costs needed for you to be able to sell your product. You should list all the expenses, from research and development to monthly fees and salaries.
• Key Metrics : it’s imperative for you to get to know what metrics you are going to apply when measuring your business’s performance. That’s the only way you may monitor the team towards the results.
• Unfair Advantage : ask your team “what does this business/product/service have, that no one else does?”. This is possibly the most difficult question in the whole canvas. The answer has to be something that cannot be copied, mimicked, or acquired – that is unique in the market. It’s challenging, but it’s an essential matter, mainly if you intend to use the canvas for attracting partners and investors.

As you may have noticed, we are talking about only nine blocks, very objective. Therefore, it is about a modeling method that can be concluded within 20 minutes! Can you think of something leaner ?

The Benefits of Using Lean Canvas

Besides the brevity and objectivity of this 20-minute tool, there are other advantages in using the Lean Canvas, such as:

• Focus on the solution . Especially when compared to complicated typical business plans, Lean Canvas permit the stakeholders to adjust their focus on problem-solution relation. That makes the hypotheses simpler and clearer.
• User-friendly design. This one-page canvas encourages all the team members to take part in the development and fulfillment of ideas. Also, there is little space available – on purpose – what compels to reduce the analysis to what is completely fundamental, leaving aside unconnected and trivial data.
• From entrepreneurs to entrepreneurs. The method has been created by businesspeople. They are aware that the business plan is for the company owner and team – it will seldom be present to outsiders. Therefore, there is no need to waste time and energy in details and accessories.

What’s the difference between Lean Canvas and Business Model Canvas?

As the creator of Lean Canvas, Ash Maurya, said, one is not better than the other. They are just different. While the Business Model Canvas focuses on planning the business from a strategic point of view, Lean Canvas focuses on the customer-problem-solution relationship. In practice, the difference between the two tools is just on the four blocks, which Maurya modified in Lean Canvas from Business Model Canvas. But this “small” change transforms the entire understanding of the business model. Maurya’s objective, by modifying Business Model Canvas’s blocks, has been turning it into a more user-friendly tool, that didn’t need explanations from experts. One where you could simply read the titles to understand how the components are supposed to be filled out.

What building blocks have been introduced in Lean Canvas?

• Problem : most businesses that fail at the beginning of their operations choose the wrong product to be produced. They waste a lot of time, money, and energy on creating and developing a product that doesn’t really interest their audience. To avoid that, sometimes it is easier to define what the problem of your customer is, what challenges they are facing that needs a solution. Thus, you will be able to develop a product which solves this problem and will not waste time in the wrong – and useless – product.
• Solution : having established the problem to be solved, then you can move to developing the solution for this issue. If you compare the space provided in each of the blocks – Problem and Solution –, you will see that the second one is half the size of the first. This is purposeful, to align with the idea of the Minimum Viable Product (MVP).
• Key – Metrics : the purpose of this component is to make the entrepreneur focus on the most important numbers of their business. Often, you can decide on a particular metric and practically ignore the rest, because this is the foundation of your business. The objective, therefore, is to find out what these key metrics are, so as not to spend time, money and energy on activities or resources that are not essential and that, more than that, may change in the very near future.
• Unfair Advantage : the unfair advantage is that factor that differentiates your business from the competition, capable of blocking the entry or expansion of your competitors in the market. It is, in simple words, that which cannot be easily copied or purchased. Often, new companies don’t have – or fail to identify – their unfair advantage right away, so this block may end up going blank at first. But the component is there to encourage the entrepreneur to continue searching and working to find their unfair advantage, in order to protect it from the competition, especially from new entrants.

Which Business Model Canvas’s building blocks have been replaced?

• Customer Relationship : this component has been substituted partly by the Channels, the Solution, and the Customer Segment. Because you determine the solution to a customer segment’s problem and keep a relationship with that segment, through the channels.
• Key Partners : although some businesses essentially depend on partnerships, for the vast majority this is not true. Especially for beginning and unknown entrepreneurs, seeking partnerships right away can be a real waste of time and energy.
• Key Activities and Key Resources : These blocks are more for outsiders to understand your business than for you to make it work yourself. In addition, the key activities will only be discovered, indeed, during the operation, and only after your solution – your MVP – has already been tested. As for the main resources, a good part of the new businesses, mainly the startups, are no longer focused on “physical” resources. More and more, it takes fewer resources to launch a product on the market. Again, this will only become very clear with the progress of the operation.

Different tools for different purposes

Check out, bellow, how differently both tools can be applied to business management:

• In simple words, we may say that the Business Model Canvas is more appropriate for those who are beginning a business – especially if that is not a startup – from scratch. On the other hand, Lean Canvas aims other activities, such as iteration, expansion or innovation startup development, since that focuses on problem-solution relations.
• Another difference is that Lean Canvas focuses straightly on the customer , by seeking to create value by observing their problems that need solution. While Business Model Canvas, to be used this way, needs to be combined with the Value Proposition Canvas, and you end up with two canvases instead of only one.
• This way, Lean Canvas is simpler than the Business Model Canvas , since BMC emphasizes the creation and building of a whole new business model from the beginning. And that’s why it’s so fundamental for the businesses that are coming out from scratch. Lean Canvas, on the other hand, approaches the business as the product itself. So, the business model is not perfect yet. It is a lean framework, in progress, that can be iterated the same way you could do with a product.
• Besides, while Business Model Canvas has been developed to and by managers, Lean Canvas has been thought as an accessible tool for any kind of person , whether the entrepreneur or any other team member. That’s why the blocks have been simplified.
• For that same reason, the Lean Canvas can be used outside the marketing and management area , too. It is, actually, a tool that has been used by engineers, designers, and even high school students.

As may be seen, both tools, therefore are useful and efficient. As Maurya stated, there is not “the best one”. You must get to know what your objective is, regarding business modeling, and choose the alternative you believe will fit better to what you need.

Ash Maurya’s Lean Canvas’s Book

The creation of the Lean Canvas and many of the articles published by Ash Maurya in his blog created an opportunity for him to publish a book . The book revolves completely around the main premise of Maurya’s Lean modeling: “life’s too short to build something nobody wants”, i.e., nobody should waste time, money, and energy on developing the wrong product. The best way to do that, according to Ash Maurya is his book, is to achieve a product/market fit. And that is done based on innovative methodologies, including Lean Startup and its Lean Canvas.

Final Considerations about the Lean Canvas

It is important to keep in mind that the Lean Canvas is not a project for the entire lifetime of the company. On the contrary, it is about a method that permits experimentation. You and your team may test different combinations until you find out what the ideal business model for your venture is. Never forget: it is always better to invest some time planning and experimenting, than building a product nobody wants.

Daniel Pereira

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Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

In the ever-changing world of innovation, a well-defined roadmap is essential to steer a startup towards financial sustainability. The Lean Canvas model does just that – it is a valuable one-page template for brainstorming early-stage business models.

It’s designed to be an ever-evolving blueprint that assists entrepreneurs in validating their ideas, mitigating risks, and iterating their business models. Its approach calls for concise content, making it a practical framework to outline your business concept. And most importantly, it enables you to align strategies with market demands.

Below we take a look at how to complete the Lean Canvas tool.

How To Use the Lean Canvas Template for Business Model Development

As mentioned above, the Lean Canvas is a strategic management tool that helps startups and entrepreneurs develop a concise and actionable business plan. It is divided into several blocks, each focusing on crucial aspects of a business model.

Let’s take a look at each block:

Identifies the top 3 problems and pain points that your target audience experience. The end goal is to understand their problems better and identify how your solution solves their problems / and alleviates the pain.

Clearly outline your business solution and/or product offering that solves the problems your customers are experiencing. Describes how your solution effectively meets the market’s demands.

Learn More: Lean Canvas Model: Crafting Solutions and Prioritizing Features

Key Metrics

Determines the key performance indicators to help you measure your business’s performance and progress. These metrics inform your business development.

Unique Value Proposition (UVP)

Define what sets your business apart from competitors and why potential customers will choose your product or service.

Read More: What Is Unfair Advantage in Lean Canvas?

Highlights the channels you intend to reach and engage your customers. This may include online platforms, partnerships, or direct sales channels.

Customer Segments

Specifies the different market segments you plan to target. This block helps you understand your primary audience, which is critical for tailoring your offering. Learn how ‘ customer segment s’ can impact your business success and optimize your strategy accordingly.

Cost Structure

This breaks down the expenses involved in operating your business. This includes production costs, marketing expenses, and other relevant financials.

Read More: The Cost Structure Lean Canvas

Revenue Streams

Outline the sources of revenue for your business . This may include sales, subscriptions, licensing fees, or any other means through which your business generates income.

What are the benefits of using the Lean Canvas?

Ash Maurya pioneered the Lean Canvas model as an invaluable tool for startups using the Lean Startup methodology. By filling out the one-page lean canvas, you can clearly define your business model and identify any weaknesses or gaps in your strategy.

Read More: Startup Project Management: The Key to Success

The main benefit of the lean canvas is that it forces you to synthesize your business idea down to its core components. This includes identifying your target customers, the problem you are solving for them, your unique value proposition, the channels you will use to reach customers, and your revenue streams. Going through this exercise early on ensures your entire team has alignment on the fundamentals of your business.

Another advantage is that the lean canvas lends itself well to experimentation and iteration. As you test parts of your business model and gain new customer insights, you can quickly update your canvas to reflect pivot decisions. This builds momentum by keeping your team focused on the right metrics and priorities.

Tools to create a Lean Startup model

The advice has been, traditionally, to print out a lean canvas and post it somewhere to fill with sticky notes. This can often be challenging as teams are frequently remote and may need access to the information outside the office because the lean canvas should be tracked alongside progress.

Tools to create a Lean canvas online include project management tools like Leantime and tools like Leanstack.

Leantime Features Include

• Task Management
• Idea Management
• Goals Tracking
• SWOT Analysis, Empathy Maps, Project Briefs
• Time tracking
• AI Task Prioritization
• Strategy Management
• Program Plan management
• And much more

Being able to map out your initial business model and then immediately connect it to a growing business is a unique value proposition of using a tool like Leantime. It’s an ideal companion to both growing and developing your business ideas simultaneously. Quickly see the progress and keep the growth on track with our features .

In Summary – Optimize Business Development with the Lean Canvas

Overall, the lean canvas model perfectly complements the Lean Startup approach. Enabling fast learning and adaptation increases your chances of finding product-market fit and launching a sustainable, scalable business.

Completing the Lean Canvas template helps create a comprehensive understanding of your business model and guides strategic decision-making. Regularly revisiting and revising (also known as iterating), the canvas keeps your business strategies aligned with market dynamics and ensures that you’re on the path to scale and grow.

Using the Lean Canvas framework is a proactive way to advance your business model, sets the stage for informed decision-making, and helps define an adaptable business model that stands the test of time.

Explore More About Lean Startup Philosophy — we’re passionate about helping you navigate the world of entrepreneurship and innovation through the lens of the Lean Startup methodology.

Frequently Asked Questions

The 9 sections are Customer Segments, Problem, Unique Value Proposition, Solution, Channels, Revenue Streams, Cost Structure, Key Metrics, and Unfair Advantage.

It’s best to complete your initial lean canvas during customer discovery and before building your minimum viable product (MVP). Revisit and iterate on it throughout product development.

The goal is to summarize your business model at a high level on one page. Capture the essential elements without going into too much depth.

The lean canvas is meant to complement a business plan, not serve as a comprehensive plan itself. Use it to align your team and identify gaps before creating your full plan.

Yes, the canvas should evolve as you learn from experiments and make pivots. Review and update it frequently to stay on track.

Here are some other links you may be interested in…

• Lean Business Solutions
• Understanding the Lean Canvas: The Blueprint of Modern Lean Innovation
• Creating a successful startup: Business development tools to prevent failure
• Crafting Solutions and Prioritizing Features with the Lean Canvas Model for Effective Business Development
• Communicating Business Development with the Lean Canvas

Jenny Jackson

Jenny Jackson, a seasoned Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR), brings a wealth of expertise in innovation process, design thinking, and research & development. Since 2019, she has demonstrated her commitment to fostering business growth as a dedicated Business Mentor for Charlotte Launch (formerly Ventureprise Launch) and as a leader guiding two research teams in the prestigious National Science Foundation’s (NSF) iCorps program.Jenny's journey in entrepreneurship and innovation has been marked by a series of impactful roles. Prior to joining the dynamic team at the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at UNC Charlotte, she provided invaluable support to startups, labs, and incubators, showcasing her dedication to fostering emerging ventures.Jenny holds a Master's in Organization Development from Queens University of Charlotte and a Bachelor’s in Industrial Technology with a concentration in Graphic Communications from North Carolina A&T State University.Beyond her professional achievements, Jenny is an advocate for children's rights and autism acceptance, reflecting her dedication to making a positive impact in the world. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. she continues to champion causes that align with her values.#InnovationExpert #DesignThinking #StartupMentor #BusinessGrowth #ResearchandDevelopment

Support Leantime

Leantime is an open source project and lives and breathes through its community.

If you like Leantime and want to support us you can start by giving us a Star on Github or through a sponsorship.

How to Make a Lean Canvas Model

Lucid Content

Reading time: about 8 min

Is your company getting ready to start a new project? Have you decided to start your own business? Are you developing a new product?

