Context 🛠️#

After distilling clarity, the next step is to split your big idea canvas into distinct business model variants. For the Digital Bulletin Board (DBB), this process ensures each variant is testable, coherent, and aligned with the specific value flows of cities, clerks, and residents.

I use a simple 3-step process to create business model variants that avoids complexity while maximizing insight.

Step 1 — Pick a Business Model Archetype 🔹#

The first step is to identify which archetype your DBB variant fits: direct, multi-sided, or marketplace.

For DBB, the strongest starting point is a direct model: city governments are both the user and the paying customer. Although residents interact with the system, they do not pay directly—so the value flow remains simple and focused.

Picking one archetype keeps your initial variant concise and coherent. Other archetypes could be explored later as separate variants if new monetization models emerge.

Step 2 — Define Your Actors 🔹#

Next, define the actors in your business model.

For DBB’s direct model:

• Customer segment: City clerks and municipal governments
• User segment: Same as customers; they post and manage agendas

There’s no need to model residents as paying customers, though their engagement is an important secondary metric.

A good rule of thumb: if a group of actors shares problems, solutions, and pricing, roll them into a single segment. If their assumptions differ, model them separately in another variant.

Step 3 — Model Each Actor’s Perspective 🔹#

Finally, create your Lean Canvas for each variant from the perspective of the defined actors.

For DBB:

• Clone the original big idea canvas
• Update key assumptions for the chosen archetype and actor(s)
• Refine value propositions, channels, and revenue streams

The result is a clearer, simpler, and testable variant. For DBB, one variant might focus on subscription-based deployment for mid-size cities, while another could explore state-level SaaS integration.

A word of caution: avoid creating too many variants. Aim for 3–5 meaningful variants and timebox the exercise to half a day. The goal is exploration, not exhaustive analysis.

Insights & Takeaways ✨#

• The 3-step process ensures each variant is focused, concise, and testable.
• Picking a single archetype prevents early confusion and misaligned assumptions.
• Defining actors clearly keeps the business model coherent and avoids unnecessary complexity.
• Modeling each actor’s perspective produces Lean Canvases ready for validation experiments.
• For DBB, these variants clarify how cities can adopt digital posting and allow prioritization of pilots, pricing, and feature sets.

By following this 3-step process, you transform your big idea into distinct, actionable business model variants, setting the stage for rigorous validation and strategic iteration.