I’ll never forget the time my friend Paul answered the door with a gap where one of his front teeth used to be.
No heads-up either.
He just ushered me inside with the same casual, still-got-all-my-choppers attitude he had before a part of his face went missing.
I’m telling you this because my horrified expression that day was the same one my co-workers recently wore when they saw me in a pullover sweater.
Here’s why that’s a big deal. And why some people felt it was a genuine cause for alarm.
For years, I’ve only worn cardigans.
Like most signature styles, mine didn’t happen overnight. I didn’t instantly purge my wardrobe, hurling anything with a neck hole into a ceremonial bonfire.
I just thought it was a smart look. Throw in the spectacles and the beard and I came off much more scholarly than my SAT scores would suggest.
As my reputation as a proper “cardigan enthusiast” grew, I popped it into my LinkedIn title. Then, I began using it at the start of presentations for an easy laugh to calm my nerves.
Now, it’s a part of my identity. It’s how the world sees me.
And all because I chose something that felt right—and made it my own.
I bring this up because I’ve been reading about how hard it is for businesses to figure out what makes them unique.
Maybe this is a challenge for you, too.
To be clear, I’m not talking about your standout features, your “reasons to believe,” or your company values. I mean …
The ONE distinctive quality you want to be known for.
I used all-caps up there because you likely do so many wonderful things, it can be hard to narrow it down to just one.
It was for us at the agency.
For years, we tried and failed at coming up with something that differentiated us from other marketing firms.
We filled walls, windows, and whiteboards, beating up the same tired topics around our commitment to THIS and our dedication to THAT until the sandwiches were gone and we were no further along than when we started.
Until last fall.
That’s when we stumbled upon some advice that showed us we were looking for our uniqueness in all the wrong places.
And once we learned this secret exercise to coming up with our ONE THING, we nailed it. We even gave it a cool name to make it more memorable.
I’ll show you where we landed in a minute. But first, here’s why you’ll never find your uniqueness in the work you’re already doing …
Your uniqueness has to be invented.
That’s right. Make it up.
Just like that, you’re no longer limited to the dead-end options of the past. Instead, you can explore the wide-open fields of the future to create one element of your business you can truly call your own.
Sean D’Souza gives us permission to do that in his book The Brain Audit: Why Customers Buy (And Why They Don’t).
He says, by choosing just one thing:
- You make your offering simple and understandable.
- It becomes the DNA of your company. Everything revolves around it.
- Your customers and the media start to see you as different and newsworthy.
Of the seven boxes you need to check to make sure customers choose you, D’Souza says your uniqueness is the most critical. Because without it, after you’ve talked about the benefits of your solution …
“All you’ve really done is set up the customer to go to the competition.”
Gives you the willies just thinking about it, right?
Unfortunately, I can’t do the work for you. But perhaps I’ve given you some encouragement to get your team together and brainstorm the one thing that can only be paired with your name.
And if you want the exercise, check out the The Brain Audit. It’s short and the e-book is dirt cheap.
To prove it works, here’s where you can go to see what makes FARM different than anyone else.
I rest my case.
Here’s a song to play you out >>>
See you next time. — Matt
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