Looking for the Not So Normal Clients
September 7, 2021
Are you familiar with the Seven Reasons to Be Different? It is a list by David Rendall from his book Freak Factor that describes an approach Draper DNA takes to business, marketing, and communications. It is a list that describes the type of clients we are seeking. We are looking for the not so normal clients.
Here is the list of the Seven Reasons to Be Different:
- Being different makes you rare. Being normal makes you ordinary.
- Being different makes you original. Being normal makes you easy to imitate.
- Being different makes you noticeable. Being normal makes you invisible.
- Being different makes you surprising. Being normal makes you predictable.
- Being different makes you memorable. Being normal makes you forgettable.
- Being different makes you remarkable. Being normal gives people nothing to talk about.
- Being different makes you influential. Being normal makes you powerless.
We were originally planning to share examples of both different and normal for each of the list of seven, but we believe it is more impactful if you reflect to find examples of at least the different and how your examples are rare, original, noticeable, surprising, memorable, remarkable, and influential.
As a building product manufacturer, we bet you the first place you looked was products. Are we right? We have been in this industry for more than thirty years and the list of truly different products are rather slim, most being improvements on an existing product. How about the business? How about business? What is different about business? We can think of a few ideas that are different. Can you?
What about sales and marketing? Can you think of ways you are different, rare, original? Being different is a mindset. It is how you look at things, what you see, and the path you define to accomplish what you see. Not every person is different like this and that is great. Not every business is either, also great. We are seeking the people and businesses that embrace being different at their core. You instinctively look for the path less taken. When others are going right, you look to go left for the reasons listed above. If you are going to invest the time, money, and energy, make certain you get the most from the effort. This is how we have approached business our entire career.
Do you want your business to be different? Are you committed to not being ordinary, predictable, and forgettable? We are looking to talk with you. Maybe we can work together. Just as importantly, we know the people and businesses that are truly committed to being different are few and we want to connect to like minded people. We like your energy, so please drop us a note. Better yet, be different and give us a call.
Side note
Have you met your business doppelganger? I have when I met David Rendall. As he was telling his story and sharing his approach to life, the parallels were uncanny and a little spooky. David is tall – six foot six inches – like me. This matters particularly if you have ever tried to go to the bathroom on an airplane (ask for more details, we can paint a picture for you). He was regularly told to “be quiet” and “sit still” and that “he was obnoxious” when he was a kid. Just like me. David’s professional career includes several successful assignments to develop and launch original ideas only to be told to learn the operational work to follow was boring and unfulfilling. Again, just like me. Finally, David learned he sees things differently which was often called a weakness when in fact it is his strength. Us too!
If you would like to learn more about the Seven Reasons to Be Different and how being different would apply to your business/marketing/sales, give us a call at 443-370-8815 or send an email to Shawn@draperdna.com.
If you would like to learn more about David Rendall, check out his book Freak Factor.
