True message clarity is about becoming perfectly understood.
WAAAY back when I first startyed as a product marketer, I had a problem.
I had to become the expect on a deeply technical product.
So what was the problem?
I’m not technical. Never have been…never will be.
But, see…in product marketing — a marketing discipline where you connect product with audience through capabilities and channels — you have to be two things:
- The expert of the product.
- The expert of the audience.
The only way you can be effective in connecting the two is if you truly understand the two at the most foundational level.
It led me to an approach rooted in ancient Greek philosophy.
To be perfectly understood, first perfectly understand.
Aristotle (yes, that Aristotle) defined essence as, "the what it was to be." At least that's the literal translation of the ancient Greek, "to ti ên einai."
I like to think of it as:
- The thing
- That makes the thing
- Be the thing.
If you can get to the essence of what you sell -- be it a product, a service, even an idea -- then it becomes far easier to connect it with the people who should want it.
I came up with three Big Rock questions...you know, those questions that are so big they're difficult to answer.
I found that if I could answer these three questions, I could get to the essence of the offer and start to connect it with the cares, the wants, the needs of my target audience.
This was the basis for my approach to messaging, and it contributed to my 20+ year career as a successful product marketer for enterprise tech.
Together, we create a clear messaging foundation that attracts more of the right buyers.
Founders leave with that messaging, a compelling narrative that connects product with audience, and a ton of content ideas, all of which that can be applied to their marketing efforts immediately.
But, it’s also where I’ve perfected my approach to message clarity.
See, to answer the questions, you gotta have more intel.
Now, before you read any more of this here blog post, there’s one thing that's super important to embrace.
Message clarity is more than you think. Like waaay more.
It’s being perfectly understood.
It’s not only tacit understanding we’re going for. We want potential buyers to see our stuff and think, “Oh! This is for me…I gotsta learn more!!”
So here's the deeper-level stuff.
Creating messaging that moves your target audience down the path to purchase is all about answering the right questions!
Getting to true message clarity first takes getting clear on five core areas…
Then answering those three big-rock questions.
Here’s how it all works.
Start with the Hierarchy of Clarity.
Level 1: Clarity of Product
When you create messaging that connects, first get clear on what you're selling:
- What is it?
- What does it do?
- How does it do that?
- What are alternatives?
Level 2: Clarity of Audience
Just as important is clarity of audience. That is, the people who should want what you sell:
- Who are they?
- What do they do in their role?
- What are their jobs to be done?
- What do they care about most (in regards to your product)?
Level 3: Clarity of Problem
Anything anyone buys addresses a problem they want to address:
- What's the problem?
- How does it show up?
- Why do they need to address it?
- What's it sound like when they talk about it?
Level 4: Clarity of Outcomes
Identify what happens when your audience:
- Does nothing?
- Uses your product?
- Uses another solution?
Then dig into:
- What are the effects of each path?
- What are the impacts of those effects?
- On the business?
- On your audience, personally?
Level 5: Clarity of Feeling
This is where you grab your audience by the feels. When you do this right, you show them they're understood. And better? You create instant, subliminal trust.
- How does ALL of it make your audience feel?
- How do they articulate those feelings?
- Good, bad, indifferent - it all MUST be real
Once you have clarity across these five levels, NOW you can tackle the big-rock questions.
I call these the Clarity Questions because answering them effectively causes you to get remarkably clear with your answers.
THE CLARITY QUESTIONS
WHAT IS IT?
Get literal. Think, “what's in the box?” Nothing more, nothing less. What is this thing?
WHAT DOES IT DO?
At its core, what does this thing do? What’s the ONE thing that cuts to the heart of what your solution does?
WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Not why does it matter to you. Why does it matter to the people it should matter to? This becomes your narrative. It needs three parts:
- Context (perspective from your audience)
- Problem (the challenge they face)
- Solution (how you address it)
The key thing to remember? Without the right context, you're just another vendor poking at pain points.
When you consider all this, clarity is waaay more than "keep it simple" and "make it concise."
Clarity is being perfectly understood by the people you want to serve.
It's also showing those same peeps that THEY are perfectly understood by you.
Nail clarity at every level, and you create messaging that moves them to act.
Because when your audience feels perfectly understood, they can't help but dive in deeper.
🤘👊💥😎
This Message Clarity Workbook can help...
BONUS: You’ll also get weekly tips about how to raise up your positioning, messaging, and copy.
BLAKE BINNS
- Host of theGood advice podcast
Zach is uniquely gifted in understanding exactly how to connect your product with your customer. When it comes to what your product is, why it's important, and why your buyer should care...Zach makes it so simple. I'm grateful for the perspective he's shared with me on messaging -- there's really no one else like him and what he offers.
