Mapping Ads to the Modern Buyer’s Journey

Once again, the answer is great content

Treat every piece of content like a long-term asset. Do not rewrite generic posts that AI can generate in seconds. Create something substantial, human, and uniquely yours.

Content is more than marketing material. It is your brand's most hardworking ambassador. It operates 24/7. It educates your market, debates concepts, and builds relationships while you sleep.

When you publish high-quality, opinionated material, you build authority. You stand out in an era where generic advice is automated.

Distribute with paid ads

Paid ads is a velocity engine. It should fuel your best content.

Paid distribution allows you to take organic content that works and amplify it. You capture attention by delivering value rather than asking for a demo.

Founders/CEOs often want to push their product pitches to cold audiences. This burns budget and trust. Only 5% of the market is ready to buy now. The other 95% will ignore your direct pitch.

To capture the 95%, your content must meet the buyer where they actually are, not where you want them to be.

We determine this using Eugene Schwartz’s “Five Levels of Awareness.”

The Framework: Mapping Ads to Awareness Stages

Understanding the customer mindset lowers your acquisition costs. Here is the modern B2B customer journey.
‍

1. Unaware
‍

Mindset: The prospect is having a problem they consider "normal" or the "cost of doing business." They have zero intent to buy and simply want to be entertained or informed about their industry.

Goal: Pattern interrupt, stop the scroll and earn trust without asking for anything.

Content Strategy: "Zero-Click" value, give away the "aha" moment directly in the feed (no links). Challenge a commonly held industry belief.

Format: Thought Leader Ads (TLAs) from executives, hot takes, "Old Way vs. New Way" text posts, memes that satirize industry pain.

Targeting: Broad ICP layers (Job Function + Seniority + Company Size). Avoid narrowing too much here, you need reach.

Tip: Do not mention your product. If you pitch here, you are instantly scrolled past. Optimize for engagement (time dwelling on post), not clicks.

2. Problem-Aware

Mindset: The prospect realizes something is broken ("Why is our churn so high?"), but they don't know if a specific category of software solves it. They are diagnosing their own symptoms.

Goal: Validate their pain and introduce your category as the only logical answer. Connect your brand with the category in their memories.

Content Strategy: Show you understand the mechanics of their pain better than they do. "Here is why this is happening to you."

Format: "Symptoms of X" carousels, Ungated cheat sheets, screenshots that show the exact moment their current process breaks, 30-second clips explaining the root cause.

Targeting: Add Member Skills & Groups to the above ICP layers if you need to narrow down. Target people listing skills relevant to the problem (e.g., if selling Sales AI, target skills like "Cold Calling" or "Lead Gen").

Tip: Offer a useful template or resource that solves a symptom, which naturally leads them to realize they need a system (your category) to solve the disease. One pain point per asset.

3. Solution-Aware

Mindset: They know the category (e.g., "I need a CRM"), but they are overwhelmed by options. They are mentally comparing the "Big Player" (Status Quo) vs. "The Disruptors" (You).

Goal: Positioning through differentiation. Prove why your “whole kit” (not just your features) produces a better outcome than the competitors for them (ICP).

Content Strategy: Don't just say you are better; explain how your underlying technology or approach makes the old way outdated.

Format: "Us vs. Them" comparison charts (be specific, not vague), Case Study videos focusing on the switch (e.g., "Why Company X left HubSpot for Us"), carousel breakdowns of your unique framework.

Targeting: Retarget (90 Days) people who engaged with Problem-Aware ads. If available, target followers of competitor pages (rarely available directly, but can be approximated via Groups).

Tip: B2B buyers buy "safe" choices. In this stage, you must make the "safe" choice look risky (opportunity cost) and your "new" choice look safe (predictable results).

4. Product-Aware

Mindset: They know you, and are ready to make a purchase within a few months. You need to nudge them to act, but they are terrified of making a bad decision. They are asking: "Will this integrate?", "Will my boss approve of this?", "Is the implementation a nightmare?". You need to handle any objections they might have.

Goal: De-risk the purchase. Remove the fear of implementation and adoption.

Content Strategy: Social proof & transparency. Show with case studies and proof, let your customers do the selling.

Format: Deep-dive product demos (sped up), screenshots of the UI, testimonials specifically about "ease of setup," ROI Calculators, G2 Badge montages.

Targeting: High-intent Retargeting. Website visitors (Pricing Page, Demo Page), and LinkedIn Company Page visitors.

Tip: Address the "Elephant in the room." If your product is expensive, create content explaining the value of the investment. If it's complex, show a "Day 1 Roadmap."

5. Most Aware

Mindset: The champion wants to buy, but they need to convince the CFO or the buying committee. Or, they are simply procrastinating on the paperwork.Goal: Sales Enablement. Arm your champion with the info they need to get the deal signed.

‍Content Strategy: Friction Removal. Make it incredibly easy to say "Yes."

‍Format: "The Business Case" PDF (for them to forward to their boss), implementation timelines, offer for a "Pilot Program" or "Proof of Concept," direct calendar links to Account Executives.

‍Targeting: CRM Match (ABM) retargeting. Upload/sync your list of "Open Opportunities" from Salesforce/HubSpot to LinkedIn. Show these ads only to companies currently in your sales pipeline.

‍Tip: Your ads here should look like helpful resources from a friend, not corporate banners.