PAS education marketing: the pain, agitation, solution, and evidence loop

<p>You’ve been told to use the PAS framework: Problem, Agitate, Solve. It is the three-step recipe for persuasive copy. It works because it is rooted in basic human psychology. You show the user a problem, you make them feel the discomfort of that problem, and then you offer the solution, which is your product.</p> <p>It sounds simple, almost deterministic. You, the builder, like deterministic systems. But when you try to apply PAS to your "education marketing"—the long-form content, the explainers, the guides—it falls apart. You end up with dark, manipulative-sounding copy. You feel dirty selling an education-first product by dwelling only on pain.</p> <p>The standard PAS model is incomplete. It was designed for direct response ads, for selling things quickly before the buyer has time to think. Your education-first product needs trust, not a fast cash grab. You need the buyer to believe you are on their side, that you are the expert, and that your system works.</p> <p>This is the uncomfortable truth: Marketing that feels manipulative will repel the builders and operators you want to attract. They are too smart for it. Your solution is the PAS+E Loop. It critiques and extends the classic PAS formula by adding a fourth, essential step: Evidence. This is where education marketing earns its name and builds durable momentum.</p> <p><em>Short on time? Scroll to the PAS+E Content Builder section for the actionable prompt.</em></p> <h2>Apply pas education marketing by adding evidence to build immediate trust</h2> <p>The PAS+E framework modernizes the classic copywriting formula for high-trust products. P (Problem), A (Agitation), S (Solution) remains, but E (Evidence) closes the loop. This method generates content that feels helpful, not just hostile. You are not a snake oil salesman; you are a solution architect. It is time your copy reflected that.</p> <h3>P: Identify the specific, current frustration (The Status Quo Lie)</h3> <p>The problem is rarely the obvious surface-level issue. The true 'Problem' is the internal lie the customer tells themselves about the status quo. It’s what they tried before that failed. For a founder, the problem is often uncertainty or wasted effort. It’s not just "we need more customers," it’s "I keep launching growth hacks that die after two weeks."</p> <p>When you start here, you give the reader permission to ignore conventional advice. That last piece of generic advice they read? It failed because it ignored the actual system friction. Your content is the corrective.</p> <p><em>Action: Spend 15 minutes right now listing five things your target customer tried in the last year that failed, and label why it failed (e.g., “Generic outreach failed because it relied on volume, not relevance”).</em></p> <h3>A: Agitate the cost of inaction (The Momentum Debt)</h3> <p>Agitation in education marketing is not about fear; it's about <a href="https://learn.getliftkit.com/learn/psychology-of-persuasion-in-marketing">the cost of delay</a>. Every day the problem persists, it creates 'Momentum Debt'—the cumulative wasted time, mental energy, and opportunity cost. This is the difference between a high-performing system and chaos. You need to show the reader the deterministic, systemic implications of their current failure point.</p> <p>If you're selling a better deployment tool, the agitation isn't a server crash. It's the two full days of developer time wasted per month on manual rollbacks, which slows down every other feature delivery. This is a technical failure with financial and systemic consequences. You make them feel competent and capable again by showing them the system, not their effort, is flawed.</p> <p><em>Action: Rewrite your current sub-headline to focus on the time/resource cost of the status quo, not the emotional pain. Example: Change "Stop losing users" to "Reclaim 10 hours a week by automating dead-end onboarding paths."</em></p> <h3>S: Introduce your solution (The Clear Path)</h3> <p>The Solution is a promise of systematic relief. It is your product or methodology. It must be presented as a clear, predictable path, not a magical outcome. The builder wants a blueprint. They want a reliable system. Your solution is the framework that guarantees the path from Problem (P) to Relief.</p> <p>If your solution is a unique way to <a href="https://learn.getliftkit.com/learn/how-to-build-a-marketing-strategy">build a marketing strategy</a>, you mention the framework by name—The Momentum Matrix, The Constraint Filter. This transforms a vague promise into an intellectual asset the reader can own. You give them a small win they can achieve today: naming the problem and defining the tool that solves it.