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Buyer research and messaging strategy for HR Tech and Learning Platforms

If your best prospects still don’t get it, you’ve got a messaging problem

I help you uncover the words your buyers actually want to hear… and turn them into messaging your team can use across sales, marketing, and product. So you stop sounding like everyone else. And start sounding like you understand your best prospects.

You’ve got product-market fit but
do you have message-market fit?

These are the common signs your messaging is missing the mark:

 

  • Your messaging sounds like five other tools trying to “empower talent” or “streamline hiring.”
     

  • Your C-suite, sales, marketing, and product teams are all telling different stories.
     

  • People read your site, skim your sales deck, sit through a demo and still don’t really know what you do.
     

  • Prospects don’t know why they should choose you over the competition.
     

  • You’re spending more on copy, content, and sales — but not seeing better results.
     

  • Deals start strong, but stall mid-funnel.

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If these sound familiar, your messaging is likely creating sales friction. I help B2B teams fix that with buyer-focused messaging strategy.
 

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Let’s fix your messaging problem with
buyer-led research and strategy

Speak your buyer’s language

Get buyer research that shows how your prospects describe their problems, goals, and what they’re looking for in a solution.

Get a consistent narrative

Align sales, marketing, and product with a single messaging source of truth built from what buyers care about.

Tell your unique story

No more vague buzzwords. Show your value clearly in language that stands out and matters to your buyers.

How it works...

Over four weeks, I’ll handle the deep research and synthesis. You provide the context. I’ll uncover what your buyers actually care about and turn it into a message your teams can rally behind.

Step 1: Uncover how your buyers actually think and talk

Every strong message starts with research. That means real customer insights. I surface the language, priorities, and objections that actually drive purchase decisions.

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What this step includes:

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  • Internal team interviews (sales, marketing, leadership)
     

  • Customer interviews (current or recent buyers)
     

  • Sales call recordings (if available)
     

  • Survey responses (if applicable)
     

  • Public review and testimonial mining
     

  • Light competitor messaging scan
     

Step 2: Identify what’s missing in your message

Once the raw insight is gathered, I synthesize what buyers actually care about. I map patterns across VoC data, isolating friction, pinpointing the gaps between your buyer’s language and what your teams are saying today.

 

What this step includes:

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  • Insight themes: problems, triggers, and motivators, JTBD, alternatives, switching obstacles
     

  • Messaging gaps and inconsistencies
     

  • Buyer segments (if distinct patterns emerge)
     

  • The Buyer Research Report — a summary of your buyers’ problems, priorities, and decision triggers, grounded in VoC data

Step 3: Build a strategic messaging foundation

I turn the research and data into a clear, structured messaging framework — something your team can use across sales, marketing, and product as your messaging baseline. So you keep your narrative consistent. And your buyers know the value you bring.

 

What you get:

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  • The Strategic Messaging Framework - your go-to reference for consistent, buyer-relevant messaging across teams.
     

  • Live workshop, or an async Loom walkthrough with a follow-up Q&A session — to get your team aligned and moving fast.

Step 4: Validate your message before launch

Before you roll out your new messaging across the company, I run it through a real-world clarity check. I turn your Strategic Messaging Framework into a low-fidelity homepage wireframe to see how your message performs in a realistic context.

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I then test that wireframe with 5–7 target-profile readers to learn:

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  • What they understand (and what’s unclear)

  • How they interpret your offer

  • What they remember after reading

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From these results, I tighten the messaging and structure to remove friction and confusion, giving you a launch-ready asset with proven clarity.

 

What you get:

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  • Validated Homepage Wireframe - A testable, low-fidelity version of your homepage that reflects your new messaging.
     

  • Refinement Pass - Adjustments based on validation results to ensure clarity, relevance, and memorability.

Packages & Pricing

Message-Market Fit Sprint

Price: ​

$7,000

What you get:​​​​​​

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✅ Buyer Research Sprint - Captures what your buyers care about.

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✅  Buyer Messaging Board – Translates those insights into a visual system your team can use for campaigns, sales, and positioning.

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✅  Buyer Alignment Workshop – Live or async session to align your team and show how to put the messaging into action.

A 4-week project covering buyer research and messaging you can actually use.

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Who's it for:​

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Teams who want clear, buyer-led messaging they can roll out right away.

Message-Market Fit Validation

Everything in the Sprint, plus real-world validation.

Price: ​

$10,000

What you get:​​​​​​

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✅ Everything in the Message-Market Fit Sprint plus:

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✅  Validated Homepage Copy – Your messaging built into a lo-fi homepage wireframe, tested with 5–7 target-profile readers.

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✅  Refinement Pass – Tightens and improves the homepage copy based on test results, giving you a launch-ready asset.

A 6-week project that includes everything in Research and Messaging, plus real-world validation.

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Who's it for:​

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Teams who want to launch with proven clarity and reduce the risk of missed opportunities.

Why work with me

"Barney had a well thought out process to decide what was really important to communicate on our homepage."

Andrew Kaiser, Founder & CEO of Educated AI

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"Barney has repeatedly exceeded our expectations and produced content that converts. Thanks & look forward to more collaborations."

Naomi Boitel, Senior Content Marketing Manager at Preply

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"Barney knows how to shed a light on the stories we're trying to tell."

Federico Jorge, Founder of Stack Against

Hi, I’m Barney. I bring:

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  • B2B SaaS experience — I’ve worked across HR tech, L&D, and other complex products. I know how your buyers think.
     

  • A research-first approach — I don’t guess. I run structured interviews, analyze Voice of Customer data, and find the patterns that matter.
     

  • A clear, usable output — No messy decks or vague strategy docs. You get a messaging framework your team will actually use.
     

  • Async-friendly delivery — You won’t be chasing me or drowning in calls. Just context and intros up front, then I run the process and loop you in when it counts.

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This isn’t superficial work. It’s in-depth researching and strategy giving you messaging that reflects how your buyers actually think.
 

FAQs

  • We’re based in the US — will the time difference be a problem?
    Not at all. I'm based in Japan, but this is a research-heavy, async-friendly engagement. I work flexibly to accommodate interviews and Loom walkthroughs across time zones. I have office hours that overlap with APAC, Europe, and the US.
  • What if we don’t have customer interviews or sales calls recorded yet?
    No problem. I can guide you on how to identify the right customers to speak with and even help draft outreach. I’ll also mine reviews, analyze survey data, and run stakeholder interviews to fill in the gaps.
  • How much time do we need to commit?
    You’ll need to help with onboarding, context-sharing, and a few customer intros. After that, it’s mostly hands-off until we review findings and align on the strategy. Apart from the interviews and workshop, the process runs async by default, with optional live check-ins when needed.
  • Can we do this project entirely async?
    Almost. I’ll need to speak with a few team members during kickoff, and customer interviews are live by nature. But the rest can run async. You can opt for a Loom walkthrough of the final messaging framework (with follow-up Q&A). A live workshop is totally optional.
  • Is this just another copywriting project?
    No. This isn’t a copywriting project. It’s a research and strategy engagement. You’ll get a messaging foundation your team can use across sales, marketing, and product. If you need help turning that into copy later, I can support that too, but it’s a separate step.
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