Last week I was giving a reader feedback about the website for his B2B startup.
His company helps entrepreneurs navigate complex bureaucratic processes — the kind of paperwork nightmare that keeps business owners awake at night worrying about compliance, deadlines, and whether they’re doing everything correctly.
The service works brilliantly.
Customer reviews are STELLAR.
The process is streamlined and reliable.
But growth had plateaued.
I spotted this immediately: they were marketing their technical capabilities instead of the emotional outcome customers actually need.
The homepage was packed with industry acronyms and service categories.
Very professional. Completely accurate. And possibly meaningless to stressed-out business owners who just want someone to “handle this whole mess correctly so I can sleep at night.”
This represents one of the most common messaging mistakes in B2B marketing.
Companies get enamored with their expertise and forget that customers hire them for peace of mind, not technical proficiency.
In I Need That, I explain Jobs To Be Done (JTBD) theory — the idea that customers “hire” products and services to accomplish specific outcomes.
But the real job is often emotional, more than functional.
Nobody hires an accountant because they LOVE tax codes.
They DO take action to eliminate the anxiety of getting audited or missing important deadlines.
Nobody buys enterprise software because integrations are their jam.
They sign up to stop feeling behind the competition or being overwhelmed by manual processes. (Or to get that promotion.)
The job customers hire you to do is almost never the thing you think you’re selling.
My advice to this entrepreneur was fairly simple on this front: shift from technical language to confidence-building outcomes.
Instead of leading with service categories and compliance terminology, open with the feeling customers want:
“Start your company or make changes — 100% online, with no stress.”
Product Payoff: Mailchimp became the dominant email marketing platform not by emphasizing technical features like deliverability rates or API capabilities, but by positioning itself as the solution that makes small business marketing feel manageable.
Their messaging focused on eliminating the intimidation factor: “Send better email.” The simplicity helped non-technical entrepreneurs feel confident they could handle email marketing themselves, driving adoption among exactly the customers who needed the most hand-holding.
Your messaging energy shot: Take a look at your homepage through fresh eyes. Are you leading with your capabilities or your customers’ desired outcomes? Do you sound like an expert talking to other experts, or like a problem-solver talking to stressed people who need help?
The most successful B2B companies speak to the emotional job FIRST, then prove they have the technical chops to deliver it.
Have you spotted a gap between what you thought you were selling and where customers need to be?
Hit that reply arrow and share your experience with messaging that focuses on outcomes rather than expertise.
Or reach out to my team of B2B product marketing specialists at Graphos Product.