PROBLEM: I understand the problem, but I don't fully understand what it's like to experience it.

To find a profitable problem to solve, you must understand what it is like to experience the problem

STEP 3: DEVELOPING EMPATHY

Absolutely. With the actual TOC you provided, I would revise Step 6 so that Building a StoryBrand is genuinely integrated into the exercise, rather than simply being mentioned as a supporting book.

I would also keep the step focused: Step 6 is not about writing a website or creating a marketing campaign. It is about turning everything from Steps 1–5 into one clear customer-centred message. StoryBrand itself positions the SB7 framework as a seven-part method for clarifying a business message so customers understand it and act. (StoryBrand)

Step 6 — Build Your Core Message

The Problem We’re Solving

“I know who I serve, how I want to be positioned and why my offer is different, but I don’t know how to explain it so the right customer immediately understands its value.”

You have now worked through:

Your Best-Fit Customer
Their Buying Situation
Their Alternatives
Your Position
Your Differentiation

You know what you want to be known for.

You know why your offer should be preferable.

But your customer doesn’t see all the work you’ve done.

They see your:

Website
Headline
Social media posts
Profile
Sales conversation
Offer description
Marketing materials

And they have to understand your value quickly.

If your message is unclear, even a well-positioned offer can be overlooked.

You may say:

“I provide strategic transformation solutions for professionals and organisations.”

But the customer may still wonder:

“What does that actually mean for me?”

The goal of this step is to turn your strategic decisions into a clear, customer-centred core message.

Not your entire website.

Not your sales page.

Not your marketing campaign.

Your Core Message.

The EVUNN Mindset Shift

From “How do I tell them about my business?” → “How do I help them understand their own story?”

Experts naturally want to explain themselves.

They want to talk about:

Their expertise
Their credentials
Their experience
Their methodology
Their achievements
Their services

But the customer is primarily trying to answer:

“Can you help me get what I want?”

This is the central communication shift behind StoryBrand.

The customer is the hero.

Your business is the guide.

Your job is to help the customer see:

What they want

↓

What is getting in the way

↓

Why your business can help

↓

What they should do next

↓

What success could look like

StoryBrand’s official framework describes this as a seven-part framework designed to clarify a company’s message and connect with customers. (StoryBrand)

📖 Recommended Book

Building a StoryBrand

Author: Donald Miller

The Big Idea

Make the customer the hero of your message and position your business as the guide that helps them overcome a problem and reach the outcome they want.

The book’s SB7 framework follows this basic progression:

A Character

↓

Has a Problem

↓

Meets a Guide

↓

Who Gives Them a Plan

↓

Calls Them to Action

↓

Helps Them Avoid Failure

↓

Ends in Success

That structure is the reason this book fits Step 6 so well.

You are not using StoryBrand to create a dramatic story about your company.

You are using its framework to make your customer’s situation and your role in helping them easy to understand.

What Business Problem Does This Book Solve?

“My offer may be valuable, but customers don’t immediately understand what I do, who it is for or why they should care.”

This is a common problem for experts.

You know too much about your subject.

So you communicate everything you know.

The customer receives information instead of clarity.

StoryBrand gives you a framework for simplifying that communication.

The official StoryBrand framework specifically emphasises clarity and warns that confusing customers causes them to look elsewhere. (StoryBrand)

Should I Read It Now?

YES.

This is the primary book for Step 6.

But don’t read it as a general branding course.

Read it with one objective:

“How can I turn my positioning and differentiation into a message my best-fit customer immediately understands?”

Which Parts Matter Most?

Use the actual structure of the book.

SECTION 1 — WHY MOST MARKETING IS A MONEY PIT

Chapter 1 — The Key to Being Seen, Heard, and Understood

READ

Focus on the importance of clear communication.

Your takeaway:

If the customer has to work too hard to understand your offer, your message is failing.

Chapter 2 — The Secret Weapon That Will Grow Your Business

READ

Use this chapter to understand why clarity in communication matters commercially.

