Writing Content That Resonates With Target Audiences

The Perfect Ad Creative Framework 8-Figure Brands Are Using in 2025... Our proprietary methodology - tested across dozens of D2C brands with millions in spend→ The 6Layer Creative Methodology: 1. Start With Audience (The Who) Beyond demographics, understand: • Market awareness level (Unaware → Problem Aware → Solution Aware → Product Aware → Most Aware) • Market sophistication (solutions they've tried before) • Psychographics, behaviors and funnel stage Best sources: Customer reviews, forums, direct conversations with customers. → Example: A skincare brand targets differently based on how many acne solutions the customer has tried before - awareness and sophistication determine messaging. 2. Define Your Core Offer (The What) Position your product based on their awareness: • Match their sophistication level • Focus on transformation, not features • Bridge the gap between current and desired state → For unaware customers: Educational bundles that introduce your solution → For sophisticated customers: Advanced products with unique differentiation 3. Determine Your Emotional Angle (The Why) There are 10 core buying emotions that drive most purchases - identify which 2-3 matter most for your specific audience, here are a few: • Feeling Security   • Feeling Belonging • Self-Actualizing Pair the desired emotion with your offer to naturally create an angle that shows your audience why it matters to them. The emotional angle connects your offer to deeper motivations - it's why someone truly buys. → Example: Premium cookware sells pride of mastery and joy of providing, not just pots. 4. Develop Your Creative Concept (How the Angle is Communicated) This is where you wrap your emotional angle in a compelling package that: → Creates pattern interrupt without confusing the audience → Delivers your emotional angle with clarity → Makes your offer feel inevitable Your concept must captivate while maintaining clarity. → Example: Dollar Shave Club's "Our Blades Are F***ing Great" concept. This triggers the male target's desired emotion of achievement and pride, granting them the opportunity to realize it through a purchase of the razor. 5. Tap Into Cultural Moments (The When) Connect your message to what's happening in your audience's world: • Seasonality relevant to your product • Social narratives your audience cares about • Cultural conversations they're already having This amplifies relevance by making your message feel timely and important. It's also a great way to reuse old offers and angles—just pair it with a new moment. 6. Production Quality & Style (The Wrapping Paper) Finally, decide on execution quality that reinforces your positioning: • Format: Video, photo, carousel, animation? • Quality level: High-production, UGC, in-house? • Aesthetic: Minimal, bold, authentic, premium? Each layer builds on and strengthens the previous one. When campaigns underperform, analyze which layer disconnected rather than starting over.

I used to think "write like you talk" was the holy grail of copywriting. The result? Boring copy that sounded just like everybody else. ❌ Copy that was "professional, but relatable." ❌ Copy that I thought sounded good. ❌ Copy that felt natural – to me. Then I realized: My audience isn't me. They're: 👉 CFOs in growing financial firms 👉 IT leaders in healthcare organizations 👉 COOs at logistics and transportation companies 👉 CMOs at eCommerce companies with $50M+ revenue 👉 Information security officers at growing tech companies They don't talk the way I do. And they respond to copy that sounds like them. (Not like a snarky college professor.) So how do you create messaging that actually stands out? Capture how your audience actually talks. And reflect it right back to them. Here's how I do it: ✅️ Talk to your customers Nothing can touch live conversations for getting insight into your buyers' needs, challenges and goals. They're the best way to learn how your audience is talking about your product. ✅️ Creep on their online convos There are so many places you can go message mining: G2 reviews, podcasts, Slack communities, subreddits. Go find out how your audience communicates when no one's watching. ✅️ Define your brand messaging guidelines Distill your findings into a clear brand messaging strategy – so every piece of copy sounds like you're one of them. Make it easy for everyone on your team to get on the same page. With data-driven brand messaging, you're not just writing like you anymore. You're writing like them. And that's how you get readers thinking, "this is exactly what I've been looking for." So don't write like you talk – write like they talk.