Whatever you’re thinking of doing, you are going to need some kind of business plan. And the type of plan you need will depend on what your goal is, what type of activity you are planning, and what level of detail you’ll need to present to stakeholders.

A traditional business plan, a lengthy document that includes detailed information such as a market analysis, marketing plan, etc., may be more than you need at this time. Writing a traditional business plan can take several weeks or months to complete. Fortunately, there are alternatives to business planning that don’t involve writing a book.

In 2008, Alex Osterwalder, a Swiss business theorist, developed the Business Model Canvas as a way for businesses to quickly visualize and map out a business model using a one-page document. A few years later, an entrepreneur named Ash Maurya adapted the Business Model Canvas to focus on addressing customer problems and solutions.

In this article, we will discuss the Lean Canvas model and how to use it. But first, we’ll explain what the original Business Model Canvas to help you understand the differences.

What is the Business Model Canvas?

This document is designed to be a visual representation of what you need to make or keep a business successful. It lets you quickly summarize how your business should work based on the information you have. The Business Model Canvas is intended to be a living document that you can easily update on the fly as you test theories and assumptions.

The Business Model Canvas contains the following categories to help you answer important questions about your business:

• Value proposition:  What value does your product or service bring to the customer?
• Key partners:  Who are your suppliers and partners?
• Key activities: What do you need to do to make this business model work?
• Key resources: Who or what are the most important assets that you will need to make this model a success?
• Customer relationships: What will your relationship with customers and potential customers be?
• Customer segments: Who will buy your product?
• Channels: How will you reach your chosen customer segments?
• Cost structure: What costs will you incur to operate your business model?
• Revenue streams: How will you generate revenue from each customer segment?

When would you use a Business Model Canvas?

The Business Model Canvas is useful for strategic planning and can be used to visually focus on the most important elements of your business.

You also may want to use this model to understand your competition. Make a sketch of your competitor’s business plan and examine their strengths, weaknesses, and limitations. This practice allows you to build a model that addresses the areas where the competition is lacking.

What is a Lean Canvas?

A Lean Business Model Canvas, or Lean Canvas, is based on the Business Model Canvas. When Maurya adapted the Lean Canvas, he was looking for a better, faster way to develop and build successful products that address and solve customer problems. The Lean Canvas is more focused on entrepreneurs who are starting a new business.

Like the Business Model Canvas, the Lean Canvas includes nine boxes on a one-page template. At first glance, the Business Model Canvas and the Lean Canvas look exactly alike, but there are key differences, noted below:

This box replaces the key partners section in the Business Model Canvas.

Identify what the problem is. Many businesses fail because they spend too much time, money, and resources on building the wrong product. You need to understand the customer’s problem first. To get started, list your customers’ top three problems and then list alternatives that may already exist that these customers use to solve these problems today.

This box replaces the key activities section in the Business Model Canvas.

After you have identified each problem, outline possible solutions you can use to solve them. These solutions can include new products/services and improvements to existing products.

• Unique value proposition

Develop a message that is compelling, clear, and concise. This message should be able to turn unaware visitors into interested prospects.

Use this box to list what you propose to offer customers, and the value that this offering will provide. Think about what makes your offering different from others who are trying to solve the same problems.

• Unfair advantage

This box replaces the customer relationships section in the Business Model Canvas.

This is where you identify your competitive advantage, the differentiator that makes your product or business unique and that is not easily copied.

• Customer segments

You must understand who your customers are. You can’t know what they need or what their problems are if you don’t know who they are.

Describe your target audience and define what your relationship will be with them. You may have many customer segments, and you need to realize that they are tied together with their problems. You may need to think of problems and customers at the same time.

• Key metrics

This box replaces the key resources section in the Business Model Canvas.

Metrics are a way to measure performance and to monitor progress toward achieving your business goals. List current numbers that describe how your business is doing today.

In addition, you may want to define the key metrics that you will use as indicators to measure future success. For example, how many units of a product need to be sold in order to earn a profit?

What channels will you use to reach your customers? List the marketing and advertising methods that you will use, such as print, radio, SEO, TV, and so on.

• Cost structure

You have to spend money to make money. This section is where you list the costs that your business will have in order to develop and market your product, including research, technology, human resources, and so on. Be sure to include one-time and recurring costs.

• Revenue streams

In this box, you will list where your money is going to come from. How are you going to price your product or service to ensure that you make a profit? You need to consider how much people are willing to pay and what the minimum is that you can charge in order to make a profit.

When would you use a Lean Canvas model?

The Business Model Canvas approaches business planning from a strategic angle. The Lean Canvas shifts to a problem/solution paradigm, which allows you to focus more on addressing customer needs. This is a good tool for startup businesses and entrepreneurs to use. Once you identify your customers and their problems, you can find solutions, describe value propositions, define your revenue streams, and so on.

How do you make a Lean Canvas model?

The best place to start working on a Lean Canvas is Lucidchart, where you can find a template to meet your needs. After you’ve opened a blank canvas, how do you fill it out? What is the correct order to use when filling in the boxes?

Ash Maurya, the person who developed the Lean Canvas, says that people frequently ask him, “Why isn’t the Lean Canvas laid out more logically?” According to Maurya, the main reason for the Lean Canvas layout was legacy. Instead of completely changing the layout of the original Business Model Canvas, Maurya chose to adopt a self-imposed design constraint where he replaced existing boxes with new boxes (for example, Problems replaced Key Partners).

If you have never filled out a Lean Canvas before, you might think that you should fill out the canvas from left to right. However, Maurya has suggested the following order:

Over the years, Maurya has tweaked his suggested fill order in an effort to get a better flow. When asked which fill order is correct, his answer is simple: There isn’t one.

You may want to start with a suggested fill order until you have a better idea of what works best for you and your company. For some plans, it may make more sense to start with identifying your customer segments and then moving on to your customer’s problems. Other times, it may be more appropriate to start with the problem that needs to be addressed.

However you decide is the best way to fill out your Lean Canvas model, be sure you work with Lucidchart. Start out with one of our templates to flesh out your ideas and to collaborate with team members.

About Lucidchart

Lucidchart, a cloud-based intelligent diagramming application, is a core component of Lucid Software's Visual Collaboration Suite. This intuitive, cloud-based solution empowers teams to collaborate in real-time to build flowcharts, mockups, UML diagrams, customer journey maps, and more. Lucidchart propels teams forward to build the future faster. Lucid is proud to serve top businesses around the world, including customers such as Google, GE, and NBC Universal, and 99% of the Fortune 500. Lucid partners with industry leaders, including Google, Atlassian, and Microsoft. Since its founding, Lucid has received numerous awards for its products, business, and workplace culture. For more information, visit lucidchart.com.

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Unraveling the Lean Canvas: A Comprehensive Guide

5 minutes read

Part 1. What is the concept of Lean Canvas?

Lean Canvas is a concise and visual one-page business plan that serves as a strategic framework for startups and entrepreneurs. It encapsulates key elements of a business model, such as customer segments, problems addressed, unique value propositions, channels, revenue streams, cost structure, and key metrics. Developed by Ash Maurya, Lean Canvas focuses on rapid iteration and quick visualization, facilitating efficient communication and adaptation of business ideas in a dynamic market environment.

Part 2. What are the components of Lean Canvas model?

• Problem:   This block describes the top three problems that the target customer segment faces. It focuses on the pain points that the business aims to address.
• Solution:   Outlines the unique value proposition or solutions the business offers to solve the problems identified in the "Problem" block.
• Key Metrics:   Identifies the key performance indicators (KPIs) that are most critical to monitoring and assessing the success of the business.
• Unique Value Proposition (UVP):   Clearly articulates the unique value that the business provides to its customers, differentiating it from competitors.
• Unfair Advantage:   escribes the distinctive advantages or assets that make it difficult for competitors to replicate or surpass the business.
• Customer Segments:   dentifies the target customer segments for the business, specifying the customers who will benefit the most from the product or service.
• Channels:   escribes the various channels through which the business will reach and engage with its target customers, including distribution and communication channels.
• Revenue Streams:   pecifies the ways in which the business will generate revenue, including pricing models, sales strategies, and monetization approaches.
• Cost Structure:   dentifies the key costs and expenses associated with operating the business, including fixed and variable costs.

Entrepreneurs use the Lean Canvas as a dynamic tool for continuous iteration and refinement. It encourages a focus on the essentials of the business model, allowing for quick adjustments as the startup learns more about its customers and market. The Lean Canvas is particularly popular in the startup community for its simplicity and effectiveness in facilitating strategic thinking and planning.

Part 3. Why is a Lean Canvas important?

A Lean Canvas provides clarity on what drives your business and helps identify potential risks early on. It's an excellent tool for communicating your business idea succinctly within your team or to potential investors. A Lean Canvas is crucial for several reasons:

• Concise Planning:   Enables entrepreneurs to distill complex business ideas into a one-page plan, fostering clarity and focus.
• Rapid Iteration:   Promotes quick adjustments to business models, allowing startups to adapt swiftly to changing market dynamics and customer feedback.
• Efficient Communication : Facilitates clear communication of business concepts to stakeholders, team members, and investors, fostering better understanding and collaboration.
• Resource Optimization:   Helps allocate resources effectively by identifying and prioritizing key elements of the business model, reducing waste.
• Validation of Assumptions:   Encourages entrepreneurs to test assumptions early on, minimizing risks and increasing the likelihood of creating a viable and sustainable business.

Part 4. When should you do a Lean Canvas?

A Lean Canvas is most effective at the early stages of a venture, including:

• Startup Ideation:   When brainstorming and refining initial business ideas to create a solid foundation for development.
• Business Validation:   Before committing significant resources, to validate assumptions, ensuring alignment with market needs.
• Strategic Planning:   During strategic planning, to provide a visual framework for decision-making and resource allocation.
• Pivoting or Iterating:   When considering a pivot or adapting the business model based on feedback or changing market conditions.
• Continuous Improvement:   Regularly throughout the business lifecycle to foster a culture of continuous improvement and adaptability.

Part 5. What are the unfair advantages of Lean Canvas?

In Lean Canvas, an "unfair advantage" refers to a unique strength or advantage that gives a startup or a business an edge over its competitors. This concept is one of the nine building blocks in the Lean Canvas, a one-page business model template developed by Ash Maurya as an adaptation of Alex Osterwalder's Business Model Canvas.

The unfair advantage is something that is difficult for competitors to replicate quickly or easily. It can be a proprietary technology, exclusive access to key resources, a strong brand, unique expertise, strategic partnerships, or any other factor that gives the business a distinct advantage in the market.

Identifying and leveraging an unfair advantage is crucial for the success of a startup or business, as it helps to create a sustainable and defensible position in the market. It contributes to the overall viability of the business model and enhances the likelihood of long-term success. When developing a Lean Canvas, entrepreneurs are encouraged to explicitly identify and articulate their unfair advantage to demonstrate why their business is uniquely positioned to succeed.

Part 6. What is key activities in Lean Canvas?

In the Lean Canvas methodology, "Key Activities" is one of the nine building blocks used to describe the most important activities a business must engage in to make its business model work. The Key Activities section focuses on the core operations and processes that are essential for delivering value to the customer and sustaining the business.

Key Activities may include a range of operational and strategic tasks, such as:

• Production:   If your business involves creating or manufacturing a product, the key activities would include the production process.
• Problem Solving:   Activities related to addressing challenges and solving problems that arise in the course of business operations.
• Platform Development:   If your business operates on a digital platform, developing and maintaining that platform would be a key activity.
• Sales and Marketing:   Activities related to promoting and selling the product or service, such as advertising, marketing, and sales efforts.
• Customer Service:   Providing support and addressing customer inquiries and concerns is a crucial activity for many businesses.
• Distribution:   If your business involves physical products, activities related to the distribution and logistics of those products.
• Partnerships:   Building and managing partnerships and collaborations with other businesses.
• Research and Development:   If innovation is a key aspect of your business, activities related to research and development would be included.
• Regulatory Compliance:   Ensuring that the business complies with relevant laws and regulations is a key activity, especially in regulated industries.

When filling out the Lean Canvas, entrepreneurs are encouraged to identify and prioritize the most critical activities that will drive the success of their business model. This helps to focus attention on what truly matters and ensures that resources are allocated efficiently to support those key activities.

Part 7. Build Lean Canvas with Boardmix

Boardmix is a cutting-edge, user-friendly online whiteboard platform, specifically engineered to foster collaborative endeavors. It's particularly effective for tasks requiring collective input and brainstorming, such as the creation of lean canvases. Its intuitive design coupled with a suite of robust features make Boardmix an ideal tool for facilitating teamwork, encouraging creative problem-solving, and driving strategic planning sessions.

Steps to build a lean canvas with Boardmix:

3. Click Use to apply this template.

Grasping and harnessing the potential of the Lean Canvas can profoundly amplify your strategic planning process. It provides a clear, concise roadmap to navigate your business venture's complexities. With innovative tools like Boardmix , crafting this potent document becomes not just simpler but also more efficient. Its user-friendly interface and robust features streamline the process, making it accessible to all. So why wait? Embark on your journey of strategic planning and start constructing your Lean Canvas with Boardmix today!

Join Boardmix to collaborate with your team.

