Jay-Z has exactly THREE problems, not 99

It's FRIDAY, people.

Here in the Netherlands the sun is shining, the skies are blue, I've had three cups of coffee, and there's a man pumping out a bunch of sewer water in the parking lot in front of my house.

Such a cozy way to start the weekend ❤️

For the next few weeks I'm going to continue my series on the storytelling structure. And since I know the last two emails have been somewhat theoretical, I'm excited to move into the more practical side of things.

Today we're talking all about the problems that your character faces.

Three problems. Not 99.

On Wednesday I posted a thread on Twitter about problems. And I'm going to use today's email to expand on what I wrote about there.

(PS—If you don't follow me on Twitter, you should. Because I'm thirsty for social validation. But also because I retweet memes quite frequently and talk about marketing stuff.)

Anyway, if you read Building a Story Brand, you'll learn that main characters to stories have three different types of problems (not 99, like Jay-Z claims):

1. Internal problems

2. External problems

3. Philosophical problems

Internal problems are the fears and challenges your main character has. External problems are the physical manifestation of those problems. And philosophical problems provide a backdrop that make those problems matter to someone.

Remember my story from last week about the fruit basket seller who was struggling with her taxes?

(If you missed out on that, go here and read the email before you read the rest of this one to get the background information.)

The internal problem in that story was the fruit basket seller's fear about her ability to manage her company's finances. The external problem was the fact that tax season rolled around and she had to do something about her fears. And the philosophical problem is one that any entrepreneur can identify with—if you want to grow your business, you have to face your fears.

People want to solve internal problems. But external problems can be a call to action.

We often think that people buy things to solve external problems. But external problems are often just the justification to buy something to solve an internal problem.

You buy a new dress to feel confident and look good, not because there's a New Year's Eve party. You buy an accounting software to get a grip on your finances, not because it's tax season.

In both of these cases, the external problem is really just a deadline. A reason why you need to act now, and not six months from now.

While you're already re-reading last week's email, look at the first three points from Dan Harmon's story circle framework. Harmon argues that every story starts with these three basic plot points:

1. A character is in a zone of comfort

2. But they want something

3. They enter into an unfamiliar situation

I'd argue that these three steps match pretty well with the way you should organize your marketing messaging:

1. Introduce the philosophical world that a character lives in by appeal to the character's strengths (Example: You're an amazing entrepreneur and you're rocking your business in so many ways)

2. Introduce the internal problem (Example: But you know you could be doing so much better if you understood your finances)

3. Use the external problem as a reason to act now (Example: Tax season is here...so you can't wait any longer)

Want to know something interesting about that structure? It follows the AIDA formula pretty perfectly. 💅

Now, the way you lay these out on the page might not follow this exact message pattern. You might not start every page talking about how awesome your character is—sometimes you might start directly with the external problem or the internal problem.

BUT it's always good to know these problems so you can start experimenting with what kinds of messaging structures work best for your sales pages and other marketing materials.

Be responsible.

I'm going to reiterate what I've said the last two emails: the main character in your brand's story is the customer, not you.

And look, I know you're probably bashing your head against the keyboard and groaning, "We GET it, Grace!"

But I want to make this as clear as the glassy ice on a frozen alpine lake. Because it's one of the most important marketing lessons I've learned over four years of doing this shit professionally.

When you think about your brands or products, you have to think about them from the customer's point of view. And understand and empathize with the fact that they buy products to solve their problems. Not because your brand is cool.

And this is as true (if not truer) in B2B as in B2C. Which is why we have a professional duty to be responsible.

As marketers, we do a lot of work uncovering people's fears. We're sort of like therapists in a way...we gather a lot of knowledge about people in general.

And our profession has earned a bad reputation for abusing that knowledge to sell shit that makes a huge, life-altering promise, but which falls short.

It's not just unethical. It's also just not creative or effective at building a long-term brand that results in repeat customers. And in the world of SaaS, we're in the business of creating happy repeat customers who are more than willing to pay their monthly, quarterly, or annual subscription fee.

That comes from actually solving people's problems. Not preying on those problems for a quick buck.

If you're reading this, I know you care and are not the kind of person to use people's problems against them. But I think it's worth mentioning that we have to be responsible with the power we have as empathetic people in the business of selling stuff.

Get the goods.

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