Time to read: 4 Minutes

When you’re traveling in the Growth Marketing Wilderness, there are plenty of challenges. Big competition. Boring design. Phoned-in content. Ok, they may not be lions, tigers, and bears. But as symptoms of the dreaded Same-y Disease – the inability to make your marketing stand out – they can be just as bad for business.

Fortunately, there are several ways to make your marketing stand out and avoid an encounter with Same-y Disease – and to prevent a future infection.

Use Data to Make Your Marketing Stand Out.

Does your company have a good handle on data?

Awesome!

It goes without saying that original data and interesting insights are essential. Essential to campaign content and blog writing. Data helps everything – from staying on top of trends and to understanding the markets. But it also helps you create fresh marketing content that educates and entertains. It’s killer for lead gen, especially market research.

But good market research alone won’t save you from Same-y Disease. It’s important to have your data insights represent your brand. Great design goes without saying.

While you’re collecting, sharing, and applying your new data insights, here are a few things to keep in mind.

• Don’t follow the crowd.

  If you’re doing the exact same thing as everybody else, then it’s time to do something new. Offer something that your competitors don’t. There’s compelling, unique research, a quiz for interactive content, or a value calculator. The whole world has access to information. Make yours stand out.

• Do your research.

  Uncovering the new ground requires knowing the ground. To think of new angles, you need to get current. See where you can build on existing research. Find the unanswered questions. Of course, remember that your job is to show perspectives that are unique and valuable to your target. Ask them. Come up with some questions that you haven’t seen asked before.

• Know how to read between the numbers.

  Think about what your data is bringing to the table – besides the digits. Are there any insights that teach something new in there? Or is it just another slurry of semi-useful information?

Anyone can collect data or so a quick survey, to varying degrees of success. Does your analysis differentiate itself from the sea of alternative sources out there?

There’s no shortcut to originality to make your marketing stand out. It takes work to bring something new to the table. Prove your conclusions with the right data. Have something interesting to say with your insights, and you’re one step closer to curing Same-y.

Sacrifice Trendy for Timeless Designs

Coming up with new design is a challenge, but don’t jack design. If you’re not the sort of person who’d ever think of palette-swapping the Pepsi logo, well – good!

But we’re taking it a little further. When we talk about design, we’re talking about more than just logos like the McDonald’s golden arches. We’re talking about what makes up brand standards. Think about the iconic colors, imagery, and fonts. These are key to making your marketing stand out.

But make sure that your design elements reflect the tone and energy of your business. Not the competition’s. Admittedly, this is sometimes hard to do. It’s hard to resist the temptation of cheating off your neighbor’s paper. One idea you may use to find new inspiration  – look at companies you admire in other industries.

And if you’re a design trend follower, remember that trends fade. It’s dangerous to build core design around current trends might look cool now, because some trends don’t age well. All those papercut illustrations you see now?  In 2 years, they’ll look and be old (and cost you more in the long-run because you’ll have to pay to get rid of them).

So while there’s nothing wrong with keeping tabs on the popular kids, design is the most obvious way to make your marketing stand out. Be stable and authentic. Resist the temptation to follow the latest trend. Keep in mind that consistency is timeless, and consider that Same-y threat dodged.

Keep Messaging Fresh

This is an area in which Same-y loves to prowl around. Think of all those marketers who call themselves storytellers. Talk about trendy. And remember, trendy is not exactly original.

When it comes to messaging and content, the threat of being indistinguishable from the masses is high. So how do you cure it? Why, the same way you always cure Same-y Disease: originality!

Three things to keep in mind when using messaging to make your marketing stand out:

• It’s all about engagement.

You can have the cleverest calls-to-action and the most insightful blogs. But if you don’t write for your target audience, it’s white noise. There are many ways to engage your target audiences. Teach them something new. Listen to them through quick quizzes. Give them messaging tailored to their needs. Create content and campaigns that build an emotional connection to them.

• Don’t overlook alignment.

Your business or product is here to fulfill a certain need, in a way that the competition doesn’t. Don’t get so bogged down in keeping up with other companies that you forget to keep things harmonious. Your messaging is a reflection of your brand. Make sure that your content isn’t sending a message that ends up being contrary to what you’ve worked so hard to build.

• Be consistent.

Like in visual design, messaging and copywriting trends are cool to play around with. But resist urges to follow the crowd. Ensure that your messaging is clear, quality, and actually saying something worth hearing. A steady stream of consistent messaging sets you company apart in the marketplace.

If you’ve ever used the Internet before, you’re keenly aware of how much stuff is available out there.

Content, content, everywhere!

Chances are good that whatever you’re about to use, be it a blog post or a lead gen campaign… someone’s already done it. About a billion times. In the last year alone.

So how do you find inspiration for original quality copy?

How do you differentiate your copy with genuine engaging conversation?  One trick is to consult the Amazon Review Muse. If you’re stuck, spend 20 minutes reading Amazon reviews on any ol’ product. It’s a gold mine of great ideas and you’re certain to come up with new ways to express your message.

Originality is the Common Denominator

Whether you’re a spunky start-up, or an experienced large company, never stop trying to make your marketing stand out. Don’t cheat yourself out of growth by being stagnant.

Your company isn’t here to do the same exact thing, in the same exact way, as every other Joe Schmo out there. You’ve got a Really Big Idea to show the world, be it a product or a service. At the end of the day, the way to cure Same-y Disease is simple: it’s hard, we know, but don’t be the same.

Hey! Friends help friends grow by hitting those share buttons!