Mastering Project Risk Management: A Comprehensive Guide

Mastering Lean Project Management: Principles, Benefits, and Tools

How to Set Objective SMART Goals: Step-by-Step Tutorial

Lean Canvas: How To Create a Business Plan that People Will Actually Read

Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth… – Mike Tyson

Which, let’s face it, happens to most start-ups and entrepreneurs. Around 75% in fact.

You have the best idea. You spend days, weeks, and months perfecting a 40-page business plan filled with five-year forecasts, 18-month roadmaps, and in-depth marketing strategies. You confidently pitch it to stakeholders and investors.

Then you get punched in the mouth.

Potential investors go quiet or “ haven’t had time to read it ” and you’re left with an expensive, wasted deliverable and a chunk of time that you’ll never get back. Worse still, your product isn’t any nearer launching and you haven’t secured any buy-in or investment.

What. A. Waste. Of. Time.

Traditional business plans are of little use to start-ups, and of no real interest to investors.

But what’s the alternative?

A one-page business plan inspired by Eric Ries ’s Lean Start-Up methodology and specifically designed for emerging entrepreneurs: The Lean Canvas.

The Lean Canvas is a living framework that allows you to quickly capture your idea or concept, thoroughly validate it, and then continuously share, improve, and most importantly move on it.

Ok, I know what you’re thinking:

How can a one-page Lean Canvas possibly replace a 40-page business plan?

How can i tell the entire story of my business on one-page, is a lean canvas really enough to help me secure investment or buy-in.

I have the answers to all these questions and more in this Process Street post.

Ready to dodge some punches?

Creating a detailed business plan (complete with comprehensive forecasts, roadmaps, and strategies) and pitching it to investors has always been the first step new businesses and entrepreneurs take to secure buy-in or investment, right?

Why business plans don’t work for start-ups

During the early stages of an idea or a business, all you really have is a strong belief, a clear vision, and a lot of untested assumptions: You believe there’s a market for it. You think your pricing will generate $X in revenue, and you hope your product roadmap will look a certain way.

But you don’t really know. How can you? You haven’t tested the concept.

Of course, your business model might be based on similar businesses, products, or concepts, which allow you to hypothesize the future. But you can’t provide any concrete proof or evidence that your idea is going to work.

Which is surely the sole purpose of a business plan?

Plus, a business plan typically takes ages to write as it requires lots of detailed, accurate information. And, it becomes obsolete incredibly quickly, as and when you encounter the various operational and marketing challenges that inevitably arise.

So, instead of being a clear, factually accurate, representative proposition, a start-up’s business plan tends to be a wishy-washy, out-of-date, speculative document.

And, what do investors, Angels, and stakeholders hate more than anything…? Exactly.

The alternative to speculative, inaccurate, & obsolete business plans

Start-ups face a vicious circle: You can’t prove your concept without investment, but you can’t get investment without proof.

The original concept of a business plan was to break this circle and give investors the information they needed to justify a decision on whether to fund the idea or not.

But as we’ve already established, not only is a start-up’s business plan incredibly time-consuming to create, it’s difficult to digest and full of guesses rather than reassuring facts. As a result, all that hard work can often get bypassed by investors.

The answer to this dilemma is the Lean Canvas. The Lean Canvas is an actionable, entrepreneur-focused, one-page business plan.

Inspired by Alex Osterwalder ’s Business Model Canvas and the principles behind the Lean Start-Up movement and eradication of waste , Ash Maurya developed the Lean Canvas framework specifically for start-ups.

He felt that spending time creating a business plan that was often inaccurate, obsolete, and ignored was unproductive and a wasteful.

“ Waste is any human activity which absorbs resources but creates no value. ” – James Womack , Leanstack , Bootstrapping + Lean Startup = Low-burn Startup

So, he developed the Lean Canvas; a one-page, easy-to-digest document that:

As you can see, the Lean Canvas is a set of nine blocks:

• Value proposition
• Unfair advantage
• Key metrics

Each block presents clear, concise, and accurate information in a digestible format. It takes less time to complete, it’s easy to keep up-to-date, it gives investors the information they need, and it paints a clear picture of the business or idea on one page (instead of 40).

What’s not to like?

OK, you get it: It’s a waste of time creating a semi-fictional business plan that won’t get read. But, seriously ? How can you convey how fantastic your idea is on one, single page?

To answer this, we’ll need to look at each of the nine components that make up the one-page Lean Canvas framework.

Lean Canvas component #1: Customers ‍ ‍

The first block to fill out is all about your customers. As you might do with a business plan, you need to determine who your user base is and understand what makes them tick.

Go deep and build up a customer profile for each group of customers you’re targeting. Get under their skin and get to know them as people:

• Who is your intended audience?
• What type of person are they?
• What are their likes, dislikes, and pain points?
• What’s their average day like?
• What makes them happy?
• What frustrates them?

One thing you must do during this exercise is define who the early adopters of your product are likely to be.

Identifying this group of people is essential because you can use them to validate your ideas.

Ask them questions, send them feedback surveys, and get them to trial your product. Collect these valuable insights and use them to iterate your Lean Canvas, determine the direction you take your product in, and justify your ideas.

Real customer opinions and feedback are valuable proof points that investors will trust.

Lean Canvas component #2: Problem

The next step you need to take should be in the shoes of your customer. Walk a mile in your customer’s shoes so you can identify the problems they might face with (and also without) your product.

Conduct interviews, carry out tests, or send out surveys to help you uncover the real issues they’re likely to face or are already facing.

Interact with your product yourself, or ask an unrelated third party to give it a try. Consider the experience from your customer’s point of view and objectively identify what works and what doesn’t.

Take this back to your Lean Canvas and tweak your idea accordingly. Use it as evidence to prove the concept you’re pitching.

Lean Canvas component #3: Solution ❗

Next, you need to describe what your product is going to do. What will it solve? What’s the ultimate vision?

You might feel that your product solves several problems and is the answer to everything. But, remember, this needs to be clear and concise.

So, play around with each solution to see what sticks. Assess your features and capabilities, carry out research, collect feedback, and brainstorm with your team so you can narrow it down to one or two solid solutions that are grounded in evidence.

Lean Canvas component #4: Channels

How will your customers find your product? How will they come into contact with you or your product?

List every single channel or touchpoint that you could use to get your product in front of your audience.

You might want to use a mixture of paid channels, like Facebook ads or trade fairs, and free channels like SEO or blog posts. Create a content strategy to help you decide where best to center your efforts and show investors that you’re able to provide the best experience to your customers at every step of their journey.

Lean Canvas component #5: Value proposition ⚡

Write out a punchy statement that explains the core value of your product.

Think: Why would your target customer care about it? What will it do for them? What problem does it solve? Why is it a better option than the competition?

Sell the end-benefit not the solution, and keep it short, catchy, and powerfully persuasive (eg. the film ‘Alien’ isn’t a film about aliens, it’s “ Jaws in Space ”).

Three words of warning though:

• Don’t confuse a value proposition with a tacky slogan. For instance, M&M’s “Melts in your mouth, not in your hand…” is a slogan, not a value proposition.
• Don’t write a sentence that’s all hype and no substance. For example, “The best product EVER made” is pure hype. There’s nothing to back it up and investors will see straight through it.
• Don’t use meaningless buzzwords or jargon. You might think that phrases like “value-added interactions” make you sound like a prestigious expert, but they don’t. They make you sound like a pretentious airhead.

This block is one of the most important ones to get right. Your value proposition is how investors will see you and your product, and how they will describe you to other partners and investors.

Lean Canvas component #6: Unfair advantage

Whether you know it or not, you have an unfair advantage over your competitors. All you have to do is find out what it is!

What makes you stand out? What puts you streets ahead of your competitors? What do you have that others can’t replicate or acquire?

It might be your internal team; it might be in-depth knowledge or inside information; or it could be your unique position within a community.

It’s there somewhere. Dig it out and put it on display.

Lean Canvas component #7: Revenue

This is where you’ll need to identify the sources of income that will keep you and your business afloat.

Create a simple pricing model and test it out on your early adopters. Does it work for them and for you?

You might charge a subscription fee; you might generate income through advertising on your platform; or maybe you’ll get customers to pay for their usage. Maybe it’s a combination of all three!

Just remember to keep it as simple as possible, test it out, and keep iterating until it’s perfect.

Again, testing it out on early adopters backs up your concept.

Lean Canvas component #8: Costs

I probably don’t need to tell you that over 90% of start-ups fail because they don’t consider the proper costs of launching and running their business.

So, list all of your expenses.

Consider everything, from customer acquisition and retention costs, to distribution and office overheads. And to make sure you don’t miss any key costs, work through each of the nine blocks in your Lean Canvas and consider the costs that each might bring.

Lean Canvas component #9: Key metrics

To be able to prove the success of your product, you’ll need to set clear, easy to measure metrics.

Outline what you plan to track and why.

Identify the indicators that will demonstrate how well your company is doing. For instance, you may choose to measure the number of users, downloads, or social followers you get; or you may focus on retention figures, brand interactions, or costs, etc.

Fill in this section of your Lean Canvas with the metrics that are most critical to the problem you’re trying to solve with your product.

Now you’ve seen what goes into a Lean Canvas, can you see how it’s possible to tell the whole story of your business on one page?

Key things to remember when creating your Lean Canvas

The trick to creating an effective Lean Canvas that fits onto one page is to:

• Fill in all 9 blocks in the above order and work your way through each one logically.
• Fill each block with concise notes and link-out to images, documents, and other related information.
• Remember it’s a fluid, working document that’s not set in stone.

To test the Lean Canvas out before you share it with investors, go through each step and relay the story to yourself:

We will help [customers] solve [problem] by providing them with our [solution] . They will know about us through [channels] and they will be convinced to join us because [value proposition] and because we [unfair advantage] . We will charge them by [revenue] which will cover our [costs] . We will measure our performance by tracking [key metrics] .

It should all flow nicely, like a story where everything is linked. If it doesn’t, it needs more work before you show it to investors.

But wait a minute. Don’t investors expect to see a business plan? Will they take a one-page Lean Canvas seriously?

Why the Lean Canvas works for start-ups

The Lean Canvas is centered around validation and justification. It’s about working the idea out, asking for feedback, and using that feedback to iterate your plan until your idea becomes a valid one.

Your Lean Canvas then becomes living proof that your concept will work. Investors will value proof of concept 10X more than 40 pages of empty promises and unfounded statements.

Not only that, but it’ll take you hours, not months to put together. So, if you get punched in the mouth again, it’s no biggie. Just go back and rework it based on investor feedback.

And it’s quick and easy to update; it moves as you move, allows you to pivot, and it means that you can get your product out to market quickly. These are all reliable indicators for VCs, Angels, and investors that a start-up can take off.

“ It lets you focus on building your business faster, by capturing your idea, collecting feedback, and iterating on it dynamically. ” – Infolio , How to Create a Lean Canvas

To prove the Lean Canvas concept even further, let’s take a look at it in action.

The Lean Canvas in action

Below are two hypothetical Lean Canvas examples from a couple of familiar companies who, although it’s difficult to believe, were start-ups themselves once…!

In summary, Google’s Lean Canvas story (if the Lean Canvas existed back in 1998!) might have gone a little like this:

We will help all web users to find what they’re searching for easily by providing them with technology that allows them to search and find relevant content . They will know about us through other users and they will be convinced to join us because they’ll be able to find what they’re looking for quickly (unlike with competitors) and because we have an innovative combined citation-ranking system . We will make money through investment and advertising revenue which will cover our hosting and development costs . We will measure our performance by tracking the number of search requests and the percentage of users who end their search on the first page .

And, Facebook’s Lean Canvas might have gone like this back in 2004:

We will help all college students to communciate with their peers online by creating an online communication platform that will allow them to connect with their friends, share photos, and chat . They will know about us through referrals from other students and they will be convinced to join us because it’s a student orientated communication platform and because we have invented a new type of website: A social network with social features! We will make money through investment and advertising revenue which will cover our hosting, development, and payroll costs . We will measure our performance by tracking the number of daily, weekly, and monthly active users .

To conclude…

Despite the obvious benefits of the Lean Canvas, it has to be said that:

“A one-page document of this kind may not satisfy every potential investor at every financing stage. But many investors will consider a document like this to be more than adequate. ” – BSchools , Can a Lean Canvas Replace a Traditional Business Plan?

I think we can all agree that the moral of this story is: don’t waste months agonizing over a hefty business plan that no one is likely to read.

Instead, create a Lean Canvas. Tell the story of your business with key information that’s up-to-date and backed by research, testing, and customer proof. Get the ball rolling in one afternoon, with one page.

Think of it this way, which would you rather do:

“ Spend 6 months pitching investors so you can refine a story based on an untested product? Or, spend time pitching customers so you can tell a credible story based on a tested product? ” – Ash Maurya , Leanstack , Bootstrapping + Lean Startup = Low-burn Startup

I’d rather roll with the punches with a Lean Canvas. You?

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What do you think of the Lean Canvas? Have you used it before? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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Amanda Greenwood

Amanda is a content writer for Process Street. Her main mission in life is to write content that makes business processes fun, interesting, and easy to understand. Her background is in marketing and project management, so she has a wealth of experience to draw from, which adds a touch of reality and a whole heap of depth to the content she writes.

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The Lean Canvas guide: what it is – and how to use it

• Productivity
• Uncategorized

Writing out a business plan? Any business owner should give the perspective of their project. Business plans are references to what you’re doing, why, and how.