</p> <h3>E: Deliver the educational evidence (The Trust Anchor)</h3> <p>This is the critical extension: Evidence. Education marketing is worthless if it only promises the 'S' without explaining the 'how' and 'why' in detail. This section anchors trust by demonstrating expertise. Evidence is the 'education' part of PAS+E. You prove your solution works by teaching the underlying mechanics.</p> <p>This can be a deep dive into a specific psychological principle (like reciprocity or <a href="https://learn.getliftkit.com/learn/psychology-of-persuasion-in-marketing">social proof</a>), a detailed breakdown of a successful case study, or the open-source logic behind your proprietary algorithm. For a content marketing engine, the Evidence is the detailed <a href="https://learn.getliftkit.com/learn/marketing-plan-vs-strategy">3-step process</a> for converting search intent into actionable product understanding.</p> <p><em>Action: Find the single most complex technical detail about your product's core advantage and write a 100-word explanation of it, aimed at a peer. This becomes your Evidence anchor point.</em></p> <h2>The PAS+E Content Builder</h2> <p>This generator helps you structure long-form educational content that critiques the past and builds authority for the future.</p> <p>Copy this prompt, replace the bracketed placeholders, and run it:</p> <pre><code>Generate a PAS+E outline for a 900-word article targeting [YOUR TARGET CUSTOMER] about [TOPIC/KEYWORD].``` 1. Problem (P) Section: Identify the "Status Quo Lie" they currently believe that causes failure. 2. Agitation (A) Section: Detail the "Momentum Debt"—the hidden, quantifiable cost of this lie. 3. Solution + Evidence (S+E) Sections: Propose a unique framework called "The [Your Framework Name]" (e.g., The Constraint Filter, The Isolation Filter). Structure three distinct, actionable steps of this framework as your S+E principle sections. Each step must end with a single, immediate action item. Product Context: [YOUR PRODUCT is a simple tool for Y target to achieve Z outcome]. Deliverables: - H1 Title (Max 60 chars) - H2 Meta Description (Max 155 chars) - Full 7-section PAS+E Outline </code></pre> ```<h3>Example Output (Outline Snippet)</h3> <p>H1: The Customer Journey Mapping Decision Filter</p> <p>H2: Modernize your customer journey mapping using the three-step decision filter to prioritize high-impact conversion points.</p> <p>1. P: The Status Quo Lie: Everyone believes they need a detailed, multi-stage map.</p> <p>2. A: The Momentum Debt: They waste 40 hours mapping steps that have zero decision volatility.</p> <p>3. S+E 1: Filter 1 - The Point of No Return. Focus only on the single decision that locks in commitment, then build evidence around it. Action: Identify the "Point of No Return" in your flow.</p> <p>This generator is one of many that help turn vague advice into concrete, predictable systems for your marketing.</p> <h2>FAQ</h2> <h2>FAQ</h2> <p>The PAS+E structure formalizes the core psychological steps necessary for builder-aligned marketing copy. It moves past emotional manipulation towards systematic competence.</p> <h3>Q: How is PAS+E different from AIDA?</h3> <p>A: The classic AIDA model (Attention, Interest, Desire, Action) focuses on emotional states in a funnel. PAS+E is focused on friction and competence. It addresses the systemic flaw (P), quantifies the cost (A), offers the system (S), and proves its function (E). If AIDA is about getting someone to look, PAS+E is about <a href="https://learn.getliftkit.com/frameworks/aida-education-marketing">getting them to build</a>.</p> <h3>Q: Where does customer research fit into PAS+E?</h3> <p>A: Customer research is foundational. It fuels the 'P' and 'A' stages. Without rigorous, unbiased <a href="https://learn.getliftkit.com/learn/how-to-define-your-target-audience">audience clarity</a>, your perceived problem will be vague and your agitation will sound generic. Founders must constantly update their understanding of the user's 'Status Quo Lie' to keep the content relevant.</p> <h3>Q: My product is complex. Should I use all my technical details in the Evidence step?</h3> <p>A: No. The 'E' is about selecting one high-leverage detail that serves as a Trust Anchor. You don't dump the documentation. You select the one piece of evidence—the isolation filter in your unique selling proposition, the data source, or the core algorithm—that proves your solution is distinct and superior. It should validate the solution, not confuse the reader. Focus on the <a href="https://learn.getliftkit.com/learn/value-proposition-examples">value proposition</a> of the evidence, not the complexity.</p> <hr> <h2>Start running operator-grade marketing in under an hour.</h2> <p>LiftKit is the only strategy-first AI marketing system built for founders. It distills the same Fortune-500 frameworks used at Apple, Stripe, and McKinsey into a simple, actionable playbook you can run in under an hour.</p> <p>Stop tinkering with tactics. 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