80% of advertisers compete for 5% of the audience. This makes ads expensive and conversions low. Here’s how to target the other 70%—and win.

The Problem with Most Ads

Most advertisers only target people in “solution-state”—ready to buy NOW. This is 5% of your market. Everyone fights over these people, making ads expensive.

The solution? Target the 70% in problem-unaware or problem-aware states. Move them to solution-state yourself.

The Why-What-How Structure

This takes people from problem-unaware to solution-ready in one ad.

Structure:

• 60% WHY → Put them in problem state
• 30% WHAT → Show them the outcome they want
• 10% HOW → Tease the process

WHY Section (60% of Your Ad)

Purpose: Make them emotionally hypersensitive by pulling them into problem awareness.

Formula: WHY + THEIR ACTUAL EXPERIENCE = Attention

Examples That Work

E-commerce: “Why your Shopify store can’t scale past $200/day no matter what you do”

Dating: “Why do men pull away from professional women over 35?”

Weight Loss: “Why women over 50 are ending up alone and losing their shot at finding love”

Coaching: “Why you’re getting low-quality leads that waste your time and never buy”

How to Write Your WHY

Step 1: Google “biggest complaints [your market]”

Example: “biggest complaints dating apps”
Result: “Being on a dating app feels like a part-time job”
Your ad: “Why does finding love feel like a part-time job with no paycheck?”

Step 2: Find their actual experience on Reddit, forums, Facebook groups

“Every time I try keto, I feel sick”
Your ad: “Why does keto make you feel terrible instead of energized?”

Step 3: Use the pattern: “Why [negative experience they’re having]?”

The more specific the experience, the higher the engagement:

• Bad: “Why can’t you lose weight?”
• Good: “Why do you lose 10 pounds then gain it back every single time?”
• Best: “Why do you lose 10 pounds, feel amazing, then wake up one morning craving everything and gain it all back in 2 weeks?”

WHAT Section (30% of Your Ad)

Purpose: Motivate them by showing what’s possible (NOT educate).

Key distinction:

• ❌ Education: “Module 1 shows you how to set up Facebook ads”
• ✅ Motivation: “When you get in, you’ll discover a little-known method for setting up Facebook ads that lets you target ready-to-buy customers at 80% less cost”

Paint the Outcome They Want

Dating example:

“And if you could fix this one thing, you’d finally have CHOICE when it comes to relationships. Imagine going on dates knowing YOU get to decide who’s worth your time…”

E-commerce example:

“But what if you could change that? What if you could wake up to $1,000+ days consistently, without doubling your ad spend or working longer hours?”

Weight Loss example:

“But there’s good news. Women just like you are discovering a new way to attract quality men – even in your 50s – without pretending to be someone you’re not or settling for less…”

The Desire Stack (Advanced)

Layer multiple outcomes from surface to deep:

1. “Get a man to chase you” (surface want)
2. “So you can feel wanted” (emotional outcome)
3. “So you can feel significant” (deeper need)
4. “So you can have choice” (power)
5. “So you can have security” (core need)

HOW Section (10% of Your Ad)

Purpose: Give them just enough process to create intent, then send to landing page.

Formula: Brief mechanism + Call to action

Examples

Dating:

“My name is Sarah and I’ve helped 1,000+ women over 35 attract quality men using the ‘Reverse Chase Method.’ Watch this free video to see how it works…”

E-commerce:

“I developed a 3-step framework that took my stores from $200/day to $10,000/day. I’ll show you exactly how it works on this free training…”

Weight Loss:

“I created a simple 5-minute morning ritual that’s helping women 50+ lose 20-30 pounds without giving up their favorite foods. Watch the video to learn what it is…”

Key Rules for HOW

• Keep it vague enough to create curiosity
• Include social proof (numbers)
• Clear call to action
• Don’t educate—just tease the mechanism

Understanding Limiting Beliefs

Every customer operates from one of three limiting belief states:

1. WORTHLESS – They feel judged

• Compare themselves to others and feel “less than”
• Markets: Young people, lower income, women (beauty/fashion)

2. HELPLESS – They have doubts

• Don’t know HOW to do something
• Markets: Middle-aged, business owners seeking solutions

3. HOPELESS – They have fear

• See no way out, experienced failure
• Markets: Older people (40+), health issues, “tried everything”

Advanced Principles

Invalidating Other Solutions

When your market is sophisticated, address why past attempts failed using “WITHOUT” statements:

Weight Loss:

• “Lose 20 pounds WITHOUT counting calories”
• “Lose 20 pounds WITHOUT giving up dessert”

Business:

• “Make money online EVEN IF you’re a complete beginner”
• “Make money online EVEN IF you’ve failed before”

Deep Identifiers

Target within your copy for higher relevance:

• Basic: “Why men pull away from women”
• Better: “Why men pull away from women over 35”
• Best: “Why men pull away from professional women over 35”

Each layer of specificity increases relevance, decreases competition, lowers ad cost, and increases conversion.

Complete Ad Example

E-commerce (Helpless Market)

WHY (60%):

“Why your Shopify store is stuck at $100-300 per day (and why ‘scaling your ad spend’ won’t fix it)

You’ve tested 50 different products. You’ve tried every ad strategy on YouTube. You’ve even hired agencies that promised to ’10x your store.’

But every time you increase your ad budget, your ROAS tanks. Every time you find a winning product, it dies in 2 weeks. And no matter what you do, you can’t break through that $300/day ceiling.

WHAT (30%):

Here’s what nobody tells you: The problem isn’t your products, ads, or budget. The problem is you’re missing ONE critical system that every 7-figure store has built in.

When you implement this system (it takes about 4 hours), your store becomes PREDICTABLE. You know exactly how much you can spend, what your ROAS will be, and how to scale from $300/day to $3,000/day without the wheels falling off.

HOW (10%):

I’m Mike Torres, and I’ve used this exact system to build 12 different Shopify stores from $0 to $10k+ per day.

I’m showing the complete system in a free training this week. Click here to watch →

P.S. This works even if you’re brand new or have failed with multiple stores before.”

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Mistake 1: Staying in Problem State Too Long

Pull them INTO problem state, then pull them OUT with outcome/solution. Don’t leave them wallowing.

Mistake 2: Educating Instead of Motivating

Save education for the landing page. The ad should MOTIVATE them to click.

Mistake 3: Too Much “How” in the Ad

Give them just enough to create curiosity and intent, not enough to satisfy it.

Mistake 4: Targeting Solution-State Only

Target problem-aware people instead—cheaper, less competition, higher conversion.

Your Ad Creation Checklist

Before Writing:

• Identified limiting belief (worthless/helpless/hopeless)
• Researched their actual language (Reddit, reviews, forums)
• Know their biggest complaint/pain point
• Identified 2-3 deep identifiers
• Know what outcome they want (beyond surface level)

While Writing:

• First line is a WHY question with their actual experience
• WHY takes up 60% of ad
• WHAT paints emotional outcome (not features)
• WHAT takes up 30% of ad
• HOW teases but doesn’t fully explain
• HOW takes up 10% of ad