Try Something Different
See what happens
As you enter my office this quote welcomes you.
“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson
If we’re following the path of everyone else, how are we leaving a trail?
Do something different. Be different than everyone else. Try some things that nobody else has done. Don’t be a follower and do what everyone else is doing.
Have a different message
Have different ideas
Have a different view
If we aren’t trying new things or being different, how are we advancing, learning and improving? We’re just like everyone else.
By going with the crowd, you blend in with the crowd. To stand out, you need to separate from the crowd.
Experimenting with new thoughts, ideas, habits, routines in your personal and professional life can sprout new opportunity and growth.
Ask yourself, what’s the worst that can happen? You stop and try something else. But what if it works?
We’ve all heard, “Shooters shoot” and “You can’t hit if you don’t take a swing.”
This always sounds great. It gives you the feeling of wanting to do anything. You’re motivated to the point of feeling like running through a brick wall. But the motivation usually dissolves away.
Capitalizing and building off of these thoughts is the challenge. Prevent the motivation from dissolving away. The beginning of a new year is the time to capitalize and put these type of thoughts into action.
Everything sounds great until you actually have to try and put them into action. Action is the hard part. Dreaming and brainstorming ideas is great. The struggle is how to actually implement them. Here is what went into my thought process on the crafting and implementation in my business.
Regardless what type of business you’re involved in, you’re trying to stand out among your competition. Every industry is a highly competitive marketplace. Every company is fighting for eyes and attention. Here are the points that I pondered.
What does my business do best?
What allows us to separate or standout among our competitors?
How can we be different?
What can we post/email/mail/handout that would create a lasting impression?
Then I engineered my plan and marketing to target our customer. Who do you want to work with and who values your advice or product? I discussed this topic recently in my post Who Is Your Customer?
Here are three examples that we’ve implemented to be different while also trying to create lasting impressions. Think about capturing attention and getting your message across in one glance under a second.
Custom Bottled Water. We donate bottled spring water to local schools. Each bottle is wrapped with our company’s information. It’s then sold at school and sporting events. If you attend one of these events you’ll see our branding all over the place.
Larger postcards. Just notice what you do when you receive a postcard vs an envelope. The envelope gets tossed but the postcard catches your eye and at least a glance. Even for a brief moment your company message shows. Keep it clean and not cluttered with too many words and pictures.
Hand Addressed Envelopes. The best way to entice someone to open an envelope is to address it by hand. Harder to scale and more time has to be spent to do this. Someone may get writer’s cramp. But if they’re opening it at a higher rate it’s achieving your goal.
What are you doing to create lasting impressions? Try something different and see what happens.
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