By John Capuano, Partner at Simplicity Lone Beacon
How do you break through in a commoditized world where everyone shares the same products as you? No one has a different stock market.
So, how are YOU positioning, and implementing, the exact same products that every one of your competitors have? And to make it more commoditized, consumers and investors, all want basically the same thing…
They 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 want to lose money. They want to 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄 to beat inflation. And they 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 want to run out of money.
𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗸.
#1: 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. Connecting with people is a gift for some and a challenge for others. At the end of the day, we all need the self-awareness to know where and how we fit in. We can connect with people in different ways, but also need to be aware of how the people we’re talking to feel about personal connections.
#2: 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗘𝗮𝘀𝘆. More choices plus unlimited information doesn’t make it any easier for anyone to make a decision today. Create a simple message and an equally simple path forward. We like to say treat everyone like a nervous fifth grader. Ironically we are wired to give more information when we’re trying to help people and not getting to “a yes”, which causes confusion and could stop the process in its tracks, versus simply communicating the most important benefits and allow them to resonate.
#3: 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲. While everyone pretty much wants the same thing, security, the story manifests in different ways for different people. Create a theme that takes our commoditized tools and applies them to very specific outcomes relevant to the person you’re working with. If you can complete someone’s life story in a way no one else can…you will break through. So take some time to consider these three really important components. It’s easy to let your own biases, and logic seep in. But spending more time on connecting, ease, and personalization will pay dividends, and will create clarity and trust.
About the Author: John grew up in Schenectady, NY & received a scholarship to Norwich Academy. He began his broadcast management career at WOR, learning spoken word marketing from the best in the business with a specialty in financial and long form. John managed broadcast sales for some of the best known sports teams in the world, at the most legendary stations. However his true passion is in the world of direct response advertising to baby boomers and their parents. In this space he has worked with some of the best brands in America. John lives in Boston with his wife, Melissa who is also a broadcast executive, and French Bulldogs Lou and Sal.
