Hi {{first_name}},
A consultant I work with came to me because his messaging "wasn't working."
He's an AI expert who is passionate about helping businesses use AI well. But every time he got on a sales call, prospects heard "AI trainer." They wanted him to teach their team how to use ChatGPT. And he knew that wasn't it.
So he figured the fix was better words. A sharper elevator pitch. A clearer LinkedIn headline.
It wasn't.
The problem was that he was not clear on what he was actually selling. AI strategy, AI training, AI implementation — he would tell prospects he could do all of it, and so of course… they hired him for none of it. The messaging couldn't hold because there was no single offer underneath it.
Once we dug in and understood that his REAL interest is in helping companies use AI smartly, with governance and risk mitigation, his "niche" became obvious. Coaches and consultants don't need governance. Most small businesses don't have compliance obligations or regulatory exposure. But for companies where an employee uploading the wrong document to ChatGPT is a potential violation, his offer was exactly what they needed. And suddenly the messaging almost wrote itself: "We mitigate risk and reduce AI exposure for regulated companies."
So when you feel like your messaging is "off," it probably is. But you won't solve it with new words. First, you have to get all the other pieces in order — and they fall in a very specific sequence.
1) What is the "thing" you are selling? Not your category and not your deliverable. The offer is the capability and the transformation — the thing your buyer is actually paying for. Not the thing you hand them. The thing they get. This is where everything starts, because it's the only piece that's truly yours.
2) Who needs this "thing"? Once you know what transformation you deliver, your ICP isn't a demographic exercise — it's the inevitable consequence of what you do. If your offer is risk reduction, the audience is companies where the cost of getting it wrong is catastrophic. You don't pick them. They pick you.
3) Why should they choose you? Now you can locate yourself relative to alternatives in the buyer's mind. If the offer is risk reduction and the ICP is compliance-regulated companies, then the positioning can't be "fast and affordable." It has to match the stakes: containment, governance, guardrails, peace of mind.
4) Tell the story. This is what I mean when I say messaging is the lock. It's what holds those aligned choices together and prevents drift. Without the lock, things start sliding — a great sales call leads to promises that don't follow from the offer, a new opportunity quietly expands the ICP, and suddenly the website has three new bullet points that don't connect to anything.
Get these pieces in order, and the messaging almost writes itself. Get them out of order — or skip straight to the words — and you end up rewriting your website every six months wondering why nothing sticks.
A leadership coach told me recently that his best clients are mission-driven organizations. He knows his ICP cold. But he's still struggling because he hasn't decided whether the offer is leadership development or sales coaching. Same audience. Two completely different stories. Choosing the audience didn't solve his problem because the offer isn't clear yet. He's not alone in this.
This is why "just niche down" frustrates founders so much. It puts the audience before the offer. And if the offer isn't clear, the story won't hold — no matter how tight the niche.
If your messaging feels off right now, don't start with the words. Start with the offer. Trace the chain. See if every piece still follows from the one before it.
Talk soon, Katie
P.S. If you're staring at your own chain right now and can't tell which piece is out of place, you’re reading the right newsletter. Founders are almost always too close to their own work to see the patterns. That's literally what I do. Hit reply or grab a time to talk and we'll figure it out together.