However – business plans come with a problem. That is, they’re inefficient.

They take way too long to write. After all, a business plan is a multi-page document listing the foundations of a project.

They’re also not adaptable. A business plan is “theoretically” a reference point, but few people use it that way.

So it ends up being a guide thrown to investors who want to understand a project – nothing more.

But, you can get more out of a business plan. All you have to do is reshape it, and make it simpler. And this is where the lean canvas comes in!

What is a Lean Canvas?

It’s a 1-page business plan, that is segmented into blocks, each representing a key category of your project.

Lean canvas often includes 8 to 9 blocks , each representing the same number of categories.

From there, you fill each block with essential information only. This lets you plan projects without complexity.

How blocks are laid out

Blocks are divided into two segments . The first plans out the product , and the second looks at the money .

Product segments include the following blocks:

• Key Metrics
• Unique Value Proposition
• Unfair Advantage

Customer segments include the following blocks:

• Cost structure
• Revenue stream

We’ll elaborate on the previous one below. We’ll discuss the pros of using a lean canvas, and each category/block in detail!

The 6 benefits of using a Lean Canvas

It’s a one-page model that you can fill out instantly. You don’t have to overthink many details, since the model naturally prevents that.

Compare that to average business plans. You may need weeks (if not months) just to finish a final draft.

(2) Trial and Error

You can afford to draft out and optimize without rewriting your entire business plan.

Speaking of optimization, you can better utilize feedback. Considering how compact a lean canvas is you can share and get expert opinions quickly.

(3) Risk Testing

You get to test your riskiest ideas without much commitment.

See all the info related to the project on a single page. This helps you better decide whether an idea’s worth it or not.

(4) Problem Assessment

Your canvas might be picturing a business problem that you think is grave or severe.

After completing the canvas, you may discover that the issue is easily solvable, requiring fewer resources than previously thought.

This helps you better see alternatives. You can better see alternative markets, better metrics, and different dimensions to a problem.

(5) Customer-Focused

Lean canvas blocks are designed to apply the customer’s perspective when planning.

But that doesn’t mean you’re surveying customers. A lean canvas sheet is designed to make you think of customer needs when approaching each category.

This helps you formulate an educated business plan that’s based on what the market wants or may want.

(6) Key Metrics

So what are “key metrics” in lean canvas design?

That’s a category you’ll have to fill out, and it tackles a core problem. That would be knowing how to measure a project’s success.

You can list the key metrics you’ll use. This ensures you don’t divert into unnecessary metrics when gauging project performance.

(7) Startup-Friendly

Lean canvas are friendly for beginners with little experience drafting a business plan.

They can be used for any type of project. It can be commercial or service-based, online or offline, and the model will apply.

How to create a Lean Canvas?

Just use a premade template.

You don’t want to create a layout from scratch. This adds more complexity to the process, thus robbing its benefits.

Templates are everywhere, but some of the best can be found on Weje . Here are two to try:

• Basic layout ( use this if you’re a beginner ). It’ll familiarize you with how lean canvas look
• Sample ( use this for reference )

Weje offers online layouts. You can complete a canvas on app before printing it out. It’s also viable for business meetings. Just open the app, connect your screen to a projector, and fill out the blocks!

But now that you’ve got a template, it’s time to break the lean canvas down to the detail.

We’ll look at each block/category below. This’ll give you an idea on how to fill them out, and the details required!

First – Product Segment

The product segment contains 7 blocks , which are:

First Block – Problems 

Here, you mention the purpose of the lean canvas. You describe the problem(s) you’d like to solve.

We recommend writing down one major problem . Under it, in bullet points, break the problem down into three minor ones.

For example…

(Major Problem): Not enough visitors to an online store

• Problem One: Online store SEO isn’t optimized
• Problem Two: Online checkout system is inefficient
• Problem Three: Direct Ads aren’t generating desired results

List three minor problems at most. Adding any more will make your lean canvas more complex.

Second Block – Solutions

Here, outline ideas on how you’ll solve each problem in the first block.

We recommend listing one idea per problem. So going back to the previous example…

• Problem One: Hire an SEO specialist for store
• Problem Two: Finde a web developer to optimize checkout system
• Problem Three: Redesign online ad strategy with SEO specialist help

Third Block – Key Metrics

In a lean canvas, this is placed directly under the second block. You’ll fill this in conjunction with it too. 

Why? Because you’ll need a way to track the effectiveness of each solution.

Again referencing the previous example:

• Problem One: Experience level – price per hour
• Problem Two: Loading speed – Bug removal/fixes
• Problem Three: Conversion rates

Fourth Block – Unique Value Proposition

This block introduces competition. It compares your product to a competitor’s.

Write your UVP as a sales pitch. It’s preferable if you don’t reference competition directly. Just outline the key strength your final product should have.

Referencing the previous example, your UVP can be something like

“Simple and Smooth Shopping Experience – Find the Product You Want Fast, Buy it Faster.”

Think of your UVP as what your product should look like after the previous three blocks are filled in.

Fifth Block – Unfair Advantage

Unfair advantages are the unique pros you have that competition lacks.

An unfair advantage cannot be bought or developed easily. It’s also hard to copy without losing brand authenticity.

Examples of unfair advantages include:

• Community . How the market views your identity, members who value you, etc.
• Network . Mutually beneficial connections that you can leverage for desired results
• Unique Factor . Things about your business that can’t be copied – like authority, trendiness, etc.

Sixth Block – Channels

This is placed right under the fifth block, since it somewhat ties into it.

Your unfair advantages can be leveraged as selling points. They give you access to markets that other competitors may struggle to reach.

Channels aren’t just selling points though. They can be places to promote your brand.

For example, you might be connected to an online influencer. You can use that as a channel to promote your brand more.

Or maybe you already have a large following on a social media platform. That’s also a channel to promote your products.

Seventh Block – Customer Segments

Here, you define your target customer in detail.

You should have a few profiles ready on who’s most likely to buy. List those, as it’ll be key in how you execute your business plan.

Second – Money Segment

Two more blocks are left. However, the next two incorporate a lot more details than the previous.

Product blocks are often concise. But, money blocks breakdown the “business plan’s financing” to the detail.

So to start off…

Eighth Block – Cost Structure

That’ll be how you finance the project. You’ll need to list details such as:

• Customer acquisition cost . How much you pay per buying customer. Try to compare that to a ratio, where you represent that cost in relation to how much average customers spend.
• Distribution cost . How much you pay in shipping, storage, and anything “supply chain” related.
• Hosting . That’ll be your online presence, domain costs , and server costs – often paid monthly or yearly.
• Salaries . How much you pay employees ( part or full time ). You can also add in employee benefits as part of salary calculations. If you don’t have employees, you can set a budget on freelance or consultant hiring.
• Workspace . That’ll include the brick and mortar, usually office costs, and the bills you’ll pay to sustain the space.

Ninth Block – Revenue Stream

This outlines the details of your income. It’s a viability check on the project. Details here include:

• Revenue Model . What’s the income type of the project? Is it subscriptions? Is it affiliate and ad-based income? Or does the income come from sales?
• Life Time Value . Do you have a projection on how much value a customer can offer in a lifetime?
• Revenue . Here, you discuss your revenue model in detail. For example, if your income is from sales, what kind of sales are they? Is it direct, or is it web-based? Is it a dropshipping model when you find dropshipping suppliers , or do you operate as a retailer?
• Margin . What’s your profit margin on the product your project offers?

Now you know what a lean canvas meaning is. It’s a model you’ll apply for all kinds of business projects.

Whether you’re selling a product or optimizing one, a lean canvas makes it simple, time efficient, and cost-effective!

Egor Okrepilov

Avoid people who didn't make mistakes, as they just got lucky with the circumstances. Appreciate those who have made hundreds of them and learned how to find solutions to any situation.

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• Lean Canvas

Tools and Methods

What is a Lean Canvas?

A Lean Canvas replaces long and boring business plans with a 1-page Business Model that takes 20 minutes to create, and that gets read.

A Lean Canvas is a 1-page business modeling tool that helps you deconstruct an idea into key assumptions or beliefs.

Here's what one looks like:

If you have ever written a business plan or created a slide deck for investors, you’ll immediately recognize most of the building blocks on the canvas.

Where Did Lean Canvas Come From?

Lean Canvas was created by me, Ash Maurya, and is an adaptation of Alexander Osterwalder’s Business Model Canvas - optimized for the Lean Startup methodology.

I often get asked why I created a different adaptation. I cut my teeth on the Business Model Canvas but found it too company-centric versus customer-centric. So, I tweaked a few boxes and came up with the Lean Canvas, which I shared in a blog post, and it took off from there.

My motivation for creating the Lean Canvas was not to create a better business model canvas but a different, more entrepreneur-focused one. I replaced these boxes: key partnerships, key resources, key activities, and customer relationships with these boxes: problem, solution, key metrics (KPIs), and unfair advantage (a defensible competitive advantage).

See what's different

How to Use a Lean Canvas

While it’s tempting to iterate endlessly on the whiteboard, your initial big idea canvas should be sketched quickly - in less than 20 minutes. Unlike a business plan, the goal with a Lean Canvas isn’t to achieve perfection but to take a snapshot.

Here are some guidelines: 

1. Start with a blank Lean Canvas

• Download PDF Lean Canvas Template
• Use the online Lean Canvas tool

2. Set a timer for 20 minutes

3. avoid groupthink.

If you’re part of a team, avoid creating a Lean Canvas as a group exercise. Instead, have each team member create their snapshot first. Then get together as a group and reconcile your canvases into a single Lean Canvas. Not only will this encourage more independent perspectives and avoid groupthink, but it will also save you time.

4. Know that it’s okay to leave boxes blank

If you're unsure about a particular box, it’s okay to leave it blank. We'll cover these boxes in more detail in subsequent sections.

5. Embrace a 1-page constraint

If you can’t describe your idea on a single page, it’s probably too complex to explain. Describing your idea on a single page is not about using smaller fonts but fewer words. Describing something in a paragraph is much easier than in a single sentence. The space constraints of the 1-page canvas are a great way to distill your business model down to its essence.

6. Think in the present

Business plans try too hard to predict the future, which is impossible. Instead, write your canvas with a “getting things done” attitude. Based on your current stage and what you know, what are the next hypotheses you need to test to move your product forward?

7. There is no right order for sketching a Lean Canvas

Sketching a Lean Canvas is like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. There is no right place to start or specific order to follow. So start with whatever box you think you understand the best and build out the rest of the canvas from there.

If you still can’t decide, use the recommended ordering below:

Customer Segments

As the Customer Innovation Framework is heavily customer-driven, the customer segment box of the Lean Canvas is typically a natural starting point.

Distinguish between customers and users.

If you have multiple actors in your business model, aim first to identify your customers.

A customer is someone who pays for your product. A user does not.

Then identify any other actors (users, influencers, etc.) that will interact with this customer.

• In a blogging platform, the customer is the blog author, while the user is a reader.
• In a search engine, the customer is the advertiser, while users are people running searches.

Model multiple perspectives

It helps to view your idea from each actor's perspective in your business model. Each will likely have different problems, channels to reach them, and value propositions. For example, an advertiser working with a search engine may struggle with driving awareness of their product while those running searches seek answers to specific questions. I recommend keeping these perspectives on the same canvas and using a different color or hashtag to identify each actor's perspective.

Home in on early adopters

As an entrepreneur, you need to simultaneously communicate a big market opportunity while staying razor-focused on your early adopters.

Your objective is to define an early adopter, not a mainstream customer.

Your customer segment should represent the total addressable market (TAM) for your idea, while your early adopters represent a specific subset of your TAM that make up your ideal starting customer segment (also called your ideal customer profile).

Problems, not solutions, create spaces for innovation. The Problem box is where you list the specific problems you will tackle with your product.

List the top one to three problems.

While it’s tempting to brainstorm and list many possible problems, prioritize the top 1-3 problems you believe are most pressing for your customers.

List existing alternatives

Document how you think your early adopters currently address these problems today. Unless you are solving a brand new problem (unlikely), most problems have existing solutions. Many times these solutions may not be from an obvious competitor.

Unique Value Proposition

Dead center in the Lean Canvas is a box for your unique value proposition (UVP). This is one of the canvas's most important boxes and the hardest to get right.

The Unique Value Proposition forces you to answer the question: Why is your product different and worth paying attention to?

Before paying for your product with money, customers pay you with attention. Your UVP is hard to get right because you have to distill the essence of your product in a few words that can fit in the headline of your landing page. Additionally, your UVP also needs to be different to stand out from the competition, and that difference needs to matter to your customers.

The good news is that you don’t have to get this perfect right away. Like everything on the canvas, you start with the best guess and iterate from there.

Connect to your customer’s #1 problem

The key to crafting an effective UVP is connecting it to the number-one problem you are solving for your customers. If that problem is worth solving for them, you’re already halfway there.

Target early adopters

Too many marketers try to target the “middle” of their customer segments, hoping to reach mainstream customers, and in the process, they water down their message. Your product is not ready for mainstream customers yet. Your sole job should be to find and target early adopters, which requires bold, clear, and specific messaging.

Focus on outcomes

You’ve probably heard about the importance of highlighting benefits over features. But benefits still require your customers to translate them to their worldview. A good UVP gets inside the head of your customers and focuses on the benefits your customers derive after using your product — desired outcomes.

