June 30, 2025 • 12 mins
If your content isn't getting the results you hoped for, the issue might be in how you're matching your message to your audience’s awareness. In this episode, I walk you through five distinct stages your potential customers go through, and how to adjust your messaging for each one.
Most small business owners skip ahead and assume their audience already understands the value they offer. But when you meet people too far along the journey, they tune out. I’ll share simple ways to shift your content so it speaks to what your audience is actually thinking and feeling right now, making every post, email, or ad more effective.
Listen in to learn how to reach the right people at the right time with words that land, and if you want to go deeper, I teach all of this inside the Modern Marketing Mastery program.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Janice Hostager (00:04):
I'm Janice Hostager.
After three decades in themarketing business and many
years of being an entrepreneur,I've learned a thing or two
about marketing.
Join me as we talk aboutmarketing, small business and
life in between.
Welcome to My Weekly Marketing.
(00:28):
Hey friend, welcome to anotherepisode of My Weekly Marketing.
Lately I've been knee-deep increating content for my Modern
Marketing Mastery beta groupthese last few weeks, and
something I talk about in classthat's sneakily tripping up a
lot of small business owners,especially if you're out there
doing all the things posting onsocial, writing emails, going to
(00:50):
networking events and still notgetting a lot of traction.
Let me ask you something haveyou ever felt like you're saying
all the right things but peoplejust don't seem to connect with
what you're saying, like theydon't understand what you do or,
worse, they assume it's not forthem?
Yeah, that might be becauseyou're speaking to the wrong
(01:10):
level of awareness.
So today I'm breaking down whatthat even means how to spot
where your customer really is intheir journey and what to
actually say at each stage soyour marketing hits home instead
of bouncing off like a rubberball.
Okay, so first of all, what theheck are awareness levels?
First, this isn't some fancymarketing jargon.
(01:33):
It's just about how much yourideal customer knows, how much
they know about their problem,about the solutions out there
and about you and your offer.
Once you understand wherethey're at in that journey, you
can speak their language andthat's when the magic starts to
happen.
Because if they're still stuckthinking I have this problem and
you're over here shouting buymy six-step business system,
(01:56):
you're not helping them yet.
Your message is just not goingto resonate with where they are
right now.
So there are five levels ofawareness.
Let's go through these withsome small business friendly
examples.
Okay, so first up, unaware, theydon't see a problem at all.
Life feels just fine.
They're thinking everything'sokay, but maybe they just feel a
(02:19):
little bit off.
So with marketing, you're goingto want to spark some curiosity
or emotion.
You're wanting to plant seedsat this point.
So, for example, a life coachmight write why you feel stuck
even when everything looks goodon the outside.
All right, so it kind of getstheir attention.
They know something's a littleoff.
That's going to capture theirattention, all right.
(02:42):
The next is symptom aware.
So they're feeling something,they're experiencing something,
but they don't know reallywhat's behind it.
For example, they might thinkI'm tired all the time.
Maybe I just need more sleep.
So in this stage you want tohelp name the symptom and
normalize the experience.
For example, if you're aburnout coach, if there is such
(03:03):
a thing, they might sayexhausted after eight hours of
sleep.
These three hidden causes mightbe why.
So, again, you're addressingtheir symptom, you're connecting
with where they are right nowand you're putting something out
there that is meant to capturetheir attention.
Okay, so the third level isproblem aware.
They've connected the dots,they know something is wrong and
(03:26):
that it can be solved.
So that same customer mightthink, hey, I'm burned out, I
need help.
So now you're validating theirbelief and leading them toward a
possible solution.
So, for example, a therapistmight send out an email saying
let's talk about burnout and whyrest alone isn't the cure, out
(03:47):
an email saying let's talk aboutburnout and why rest alone
isn't the cure.
And number four is solutionaware.
They're exploring differenttypes of solutions.
They might think should I takea course or hire a coach?
Read a book maybe?
So what you want to do there isshow how your type of offer
works, teach them a framework ora method, or show them how you
have a solution for theirproblem.
So a marketing strategist mightshare how the trail to the sale
(04:10):
framework can simplify yourstrategy, even if you hate
marketing.
Because again, you're meetingthem at their emotional level
that they are.
