Static. Stagnant. Stationary.
Apart from some nice alliteration, what do the above words have in common?
They all spell death for your business.
People throw the word “innovation” around generously these days, but it really is the key to killing it with your business.
What REALLY Counts as Innovation?
This week, sales and marketing consultants Strategic Anarchy released a game called The Sword of Sales. The game is a throwback to old text-based, Dungeons and Dragons-style games, but with a twist – it teaches the company’s sales philosophy and produces a personalised sales script for the player when they complete the game.
Ever heard of anything like that before? No. Because it’s new. It’s creative. It’s ambitious. And it’s the type of marketing that can set one company completely apart from another in any industry.
Now, I’m not suggesting you go out and make your own text-based game. Many will try though, and therein lies the problem – copying someone else’s innovative idea isn’t innovation. It’s just copying. And the kicker is that the original is always the one that will be successful, while the imitation pales in comparison.
Are You Scared to Be Different?
I’m not going to lie – some people are just more creative than others. Some people can roll innovative ideas out of their mouths five times before breakfast. But they’re not the only ones who can ever come up with a good idea.
EVERYONE has the ability to be creative, in their own way. It’s part of being human. It’s just that many people haven’t yet developed that side of them, for various reasons.
The good news is, creativity can be developed. It can be nourished. And it might just be THE most important thing you do for your business. It certainly makes more sense to develop your creativity and innovate within your business than it does to waste your time trying to follow what everyone else is doing.
Here’s where many people get stuck: the way our society is structured, it’s all about fitting in. It’s about following the script (born – school – college – job – marriage – mortgage – kids – retirement – death).
Think about schools – they’re all about the status quo. They offer one teaching style and every single student is required to fall in line with this, regardless of their personal learning styles. Thankfully this is slowly starting to change, but still, it wasn’t very long ago that natural left-handers were forced to write with their right hands at school, so they would (you guessed it) fit in.
While some of us, those who tend to be more creative adults, had our natural differences nurtured at home, the rest of us grow up with that desire to fit in burning inside us.
Now for the bad news: if this is you, if you’re afraid to stand out, your business is in trouble.
You Can’t Stand Out and Fit In
What got you by at school and as an employee just isn’t going to cut it in the world of business. Working for someone else is all about fitting in with their vision, not rocking the boat, flying under the radar.
Working for yourself is the antithesis of that. You NEED to stand out. You NEED to rock the boat. You NEED to differentiate yourself from the countless other businesses out there. That’s how you become the leader of your industry.
Why Being Unique Works
You know you have to market your business, right? So, what is marketing? At it’s core, it’s communicating what is different about your business to your potential customers. It’s saying, “here’s why you should buy from me, not my competitor.” This is true at all levels of business, from single-person operations to billion-dollar companies like Coca-Cola. (Coke and Pepsi are basically the exact same thing! Homework: study how Coke differentiates itself from Pepsi, and vice-versa.)
Your marketing is where you need to start. If you’re currently copying someone else’s marketing ideas, if you’re putting up the same old thing as everyone else in your industry, you’re missing the point.
How to Nail Your Marketing
What can you come up with that will set you apart? Well, first you need to be clear on exactly why your business is different. And it is – we all have points of difference that sets us apart from the competition.
This might be your background, your experience, your unique product – whatever it is, that’s what you need to focus on. Now, try to think of unique ways you can communicate that difference.
The two things to keep in mind here are WHO you’re marketing to, and WHY. Who is your target market, and what problem are you solving for them?
Working out your WHO will give you the basis of the HOW – what kind of messages will your target market pay attention to? Is it better to give them something they can read? Something they can watch? Something they can do?
What activities do they enjoy? Can you tie these in with your marketing message?
Again, think of the Sword of Sales game – this marketing ties in with a certain group of people’s nostalgia for old games, while also giving them something they can participate in, instead of something they’re just passively reading or watching.
Creating an experience that is different and memorable is the first step towards differentiating yourself from your competitors. It’s the first step towards taking your future into your own hands and running your business on your own terms.
“Innovate or die” might be something of an overused phrase, but it still rings true – if you’re not creating, not innovating, not differentiating, you’ll soon find yourself stuck with the faceless pack around you.
And when you’re with the pack, you’ll never be ahead.