When a business gets high visibility but low conversions, the impulse is to blame the platform or marketing tactic (the 'sink'). However, the real issue is often the core offering—the product, pricing, or value proposition (the 'well'). People obsess over front-end fixes when the back-end is the actual problem.

Data from 57 million conversions shows that landing pages written at a 5th-7th grade level have a 56% higher conversion rate than those at an 8th-9th grade level. This quantifies the severe financial penalty for even slightly complex marketing copy, making radical simplicity a CRO imperative.

After years of study, Grammarly's leadership concluded that the definition of "better writing" is entirely situational. The most critical first step is not grammar, but clarifying the communication's goal—whether it's to inspire action, change an opinion, or simply inform—before writing a single word.

Companies try to communicate too many benefits at once (security, ease of use, efficiency), creating a "mishmash buffet" that prospects can't digest. To provide focus and avoid messaging by committee, companies need a single, clear "flagship message" that guides all communication.

When people don't understand your point, it's often a sign that you are not meeting them where they are. Instead of pushing forward impatiently, you must go back to their starting point, re-establish shared assumptions, or reframe the message from their perspective.

Generic marketing copy fails for high-ticket sales. You must use hyper-specific language that reflects a deep understanding of the customer's daily struggles. Free offers provide a margin for copywriting error that premium offers do not, as the value proposition must be communicated flawlessly to justify the price.

Your promotional content must be immediately understandable to a distracted audience. If a 'drunk grandma' couldn't grasp your offer, it's too complex. Simplicity sells better than a superior product with confusing marketing because 'when you confuse, you lose.'

Marketing often mistakenly positions the product as the hero of the story. The correct framing is to position the customer as the hero on a journey. Your product is merely the powerful tool or guide that empowers them to solve their problem and achieve success, which is a more resonant and effective narrative.

Marketers focus so much on being clear and compelling that their messages become generic ("made easy"), over-hyped ("predictable revenue"), or cryptic. This creates a disconnect between what companies say and what buyers actually understand, because the core meaning is lost.