You’ve confused A LOT of readers with your emails, website, and social posts.
A simple adjustment fixes the confusion. Here's a start:
Pick what stage of awareness your reader is at
Write your next piece of content with that stage in mind
Feel happy knowing that your reader isn't confused
Simple, right?
Here’s the secret.
When your readers are buying, they don’t make decisions in a binary way. They need to be warmed up. At different times they need educating, empathy, options, trust, and direct calls-to-action.
Normally when you start to write, you open with a blank page and begin pecking away at the keyboard. It’s true. Sure, you have an idea of what you want to say, but you’re mostly spewing words at the screen.
But, when you started, you skipped one important step. You missed identifying what "level of awareness" your reader is at. Ask yourself, is my reader going to understand what I’m talking about when this message lands in their inbox?
Are you telling them there's a problem (which your product, service or department fixes), yet they have no clue that anything needs a fix?
Enter Eugene Schwartz's 5 stages of awareness.
Okay, let’s power through each stage. I’ll even show you what to write in each stage.
Ready, set, go.
1. Unaware Stage
At this moment, your reader has no clue that they even have a problem. They’re going on with their day, living with whatever annoyances they live with. This’ll be your biggest audience.
In the unaware stage:
Your content is longer because you need to educate the reader that there’s a problem or pain.
You don’t want to be pitching them.
It’s the perfect stage to drop in a little storytelling.
2. Problem Aware Stage
Your reader is questioning, “Hmm, I never knew I had this problem, but now that I see it, I don’t like it.” You’ve made them think, but there’s no desire to do anything. Yet.
In the problem aware stage:
Your reader has broad questions as they explore the problem. They don't fully understand it.
Don’t you dare talk about specific products or services to fix the problem. Don't.
You should mirror their pain. Show some empathy.
At the end of your email (or page), tease that there’s a potential solution.
3. Solution Aware Stage
You’ve done your job. The reader completely understands their problem. They’re in “explore mode” looking for more details on how to fix it.
In the solution aware stage:
Your reader doesn’t know that your product will do what they need to fix the problem.
Watch the curse of knowledge. Readers don't know the market the way you do. Use simple words.
This is a great time to point to a case study, success story, or testimonial.
4. Product Aware Stage
Your reader has explored, and searched for answers. They know there are products that can help. Which one's the best fit? They’re in discovery mode.
In the product aware stage:
Nice work, you’ve established trust with your reader.
They're now looking for specifics.
Your content needs to deliver value and not be pitchy.
You should touch on your product’s benefits, features, and tease at price.
It’s the perfect opportunity to bring in some NUDGE techniques. Start with adding a little urgency.
5. Most Aware Stage
They’re onboard. The reader knows what they want and you simply need to close the loop.
In the most aware stage:
Include direct calls-to-action.
You’ll have less content here than in the other stages because your focus is delivering a call-to-action.
Unlock incentives that encourage them to buy. Think of free shipping, signup bonuses, onboarding help.
Get to your point quickly. Don’t be in the way.
There you go. That's the 5 stages of awareness. Use them. Use them and you’ll see conversions spike.
"A lot of times people don't know what they want until you show it to them."
~ Steve Jobs
Remember, your reader needs to be warmed up. Use the bullet points for each stage to guide the next piece of content you write. It’s the power-up you’ve been waiting for. 💪
That’s all for this week.
🔗 Take a deeper dive. 4 helpful references on this topic.
↪ Nicholas Scalice, “What Are the 5 Stages of Awareness?”, GrowthMarketer, March 26, 2023, https://growthmarketer.co/stages-of-awareness
↪ Dean Mackenzie, “The 5 Stages of Customer Awareness and How to Create Content For Each”, Outbrain Inc., https://www.outbrain.com/blog/the-5-stages-of-customer-awareness-and-how-to-create-content-for-each/
↪ Eugene M. Schwartz, Breakthrough Advertising
↪ Joanna Wiebe, “How Long Should Your Pages Be?”, Copyhackers, May 11, 2020, https://copyhackers.com/2014/07/long-pages/