It’s not marketing, it’s mattering

In the world of business, whether it’s a charity or a global organisation, everyone wants to capture people’s attention and make them care about what they offer or do. The challenge here is that there’s a lot of noise out there, with communication happening at breakneck speed and people having less time to pay attention.

Now, for many businesses, the problem is competition, especially when a bigger player dominates the market, or if they’re already the largest – the need to defend that space. But here’s the twist: they don’t necessarily have to compete head-on.

They need to stand out with a totally different offer. If you have a completely different offer, you stop competing. Why? Because you have a new space, the space in your ideal customer’s or audience’s mind.

Advantage you

Now, let’s talk about the art of competitive advantage. In every sector, marketing has evolved to the point where it’s all about mattering. It’s not about features, benefits, or even belonging to a particular tribe anymore. It’s about being the organization that truly matters to your customers. Achieving this advantage demands nothing short of exceptional creative strategy, the kind that ensures your brand occupies a unique and irreplaceable space in the hearts and minds of your customers. You become the only choice. You matter.

I sense a potential conflation here with purpose. Purpose is a well-recognized value, and for good reason. However, many brands have attempted to graft on purpose as strategy, and the outcome has inevitably failed. Customers are savvy; they don’t care about your purpose. This is precisely why prioritising Mattering is where the advantage lies because they care about the value pupose creates for them.

Un-copyable ideas

As I mentioned above, most businesses are obsessed with thinking about how to fight and beat their competitors for a bigger slice of the cake. This is normal and understandable in a competitive arena, but it’s tough, and to win they must ride twice as fast as the rest. But what if they climbed off the bike completely and instead just focused on how to win space in a customer’s mind. That’s a radically different race. Being the first in a customers mind when thinking about a specific category.

This strategic shift narrows in on being the only company that offers customers this, or the only brand that can help them do that. Without this advantage you become just another player in a crowded field, it’s just noise.

But is it even possible to do something completely different?

Absolutely. The surefire way to stand out is by making sure no one can replicate what you’re doing, and that’s very possible. When you own that unique space, you don’t have to worry about entering the race.

So a path to game-changing brand strategy is clear; it begins with visionary creative thinking at the helm and everything else cascades and aligns under that. It’s a top-down journey to differentiation and lasting impact.

Here’s an example of a business that does this brilliantly:

Good Energy

The original disruptors in the green energy space with first mover advantage. What makes Good Energy different from other energy suppliers claiming to be green?

The answer is simple: People Power! A community of over 1,700 independent clean energy generators sell directly to Good Energy who then use this energy to match every kWh their customers use at home. This is a radically different proposition. A lot of companies claim to offer “100% renewable” energy but they don’t actually buy their energy from renewable generators. Instead, they buy cheap clean energy certificates which undercut efforts to fight climate change, i.e greenwashing.

Good energy, founded in 1997 on these principles, clearly cares – a lot, about their customers and their staff. Of course they’re one of our clients at Wholegrain Digital, we work closely with them, and their authenticity shines through because it’s deeply ingrained in their history.

Their gas and electricity is the only 100% renewable energy available to the uk that gives back to communities and the planet.

Mattering in the sustainability space

The climate crisis is worsening, and we all know that business as usual won’t cut it. However, within the sustainability space, everyone seems to be saying the same things, and it’s becoming noise. Governments and leaders are often ignoring these crucial issues. So, how do you stand out? You have to do something radically different, disrupt the space, and make your message matter.

To achieve this, start by focusing on what already matters to people because in the context of global sustainability, people are overwhelmed by the same messages. What they care about is their life, their friends, and their immediate surroundings. To make sustainability matter to them, you need to connect it to their personal lives. That’s where meaningful mattering change will stick.

So, remember, in a crowded world, it’s not about competing; it’s about mattering. Be radically different, embrace creativity, and connect to what already matters to people. That’s how you truly stand out.

A few takeaways you could start to consider when you need to create competitive advantage for your business:

• Don’t accept the current landscape. Play the game you want, not the game you find
• The desire for change should be a bigger driver than your competition
• Always start with framing your problem. It’s better to have a rough idea to the right questions than a detailed answer to the wrong one.