So, for instance, if you are creating a résumé-building service:

• A feature might be “professionally designed templates.”
• The benefit would be an “eye-catching résumé that stands out.”
• And the desired outcome would be “landing your dream job.”

Keep it short

Most advertising platforms limit the number of characters on the primary headline field to 120 characters. Pick your words carefully and avoid empty fillers.

Answer: what, who, and why

A good UVP needs to answer the first two questions — what’s it for, and who’s it for? The “why” is often hard to fit into the same statement. That’s why a sub-headline is often used for that.

Here is an example:

Product: Lean Canvas

Headline: Communicate Your Idea Clearly and Concisely to Key Stakeholders.

Sub-headline: Lean Canvas replaces long and boring business plans with a 1-page business model that takes 20 minutes to create and gets read.

Create a high-concept pitch.

Another helpful exercise when crafting a UVP is creating a high-concept pitch. High-concept pitches are used heavily by Hollywood producers to distill the general plot of a movie into a memorable sound bite. The high-concept pitch was also popularized as an effective pitching tool by Venture Hacks in its ebook, Pitching Hacks (fn).

• YouTube: “Flickr for video.”
• Aliens (movie): “Jaws in Space”
• Dogster: “Friendster for dogs”

The high-concept pitch should not be confused with a UVP and is not intended to be used on your landing page. There is a danger that the concepts the pitch is based on might be unfamiliar to your audience. For this reason, the high-concept pitch is more effective when used to quickly get your idea across and make it easy to spread, such as after a customer interview.

I purposely made the solution box less than one-ninth of the entire canvas because, as entrepreneurs, we are most passionate about the solution box and what we are naturally good at.

But as we saw earlier,

• your solution, while important, typically isn’t what’s riskiest,
• investors don’t care about your solution, but traction (customer engagement),
• customers don’t care about your solution but their problems.

It is common for your customer problems to get reprioritized or completely replaced with new ones after just a few customer conversations. For this reason, I recommend not getting carried away with fully defining your solution just yet. Instead, sketch out the simplest thing you could build to address each problem listed on your Lean Canvas.

Bind a solution to your problem as late as possible.

If a product is launched in a forest, does it make a sound? Failing to build a clear path to customers is among the top reasons startups fail.

The initial goal of a startup is to learn, not to scale. So, at first, relying on any channels that get you in front of potential customers is OK.

The good news is that following a “customer discovery /interview” process forces you to build a path to “enough” customers early. However, if your business model relies on acquiring large numbers of customers to work, that path may not scale beyond the initial stages, and it’s entirely possible you’ll get stuck later.

For this reason, it’s equally important to think about your scalable channels from day one so that you may start building and testing them early.

While many channel options are available, some channels may be outright inapplicable to your startup, while others may be more viable during the later stages of your startup.

Revenue Streams

Many startups defer the “pricing question” to a later stage, but this is a mistake.

Here’s why:

• Price is part of the product . Suppose I place two bottles of water in front of you and tell you that one costs 50 cents and the other costs 2 dollars. Even though you couldn’t tell them apart in a blind taste test (the products are similar enough), you might be inclined to believe (or at least wonder whether) the more expensive water is of higher quality. Here, the price can change your perception of the product.
• Price defines your customers . More interesting is that the bottled water you pick determines your customer segment. From the existing market for bottled water, we know there is a viable business for bottled water at both price segments. What you charge signals your positioning on which customers you want to attract.
• Getting paid is the first form of validation . Getting a customer to give you money is one of the hardest actions you can ask them to take and is an early form of product validation.

Revenue is the difference between a hobby and a business.

Cost Structure

How do you determine the cost structure of your idea/product – that is, how much will it cost to make your product and keep your business running?

Rather than thinking in terms of three- or five-year forecasts, it’s better to take a more stage-based approach. Focus on your most immediate short-term milestones three to six months from now. First, model the runway you will need to define, build, and launch your MVP. Then, revise after you get there.

• What will defining, building, and launching your MVP cost you?
• What will your ongoing burn rate look like, such as salaries, office rent, etc.?

Key Metrics

Every business has a few key numbers that can be used to measure how well the business is performing. These numbers are key for measuring progress and identifying hotspots in your business model.

List 3-5 key metrics

Don’t go overboard on metrics. Instead, list the top 3-5 metrics that you’ll use to measure whether your business model is working.

Prefer outcome metrics versus output metrics.

Instead of measuring how much stuff you’re building (outputs), focus on measuring how many people use your product and how (outcomes). The right outcome metrics tend to be customer-centric versus product-centric.

Examples of outcome metrics:

• Number of new customers
• Monthly recurring revenue (MRR)
• Customer lifetime value (LTV)

Prioritize leading indicator metrics versus trailing indicator metrics

While you’ll need to measure and report on revenue and profit, understand that these are trailing indicators versus leading indicators of progress.

“Find the key number that tells you how your business is doing in real time, before you get the sales report.” - Norm Brodsky and Bo Burlingham, The Knack

Examples of leading indicator metrics:

• Number of qualified leads in your pipeline
• Customer attrition rate (churn)
• Number of trials/pilots

Study analogs

Research what metrics other companies in your product space/industry use to measure and communicate progress to their stakeholders.

Here are some examples:

• Typical SaaS metrics
• Cost to acquire customers (CAC)
• Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) or annual recurring revenue (ARR)
• Typical Ad-based metrics
• Daily active users (DAU) and monthly active users (MAU)
• Click through rates (CTR)
• Cost per impressions (CPM) and cost per click (CPC)
• Typical marketplace metrics
• Buyer to seller ratio
• Average transaction size

Unfair Advantage

This is usually the most challenging section in the canvas to fill, which is why I leave it for last. Most founders list things as competitive advantages that aren’t—such as passion, lines of code, or features.

Another frequently cited advantage in business models is the “first-mover” advantage. However, it doesn’t take much to see that being first can be a disadvantage, as most of the hard work of paving new ground (risk mitigation) falls on your shoulders, only to be potentially picked up later by fast-followers unless you’re able to outpace them with a real “unfair advantage constantly.”

None of these companies were first movers: Ford, Toyota, Google, Microsoft, Apple, or Facebook.

An interesting perspective (via Jason Cohen, Founder of WP Engine) is that anything worth copying will be copied, especially once you demonstrate a viable business model.

Imagine a scenario where your cofounder steals your source code, sets up shop in Costa Rica, and slashes prices. Do you still have a business? How about if Google or Apple launches a competitive product and drops the price to $0?

You have to be able to build a successful business despite that, which led Jason Cohen to offer the following definition of “unfair advantage”:

A real unfair advantage is something that cannot be easily copied or bought. - Jason Cohen, A Smart Bear blog

Here are some examples of real unfair advantages that fit this definition:

• Insider information
• The right “expert” endorsements
• A dream team
• Personal authority
• Network effect
• Platform effect
• Existing customers
• SEO ranking

An excellent illustration of a real and fake unfair advantage is the difference between organic SEO ranking and paid keywords for search engine marketing. Your competitors can easily copy and buy keywords, while organic ranking has to be earned.

Some unfair advantages can also start as values that become differentiators over time.

For example, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh believed strongly in creating happiness for his customers and employees. This manifested itself in many company policies that, on the surface, didn’t make much business sense, such as allowing customer service representatives to spend as much time as was needed to make a customer happy and offer a 365-day return policy with two-way paid shipping. But these policies served to differentiate the Zappos brand and build a large, passionate, and vocal customer base that played a significant role in the company’s eventual $1.2 billion acquisition by Amazon in 2009.

Start with an unfair advantage story.

What do you do if you don't have an unfair advantage on day one? Most entrepreneurs don't have an unfair advantage at the outset of their idea. Consider Mark Zuckerberg. He wasn't the first to build a social network, and many of his competitors already had a big head start with millions of users and millions of dollars in funding. That didn't prevent him from building the largest social network on the planet.

While Mark didn't have an unfair advantage on day one, he had an unfair advantage story . He knew his unfair advantage needed to come from large network effects. This clarity of focus helped Facebook develop a systematic launch and growth strategy that helped them eventually realize this advantage.

Leave the unfair advantage blank.

If an unfair advantage story isn’t readily apparent, it is always better to leave the unfair advantage box blank rather than stuffing it with a weak unfair advantage.

Embrace obscurity

The good news with unfair advantages is that you don't need one from the outset. When you are just starting out, embrace obscurity to build something valuable without calling out competitor attention. And keep searching for a true unfair advantage.

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Lean Canvas Template

Build a business plan concisely and practically with the Lean Canvas Template. Present your business idea clearly and precisely.

Trusted by 65M+ users and leading companies

About the Lean Canvas Template

The Lean Canvas Template helps you quickly build a business plan without the complexity usually involved in business plan templates. It’s a practical and concise way to present your business idea.

What is a Lean Canvas?

A Lean Canvas is a 1-page business plan invented by Ash Maurya to provide a more straightforward business opportunity evaluation. It’s a simplified version of the business model canvas template and helps your team break down your idea into key assumptions, replacing cumbersome, time-consuming business plans.

How to use the Lean Canvas template

The Lean Canvas template consists of boxes you must fill out to complete the plan. Go through each prompt in turn, doing your best to articulate the answers in a simple, straightforward way. Don’t be afraid to iterate on your Lean Canvas.

Begin by selecting this Lean Canvas Template. You can edit any of these sections, changing them as necessary. You can fill the blocks with sticky notes, links, and files such as photos, videos, and PDFs. Share your board with others and invite them to collaborate with you.

In the Lean Canvas Template, you will find:

In the first row:

The questions you should ask:

What problem does your product or service seek to solve?

How common is this problem, and how many people have it?

How much would people be willing to pay to fix this problem?

What are the top three features of your product or service that work toward solving the problem?

Describe what makes your business innovative and creative inside your field or industry.

Unique value proposition

What are you bringing to the table that your competition is not?

How many competitors in this space are there, and what can you do to separate your business from theirs?

Unfair advantage

How can you ensure people will not copy your product?

What steps are you taking to maintain a competitive advantage?

Customer segments

Who are your prospects, and how do they connect to the problem?

In this step, you should identify specific personas among your potential customer base, how they perceive the problem you’re solving, and the unique value prop you can offer.

In the second row:

Existing alternatives

Are there any products or services that solve your business problem?

What are the current solutions available today?

Map out your competitor’s landscape and how people are currently adopting or not their solutions.

Key metrics

What indicators can you use to determine whether your product or service is working correctly and your business is succeeding?

Your key metrics can mix engagement statistics, revenue, and customer satisfaction scores.

High-level concept:

Explain your idea in a simple X for Y analogy (e.g., “Vegan meat options for vegans”).

What paths do you need to take to reach customers?

Understanding your customer segments is critical to informing this step. Know where your audience is and how to reach them. It can be over social media, content marketing, billboards, etc.

Early adopters:

Here is where you describe your ideal customer and who will adopt your product or service right away. They might help with spreading the word.

In the bottom row:

Cost structure

List all operational costs here.

What is the cost of customer acquisition?

What about distribution cost?

Identify key partners in your venture and look up costs of potential suppliers or manufacturers, shipping, and other logistical partners to get at the true cost of operating.

Revenue streams

What is your revenue model?

Gross margins?

What is the lifetime value of your product or service?

Make sure not just to model how much you will earn initially but recurring revenue and how much value you expect from each customer over time.

How to review your Lean Canvas template

Step back and consider everything you’ve mapped, and share with your team for alignment. Use this information to spot your business’s weaknesses and strengths and hone your overall strategy.

Remember, the biggest difference between the Business Model Canvas and the Lean Canvas is that the first focuses on a specific product while the latter focuses on a specific problem.

Benefits of using the Lean Canvas Template

A Lean Canvas is an easy way to brainstorm the various factors in determining the potential profitability of a business model.

1. Easy to complete: One of the significant advantages of the Lean Canvas Template is that it’s very simple and low-cost to create, unlike many other business tools. The most important thing is that you bring in all the relevant parties in your business to inform each canvas step.

2. A high-level overview of your business: It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day minutia of running a business and lose sight of the overall picture and goals. Using a Lean Canvas example keeps you focused on overall strategy and potential threats and opportunities to your business.

3. Incorporate internal and external factors: The Lean Canvas Template explores the internal strengths of your business and potential external threats and factors that may affect profitability. Then, you can use it to improve and update internal processes according to external factors.

Can I use a Lean Canvas template for existing businesses, or is it only for startups?

Although startups commonly use Lean Canvas, it can also be implemented by existing businesses, particularly when introducing new products, penetrating new markets, or pivoting the business model.

How often should I update my Lean Canvas?

The frequency of updates depends on the stage of your business. Startups may update it more frequently as they iterate through ideas, while established businesses might update it when undergoing significant changes or launching new initiatives.

Can I share my Lean Canvas with investors or stakeholders?

Sharing your Lean Canvas with investors or stakeholders is common. It provides a quick overview of your business concept and can be a discussion starting point.

Get started with this template right now.

Business Model Canvas Template

Works best for:.

Leadership, Agile Methodology, Strategic Planning

Your business model: Nothing is more fundamental to who you are, what you create and sell, or ultimately whether or not you succeed. Using nine key building blocks (representing nine core business elements), a BMC gives you a highly usable strategic tool to develop and display your business model. What makes this template great for your team? It’s quick and easy to use, it keeps your value proposition front and center, and it creates a space to inspire ideation.

