Copywriting framework
PAS — Problem · Agitate · Solution
The fastest path from pain to pitch.
PAS — Problem, Agitate, Solution — is the workhorse of bottom-of-funnel writing. Name a sharp pain, twist the knife on second-order costs, then introduce the mechanism (not the product) that removes both.
How PAS works
- Step 1Problem
Name the specific, recognizable pain in the reader's exact words.
- Step 2Agitate
Show the second-order costs the reader hasn't counted yet.
- Step 3Solution
Introduce the mechanism — the named move that flips the outcome.
Sales emails, founder posts, bottom-of-funnel ads, win-back sequences.
Don't use when the reader doesn't yet recognize the pain — you'll sound like a stranger pointing at imaginary problems. Lead with AIDA instead.
PAS in real copy
Your cold emails get ignored. Every silent inbox is a quota you missed and a quarter you cannot rebuild. A 3-line opener built from the prospect's own writing flips reply rate from 1% to 9%.
Your trial users vanish on day three. Every silent trial is a paid customer you already acquired and lost. A behavior-triggered nudge built from in-app signals lifts day-7 retention from 18% to 41%.
Extract PAS from any text — automatically
Paste a post that already worked into Get Text Formula. The analyzer detects whether it rides on PAS (or another skeleton), maps every block, and hands you a reusable template you can fill with your own message.