The difference is in the details

What college tours reminded me about marketing, clarity, and how we help people choose us

Hey everyone! Quick reminder we have a Bring It to Life gathering this Thursday. Link below.

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I’ve been on the road since Thursday, driving from Portland through California on my way to Arizona. I’m with my daughter and we are taking the time to drive by or visit potential colleges since this fall is her time to apply. I’ve spent the last two days in Los Angeles and tonight I’m on the outskirts in a smaller more peaceful community.

I’m struck by how each university offers essentially the same thing while being markedly different. Today we toured two schools, both liberal arts colleges. Both of similar size. The differences were minor - religious affiliation, a few core courses, how they approach study abroad, how they offer support for students who need academic help - but they were extremely clarifying. Those small differences were enough to define which one was not a fit.

I wondered, as I sat through an information session, if they had attended other school information sessions to clarify exactly what to accent and showcase. It was well done and quickly called out the small but compelling differences. As we visit one school after another, knowing those special elements helped us to listen more closely to the other sessions in comparison.

Things that I didn’t think would be so important became key because we could see how that quality and experience would enhance what my daughter was looking for. Things like the way they incorporated internships into every major. The way students could build their study abroad experience by finding a university in their destination country of choice. The way they thought about food and the dining options.

These weren’t the qualities we expected to define our choices—but they did, especially when we compared them to other schools that emphasized different things.

This has been on my mind because, in Get Going Get Growing, we’ve been exploring the compelling elements of visibility and marketing - especially the importance of identifying the one clear problem your offer addresses.

In this instance, it can appear that the problem each university solves is identical: to provide a good college education that helps students get the experiences and connections to get a good job.

But the truth is that the difference is in the details. The way the unversities call out their unique solution is by clarifying their unique qualities so that the applicant can make the determination if this is a fit for them. In all likelihood, the prospective student hadn’t even considered the detail in that way or didn’t realize it was even important until it was called out.

We can make our marketing more helpful learning from this example.

There’s something powerful to be learned from this example that we can bring into our own marketing.

Sometimes, the core problem in your field is nearly identical to others - like personal transformation or helping someone connect to their soul path.

However, finding the difference between your work and what another spiritual teacher or guide offers may not be in the problem solved. The difference may by revealed, in large part, by the specificity and uniqueness of the solution your offer.

Lean into your differences.

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Join us this week for our group gathering… links below