Welcome to Day 2 of the Anti-Black-Friday, Reader,

Today we're using a simple dipstick test to see whether your messaging works.

If your messaging feels fuzzy or flat, it’s usually because you’re too close to the product.

It's the Febreze “noseblind” effect. You’ve lived with the product so long you don’t notice what your audience instantly smells.

Inside your company, the scents differ:

• Sales talks urgency and ROI
• Marketing talks benefits
• Product talks functionality
• Leadership talks vision

All describing the same solution… but speaking different dialects.

So let’s review a real example on in the wild:

What Asana Says vs. What the Market Feels

Recently, I looked at Asana’s welcome email and their website hero section:

Asana’s welcome email:

​

“What do you need to get done today? We can help you stay on top of your task list.”

Asana’s hero section:

​

“All your work, all in one place. Bring people and AI together to plan, track, and deliver work faster.”

Reddit market research:

​

Another wrote about why Asana isn’t cutting it anymore:

• “too much clutter, too little clarity”
• “templates don’t scale up with new info”
• “AI that kind of exists but doesn’t help”
• “want clean, calm UI”
• “need private task space across projects”

Now put these side-by-side with Asana’s official lines.

There's zero overlap. This is what misaligned messaging looks like.

And this brings us to your diagnostic.

THE 3-MINUTE MESSAGING DIPSTICK TEST

A quick way to see if your messaging works.

Grab one piece of your messaging: a subject line, an email opener, a homepage headline, a product benefit, a webinar title.

Now run it through these three questions.

1. Is it rooted in a real audience pain point, desire, or motivation?

Not what your team thinks the problem is, what the product roadmap says, or most obvious thing to write.

A real problem they’ve said out loud.

Use:

• Reddit threads
• Facebook admin groups
• Teacher/Admin Slack communities
• District meeting minutes and/or RFPs
• Customer calls
• Pilot transcripts
• Reviews
• Your own inbox replies
• Social listening tools like Sydr AI

If your message doesn’t echo the language your audience uses, it won’t resonate.

Asana example:
​Users say “overwhelming,” “too complex,” “clutter,” “AI that doesn’t help.”
Asana says “stay on top of your task list.”

That’s not alignment.

2. Could a competitor copy this line without changing a word?

Borrowing from Emma Stratton’s Make It Punchy rule:

If Monday, ClickUp, Notion, or Jira could use your exact message, it’s not differentiated.

EdTech falls into this trap too:

• “save teachers time”
• “improve student outcomes”
• “build engagement”

These are broad categories and not messaging.

Specificity is what makes your message feel like it could only come from you.

3. Does the message evoke a recognizable moment or emotion?

A message should make your audience think:

• “That’s us.”
• “We’re dealing with that right now.”
• “I’ve said that exact thing.”
• “YES, finally someone gets it.”

If your message is emotionally flat or too polished, it won’t mirror and resemble the target audience.

Asana example:

Users talk about clutter, complexity, and feeling lost in tools.
Asana talks about “delivering work faster.”
Those are not the same problem.

If your messaging passes all three questions, you’re aligned.

If it fails any of them, it’s a sign you’re writing from the inside-out instead of the outside-in.

Solid messaging means you’re unmistakably relevant.

Tomorrow is Day 3 and we’re pulling it all together: how to turn one customer story into a mini nurture sequence that builds trust without sending just to send.

And as always, I'm rooting for you, Kelly