A year ago, I was that guy—writing copy that sounded like a university thesis. Buzzwords, jargon, and enough fluff to fill a pillow factory. My readers? Confused. My conversions? Nonexistent. Then I stumbled upon brands like Moosejaw and BarkBox. Their copy felt like a friend texting me, not a robot pitching me. That’s when I realized: conversational copy isn’t just “casual.” It’s strategic. It builds trust, makes you memorable, and (most importantly) gets results. Here’s how brands like these taught me to write copy that clicks with people: Conversational copywriting is all about writing like you're talking—no jargon, no sales-y pitch. But how do you nail it? Here’s a guide based on brands that get it right. Thread 🧵 1/ Moosejaw Fun and quirky copy that hooks you instantly. Examples: ✔️ “We love NFTs (Nacho Fun Times).” ✔️ “Remember to season your concrete after shoveling snow.” ✔️ “No, our website isn’t powered by hamsters in wheels… yet.” Takeaway: Don't be afraid to let your personality shine—it’s what makes people remember you. 2/ BarkBox What do they sell? Adorable joy for dogs. ✔️ They use relatable humor + 100% satisfaction guarantees. ✔️ They speak their audience's language—dog parents, not just dog owners. Takeaway: Know your audience. Write for them, not at them. 3/ Innocent Drinks Natural products, natural tone. ✔️ They use ultra-specific details like “botanical” to emphasize quality. ✔️ They lean on transparency to eliminate buyer anxiety. Takeaway: Be real, and get specific—your audience will trust you more. 4/ OkCupid DTF? They redefine it. ✔️ Their copy flips expectations. ✔️ They invite users to define their version of dating. Takeaway: Play with cultural norms to create an emotional connection. 5/ Gymit Copy that feels like a casual gym chat. ✔️ They make gyms approachable—not intimidating. ✔️ The honesty in their tone makes them relatable to everyone, not just fitness buffs. Takeaway: Use language that removes barriers for your audience. 6/ Lego Timeless yet relevant. ✔️ Nostalgia meets values. ✔️ One ad paired a retro toy with a modern message about equality. Takeaway: Tie your brand’s history with current values to create powerful storytelling. Conversational copy isn’t magic—it’s empathy. Think: What would your audience actually want to hear? Then say that.

If your copy isn’t landing, I’ll bet I know why. You’re writing for an audience. Try this instead: Think of one person who perfectly represents your dream client. Someone real. Now, write to them. 👋 Start with their name. ✏️ Write the thing. ✖️ Delete their name. If this is easy? Congrats—you know your audience inside and out. You get what drives them, what keeps them up at night, what they secretly hope for. If it’s hard? That’s a sign you need to dig deeper. Because if you don’t know what matters to your audience, how can you expect them to care about what you’re saying? Think about how you’d recommend a restaurant to a friend. You wouldn’t list every menu item and describe the table settings. You’d say: ✅ They have the best spicy margaritas, your favorite! ✅ It’s 10 minutes from your office. ✅ Oh, and the chef? He was on your favorite food show. You know exactly what to say because you know her. That’s what great copy does. It speaks to the right person in the right way. And the fastest way to nail that? Customer interviews. The best way to understand your audience is to hear it straight from them. If you could get inside your dream client’s head for a day, what would you want to know?

Marketer: We need to define our target market. CEO: Our target market is everybody. Marketer: 😬 If your marketing speaks to "everybody," it speaks to nobody. Here are 5 ways I write copy for a specific target market: 1. High LTV customer surveys + interviews. Identify your highest life-time value (LTV) customers. Survey and interview them. Conduct jobs-to-be-done (JTBD) interviews. Understand what problem your product solves for them, how it solves it, what obstacles they had to overcome before purchasing, and how they speak about your product. 2. Churned customer surveys + interviews. Identify WHY the product didn't work for them. What was the primary obstacle or issue? If it's something copy can help overcome, ensure your copy does so. For example, security and privacy are a common objection for SaaS customers. You can overcome this objection by writing copy that describes your stringent security and privacy measures. 3. Review mining. Find real reviews of products or services that solve a similar (or the same) problem that your product solves. Document how people speak about the problems they faced and how they speak about the transformation the product provided. Sources for reviews: Amazon, G2, Apple app store, Google. 4. User testing. Have customers or people within your target market review and react to your copy. Note where they're confused. Where they resonate with copy. And ask them questions to determine the effectiveness of your copy + design. 5. A/B testing. Run A/B tests to find your highest-converting messages. I recommend testing your hero section copy and imagery OFTEN. This is a high-impact area. Afraid you'll lose customers by speaking to a specific target market? Don't be. You'll lose even more by speaking to no one.