They know they have a problem.
They know that there's asolution and you're trying to
make sure that they are awarethat you have the product that
they want.
And the final one is productaware.
They know you and your offer.
(04:31):
They're weighing the pros andcons, they're ready, but they
just need a push.
They might think her coursesounds great, but is it right
for me?
So in this case, you want touse urgency, exclusivity,
bonuses or even just somepersonal encouragement.
So a coach might say only threespots left and the doors close
(04:51):
on Friday.
Are you in?
So these are all just examplesof the different levels.
Here's where so manywell-meaning, hard-working
entrepreneurs slip and yes, I'veface-planted here too.
We accidentally write ourcontent in our emails or even
our sales pages for the mostaware people.
So they're the ones that youthink are ready to buy, the ones
(05:14):
that are already warm and justreally get what you do.
They've maybe followed you fora while.
They're already halfway to thebuy now button, so you write
like that.
You might write something likehere's how my eight-week
framework will triple your leadconversion.
But meanwhile your actualaudience, they're still sitting
at home wondering wait, what's alead conversion?
(05:36):
Do I even need a framework?
What's she even selling.
So you're giving them thegourmet menu when they're still
trying to figure out what kindof food they really want to eat.
It's not your fault.
We all do this.
It feels natural to write forthe people who get us, but
here's the thing those peopleare already mostly sold, not
that they don't need a nudge,but we also need to focus on
(05:59):
people who are not quite readyto buy yet.
If you want to grow youraudience, build connection and
attract new people to your world, you've got to speak to those
earlier stages, the ones who areunaware, symptom aware or just
starting to think oh, I mightneed some help.
That means skipping jargon,starting with empathy, meeting
(06:20):
them in their actual thoughts,not the thoughts you wish they
were having.
Right, because here's the truth.
If you're tossing out strategytips to someone who's still
Googling, what does a businesscoach really do?
It's like handing someone aparachute when they haven't
actually stepped into the planeyet.
So if your content hasn't beenconverting, if your audience
(06:40):
isn't engaging, it's not thatyou're bad at marketing.
It might be just that yourmessage is too far ahead of
where your people are.
So let's fix that.
I get a lot of emails tellingme.
I need help with YouTube, butI'm not sure what help I need.
Why do I need help?
They'd be better off if theyapproached it by pointing out
the symptom I was having LowYouTube engagement, no followers
(07:04):
.
They need to determine where Ilikely am on the awareness
journey and start speaking to methere and, honestly, I wouldn't
start with spamming me withemails, but that's another
conversation.
So here's how to apply thiswithout overcomplicating things.
First of all, pick one offeryou're focused on.
If you're trying to speak witheveryone at once, that's chaos.
(07:27):
We know that.
Put on their shoes.
What are they thinking at thispoint in time, when they're
researching this problem orseeing this ad or reading the
social media posts?
You probably know who yourideal customer avatar is, but
you also have to think abouttheir level of awareness.
Then ask what does my idealcustomer already know when they
(07:47):
land there?
Do they already know what theproblem is?
Are they comparing solutions orare they still unsure if
anything can help?
These are the questions youneed to ask yourself before you
do any marketing.
You need to ask yourself beforeyou do any marketing.
And then, third, match yourmessage to that mindset.
Okay, now you know where youraudience might be on the
(08:08):
awareness staircase.
It's time to match the messageto the stage.
This is where your marketinggets traction, because a
mismatched message think of itlike someone asking for a
proposal on the first date bitlike someone asking for a
(08:29):
proposal on the first date theright message at the right
awareness level.
That's when people lean in,click, subscribe and eventually
buy.
So let's break it down a littlefurther For the early awareness
people.
So they might be unaware orsymptom aware or problem aware.
These folks are still in thatfoggy place.
They might be feelingsomething's off or they're just
starting to name the problem,but they're not ready to hire
you or buy your offer or eventhink about a solution yet.
(08:50):
So what do they need from you?
Stories, first off, userelatable stories or analogies
that gently help them seethemselves and identify the
problem or symptom they'rehaving.
For example, you could say Iused to dread Mondays and I
didn't realize burnout had creptin slowly.
The other thing they could useis education.
(09:12):
Teach light concepts in anon-jargony way.
