Assessing Opportunities
Assessing opportunities is the process of evaluating and prioritizing which customer needs, pain points, and desires to address based on their potential to drive your desired outcome.
Why do you need to assess opportunities?
Our job is not to address every customer opportunity. Our job is to address customer opportunities that drive our desired outcome. This is how we create value for our business while creating value for our customers.
As you collect customers' stories, you'll hear about countless needs, pain points, and desires. The challenge is choosing which ones to pursue.
How do you assess opportunities?
When assessing opportunities, consider:
Opportunity size - How many customers are impacted? How often does this need arise?
Market factors - How would addressing this opportunity affect your position in the market?
Company factors- How well does the opportunity align with your company vision, mission, and strategic objectives?
Customer factors - How important is this to customers? And how satisfied are they with existing solutions?
Impact on outcome - How much would addressing this opportunity move you toward your desired outcome?
These are subjective, messy decisions. They won't all agree. One opportunity might win on one dimension and lose on another. That's okay. These are two-way door decisions—you can test your choice through prototyping and experimentation, and change course if needed.
Learn more:
- Prioritize Opportunities, Not Solutions
- Opportunity Mapping: An Essential Skill for Driving Product Outcomes
Related terms:
- Opportunity
- Target Opportunity
- Desired Outcome
- Opportunity Solution Tree
Last Updated: October 25, 2025