Shopify Jobs — Sprint Zero — Creating a Lean Canvas
Before getting started on anything in code, we should plan out why I will build Shopifyjobs.dev. If you still need to get the chance to read Lean UX, I highly suggest it. The book includes a tool called Lean Canvas, which I’ve used for a few projects and felt was hugely helpful in getting ideas on a page and providing a starting point.
This post took me a few days longer than I wanted. Sometimes, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. I used to run a lot, which I’d love to get back into. I remember that the first mile was always the hardest. The little voice inside your head constantly saying “stop running, your legs hurt, you are tired”. But once you get past that mile and find some flow, it becomes so much easier. Even this post, as I write now — Im finding it easier to get the words out, I’m finding flow!
Below is my Lean Canvas for Shopify Jobs, and I will walk through each section and its benefits. This is based on Lean Canvas v2. I’m sharing my thinking; you can see the thought process at each step of the journey. In section 8, you will see my first three experiments. The next post in this series will be around creating a basic landing page to see if I can get some interest with the result generating some leads to see if there is a market for this.
Business Problem (1)
What problem does the business have that you are trying to solve?
- The $375B e-commerce industry lacks a dedicated hiring platform for Shopify expertise, forcing 1.75M merchants and 12,000+ Shopify agencies to rely on inefficient general job boards where Shopify-specific skills are hard to verify.
Business Outcomes (2)
How will you know you solved the business problem? What will you measure?
- Generate $1,000 monthly revenue by securing 20 active employers paying $50 per job posting and maintaining a consistent flow of 50 live jobs on the platform at any time.
- Achieve 5,000 monthly visitors with a 30% return rate by focusing on three key markets (NYC, SF, London), maintaining an average job application rate of 4 qualified candidates per posting.
Users (3)
What types of users and customers should you focus on first?
- Sarah Chen: A busy agency director who needs to quickly find pre-vetted Shopify developers to handle her growing client base.
- Marcus Rodriguez: A self-taught Shopify developer with proven freelancing skills seeking to transition into a stable agency role.
User Outcomes + Benefits (4)
Why would your users seek out your product or service? What benefit would they gain from using it?
- Employers cut hiring time by 70% (from 8 weeks to 2 weeks) by accessing a pre-vetted pool of Shopify-specific developers
- Developers increase interview success rates by 4x
- Both parties save money
Solutions (5)
What can we make that will solve our business problem and meet the needs of our customers at the same time?
- Custom job posting platform specifically for Shopify roles
- Pull Shopify jobs from multiple sources (Indeed, LinkedIn, WeWorkRemotely)
- A searchable database of verified Shopify developers
- Skills assessment platform
Hypothesis (6)
- Agency directors will pay $199 per posting to access pre-vetted Shopify developers, validated by 40 active employers and 20% placement rate in 6 months.
- Shopify freelancers will complete verification profiles to access quality agency roles, validated by 500 verified developers generating 4 applications per job in 6 months.
What is the most important thing we need to learn first? (7)
- Will employers actually pay $199 for job postings?
- Will Shopify developers spend time creating verified profiles?
- Can we effectively verify Shopify skills to ensure quality?
What's the least amount of work needed to learn the next most important thing? (8)
- Create a basic landing page with pricing and a “Post Job” button to measure intent.
- Create a simple profile submission form and share it in Shopify developer communities.
- Run small batch of manual profile reviews and employer feedback
I love this framework, as it lays out the problem statement, several considerations, and a list of experiments.
I would love to hear any feedback and if others have used this framework.