Chapter 3 — The Simple SB7 Framework

ESSENTIAL

This is the framework you will use for this step.

Understand the seven elements and how they work together.

SECTION 2 — BUILDING YOUR STORYBRAND

Chapter 4 — A Character

ESSENTIAL

The customer is the character.

Connect this to the Best-Fit Customer you created in Step 1.

Ask:

Who is the person this message is actually for?

Chapter 5 — Has a Problem

ESSENTIAL

Bring forward the problem you’ve already identified and validated.

Don’t invent a new problem.

Ask:

What is the customer struggling with, and what is preventing them from getting what they want?

Chapter 6 — And Meets a Guide

ESSENTIAL

This is where your expertise becomes relevant.

You are not the hero.

You are the guide.

Your role is to demonstrate:

Empathy

“I understand what you’re dealing with.”

and:

Authority

“I have the knowledge or capability to help.”

This is where your positioning and expertise support the customer’s story.

Chapter 7 — Who Gives Them a Plan

ESSENTIAL

Customers need to understand that there is a path forward.

Bring forward the offer you developed in Phase 2.

Ask:

What is the simple path we give the customer to move from their current situation to their desired outcome?

Don’t explain every operational detail.

Give them enough clarity to understand the path.

Chapter 8 — And Calls Them to Action

ESSENTIAL

A customer should know what to do next.

Your message should eventually lead to a clear action.

For now, identify the primary action you want the customer to take.

Examples:

Book a consultation
Start a trial
Buy the programme
Request an assessment
Schedule a call
Download a resource

Chapter 9 — That Helps Them Avoid Failure

READ

Identify what remains at stake if the customer doesn’t solve the problem.

Don’t exaggerate.

Use realistic consequences.

The purpose is to make the importance of the problem clearer.

Chapter 10 — And Ends in a Success

ESSENTIAL

Define the transformation the customer wants.

This should connect directly to the desired outcome established in Phase 2.

Ask:

What does the customer’s situation look like after successfully using this offer?

Chapter 11 — People Want Your Brand to Participate in Their Transformation

READ

This helps bring the framework together.

Focus on the idea that your business participates in the customer’s transformation rather than making the business itself the centre of the story.

SECTION 3 — IMPLEMENTING YOUR STORYBRAND BRANDSCRIPT

Chapter 12 — Building a Better Website

SKIM FOR NOW

Useful later when you apply the message to your website.

But you are not building your website in Step 6.

Chapter 13 — Using StoryBrand to Transform Company Culture

SKIP FOR NOW

This is not necessary for creating the core message of an expertise-based offer.

The StoryBrand Marketing Roadmap

SKIM

Keep this for later when you begin turning your core message into a broader marketing system.

What Should I Ignore For Now?

Do not turn Step 6 into:

A website-building exercise
A copywriting course
A social media strategy
A complete branding exercise
A sales funnel
A marketing campaign

Those come later.

Your immediate job is much simpler:

Create the message that all of those future marketing activities can be built around.

Your EVUNN Action

Build Your Core Messaging Blueprint

Bring forward everything you’ve already created.

From Step 1

Best-Fit Customer

From Step 2

Buying Situation

From Step 3

Alternative Landscape

From Step 4

Positioning Statement

From Step 5

Differentiation Strategy

Now translate those strategic decisions into the customer’s story.

1. Define Your Customer

The Character

Complete:

We help ____________________.

Be specific.

Avoid:

“We help businesses.”

Instead:

“We help newly promoted managers…”

or:

“We help independent consultants who…”

Your message should allow the right person to recognise themselves.

2. Define What They Want

Ask:

What does this customer want to achieve?

Complete:

They want to ____________________.

This should be a meaningful outcome.

Not the product.

Not the service.

Not the method.

The customer wants the transformation — not your offer.

3. Define Their Problem

Complete:

But they are struggling with ____________________.

Use the problem you’ve already researched.

Do not introduce a new problem simply because it sounds better in marketing.

Your message should reflect the reality you discovered.

4. Position Yourself as the Guide

Now answer:

Why should this customer trust us to help?