Here's why you might be feelinginvisible online and what could
be causing it.
Third, empathy Make them feelseen.
Call out their symptoms they'reexperiencing.
For example, if you've beenspinning your wheels trying to
make social media have traction,but nothing's working.
I see you.
The goal of this stage is tospark curiosity, build traction,
(09:33):
but nothing's working.
I see you.
The goal of this stage is tospark curiosity, build trust and
plant seeds.
You're not selling the thing.
They don't even know they needthe thing, yet You're showing
them that there is a thing.
Okay, so for later awareness.
So people that are solutionaware or product aware now they
(09:53):
know that they have a problemand that there are options.
They might already know aboutyou.
These folks are window shoppingor standing at the edge of a
diving board thinking do I jump?
Here's what they need.
Comparisons Show them how yourway is different or better than
the other options out there.
For example, why I teachmarketing strategy instead of
(10:14):
trendy tactics and why it workslong term.
Next, testimonials for socialproof Use your happy clients and
real results to show thatyou're a legit business.
For example, lisa tripled hervisibility in three weeks using
this one small shift.
And last, urgency and incentive.
These folks need a little nudge.
That could be a deadline, abonus or even simply saying hey,
(10:38):
you've got this, I can help you.
For example, doors close Friday.
Let's make a plan that workswith your brain and your life.
The goal here remove doubts,highlights results, make the
decision feel easy and safe.
And remember you can alwayshave a mix.
Don't stress.
If your audience includes allthese levels, that is the norm.
(11:00):
Even your most ideal customerwill be in all of these
different levels.
You want a mix of content inyour ecosystem Some story-driven
content, some educationalcontent and some sales-focused
content.
Just make sure each message iswritten for one mindset, not all
of them.
That's when things get fuzzy.
Marketing isn't about shoutinglouder.
(11:20):
It's about whispering the rightthing in the right ear at the
right time.
So for you, I'd love for you topick one post, email or sales
page and ask who was I reallytalking to here?
Then tweak it to match yourlevel of awareness and watch
what happens.
If you want to go deeper on howto use this in your business,
(11:42):
come join me on the waitlist forModern Marketing Mastery.
This is literally what I teachin Module 2, and it changes the
game for many of my students.
Thanks for listening today.
For more information, visitmyweeklymarketingcom.
Forward slash 114.
And thanks for doing the workmost people won't do.
I'll see you next time.
Bye for now.
I'm Janice Hostager.
After three decades in themarketing business and many
years of being an entrepreneur,I've learned a thing or two
about marketing.
Join me as we talk aboutmarketing, small business and
life in between.
Welcome to My Weekly Marketing.
(00:28):
Hey friend, welcome to anotherepisode of My Weekly Marketing.
Lately I've been knee-deep increating content for my Modern
Marketing Mastery beta groupthese last few weeks, and
something I talk about in classthat's sneakily tripping up a
lot of small business owners,especially if you're out there
doing all the things posting onsocial, writing emails, going to
(00:50):
networking events and still notgetting a lot of traction.
Let me ask you something haveyou ever felt like you're saying
all the right things but peoplejust don't seem to connect with
what you're saying, like theydon't understand what you do or,
worse, they assume it's not forthem?
Yeah, that might be becauseyou're speaking to the wrong
(01:10):
level of awareness.
So today I'm breaking down whatthat even means how to spot
where your customer really is intheir journey and what to
actually say at each stage soyour marketing hits home instead
of bouncing off like a rubberball.
Okay, so first of all, what theheck are awareness levels?
First, this isn't some fancymarketing jargon.
(01:33):
It's just about how much yourideal customer knows, how much
they know about their problem,about the solutions out there
and about you and your offer.
Once you understand wherethey're at in that journey, you
can speak their language andthat's when the magic starts to
happen.
Because if they're still stuckthinking I have this problem and
you're over here shouting buymy six-step business system,
(01:56):
you're not helping them yet.
Your message is just not goingto resonate with where they are
right now.
So there are five levels ofawareness.
Let's go through these withsome small business friendly
examples.
Okay, so first up, unaware, theydon't see a problem at all.
Life feels just fine.
