At this point, you’ve already dug into your personas. You know their jobs, their motivations, and their daily pains. But if you stopped there, your messaging would end up looking like a laundry list of scattered complaints. It would be hard for your audience to see the bigger picture, and harder still for you to build a coherent story around it.

This is where we zoom out and ask: What do all these pains add up to?

The shift here is subtle but important:

• Persona pains are the raw experiences your customer feels day to day.
• Core problems are the underlying themes that those pains point to.

Think of it like going to the doctor. You show up complaining of headaches, fatigue, and irritability. Those are the pains. The doctor runs tests and says: “These all come from dehydration.” That’s the problem. And the problem is what you can treat.

Why this distinction matters

• You can’t market every pain individually. If your messaging tries to hit every small annoyance your customer feels, you’ll sound scattered and shallow. People won’t know what you really stand for.
• Problems give your story weight. A pain is “I lose time chasing signatures.” The problem is “We lack visibility and control.” That’s a statement customers nod their heads at because it feels true at a deeper level.
• Problems set up solutions. Every strong marketing story flows pain → problem → solution → benefit. If you skip the problem step, your solution can feel mismatched or trivial.

How to identify your core problems

Take the persona work you’ve already done. Look for patterns in the pains. Then, distill them into broader problems that can anchor your messaging.

Example 1 (Flowline, our fictional B2B SaaS):

Persona pains:

• “I’m always chasing people for approvals.”
• “I never know who’s holding things up.”
• “Projects stall for days over one missing signature.”

Underlying problem: Lack of visibility and control over workflow progress.

This is a bigger, more strategic problem. It sets you up to tell a story about clarity, control, and speed (instead of just nagging coworkers less.)

Example 2 (Consumer, Food):

Persona pains:

• “I get home late and have no energy to cook.”
• “Healthy food always takes too much time.”
• “Takeout is expensive and makes me feel guilty.”

Underlying problem: Healthy eating feels inaccessible for working parents.

Again, the problem connects the dots. It’s not just about being tired or guilty; it’s about access. That’s a message you can build campaigns around.

A note on language

The most effective problems are phrased in your customer’s own words. They should feel visceral and recognizable, not abstract.

• Bad: “Inefficient workflows.” (too corporate, too vague)
• Better: “I’m always waiting on someone else and it slows everything down.”

If you wouldn’t hear it come out of your customer’s mouth, don’t use it.