Complete:

We understand this because ____________________.

Then:

We can help because ____________________.

This is where you bring forward:

Expertise
Experience
Evidence
Specialisation
Relevant credibility

But keep it connected to the customer’s problem.

5. Give Them a Simple Plan

The customer needs to see a path.

Complete:

Step 1

____________________

Step 2

____________________

Step 3

____________________

Your plan can be simple.

For example:

Diagnose → Build → Launch

or:

Assess → Implement → Improve

or:

Discover → Design → Validate

The objective is to reduce uncertainty.

6. Define the Call to Action

What do you want the customer to do?

Complete:

The next step is ____________________.

Be specific.

Don’t hide the action behind vague language such as:

“Learn more.”

Make the desired action obvious.

7. Define What They Want to Avoid

Ask:

What happens if they don’t solve this problem?

Complete:

Without solving this, they may continue to ____________________.

Keep it truthful.

This is not an invitation to use fear-based marketing.

It is simply a reminder that problems have consequences.

8. Define Success

Now describe the customer’s desired future.

Complete:

After successfully using this offer, they will be able to ____________________.

Make the outcome concrete.

For example:

“Confidently lead their team through their first 90 days.”

is stronger than:

“Become a better leader.”

9. Connect Your Differentiation

Now bring in the work from Step 5.

Ask:

Why should the customer choose our approach?

Complete:

Unlike [alternative], we ____________________.

Then connect it to value:

This matters because ____________________.

Your differentiation should support the customer’s story.

It should not interrupt it.

10. Build Your One-Page Core Message

Bring the pieces together:

Character

Who is the customer?

Want

What do they want?

Problem

What is preventing them?

Guide

Why are you qualified to help?

Plan

How will you help?

Call to Action

What should they do?

Avoid Failure

What happens if they remain stuck?

Success

What does their desired future look like?

Then compress the message.

11. Write Your One-Sentence Core Message

Use this structure:

We help [specific customer] overcome [problem] so they can [desired outcome], using [distinctive approach].

For example:

We help newly promoted managers overcome the challenges of leading former peers so they can become confident team leaders in their first 90 days, using a structured leadership transition system.

Your actual sentence should come from your own research and positioning.

12. Create Your Message Hierarchy

Now organise the message into layers.

Primary Message

What should the customer understand first?

Problem

What should make them say:

“That’s me.”

Outcome

What should make them think:

“That’s what I want.”

Guide

Why should they trust you?

Plan

How does your offer help?

Differentiation

Why this option?

Call to Action

What should they do next?

This hierarchy becomes the foundation for future marketing.

13. Test the Message

Do not assume you’ve communicated clearly simply because you understand it.

Put the message in front of someone who fits your Best-Fit Customer.

Ask:

Who do you think this is for?

What problem do you think it solves?

What do you think they get?

What do you think makes it different?

What would you do next after reading this?

Don’t explain the message.

Listen.

If they misunderstand it, the message needs fixing.

🧠 EVUNN Mindset Checkpoint

Are you making the message complicated because you want to prove your expertise?

This is a common trap for experts.

You may feel that a simple message makes you look less sophisticated.

So you add:

More credentials
More terminology
More features
More services
More explanations
More claims

The result is a message that says a lot but communicates very little.

Remember:

Your expertise does not need to appear in every sentence.

Your expertise should make your solution valuable.

Your message should make that value easy to understand.

Optional Mindset Reading

This Is Marketing — Seth Godin

Use this only if you are struggling to narrow your message because you want to appeal to everyone.

This is not required reading for Step 6.

It is a mindset checkpoint for the resistance:

“If I narrow my message, I’ll lose customers.”

🔓 EVUNN Execution Toolkit

Core Messaging Blueprint

Don’t let your positioning get lost in complicated marketing language.

Use the EVUNN Core Messaging Blueprint to translate your customer, problem, desired outcome, positioning and differentiation into one clear message the right customer can immediately understand.

→ Unlock The Toolkit

One Payment. All Stage 1 Toolkits. Yours For Life.