They're thinking everything'sokay, but maybe they just feel a
(02:19):
little bit off.
So with marketing, you're goingto want to spark some curiosity
or emotion.
You're wanting to plant seedsat this point.
So, for example, a life coachmight write why you feel stuck
even when everything looks goodon the outside.
All right, so it kind of getstheir attention.
They know something's a littleoff.
That's going to capture theirattention, all right.
(02:42):
The next is symptom aware.
So they're feeling something,they're experiencing something,
but they don't know reallywhat's behind it.
For example, they might thinkI'm tired all the time.
Maybe I just need more sleep.
So in this stage you want tohelp name the symptom and
normalize the experience.
For example, if you're aburnout coach, if there is such
(03:03):
a thing, they might sayexhausted after eight hours of
sleep.
These three hidden causes mightbe why.
So, again, you're addressingtheir symptom, you're connecting
with where they are right nowand you're putting something out
there that is meant to capturetheir attention.
Okay, so the third level isproblem aware.
They've connected the dots,they know something is wrong and
(03:26):
that it can be solved.
So that same customer mightthink, hey, I'm burned out, I
need help.
So now you're validating theirbelief and leading them toward a
possible solution.
So, for example, a therapistmight send out an email saying
let's talk about burnout and whyrest alone isn't the cure, out
(03:47):
an email saying let's talk aboutburnout and why rest alone
isn't the cure.
And number four is solutionaware.
They're exploring differenttypes of solutions.
They might think should I takea course or hire a coach?
Read a book maybe?
So what you want to do there isshow how your type of offer
works, teach them a framework ora method, or show them how you
have a solution for theirproblem.
So a marketing strategist mightshare how the trail to the sale
(04:10):
framework can simplify yourstrategy, even if you hate
marketing.
Because again, you're meetingthem at their emotional level
that they are.
They know they have a problem.
They know that there's asolution and you're trying to
make sure that they are awarethat you have the product that
they want.
And the final one is productaware.
They know you and your offer.
(04:31):
They're weighing the pros andcons, they're ready, but they
just need a push.
They might think her coursesounds great, but is it right
for me?
So in this case, you want touse urgency, exclusivity,
bonuses or even just somepersonal encouragement.
So a coach might say only threespots left and the doors close
(04:51):
on Friday.
Are you in?
So these are all just examplesof the different levels.
Here's where so manywell-meaning, hard-working
entrepreneurs slip and yes, I'veface-planted here too.
We accidentally write ourcontent in our emails or even
our sales pages for the mostaware people.
So they're the ones that youthink are ready to buy, the ones
(05:14):
that are already warm and justreally get what you do.
They've maybe followed you fora while.
They're already halfway to thebuy now button, so you write
like that.
You might write something likehere's how my eight-week
framework will triple your leadconversion.
But meanwhile your actualaudience, they're still sitting
at home wondering wait, what's alead conversion?
(05:36):
Do I even need a framework?
What's she even selling.
So you're giving them thegourmet menu when they're still
trying to figure out what kindof food they really want to eat.
It's not your fault.
We all do this.
It feels natural to write forthe people who get us, but
here's the thing those peopleare already mostly sold, not
that they don't need a nudge,but we also need to focus on
(05:59):
people who are not quite readyto buy yet.
If you want to grow youraudience, build connection and
attract new people to your world, you've got to speak to those
earlier stages, the ones who areunaware, symptom aware or just
starting to think oh, I mightneed some help.
That means skipping jargon,starting with empathy, meeting
(06:20):
them in their actual thoughts,not the thoughts you wish they
were having.
Right, because here's the truth.
If you're tossing out strategytips to someone who's still
Googling, what does a businesscoach really do?
It's like handing someone aparachute when they haven't
actually stepped into the planeyet.
So if your content hasn't beenconverting, if your audience
(06:40):
isn't engaging, it's not thatyou're bad at marketing.
It might be just that yourmessage is too far ahead of
where your people are.
So let's fix that.
I get a lot of emails tellingme.
I need help with YouTube, butI'm not sure what help I need.
Why do I need help?
They'd be better off if theyapproached it by pointing out
the symptom I was having LowYouTube engagement, no followers
(07:04):
.
