How to craft value propositions that actually win before you build
Vivek Kumar
Product leader; Advisor,
How to sense product failure by its value proposition (in an AI world)
Most products don’t fail because of poor execution.
They fail because teams choose the wrong value to deliver.
In my career, I’ve repeatedly seen smart teams:
Solve real problems
Build well-designed products
Ship faster than ever
Still fail to gain adoption, retention, or pricing power
The root cause is almost always the same:
a weak or misaligned value proposition.
AI has made this problem worse, not better.
Today, teams can prototype in days, add intelligence to features, and ship at unprecedented speed. But AI doesn’t fix unclear value, it amplifies it. Products feel impressive in demos, yet confusing or unnecessary in real life.
The deeper problem is that “value proposition” is taught as a slogan or a pitch, not as a thinking skill.
There is no shared language or structured way to reason about:
What value actually acquires users
What value retains them over time
What value helps users escape existing habits and lock-ins
This course teaches a practical mental model : the OPEN framework to help you see, evaluate, and design value propositions with clarity and confidence across consumer products, including those that use AI.
Not how to build faster.
But how to build the right thing.
What you’ll learn
Learn to spot weak value propositions early. So you build products users actually adopt, retain, and pay for, even in an AI-driven world
Use a simple audit to spot unclear value before you invest in building or marketing.
Separate what looks impressive in a demo from what feels valuable to real users.
Identify the one missing value layer that is blocking adoption, retention, or pricing.
Turn user frustrations into crisp promises users can understand instantly.
Craft messaging that makes the value clear even before the product is experienced.
Choose value that is simple, specific, and strong enough to earn the first action.
Turn user frustrations into crisp promises users can understand instantly.
Craft messaging that makes the value clear even before the product is experienced.
Choose value that is simple, specific, and strong enough to earn the first action.
Identify the real lock-ins (habit, trust, data, money) that keep users from switching.
Pressure-test whether your value is providing enough reasons to switch to your product
Design hooks (risk reversal, convenience, incentives) that make switching worth it.
Define the enduring benefit users want over time (functional and/or emotional).
Link value to positioning so brand amplifies product value perception.
Use=value to solve big and meaningful problems and as north star for roadmap tradeoffs, not feature checklists..
Decide where AI truly improves outcomes vs where it adds complexity or novelty.
Design AI value that is explainable and trustworthy, not just ‘smart’.
se OPEN to test whether AI strengthens acquisition, retention, or both.
Learn directly from Vivek
Vivek Kumar
Product leader with 20 years building and scaling consumer digital products
Who this course is for
Product Managers/Sr PMs
PMs who shape product direction and need sharper judgment on what value will actually drive adoption and retention.Founders
Founders deciding what to build next and wanting early clarity on whether a product idea has real value or hidden flaws.Design and engineering leaders
Leaders influencing product decisions who care about product success, not just features or execution quality
Prerequisites
Must be a practising craft actively for at least 3+ years
The material is advanced so this is not for product people who have just joined the industry.
Schedule
Live sessions
4 hrs / week
You are just required to attend the live session
Projects
1 hr / week
You will be doing copious exercises during the sesson
Async content
1 hr / week
Additional content of a thorough material on problem definition and value management will be given.
Testimonials
Implementing the approach of value suggested by Vivek unlocked the intial growth of Atlys
Mohak
CEO AtlysOur team greatly benefited by having a shared language on problem defintion and value creation
Mark
ex Head of Product, Geniebook
Frequently asked questions
$1,250
USD