Map Your Company on One Page With the Business Model Canvas

A business can look sound in every section of its plan and still lose money on every customer it serves.

A long plan is read one section at a time, so the cost of delivering and the revenue it earns never sit side by side. The Business Model Canvas puts all nine parts of a business on one page: who you serve, what you promise, how you reach them, how they pay, and what it takes and costs to deliver. Read together, the two blocks that contradict each other show up in one glance.

You read real canvases, from MoviePass and Webvan to the Wii and the PlayStation 3, learn when the Lean Canvas fits better, practise finding the pair of blocks that cannot both be true, and draw your own with real numbers on the bottom edge.

You walk away with your business on one page, a number for what one customer pays against what serving them costs, and a monthly habit of redrawing the page and reading the three pairs.

Who it's for

Founders: want to know whether the revenue side pays for the delivery side before they raise money or build more.

Operators and product leads: need to compare their model with a competitor's and see where each one is strong or exposed.

People with an idea: want a fast way to test a business on paper before writing a plan.