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Hi Fearless Friend!

Today on Stay Fearless or Die Trying:

1. How to make your idea stand out in a sea of startups!

2. Companies who have done it RIGHT.

3. Meet me at London Tech Week in June!

4. And…Harvard in November!

The Art Of Being Different.

When I was younger, people constantly told me being different would work in my favor as I got older. I never wanted to listen. When you’re the weird kid, the one whose bullied and not thriving in school, being different seems like the worst way to be one of the cool kids

As I got older, I realized being different was not only going to enable me to live a fearless like, but a life that meant taking risks to achieve success kinda life. Now that’s a life worth living, in my opinion. I was working with a client the other day who is working on his own premium content, and we kept running into the same problem: the offerings he had for his premium just seemed no different than what you could get from an app or someone’s YouTube channel. He was frustrated. This premium subscription felt like his baby: a culmination of years of work and a lifetime of thoughts compiled into a product. I encouraged him to keep working on it and to not give up. My advice: his ideas just need to be tweaked to be DIFFERENT from what’s already out there. They were new to him but unfortunately, saturated in a marketplace that’s constantly changing.

Many ideas fail because there’s already someone out there doing it just as well, or better. That’s why this week I wanted to share some tips on making your idea stand out, to help prevent everything falling apart early on.

P.S. None of the companies/brands I mention below are sponsored, I just think they’re great examples of people doing this whole being different thing right.

1. Fill In The Gaps

When launching your idea, it’s most important to figure out where your competitors are going wrong. Do an exhausting amount of research on your competitors. When I’m embarking on a new journey, I start a Notion page with my team that’s essentially a calendar filled with photos and quick blurbs about my competition. We figure out what their customers hate the most about their services, and offer something better.

What’s the best way to figure out what your competitors aren’t giving their clients? Go to the following of said company on Instagram and DM their followers with a case study. 

A great example of this? NETFLIX! When Netflix launched, they noticed that customers from Blockbuster hated going to the store to pick DVDs out. They hated tedious tasks like being at the mercy of what was in stock and being struck with late fees when they couldn't make it back to the store in time. They innovated and came up with a model where movies were mailed directly to your home. No late fees on returning, and a larger inventory on their website.

Soon after they saw an opportunity to allow customers to view the movies they wanted right away, via streaming on the internet. Netflix innovated AGAIN! They launched the now online Netflix platform that we all know and love.

Moving to online streaming was a game changer for Netflix. They realized with all their income they could be doing something nobody else was doing yet: Making their content.

Netflix then launched House of Cards in 2013 and the rest was history. No company has been able to keep up with the content, the quality, and the continuous innovation Netflix has.

When I look to cut corners in my budget, platforms like Paramount+ and Discovery+ are the first to go. Never in a million years would I think about getting rid of my Netflix account, even when they cracked down on password sharing and I had to start paying for my account.

2. Find Your Niche Market

This one sounds like a no-brainer but a lot of people get caught up in trying to appeal to everyone. You should spend a lot of your time figuring out how to be DIFFERENT from those companies. What they’re doing might be working for them and their customer base, but there’s always someone or something being left out of their market.

During Be Fearless Summit sponsor calls, I spoke to a former member of the Target marketing team. He mentioned that everything they do is around a certain customer. They call this customer “Molly”.

“She” is a woman with a family and the one responsible for making most of the shopping decisions for her entire unit. Everything Target does centers around how it can appeal to “her” and if “Molly” would be interested in it. You’ll never see Target lining their shelves with camouflage hunting rifles. They found their unique market, and they stick to it well.

Another example of a company being specific with its customer base is Lush. They focus almost entirely on sustainability, eco-friendliness, and allowing their employees to be the face of their company. They pride themselves on being low waste, and on not using plastic packaging, and you’ll notice a name or picture of the person creating the product on almost every item they sell. They appeal to those looking for less environmentally damaging ways to consume. Many people who buy their products stay loyal to the company for Lush principles alone.

3. Show Humility

In the process of building a business, you are GOING TO MAKE MISTAKES! The most important part of making mistakes is how you bounce back from them. Many companies fall off the face of the earth because of one tone-deaf choice they don’t turn back on, or terrible support when it comes to assisting with problems. For example, has everyone seen the uproar Bumble has caused with their recent marketing campaign?! Investors are dropping like flies as one bad choice has put them at the top of the most-hated business list this week.

One company that I respect and see value their customers first is Zappos. The popular online shoe retailer is renowned for their customer service. They pride themselves on a customer-centric approach, with consumers being the focus of training at every level. They also provide 24/7 customer service and a generous 1-year return policy. They like to say that they want to resolve any problem a customer faces, no matter how long it takes. Here’s a great article talking about their focus on the customer!

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