Calendar 2024 - a Year timeline

Strategy, Planning

The Calendar 2024 a year Timeline template is perfect for planning and organizing your year. It helps you schedule important dates, track annual goals, and stay on top of deadlines. This template ensures you have a clear overview of your year ahead.

Product Ops Canvas

Product Management, Planning

The Product Ops Canvas template helps product managers align product strategies with operational capabilities. By mapping out key operational processes, tools, and metrics, this template fosters alignment between product and operational teams. With sections for identifying bottlenecks and optimizing workflows, it supports continuous improvement in product operations. This template serves as a guide for driving efficiency and scalability in product management processes, enabling teams to deliver high-quality products at scale.

Content Strategy Template

Strategic Planning

Bring consistency across communication channels and develop killer content strategies with this Content Strategy Template. Designed to plan and deliver high-impact content, use this tool to collaborate faster and better.

SaaS Implementation Timeline

The SaaS Implementation Timeline template offers a visual roadmap for planning and tracking the implementation of Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions. It provides a structured framework for defining milestones, allocating resources, and monitoring progress. This template enables organizations to manage SaaS deployments effectively, ensuring successful adoption and realization of business value. By promoting transparency and accountability, the SaaS Implementation Timeline empowers teams to deliver projects on time and within budget, driving organizational agility and competitiveness.

Blue Ocean 4 Actions Framework Template

Leadership, Decision Making, Strategic Planning

For entrepreneurs, so much comes down to new users—how to attract them, impress them, and convert them to loyal customers. This template, designed by the authors of Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant, will help you maximize value for you and your customers alike. Using the template’s four steps (divided into easy columns), you’ll easily evaluate your products in more innovative ways and make sure money is being spent in areas that really matter.

• Product Management

Lean Canvas – a Tool Your Startup Needs Instead of a Business Plan

Instead of a business plan, modern companies opt for a business model canvas** to break down their ideas into crucial elements. The lean canvas* is a startup-friendly version of it meant to facilitate idea validation based on essential data.

The business plan is normally packed with a bunch of information irrelevant to grasp the intricacies of the business. Moreover, Steve Blank claims that it’s rather ineffective as a tool for analyzing customers’ interests. And what if you are interested in assessing your idea’s vitality rather than searching for money? In that case, it is better to peel off unnecessary data and concentrate on fundamental points of what you can offer on the market. For that purpose, it is advisable to check out a tool that acts as a one-page business model and offers more capabilities for analysis.

What is a business model?

Generally, the term denotes what is needed to monetize an idea. Essentially, it is a course of actions aimed at achieving profitability. A typical model defines a startup costs structure, marketing strategy, financing sources, target customers, and other constituent parts of entrepreneurship. The canvas provides a diagrammatic representation of them. As a result, entrepreneurs obtain a strategic tool to evaluate the lie of the land.

Business model canvas

Your introduction to the tool should begin with a short insight into its underlying document – the business model canvas . Its inventor, Alexander Osterwalder, insists that the business plan itself is a time-waster. He offers an improved and sophisticated solution for idea analysis from different perspectives. As a discovery tool , the canvas allows entrepreneurs to break down a business model into nine essential structural components and discover potential risks and deficiencies.

Canvas structure

As we’ve already mentioned, the canvas consists of nine structural units or components. Here they are:

Why use the business model canvas

MasterCard, Fujitsu, Medtronic, and other prominent names already use the business strategy canvas. This fact should lower potential skepticism about the usefulness and necessity of the tool. A reasonable question is what sort of benefits it can provide.

Value orientation

With the canvas, you are able to analyze versatile aspects of your commercial activity. However, the value proposition (VP) is its core. All other units play supplementary role to the VP:

• left-hand ones are mostly controllable elements managed by the entrepreneur;
• right-hand ones are associated with the market and lie beyond the entrepreneur’s control.

VP is a constitutive component that gives a reason for the business to exist. The canvas moves you to cover a wide scope of issues and tasks to comprehend the actual market demand and satisfy it. To win out, you ought to think about the customer first and then about the product.

The tool’s aim is to clear away irrelevant data and focus on essential points that promote the business’s prosperity. Attention is not distracted due to graphical implementation of the tool. You are beaconed across the canvas blocks and their interrelation in a structured and systematic way. As a result, you get the picture of your business and the better understanding of its weaknesses and strengths.

Fast, clear, and flexible

Do you recall how much time you spent on your multi-page business plan? With the canvas, you won’t notice the time span at all. Its key principle lies in a qualitative approach rather than quantitative. You have an understanding of what should be specified in each block and you do it. Everything is simple and clear. Besides, once your canvas is filled in, its lifetime is not over. This document is updatable, and it is a good idea to make amendments to it over time.

Failure-preventive

The canvas won’t guarantee that your idea will prosper. However, it gives you an opportunity to prevent failures based on risk identification. The analysis of revenue streams, target users and the product/service to offer gives enough input data to elaborate a fruitful marketing strategy with most of the risks measured. Forewarned is forearmed. And the canvas is a decent tool to prevent your from failure.

Common language

What if it is necessary to share your business canvas with investors, partners or teammates. A possible concern is whether all these parties involved will catch up and interpret your vision discovered in the document. The tool has an intuitive nature and creates a common language for all participants and third parties. Each block specifies what should be in it. This precludes any misinterpretation.

It is a great solution, but it is more applicable for existing businesses than startups. New entrants should consider a startup canvas.

Lean Canvas

Ash Maurya, the inventor of this tool, looked at the Osterwalder’s canvas from a different perspective. He changed a vector a bit to obtain a problem-solution approach to business analysis. And here is what he’s got.

What is lean canvas?

Generally, this document looks like the adapted tool we described above. The difference lies in the focus shifted towards the practicability and viability of the offered idea. The Ash Maurya lean canvas is intended to evade a failure of marketing a service or merchandise that nobody will be interested in.

Structurally, it is identical and consists of nine boxes. However, the changes it went through were essential for general perspective and applicability.

Lean canvas vs business model canvas

The difference between both tools lies in the alteration of the four units:

The replacement allows for using product-centric terms and describing the lean business model in a common language. In addition, the application vector of the tool was shifted, which made it suitable for blooming startups.

The Osterwalder’s canvas gives a holistic view of the business and lays emphasis on a strategic conversation with related parties. It lacks orientation at the customer and requires the Value Proposition Canvas *** to make up the deficiency. In this video , you’ll find a decent explanation of what it is and reasons to consider. In that regard, the lean business canvas seems more practical as it follows the problem-solution approach with customer focus.

Why use the lean canvas

Along with the graphic form, the lean canvas inherited all the benefits of the underlying tool. At the same time, there is something you won’t get with the original version of the canvas

When you follow a lean product management , you aim at agility and fast growth of your idea. These hallmarks are achievable with the lean canvas template. First, it is a time-effective tool, which does not require a great deal of time to fill it in. Second, the final document is not final because you can and should update it in case of new input data.

Fast time-to-market

The tool is inspired by the lean startup concept. As you know, it foresees a quicker idea-to-product transition compared to a regular method. On that account, the key focus is placed on fast time-to-market. The canvas is a fit if you’re aimed at the delivery of the much-in-demand product in the fast-changing market.

Understand your customer

When you understand your customer’s behaviour, you can grasp what he or she really wants and implement it in your offer. The canvas allows you to consider various customer segments to cover a wider range of potential product users.

Focus on viable metrics

The focus is made on the viable metrics instead of the useless ones that give an illusory perception of the offer. Key startup metrics in lean canvas rest on minimum success criteria like conversion rate, number of subscribers, referrals, etc.

Work with the canvas

We are done with the canvas introduction and ready for hands-on work. The following chapter guides you through the structural units and describes what data is meant to be filled in, as well as the recommended order. Here you can enjoy the lean canvas explained through the Uber example. Also, we encourage you to check out lean canvas examples of multi-billion startups like Google, Amazon, and others.

#1 – Customer Segments

Let’s start by defining the target customer. Many startup founders suffer from a common misconception called “everybody needs my product”. Narrow down the customer segment as accurately as possible. You’ll be able to expand it later on if you take off.

It is also essential to separate users and customers. A good example is an application for kids, where the users (kids) and customers (parents) are different segments. In this case, mark each category in different colors.

Early Adopters

In the lower part of the customer segment canvas box, there is a supplementary section. Here you need to specify the actual people who will deal with the raw product and are the first feedback providers. If you, as a developer or startup founder, are going to test the product as well, feel free to put your name here.

#2 – Problem

In this box, we refer to customer problems that your product is meant to solve. In case you have several customer segments with different problems, you may make separate canvases for each of them.

Existing Alternatives

The Problem box has the Existing Alternatives section in the bottom. It is designed to contain your competitors that deal with the same problems. These are your rivals to compete with and win their clients over.

#3 – Revenue Streams

The idea you’re going to implement must bring revenue. So, in this box, you need to specify the expected sources of income. Usually, entrepreneurs use the cost-based approach where you calculate costs and add a margin. However, we recommend you rely on the average value required for the client. To achieve your product viability on the market, make sure that your pricing is more appealing than those of your competitors.

#4 – Solution

All problems you specified in the neighboring box should be matched by the relevant solutions. It is recommended to describe your product in a non-technical way to explain what experience the customers are meant to obtain. Cooperation with your target customers will let you learn their needs and deliver the most attractive offer.

#5 – Unique Value Proposition

It’s no accident that this structural unit takes the central place in the canvas. The Unique Value Proposition is a brief message, which is intended to attract customers’ attention. The idea is to describe the uniqueness of your product and show its key difference from other alternatives. The customer should understand why he or she needs and wants it.

High-Level Concept

In the bottom of the unit, there is a place for creating a high-level concept – a short and easy-to-grasp statement about your product. It’s a kind of elevator pitch you, as well as your team members and customers, will use.

#6 – Channels

Even the most groundbreaking offer on the market can fail if the clients are not aware of it. In this unit, you should specify communication media to reach out to your target clients defined in the customer segments block. Lean canvas channels may include offline/online and free/paid options to deliver the information about your product to the end-user. Examples are emails, various sorts of advertising, blogs, content marketing, broadcasting, etc.

#7 – Key Metrics

Whatever your startup deals with, it is recommended to define key tracking metrics to measure the progress of your business. Initially, you can do with one of them – minimum success criteria, i.e., the outcome that can be deemed a success. Later, your canvas may be expanded with other vital metrics.

#8 – Cost Structure

All sorts of costs find their place in this box. These may include costs for office rent, hardware, recruitment, market research, and so on. The lean canvas model does not force you to look ahead in the long term. It’s enough to narrow your time window to a particular milestone like a product release or the first dozen customers. Once the box is filled in, you can balance it with the income sources. By doing so, you get answers to such questions as “how many sales are required to pay off the investments?”, “where is the breakeven point?”, and others related to a winning outcome.

#9 – Unfair Advantage

This term denotes a special thing about your idea that your competitors are not able to copy or obtain in any possible way. Unfair advantage may include a good reputation, exclusive access to some data, personal authority, community, and other extra power. It’s not necessary to seek out your competitive advantage right now – you can fill this box later when some other things start going your way.

After you’ve filled all the boxes, your work with the canvas is not over. Keep in mind that this tool can and needs to be updated once you get new feedback from your customers.

Lean canvas alternative – BRIDGeS

When your lean canvas is ready, and it shows the viability of your product idea, you can move on to the next step, when you shape the vision of your product from technology and feature perspectives. At this stage, you need to dig deeper into your users, and the business needs to make a list of features that would:

• cover users and business requirements,
• allow a product to be competitive on the market,
• have minimal time-to-market,
• be implementable within your budget and timeframe.

You can use Mind Map or Value Proposition Canvas to think through the product’s functionality. Our team used them a lot in the past. However, we switched to a brand new framework, BRIDGeS, which allows us to confirm the viability of a product idea and plan functionality for it in only one session .

BRIDGeS is a framework based on the agile methodology for multi-layer context work that has numerous subjects. It has a clear, well-described flow that includes a set of activities to help you investigate all the information concerning a future product and create a feature list for your optimal solution. 

To learn more about BRIDGeS, watch this video and check the Uber case study , where we explain how to apply BRIDGeS step-by-step.

Wrapping up

All the tools we’ve described above deserve your attention. Be either a successful entrepreneur or a startup founder, it’s worth catching up on the benefits each tool can give. The lean canvas is not akin to the traditional business plan. It focuses on the customer needs and the way the product will be able to satisfy them. Its basis, the business model canvas, focuses on improving the essential aspects of the existing business. Eventually, they follow a single aim – to assist in your endeavors to achieve success. And the Railsware team wishes you the same.

* Lean Canvas was designed by Ash Maurya, based on the Business Model Canvas designed by Alex Osterwalder, Strategyzer.com , licensed under CC BY SA 3.0.

** Business Model Canvas is designed by Alex Osterwalder, Strategyzer.com , licensed under CC BY SA 3.0.

*** Value Proposition Canvas is designed by Alex Osterwalder, Strategyzer.com .

• Lean Startup Business Plan Guide

How to Create a Lean Canvas

• Startup Basics

Last Updated: January 17, 2024 By Michaela Dale

Business planning isn’t typically the part of entrepreneurship people look forward to. Fortunately for startup entrepreneurs, there is another option: lean startup business plans. These templates are less in-depth than their traditional counterparts while still allowing you to go through the necessary steps to set the groundwork for your business. If an alternative method of business planning appeals to you, you’ve come to the right place to get started with our lean business plan guide .