They need to determine where Ilikely am on the awareness
journey and start speaking to methere and, honestly, I wouldn't
start with spamming me withemails, but that's another
conversation.
So here's how to apply thiswithout overcomplicating things.
First of all, pick one offeryou're focused on.
If you're trying to speak witheveryone at once, that's chaos.
(07:27):
We know that.
Put on their shoes.
What are they thinking at thispoint in time, when they're
researching this problem orseeing this ad or reading the
social media posts?
You probably know who yourideal customer avatar is, but
you also have to think abouttheir level of awareness.
Then ask what does my idealcustomer already know when they
(07:47):
land there?
Do they already know what theproblem is?
Are they comparing solutions orare they still unsure if
anything can help?
These are the questions youneed to ask yourself before you
do any marketing.
You need to ask yourself beforeyou do any marketing.
And then, third, match yourmessage to that mindset.
Okay, now you know where youraudience might be on the
(08:08):
awareness staircase.
It's time to match the messageto the stage.
This is where your marketinggets traction, because a
mismatched message think of itlike someone asking for a
proposal on the first date bitlike someone asking for a
(08:29):
proposal on the first date theright message at the right
awareness level.
That's when people lean in,click, subscribe and eventually
buy.
So let's break it down a littlefurther For the early awareness
people.
So they might be unaware orsymptom aware or problem aware.
These folks are still in thatfoggy place.
They might be feelingsomething's off or they're just
starting to name the problem,but they're not ready to hire
you or buy your offer or eventhink about a solution yet.
(08:50):
So what do they need from you?
Stories, first off, userelatable stories or analogies
that gently help them seethemselves and identify the
problem or symptom they'rehaving.
For example, you could say Iused to dread Mondays and I
didn't realize burnout had creptin slowly.
The other thing they could useis education.
(09:12):
Teach light concepts in anon-jargony way.
Here's why you might be feelinginvisible online and what could
be causing it.
Third, empathy Make them feelseen.
Call out their symptoms they'reexperiencing.
For example, if you've beenspinning your wheels trying to
make social media have traction,but nothing's working.
I see you.
The goal of this stage is tospark curiosity, build traction,
(09:33):
but nothing's working.
I see you.
The goal of this stage is tospark curiosity, build trust and
plant seeds.
You're not selling the thing.
They don't even know they needthe thing, yet You're showing
them that there is a thing.
Okay, so for later awareness.
So people that are solutionaware or product aware now they
(09:53):
know that they have a problemand that there are options.
They might already know aboutyou.
These folks are window shoppingor standing at the edge of a
diving board thinking do I jump?
Here's what they need.
Comparisons Show them how yourway is different or better than
the other options out there.
For example, why I teachmarketing strategy instead of
(10:14):
trendy tactics and why it workslong term.
Next, testimonials for socialproof Use your happy clients and
real results to show thatyou're a legit business.
For example, lisa tripled hervisibility in three weeks using
this one small shift.
And last, urgency and incentive.
These folks need a little nudge.
That could be a deadline, abonus or even simply saying hey,
(10:38):
you've got this, I can help you.
For example, doors close Friday.
Let's make a plan that workswith your brain and your life.
The goal here remove doubts,highlights results, make the
decision feel easy and safe.
And remember you can alwayshave a mix.
Don't stress.
If your audience includes allthese levels, that is the norm.
(11:00):
Even your most ideal customerwill be in all of these
different levels.
You want a mix of content inyour ecosystem Some story-driven
content, some educationalcontent and some sales-focused
content.
Just make sure each message iswritten for one mindset, not all
of them.
That's when things get fuzzy.
Marketing isn't about shoutinglouder.
(11:20):
It's about whispering the rightthing in the right ear at the
right time.
So for you, I'd love for you topick one post, email or sales
page and ask who was I reallytalking to here?
Then tweak it to match yourlevel of awareness and watch
what happens.
If you want to go deeper on howto use this in your business,
(11:42):
come join me on the waitlist forModern Marketing Mastery.
This is literally what I teachin Module 2, and it changes the
game for many of my students.
Thanks for listening today.
For more information, visitmyweeklymarketingcom.
Forward slash 114.
And thanks for doing the workmost people won't do.
I'll see you next time.
Bye for now.
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