# Campaign assets

Source: *Building a StoryBrand* (2017), “The StoryBrand Marketing Roadmap,” following chapter 13. The roadmap covers a one-liner, a valuable lead generator, a nurture sequence, stories of customer transformation, and referrals. The ad and onboarding notes here are SaaS applications of the same message spine.

## One-liner and short value proposition

The book's one-liner combines **customer → problem → plan or offer → success**. It is a repeatable answer to “What do you do?”, not necessarily a single sentence or a clever slogan. Include the product category or mechanism clearly enough that a stranger can repeat it. Test whether someone in the target audience understands the offer and can say why it matters to them. Reuse the best phrasing across the site, profiles, sales conversations, and campaigns.

For a short ad, subject line, or social post, compress rather than cram: choose the relevant problem or desired outcome, name the solution plainly, and give a fitting next step. Align the promise with the destination page. Do not introduce a new promise at the ad click that the page cannot explain or fulfill.

## Lead generator and transitional action

Offer something useful enough to earn a lower-commitment action: a practical guide, template, demo, sample, trial, webinar, or self-assessment. The book's test is that it should give substantial value while demonstrating the brand can guide this particular customer. State the specific benefit of the resource; “join our newsletter” says little about what the customer gets. Only promise a free resource or trial if the actual offer is free on the stated terms. If collecting contact information, describe the exchange honestly.

## Email sequence

Keep the same customer goal and core wording through the sequence. Change the angle or objection as the relationship develops.

- **Nurture email:** name one relevant problem, teach a genuinely useful way to address it, and show the better situation that follows. The book's nurture formula is problem → plan → success. The advice should stand on its own even if the reader does not buy.
- **Offer email:** name the problem, explain how the product resolves it, show a concrete result, and make a direct request with an accurate destination. This is the book's problem → product → success → action pattern.
- **Trial or upgrade email:** use the customer's actual stage and product activity when known. Explain the next useful outcome and the real terms of continuing; do not fabricate urgency or imply a loss that will not occur.

The book describes a pattern of several value emails followed by an occasional sales email. Treat that as an example, not a required cadence. Fit timing and frequency to the audience's permission, buying cycle, and product experience.

## Customer proof and referrals

A transformation story is stronger than generic praise. Ask a willing customer, in their own words: What was the problem? What was frustrating about it? Why did this solution feel different? When did you first see progress? What is your situation now? Edit for clarity without altering the meaning, get permission for use, and verify every metric. Present the customer as the person who achieved the result; the brand provided guidance and a tool.

For referrals, give satisfied customers something helpful and easy to pass on, such as a resource or a clear explanation of the offer. Ask them to share it voluntarily. Do not ask for friends' contact details or imply an incentive that does not exist. Describe any actual reward accurately.

## Onboarding and activation

After signup, continue the promise made before signup. Name the first achievable win, make the next step obvious, and show progress toward the promised outcome. Keep copy tied to product behavior and the user's chosen goal. A small activation screen does not need to restate the entire StoryBrand framework.