Applies Geoffrey Moore's chasm-crossing strategy for B2B tech products moving from visionary early adopters to pragmatist mainstream. Use when a product has early traction but stalls before mainstream adoption, when planning a beachhead/niche strategy, when designing whole-product offerings, when positioning against established competitors, or when scaling from innovator usage to industry standard. Triggers include 'stuck between early adopters and mainstream', 'we need a beachhead', 'pragmatist customers won't buy', 'how do we go from 10 to 1000 customers'. NOT for PLG/freemium SaaS (Slack, Notion, Cursor), pure consumer apps, two-sided marketplaces, or AI-native products with bottoms-up viral adoption - their dynamics break the visionary-to-pragmatist sequence.
Cialdini's seven principles of compliance (reciprocation, commitment-consistency, social proof, liking, authority, scarcity) plus Unity (added 2016) and Pre-Suasion. Use when crafting ethical persuasion (marketing, sales, negotiation), defending against manipulation, or designing systems that need cooperation. Includes replication-crisis caveats and known factual corrections (Bickman parking-meter numbers, Hofling modern replication, Drive Carefully condition disambiguation, Genovese myth).
Applies the SUCCESs Framework from Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. Use when crafting messages that need to be remembered, writing pitches, creating presentations, designing training materials, telling stories that drive action, or diagnosing why a message isn't landing. The six principles (Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional, Stories) diagnose and fix communication failures. Triggers include 'how do I make this memorable', 'my pitch isn't landing', 'people forget what we told them', 'how do I tell a better story', 'our training materials are boring', 'how do I present data compellingly', 'nobody remembers our message', 'how do I get people to care about this', 'my writing is too abstract'. NOT for channel selection (use Traction), not for brand messaging structure (use StoryBrand), not for positioning (use Obviously Awesome).
April Dunford's 10-step positioning methodology for B2B tech products. Use when customers don't understand the product, sales cycles are long because reps must "explain it," prospects compare you to wrong competitors, or you face price pressure despite a good product. Covers competitive alternatives, unique attributes, value themes, target market characteristics, market category (Head to Head / Big Fish Small Pond / New Game), and trend layering.
Applies Neil Rackham's SPIN methodology (Situation/Problem/Implication/Need-payoff questions) to major B2B sales. Use for complex multi-call sales cycles, enterprise deals where the customer must justify the decision to others, when objections are mounting, when calls end in vague continuations instead of advances, when traditional closing techniques are backfiring on large deals, or when designing discovery-call structure. Triggers include 'my deal isn't closing', 'too many objections', 'B2B sales coaching', 'discovery call structure', 'stuck in the middle of the sale'. Not for transactional sub-$50 sales, pure consumer impulse, or PLG self-serve products.
Startup diagnostic router. Use FIRST when a founder doesn't know where to start, has multiple overlapping problems, or asks a vague question like 'what's wrong with my startup', 'why aren't people buying', 'what should I focus on', 'where do I even begin', 'nothing is working'. Routes to the right framework from the 14 available skills — or tells you when no framework fits and you just need to go talk to people. This is the entry point. Use it before reaching for any specific skill.
Builds lead generation systems using Alex Hormozi's Core Four framework (warm outreach, content, cold outreach, paid ads), lead magnets, and Rule of 100. Use when designing customer acquisition, scaling advertising, choosing marketing channels for revenue stage, building referral programs, or fixing low lead flow. Covers lead magnets, LTGP:CAC math, More Better New scaling, and Lead Getters (referrals, employees, agencies, affiliates).
Designs irresistible Grand Slam Offers using Alex Hormozi's value equation, obstacle-solution mapping, value-cost trim/stack, and offer-naming patterns. Use when fixing low conversion rates, packaging products, pricing services, designing high-converting offers, or when prospects browse but don't buy. Covers value stacking, guarantees, scarcity, urgency, and pricing psychology for validated markets.