I have apparently developed a new hobby: watching bad ads for longer than I should.

I’ll be scrolling, an ad catches my attention, and I stop. Congratulations. You got me.

Then the person starts talking.

And talking.

And talking.

Thirty seconds later, I am still waiting to figure out what they actually sell.

Eventually, my patience loses the battle and my thumb goes back to work.

The strange part is that some of these ads clearly have money behind them. Good cameras. Professional editing. Nice graphics. Someone probably spent several meetings discussing the exact shade of blue used for the captions.

Yet nobody stopped to ask whether a potential customer could figure out what the hell they were selling.

That is a much bigger problem.

Good business communication starts with the information your customer needs to decide whether to keep listening.

One of the classes I teach is Business Communication, and one of the concepts I teach my students is the difference between the direct method and the indirect method of communication.

The direct method puts the main point first.

The indirect method provides context and explanation before getting to the main point.

There is a place for both.

If you are delivering bad news, the indirect method can sometimes make sense. You may want to explain the circumstances before telling an employee that their request was denied.

Sales usually calls for the direct method.

Your customer has not agreed to sit through your presentation. They have not promised to watch your video. They are not required to read your entire website.

You are borrowing their attention.

And the interest rate is outrageous.

The first eight seconds should answer three questions.

When someone encounters your business for the first time, they should be able to understand:

1. What problem do you solve?

Start with something they already recognize.

“Bookkeeping for small construction companies.”

“Weekly prepared meals for busy families.”

“Math tutoring for middle school students who are falling behind.”

You do not need clever language here. In fact, clever language often gets in the way.

One of the most common mistakes I see from new founders is trying to sound like a company before they have learned how to explain the company.

They write things like:

“We provide innovative solutions designed to empower individuals to achieve their goals.”

I have no idea what you sell.

That sentence could describe a gym, consulting firm, software company, therapist, motivational speaker, bank, or possibly a cult.

Specificity helps people recognize themselves.

2. How do you solve it?

Once I recognize the problem, give me enough information to understand the solution.

“We pick up your laundry, wash and fold it, and return it the next day.”

“We provide one-on-one virtual math tutoring twice a week.”

“We prepare five refrigerated dinners each Sunday that you can heat during the week.”

Notice how little explanation those require.

A common founder instinct is to explain the entire business model because you have spent months thinking about it.

Your customer has spent approximately six seconds thinking about it.

Those are very different relationships with the information.

Give them enough to understand the basic transaction first. The details can come afterward.

3. How do I buy it?

This one gets forgotten surprisingly often.

Suppose someone understands your offer and wants it.

Now what?

Book a call?

Click “Buy”?

Request a quote?

Visit the store?

Join the waitlist?

Send you a message?

Tell them.

Every additional decision creates another opportunity for someone to leave.

Think in layers, not information dumps.

The direct method does not require you to explain your entire business in eight seconds.

It requires you to earn the next eight seconds.

The first layer gives me the problem, solution, and next step.

Then you can give me evidence.

Show testimonials. Explain how the process works. Tell me what is included. Discuss pricing. Introduce yourself. Explain your qualifications. Answer objections. Give me the FAQ with seventeen questions that apparently every website is legally required to have.

People who want those details can keep going.

This creates a useful communication structure:

Problem → Solution → Action → Evidence → Details

Founders frequently reverse it:

Background → Details → More Details → Personal Story → Credentials → Problem → Solution → Please Come Back

By the time the offer arrives, half the audience is watching a video of a raccoon stealing somebody’s DoorDash order.

That is the environment your business actually operates in.

Clarity matters more when nobody knows who you are.

Large companies can sometimes get away with vague advertising because we already know what they sell.

Nike can show an athlete running through the rain and barely mention shoes.

You probably cannot.

A new business has to work harder because the customer has no stored information about you. They are simultaneously trying to figure out what you do, whether it applies to them, whether they trust you, and whether they care enough to continue.

That makes communication order especially important for first-time founders.

Start with the customer’s world.

State the problem in language they would actually use. Explain your solution in concrete terms. Give them a simple next step.

Then earn the right to tell them everything else.

Weekend Exercise:
The 8-Second Test

You do not need a business yet for this one.

Take a business idea you are considering. If you have several, pick one.

Write three sentences:

Problem: I help ____________________________ who struggle with ____________________________.

Solution: I provide ____________________________ that helps them ____________________________.

Action: They can get it by ____________________________.

Now read those three sentences to someone who knows nothing about your idea.

Do not give them the backstory first. Do not explain what inspired you. Do not tell them what you eventually want the company to become.

Just give them those three sentences.

Then ask them to tell you, in their own words, what your business does and who it is for.

If they can explain it back to you, you have the beginning of a clear offer.

If they cannot, keep working on it.

Because if it takes you three minutes to explain what you sell, your customer probably stopped listening two minutes and fifty-two seconds ago.