Before we dive in, a quick note for new readers: The Builder’s Challenge is my journey to build a ₱100K side hustle while still working a night shift. For years, I bought courses and gained knowledge but rarely put it into action. This challenge is my way of breaking that cycle—by learning in public, applying lessons in real time, and sharing the process so you can build alongside me.

In last week’s issue, I wrote about how to position your service closer to revenue in order to charge more. You can read it here: The Builder’s Challenge: Position Your Service So Businesses Pay More

Choose a Market. Solve a Pain. Charge More.

When I started thinking about freelancing, I made the same mistake most beginners make: I focused on my skills, not the problems I could solve.

“I can sell." I can design.” “I know social media.” “I can write.”

The problem is that clients don’t wake up in the morning looking for “graphics” or “copywriting.” They wake up worrying about problems:

• “Why aren’t more students enrolling in my course?”

• “Why are we spending money on ads that don’t convert?”

• “Why are sales flat even though we’re posting every day?”

Skills are nice. But problems get paid.

Alex Hormozi breaks it down in his content that a “starving market” has 4 traits:

1. They have a pain that’s urgent.

2. They’re easy to find.

3. They have buying power.

4. The market is growing.

If you can check those 4 boxes, selling becomes 10x easier because the market is hungry for what you’re offering.

Order matters: Market > Offer > Persuasion. Pick the wrong market, and even the best pitch will flop. Pick the right one, and even a simple offer can win. (I’m planning to read $100M Offers right now and share also my thoughts on it)

And here’s the kicker: people are usually more motivated by avoiding pain than by chasing gains. Losing money, missing goals, feeling stuck. Those pains move people faster than the promise of “more.”

Chris Do put it best:

That’s why I chose course creators as my market.

• Their pain: low enrollments.

• Easy to find: they’re in groups, communities, and platforms everywhere.

• Buying power: a single new student can pay for the solution.

• Growing: the e-learning market is exploding.

Done is better than perfect. Learning by doing beats waiting. Picking this market gave me clarity, direction, and the chance to build positioning that compounds over time.

Because at the end of the day, the freelancer who solves the bigger, more painful problem is the freelancer who gets paid more.

Why Solving Problems Beats Selling Skills

Most freelancers position themselves by what they do.

❌ “I design landing pages.”

❌ “I run social media.”

❌ “I write copy.”

But clients don’t really care about skills. They care about the results those skills create.

✅ "I help you get more eyeballs to your offer."

✅ “I help you enroll more students.”

✅ “I help you book more sales calls.”

✅ “I help you keep customers longer.”

Here’s why this matters: if you only sell skills, you’re replaceable. But when you sell solutions to painful problems, you stand out. You stop being a vendor and start being a partner.

And remember: people are more motivated to avoid pain than to chase pleasure. The freelancer who knows their market’s pain better than anyone else becomes the obvious choice.

🛠 My Offer Statement and USP

Here’s the offer I’m working on right now for course creators:

Offer: “Get more students (and more sales) with high-converting landing pages built for course creators.”

Unique Selling Proposition (USP): Conversion Blueprint — A proven system that turns landing pages into enrollment machines using persuasive words and smart design.

Tagline: “Stories that sell courses.”

Notice how it doesn’t focus on what I do (design pages, write copy). It focuses on the outcome they want: more students, more sales.

That’s the difference between selling a task and selling a transformation.

A Simple 5-Step Process That Sells

Clients also want to know how you’ll get them from problem → solution. That’s where a clear process helps. Here’s mine:

1️⃣ Find What’s Stopping Sales (Audit) Spot the leaks in the funnel — low trust, confusing messaging, poor design.

2️⃣ Make Your Course the Obvious Choice (Copy & Storytelling) Show authority and build trust with words that connect.

3️⃣ Design That Does the Selling Pages that look great and convert.

4️⃣ Launch With Confidence Take the guesswork out — publish and go live.

5️⃣ Keep Sales Coming. Ongoing tweaks that keep revenue flowing.

This turns a service into a framework — and frameworks make you look like a strategist, not just a freelancer.

Why Market + Problem Clarity Changes Everything

When you know your market’s exact pain, everything gets easier:

• Writing your offer is easier.

• Positioning your USP is sharper.

• Talking to clients feels natural because you’re speaking their language.

• Pricing goes up because the value is clear.

Choosing course creators gave me that clarity. Their pain is obvious: low enrollments. My solution matches their pain: high-converting landing pages.

This is why picking a market isn’t about being perfect—it’s about being specific. Done is better than perfect. Learn by doing.

Because in freelancing, clarity = confidence = cash flow.

Put It All Together (Mini Playbook)

If you want to position yourself as a strategist, not just another freelancer, here’s a simple playbook you can start using today:

1. Discovery Questions (Revenue + Pain-Centered) Ask questions that uncover both numbers and struggles:

• “What’s your average student worth over a year?”

• “What’s been holding you back from hitting your enrollment goals?”

• “What happens if nothing changes in the next 6 months?”

2. Quick Offer Statement + USP (One-Liner) “I help [market] solve [problem] so they can [desired outcome].”

Mine is: “I help course creators enroll more students with high-converting landing pages.”

3. Proposal Outline (Outcomes → Process → Timeline → Metrics) Instead of sending a list of tasks, frame your proposal like this:

• Outcome: More enrollments, more sales.

• Process: Audit → Storytelling → Design → Launch → Ongoing sales.

• Timeline: [X weeks/months].

• Metrics: Conversion lift, new leads, enrollments.

4. Proof Plan (Case Study + Roadmap)

• Use a simple case study format: Problem → Solution → Result.

• Add a 90-day roadmap so clients can clearly see how results build over time.

This structure makes your offer tangible, trustworthy, and results-focused.

Reflective Close — Pick a Market, Pick a Problem

Here’s the big lesson:

• Clarity comes from choosing a market.

• Power comes from solving a problem.

• Trust comes from showing a process.

When you get those three right, your service stops sounding like an expense and starts feeling like an investment.

So here’s my challenge for you this week:

👉 What problem do you solve that ties closest to revenue?