Recommended: Read our full guide on how to start a startup  and our review of the best business plan software tools .

Writing a Lean Business Plan for a Startup

One benefit of launching a startup is that entrepreneurs can go outside the box to plan their business. Lean business plans are a less intensive option for startup entrepreneurs to establish their business goals and determine how they can make them happen in a fluid, simple format.

What Is a Lean Startup Business Plan?

A lean startup business plan is a short roadmap that outlines the startup’s goals and the steps to reach them. Concise in nature, sometimes only as long as one page, a lean startup plan starts by identifying a problem and solution. As beneficial as it is to have a business plan to secure investors, a lean startup business plan is also a template for entrepreneurs to think out and document their business strategy.

Lean Startup Plan Pros

• Traditional business plans are time-consuming, and lean startup plans offer entrepreneurs a way to document important business information and goals without going through the process of writing a traditional business plan.
• Lean startup plans are concise enough to pitch to an investor or grab a customer’s attention in a matter of seconds.

Lean Startup Plan Cons

• Some investors may want a more in-depth business plan provided prior to funding your startup.
• Lean startup plans offer less foundational business planning than their traditional counterparts.

Lean Plan vs. Traditional Business Plan

A traditional business plan is an in-depth, detailed blueprint of your startup’s first three to five years in business. In contrast, a lean startup plan is more of a diet-business plan, meaning it includes fewer details, less in-depth analysis, and is much shorter than a traditional business plan. While the two business plans are different in length and detail, they typically include the same nine sections at varying lengths.

Lean Canvas vs. Business Model Canvas

Lean Canvas is an adaptation by Ash Maurya of Alexander Osterwalder’s widely-used business model canvas. Both are templates for the strategic management of a business’s important information. Business model canvas is for all new and existing businesses, while Lean Canvas is created specifically for lean startup entrepreneur’s use. In their approach, they differ as well; business model canvases focus on the infrastructure of a business, while Lean Canvases start with a problem and work toward a solution using an actionable template.

Lean Business Plan Sections Explained

A lean business plan includes valuable information about a startup for both the founder and relevant business partners. Unlike traditional business plans which are a more detailed business plan, lean business plans are concise, typically only one page, and include only the most pertinent information such as target market, marketing strategy, and pain point being solved. 

These are the sections you should include in your lean business plan template.

A lean startup plan starts the same way many successful startups do — by identifying a problem. In this case, it’s a good idea to start by identifying one to three problems and listing them in your Lean Canvas. The intention of starting your business plan with a list of problems is to ensure there is a market for your product. Think about it this way, if you create a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist or isn’t widespread, who will buy it?

Your startup’s task is to create a solution to the problem(s) you’ve identified. This section of your Lean Canvas outlines the solution for each problem you posted in the first section. Include a minimum viable product (MVP) that coincides with your proposed solution. Keep your solutions concise and easily digestible.

Key Metrics

Key metrics, the numbers that tell you how your business is performing, vary depending on your startup model and product. For example, some startups may include an ideal subscription percentage, while others may include an ideal amount of downloads in the first week. These goals will be used as a point of reference for you and your investors to assess your startup’s viability and success.

Unique Value Proposition

Describe in a single sentence why your startup is unique and valuable. Ideally, your unique value proposition will demonstrate to customers the promise that your startup solves their problem in an easily marketable way.

Unfair Advantage

What gives your startup a competitive advantage? Describe the edge your startup has that cannot be bought or copied by others — setting you apart from your competition.

Marketing Strategy

List the marketing strategy you’re planning to use to attract customers. This can be inbound or outbound channels to reach customers. Your strategy should be supported by market research and market analysis, as all these factors can impact the success of campaigns.

Customer Segments

Establishing your target market is absolutely essential to effectively marketing your product and keeping your startup afloat. Include your target customers as well as early adopters (otherwise known as the ideal customers) that your startup will initially appeal to. Be sure to include information about the marketing strategy that will be or is used to attract these users. 

Cost Structure

What your startup will be paying continuously without change (fixed costs) as well as costs that can change over time (variable costs) should be listed here. Essentially, any expense your startup will incur doing business should be considered in the cost structure to budget accurately and secure the necessary funding.

Revenue Streams

You know your costs. Now, you need to make a list of the revenue streams you have to cash roll your startup. These are your revenue streams, and they can be anything from business loans to venture capital.

Steps After Creating a Lean Startup Plan

Now that you have created the plan for your startup, it’s time to put it to the test. As much as startup plans can help entrepreneurs prepare for the road ahead, there is always room for improvement as the startup grows and adapts.

The ultimate test of your startup plan is to get to work. In lean startup methodology , entrepreneurs are encouraged to place their product on the market in order to rapidly improve upon their product and business as a whole. Therefore, in order to get an idea of what needs to be adjusted, you’ll need to put your business plan to the test.

Get a clear understanding of customer reception and feedback you receive about your startup’s products and services. You don’t need to take every suggestion; however, this feedback should help inform the adaption of your product to make it more consumer-friendly. Be open to criticism and ask questions. Listening to the response to your initial products can help you develop new strategies to improve.

Implement your findings from reviewing feedback by revising your business plan and rethinking product elements. Don’t be afraid to go back to the drawing board when you need to reimagine a business plan. The benefit of using a lean startup business plan is that there is a great deal of flexibility available to business owners to reassess their vision.

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• Create your own canvas

Create a new Lean Canvas

Lean Canvas is an adaptation of Business Model Canvas by Alexander Osterwalder which Ash Maurya created in the Lean Startup spirit (Fast, Concise and Effective startup). Lean Canvas promises an actionable and entrepreneur-focused business plan. It focuses on problems, solutions, key metrics and competitive advantages. The structure is similar to the well-known Business Model Canvas , but some sections have been exchanged.For more information about the author of this canvas, please refer to the blogpost explaining Lean Canvas and the ideas behind it on his website: http://www.ashmaurya.com/2012/02/why-lean-canvas/

If you want to try it out without entering your email address, please use our public Lean Demo Canvas for a first impression.

Canvas Title:

Description :

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More about the Lean Canvas

Lean canvas: summary.

Alex Osterwalder’s Business Model Generation is a great hit that illustrates a range of planning and marketing strategies for competitive and business success. However, more ideas have come up from this model, among which is the Lean Canvas by Ash Maurya. While the Business Model Generation applied the methodologies used by Skype and Apple to attain product success in the market, the Lean Canvas concentrated on the way timeline affects the revenue stream of a business. It is therefore more target-specific and incorporates both small and large businesses effectively. It is a perfect model which took a few months to rewrite. The Lean Canvas is more actionable and entrepreneur-focused. It deeply focuses on startup factors such as uncertainty and risk. Because it was space constrained, Ash Maurya added more elements:

• Problem- a problem box was included because several businesses do fail applying a lot of effort, financial resources and time to build the wrong product. It is therefore vital to understand the problem first. What is the problem users have that your business will address? Formulating it will help you to make sure that you are meeting an existing need.
• Solution- once a problem has been recognized the next thing is to find an amicable solution to it. As such, a solution box with the Minimum Viable Product “MVP” concept was included. How will your business help the users solve their problem? It is a purposefully small box — the solution needs to be concisely written and specific.
• Key Metrics- a startup business can better focus on one metric and build on it.  The metrics include the range of products or services you want to provide. It is therefore crucial that the right metric is identified because the wrong one could be catastrophic to the startup. Here put things you can measure that will reflect the state of your business or the strength of your proposal (e.g. at least X% subscriptions, X downloads in the first week, the process sped up by X%). The metrics will be your research objects and then the evidence of efficiency you will show to your stakeholders.
• Unfair Advantage- this is basically the competitive advantage. A startup should recognize whether or not it has an unfair advantage over others.
• Unique Value Proposition Here write down a marketable promise to the target user that you will solve their problem. Formulate it in a way that will capture their imagination (e.g. “Brainstorm better concepts. Together with your team.” would be the unique value proposition for Canvanizer).
• Cost structure In this field write down things you will have to pay for to bring the product to the client (e.g. salaries, cost of the materials, cost of maintenance).
• Revenue streamsx How will your product will bring money (e.g. sales, subscription)?

There are a few other things that Ash Maurya omitted from the original Lean Canvas in an attempt to improve it. These include:

• Key Activities and Key Resources- Ash found out that they were more outside-focused when gauged with the entrepreneur’s needs. They had also been covered in the Solution box.
• Customer Relationships- a deeply focused startup business should establish customer relationships from the beginning. As such, these were covered in the Channels box.
• Key Partners- Ash removed this category regarding the fact that most startups don’t require specific key partners when putting up because they deal in unknown and untested products. As such, it would be a waste of time trying to build such relationships.

The Lean Canvas is also majorly meant for entrepreneurs and not the customers, consultants, investors or advisors. It has no specific medium of implementation and you can use it first and then shift to the Business Model Canvas or either way.

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What Is a Lean Startup Canvas? Lean Startup Canvas In A Nutshell

Table of Contents

The evolution from lean manufacturing to continuous innovation

If we go back to, let’s say, the last hundred years or so, that’s when we were in that manufacturing era, and the unfair advantage all companies were all about mass production.

The companies that produced the most amount of products for the lowest costs tended to win. It was all about efficiency. After the war, a number of companies started to get squeezed, and this is where Taiichi Ohno over at Toyota invented the Toyota Production System, which kind of spawned this new way of thinking.

Taking a lot of Just in Time techniques and bringing in what became eventually Lean Manufacturing. That’s kind of the origin that we trace back a lot of even what we talk about today in the startup world. Some of those core principles go back to this idea of being less wasteful, and continuous improvement. Now it has morphed over the years, so as the world has changed, as we have moved from that manufacturing era to more digital products, the need for speed became ever more important. As we got into PC computing, requirements began to change faster and faster, and so methodologies and frameworks evolved. We moved from traditional manufacturing to waterfall.

When Lean Startup came on the scene, the big shift then was our move away from even just PCs to the internet. As we moved onto the internet, the connection between us and our customers almost vanished. We’re more connected today than ever before to customers, which means that we can learn faster, but also it means that customers demand more than ever before.

What is the lean startup methodology?

 It’s a methodology called the “lean start-up,” and it favors experimentation over elaborate planning, customer feedback over intuition, and iterative design over traditional “big design up front” development. 

Although the methodology is just a few years old, its concepts—such as “minimum viable product” and “pivoting”—have quickly taken root in the start-up world, and business schools have already begun adapting their curricula to teach them.

A business plan is essentially a research exercise written in isolation at a desk before an entrepreneur has even begun to build a product. The assumption is that it’s possible to figure out most of the unknowns of a business in advance, before you raise money and actually execute the idea.

Developers invest thousands of man-hours to get it ready for launch, with little if any customer input. Only after building and launching the product does the venture get substantial feedback from customers—when the sales force attempts to sell it. And too often, after months or even years of development, entrepreneurs learn the hard way that customers do not need or want most of the product’s features.

Business plans rarely survive first contact with customers

Five-year plans are worthless and a waste of time.

No one besides venture capitalists and the late Soviet Union requires five-year plans to forecast complete unknowns. These plans are generally fiction, and dreaming them up is almost always a waste of time.

Start-ups are not smaller versions of large companies

One of the critical differences is that while existing companies  execute  a business model , start-ups  look  for one

a temporary organization designed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model

The lean start-up movement is about agile development

The lean startup canvas vs. business model canvas

Ash Maurya’s adaptation to Business Model Canvas

• Create a Business Model versus Business Plan
• Ash Maurya found the business model canvas  a bit too general for a lean startup 
• The business model canvas might be good for understanding businesses from outside-in, but less to giving actionable insights to the insider entrepreneur

To start building an online version of Lean Canvas with the initial goal of facilitating more of these learning conversations in my workshops, and subsequently opening it up to everyone .

The Lean Canvas is an adaptation of the Business Model Canvas by strategyzer.com

There’s a clear delineation down the middle, on PRODUCT versus MARKET and here’s a brief description of each block and the order in which I like to think/validate them: 1. Problem: A brief description of the top 3 problems you’re addressing 2. Customer Segments: Who are the customers/users of this system? Can they be further segmented? For example, amateur photographers vs. pro photographers. If I have multiple target customers in mind, for example, graphic designers vs. lawyers, I will create a separate canvas for each. More than likely a lot of the other pieces like problem, solution, channels, etc. will be different too. 3. Unique Value Proposition: What is the product’s tagline or primary reason you are different and worth buying? 4. Solution: What is the minimum feature set (MVP) that demonstrates the UVP up above? 5. Key Activity: Describe the key action users take that maps to revenue or retention? For example, if you are a blogging platform, posting a blog entry would be a key activity. 6. Channels: List the FREE and PAID channels you can use to reach your customer. 7. Cost Structure: List out all your fixed and variable costs. 8. Revenue Streams: Identify your revenue model — subscription , ads, freemium, etc. and outline your back-of-the-envelope assumptions for life time value , gross margin, break-even point, etc. 9, Unfair Advantage: I left this for last because it’s usually the hardest one to fill correctly. Jason Cohen, a smart bear, did a great   2 part series on competitive advantages . Most founders list things as competitive advantages that really aren’t. Anything that is worth copying will be copied. So what is a competitive advantage:

The Lean Canvas an adaptation of the Business Model Canvas by strategyzer.com

What is an unfair advantage?

