The Three Levels of Product Problems

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In fact, we can get even more pointed than Schwartz by adding a third dimension, identity:


For instance, our in-house brand Slick Products sells cleaner for your off-road vehicles. Initially, Slick’s main competitor wasn’t a different dirt bike cleaner.

It was dirt-bike enthusiasts’ homemade and very-cheap cleaning concoctions.

This created a need to validate the very idea of spending money on a special cleaner. And that meant letting this tight-knit, fiercely independent community know that our product fit their lifestyle.

Slick’s Three Levels of Product Problems

Problems of identity usually remain unspoken. Either because they’re embarrassing and vulnerable, or they fall into the category of “if you have to say you’re cool, you’re not.”

Functional problems should be addressed verbally in ad copy, spoken aloud saudi arabia phone data by an influencer, etc. Identity problems should be addressed non-verbally: branding, design sensibility, influencer choice, etc.

In this case, we started a relationship with Ricky Carmichael — the “Greatest Dirtbiker of All Time.”


Ricky gave us a testimonial where he spoke to the functional problem that our product solves. Plus, the very fact Ricky was using our product did all the work of solving the identity problem.

How do you unearth the functional problems your product solves and learn how to speak in a way that resonates with your audience’s identity?