No monthly subscription. No recurring fees. Just the tools you need to execute.

→ Unlock All Stage 1 Execution Toolkits

Your Step 6 Output

By the end of this step, you should have a:

CORE MESSAGING BLUEPRINT

Containing:

Best-Fit Customer
↓
What They Want
↓
Their Problem
↓
Your Role as Guide
↓
Your Plan
↓
Call to Action
↓
What They Want to Avoid
↓
Desired Success
↓
Your Differentiation
↓

One-Sentence Core Message

What You Should Now Know

You entered Step 6 with:

“I know who my offer is for, where it fits and why it is different.”

You leave knowing:

“I can explain my offer in a way that makes the right customer recognise their problem, understand the value of my solution and know what to do next.”

Your Phase 3 journey is now:

Best-Fit Customer

↓

Buying Situation

↓

Alternative Landscape

↓

Position

↓

Differentiation

↓

Core Message

But even a clear message won’t help if nobody notices it.

Your next challenge is to create language that makes the right customer stop and pay attention.

NEXT: STEP 7 — CREATE ATTENTION HOOKS

What can I say that makes the right customer stop and recognise their problem?

To understand their experience, use Book 3. Title: Practical Empathy

Author: Indi Young

Time Investment: 5+ hours (Audiobook)

Listen to Audiobook with Audible free trial |Buy at the Bookshop

The Big Idea from Practical Empathy

Empathy helps you move beyond assumptions and develop a deeper understanding of how people experience problems, situations, what they do, and what matters to them.

For an expert, this is a critical shift. Your expertise tells you what you think the problem is. Empathy helps you understand the problem from their perspective.

What Does this Book Help you Achieve?

Practical Empathy helps you:

Listen without immediately interpreting
Understand people’s experiences more deeply
Separate what people actually say from your assumptions
Make sense of what you hear
Identify patterns across people’s experiences
Use those insights to improve what you create

The goal isn’t to become better at selling.

It’s to become better at understanding.

Should I Read it Now?

YES.

You’ve already explored:

Step 1: What problems might exist?

Step 2: Why might people want to solve them?

Now you need to understand: What is this experience actually like for the person living through it?

Which Chapters Matter Most for me Now?

Chapter 2: Empathy Brings Balance (Essential)

Understand what empathy actually means and why it matters when making decisions about customers.

Chapter 3: Put Empathy to Work (Essential)

Learn how empathy can become part of how you investigate and understand problems.

Chapter 4: A New Way to Listen (Essential)

This is one of the most important chapters for this stage.

Learn to listen to someone’s experience without immediately jumping to solutions, advice or conclusions.

Chapter 5: Make Sense of What You Heard (Essential)

Find out how to process and deepen your understanding of what people tell you.

Chapter 6: Apply Empathy to What You Create (Essential)

Understand how patterns in people’s experiences can influence what you eventually create.

Chapter 1: Business Is Out of Balance (Read this chapter for context only)

It explains why relying only on numbers and analytical thinking can leave important parts of the customer experience invisible.

Skip Chapters 7–9 for now

They focus more heavily on applying empathy within workplaces and organizations.

Listen to Audiobook with Audible free trial | Buy at the Bookshop

Your Step 3 Outcome

By the end of this step, you should have:

A deeper understanding of the experience behind each problem of the 3 problems generated in step 1
A clearer distinction between what you know and what you’re assuming
Initial insight into what people think, feel and do
A better understanding of their frustrations and desired outcomes
A list of questions you still need to investigate with real people

Notice what hasn’t happened yet:

You haven’t validated the problems yet. That’s intentional.

You’ve developed empathy, but empathy based on your own reflection is still not enough.

The next step takes you deeper.

Ready to Put Empathy into Practice?

Reading about empathy is not the same as practising it.

The EVUNN Customer Empathy Toolkit gives you a structured way to examine the problem from the customer’s perspective and separate evidence from assumptions.

One Payment. For All EVUNN Stage 1 toolkits.