Anything that can be copied will be copied, including features, marketing copy, and pricing. Anything you read on popular blogs is also read by everyone else. You don’t have an “edge” just because you’re passionate, hard-working, or “lean.”

• Insider information.
• Single-minded, uncompromising obsession with One Thing.
• Personal authority.
• The Dream Team.
• (The right) Celebrity endorsement.
• Existing customers.
• We have feature X.
• We have the most features.
• We’re patenting our features.
• We’re better at SEO and social media.
• We’re passionate.
• We have three PhDs / MBAs.
• We work hard.
• We’re cheaper.

The job of a UVP is to capture a customer’s attention while the job of the Unfair Advantage is to deter copy cats and competitors. These two are often NOT the same thing.

For example, with Facebook: UVP: “Connect and share with the people in your life.” UA: Large network effects

Is a lean startup canvas for anyone?

Is it better to use the business model canvas or the lean startup canvas.

The 10x growth model

When we looked at Facebook, for instance, they out of constraints of no money had to go to one campus and then they went to three other campuses and then they kind of rolled out systematically. 10x kind of puts that into more of a systematic context. What we generally tell people, if you’re giving yourself permission to scale, instead of thinking of, “I’m just going to launch to everyone,” start with one customer. I know one sounds just wrong, but that is what I call the singularity moment of a product. The moment you can get one person to buy your product and part with their hard earned money, that’s something to celebrate. Now one, of course, is not enough, but if you think about it, every company, whether it’s   Amazon , Facebook, your company, starts with one customer. Everyone starts in the same place, and then they double and then double subsequently many many times. If you think of 10x, that is really a sequence of doublings through the power of three is 8x. If you keep doubling, you will eventually 10x, and most people will have 10 customers. You will 10x once, some of you will get a hundred customers, you will 10x again. The only difference between a company like Facebook and say, my company or your company, is Facebook just doubles more times in rapid succession and we will, and they keep doubling and then they eventually slow down. We may not need to get that big because our   business model   starts working for our scale much, much sooner. The whole idea of 10x-ing is almost giving you a mathematical way of thinking of permission to scale. The way I break it down is I get, no matter what the idea is, I will get a startup or corporate innovator to start thinking of, “How do I convert my first customer, and then how do I get to 10, how do I get to 100, how do I get to 1,000?” That nonlinear thinking automatically works towards prioritizing the right types of risks. If we think about the world we live in today, most products, not all, but most products don’t suffer from technical risks. They suffer from customer and market risk. When you are only serving 10 customers, you can fairly easily do that from a technical perspective. You may only need one web server, for instance, or you may be able to provide high touch onboarding. That allows you to supplement the shortcomings of a fully scalable product. By giving yourself that permission of doing 10 customers initially, you can do that. As you go to the next level, it’s not about getting another 10 customers, now you have to get 100 customers. That forces you to start investing incrementally in things that will need to scale. You don’t have to go all the way to scale, but it’s an incremental way of not just doing easy jumps. It’s still hard, but they are manageable harder steps in that journey.

Key takeaways

• We explored the evolution that led to the lean startup movement.
• From that movement, it was clear that a scientific method based on experimentation, tested assumptions and continuous iterations is the key.
• From this movement, the lean startup canvas was born. This model helps entrepreneurs get actionable insight for business and product development.
• This is based on a profound understanding of the problems your customers are facing and the unfair advantage you can build or have built into your business .
• I want to remind you that the lean startup canvas is a practical and portable tool for the entrepreneur .
• The main aim is to have a holistic view of your business on one page, which allows you to iterate on your business model .
• Thus, I’d say that the lean startup canvas is as much about “market- business model fit” as it is about “product-market fit.”
• In short, you aim to generate a repeatable and scalable business model that unlocks value for your organization as quickly as possible.

Key Highlights

• The Lean Startup Canvas is adapted from the Business Model Canvas by Ash Maurya.
• It includes elements focused on problems, solutions, key metrics, unfair advantage, and unique value proposition .
• The canvas prioritizes understanding and mastering the problem before developing solutions.
• Historically, companies emphasized mass production and efficiency in manufacturing.
• Toyota introduced the Toyota Production System (TPS) focusing on waste reduction and continuous improvement.
• Lean Manufacturing principles influenced modern methodologies, including those in the startup world.
• The Lean Startup methodology emerged with the shift to digital products and the internet.
• It emphasizes experimentation, customer feedback, and iterative design .
• Lean Startup seeks quick insights and avoids extensive upfront planning.
• Steve Blank initiated the Lean Startup Movement, favoring experimentation, customer feedback, and iterative design .
• Concepts like “minimum viable product” (MVP) and “pivoting” gained prominence.
• Lean Startup applies a scientific method approach to validate assumptions.
• Lean Canvas is a tailored version of the Business Model Canvas for startups.
• Lean Canvas includes problem, solution, key metrics, and unfair advantage blocks while omitting others.
• It provides actionable insights for entrepreneurs by focusing on key elements.
• Unfair advantage is a central concept in Lean Canvas.
• It represents a competitive advantage that’s difficult to copy or buy.
• Unique value proposition captures customer attention, while unfair advantage deters competitors.
• Lean Startup encourages thinking in terms of 10x goals.
• Achieving 10x growth involves continuous iterations and gradual scaling.
• Startups aim to reach a “singularity moment” where even gaining one customer is significant.
• Lean Startup emphasizes experimentation, customer feedback, and iterative design .
• Lean Canvas offers actionable insights for startups, focusing on the business model .
• Unfair advantage and unique value proposition are critical for differentiation.
• Lean Startup’s 10x growth model encourages nonlinear thinking and incremental scaling.

Related Business Tools

Business model canvas.

Lean Startup Canvas

Blitzscaling Canvas

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About The Author

Gennaro Cuofano

1 thought on “what is a lean startup canvas lean startup canvas in a nutshell”.

Hi Prashanth, thanks and good point! Timing is extremely important and sometime it might be too early for a product. I believe in that case part of the strategy is communicating the problem rather than the “disruptive idea.” In that case, it will be important to communicate the unique value proposition and tools like the lean startup canvas might be more valuable for that: https://fourweekmba.com/lean-startup-canvas/

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An Introduction To Lean Canvas – Business Model Design

Words by: Steve Mullen | Filed under: Attract , Build Authority , business model design

As an entrepreneur, one of the most important tasks you can perform is getting your idea(s) out from your head into a tangible format so that you can communicate that with others. In the past, this usually meant a well-researched business plan, that would usually take weeks (more like months) to create.

I turn to the Lean Canvas to help me quickly formulate possible business models, product launches, campaigns and variations of, and communicate this with my stakeholders. Having the Lean Canvas as a visual guide made this part “communicating the model/idea” so much more effective — and I think the most valuable function of the tool.

The problem with business plans for startups & entrepreneurs are that they’re a waste of time, don’t get me wrong a well-researched business plan is important but only at the right stage of your business (usually when you’re in growth/investment).

This quote from Steve Blank sums up this point in case: “Business Plan: a document investors make you write, that they don’t read”.

The key fundamental to Lean methodology is the elimination of waste — this includes time, processes, inventory and more. So as a lean startup you need a quicker way to get ideas out of your head, you need to stay lean & avoid waste — so, it’s time to introduce Lean Canvas.

Before we jump into the Lean Canvas it’s important to point out that Lean Canvas has been adapted by Ash Maurya from the very popular Business Model Canvas by Alexander Osterwalder.

Lean Canvas by Ash Mauyra

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7o8uYdUaFR4

Lean Canvas uses the same 9 blocks concept except they’ve been modified slightly to suit the needs/purposes/requirements of a Lean Startup. The Lean Canvas is the perfect one-page format for brainstorming possible business models, the blocks guide you through logical steps starting with your customer problems right through to your unfair advantage (often the hardest block to answer).

Blank Lean Canvas:

Source: Running Lean

Here is a quick explainer of each Lean Canvas block (and in the order to go through them):

Each customer segment (CS) you are thinking to work with will have a set of problems that they need solving. In this box try listing the one to three high priority problems that you CS has. Without a problem to solve, you don’t have a product/service to offer.

2. Customer Segments

The problem and Customer Segments can be viewed as intrinsically connected — without a CS in mind you can’t think of their problems, and visa versa.

3. Unique Value Proposition

In the middle of the canvas is the UVP. A value proposition is a promise of value to be delivered. It’s the primary reason a prospect should buy from you. A way to get your head around this is to think about why are you different and why should your CS buy/invest time in you.

Further reading: Useful Value Proposition Examples (and How to Create a Good One)

4. Solution

Finding a solution to the problem is the golden egg! You’re not going to get this right off the first bat — it’s OK, as that’s what Lean is all about. What you need to do is Get Out The Building — a phrase coined by the godfather of Lean Startup, Steve Blanks. And what Blank’s here is that the solution is not in your office, it’s out there in the streets. So go interview your customer segment, ask them questions, and take those learnings. Remember the Lean Startup is validated learning through a continual Build — Measure — Learn feedback loop.

5. Channels

Channels are ways for you to reach your CS. And remember that in the initial stages it’s important not to think about scale but to focus on learning. With that in mind try to think about which channels will give you enough access to your CS at the same time give you enough learning. Channels can be email, social, CPC ads, blogs, articles, trade shows, radio & TV, webinars etc. and BTW you don’t have to be on all of them, just where your CS is.

6. Revenue Streams

How you price your business will depend on the type of model it is, however, it’s quite common for startups to lower their cost, even offer it for free to gain traction, however, this can pose a few problems. The key being it actually delays/avoids validation. Getting people to sign up for something for free is a lot different than asking them to pay. There is also the idea of perceived value.

Further reading: Simple pricing strategies for your products or services, the lean way!

7. Cost Structure

Here you should list all the operational costs for taking this business to market. How much will it cost to build / landing page? What is your burn rate — your total monthly running costs? How much will it cost to interview your customer segment? How much do market research papers cost? etc. You can then use these costs and potential revenue streams to calculate a rough break-even point.

8. Key Metrics

Every business, no matter what industry or size, will have some key metrics that are used to monitor performance. The best way to help with this is to visualise a funnel top down that flows from the large open top, through multiple stages to the narrow end. A good model to help with this is Dave McClure’s ARRRR (aka Pirate Metrics) .

Further reading: Startup Metrics for Pirates

9. Unfair Advantage

This is the most difficult to block to answer. However, do try to think about this as having an unfair advantage can help when it comes seeking partners & investors. Here is a great definition of unfair advantage : “The only real competitive advantage is that which cannot be copied and cannot be bought.” — Jason Cohen. Unfair advantage can be insider information, a dream team, getting expert endorsements, existing customers etc. So rather than think about adding something like “commitment and passion” as an unfair advantage (because it is not), think about what you have that no one else can buy.

Completed Lean Canvas:

[image source: Ian Fitzpatrick ]

The idea here is to spend around 15–20 minutes to get that idea down on to paper. Some people prefer to project the PDF onto a wall and use sticky notes to add their ideas into the boxes. But I’ve become so used to Lean Canvas that I sketch my business model ideas directly into my notebook.

Now that you have your first Lean Canvas, the key is to test. Ash encourages you to try as many iterations of the first canvas as possible and to test each one after which a winning business model will emerge. Sounds like hard work? Well yes, it is. But going through this process will save you time, energy and money. Think about it: the worst possible outcome for any entrepreneur is to build something that no one wants!!

The Lean Canvas

As a business entrepreneur, it’s your duty to get ideas out of your head onto paper so that others can see and help build the problem solution. Traditional business plans are not relevant in the ideation stage, they take too much time and are usually created without any validated learning. Business plans are more suited to once you have a business running and are looking to scale.

During the ideation stage try to stay lean, use the Lean Canvas to get your ideas down and use lean principles to test your hypothesis by getting out the building.

It is my wish that this introduction to Lean Canvas has helped spark an idea, or given some inspiration to startup. I have linked to all sources — I follow these blogs and I recommend you do too. If this post has got your Lean on 🙂 I’d welcome comments below or you can reach out to me through my Twitter @leadflowmethod

I’d like to close off by thanking Ash Maurya for his excellent thinking behind Lean principles and I would highly recommend you visit his LeanStack blog and buy his Running Lean  & Lean Analytics books – both are excellent.

As always, to your success.

Steve Mullen Digital Marketing Training

8 thoughts on “An Introduction To Lean Canvas – Business Model Design”

What page is the “Business Canvas Model” on? The image that is in color.

Hey DG, if you look under the image there’s an image source credit: startitup.co but in responding to you, I thought I’d check the link again and it seems the page is no longer active.

I was going to remove the link but then I recalled a comment posted on Medium where I first published this post. It was from the creator of that completed Lean Canvas, Ian Fitzpatrick (who’s gone on to create giftster.com an awesome start up).

Thanks DG, for your comment!

Thank you for being clean and to the point . Simple with purpose!

You’re welcome, Amanda, and thank you for the comment… glad you enjoyed the post!

hey, how can I help?

You’re welcome Esther… happy planning!!

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