Two months ago, while doom-scrolling in bed, I reached for my card and bought two storytelling products.
If you’ve been in the online business and marketing world for more than a minute — then you know that storytelling is key to creating content people want to devour.
And while I’ve always felt comfortable sharing my stories while hiding behind my keyboard with my hair in a messy ponytail and wearing the same sweatshirt for the third day in a row…
I wanted to leap out of my comfort zone and get better at sharing my stories on camera.
I’ve always been in awe of the folks who could pick up their phone, push the big red button, and start talking about their life.
And I’ve made it my goal to be one of those people too!
So I reached for my purse, and two minutes later, I got instant access to two products that promised to turn me into one of those smooth-talking, pro-storytelling creators I admired.
The first product was a membership with a great creator who teaches you how to tell stories in a way that’s authentic to you and helps you “find yourself”…so you can build community and eventually, make sales.
The second was a guide with swipe-able templates and intel on how best to structure your stories… so you can build community and eventually, make sales.
Even though both offers share the same promise of making me a better storyteller…
And both creators are teaching the exact same topic…
I get tremendous value from having both products in my life.
When I need help identifying the stories in my life I’m comfortable sharing (plus a pep talk to work through my fears) — I jump into the membership to watch the coaching calls, or get coached myself.
And when I’m ready to roll up my sleeves and get straight to #werk, I jump into the guide because it gives me the exact structure I need to shape my story without needing to sit through multiple videos.
This recent shopping spree of mine got me thinking about competition in the online business world.
motivation
It’s a topic that’s come up in conversations with my clients who are starting to feel the weight of an increasingly competitive industry…
And in conversations with fellow business owners who’ve gotten the jitters when it comes to releasing a new offer in a crowded space.
As someone whose default pattern is to retreat and hide in the wings — I know what it’s like to feel too paralysed to take action on my brain sparks because “someone else is already talking about it.”
But then I think about my two purchases, and how both creators were able to secure the bag $.
Yes, both of them were talking about the exact same thing.
But their content differed because of the lens they taught through.
They both have different, but equally valuable, experiences I could leverage.
And I’ve been able to use both products in-tandem to move towards my goals.
All that to say…
If you’ve been too paralysed to take action on your launch, promote your offers, or claim a niche because someone else is already doing it —
First, I want to encourage you to think about the purchases you’ve made in your business and personal life.
Chances are, you’ve bought the exact same product from multiple different brands. (The 8 different moisturisers in my skincare cabinet say, heyyy)
And once you’ve realised there’s space for your voice and your version of a product, too…
Here are a few questions for you to noodle on to help you gain even more clarity on what makes you different.
(These are the exact qs I think about when helping my clients differentiate their offers from everyone else’s)
- First up, how is the format of your offer different from others, and why is that a benefit for your audience? Eg. A membership gives your audience continuous access to fresh, new content. A guide or a series of templates means your audience can dive straight into the meat without sitting through multiple videos.
- What is your “lens” or the specific perspective through which you’re teaching this topic? Eg. Are you teaching storytelling as a way to help your audience unleash their creativity OR as a marketing tool to drive engagement?
- What’s different about your process AKA the way you do something? Eg. The way you batch content, the order in which you do it, and the tools you use may be worlds apart from other content creators.
Finally, rather than think about how much “competition” there is out there and worry about who has the “better” product…
I find it much less anxiety-inducing to ask my clients and myself:
“What are we adding to the conversation?”
While there are already plenty of courses out there teaching people how to make YouTube videos, watercolour, write better emails, and launch courses —
How can our offer build upon those existing conversations to either give the audience a more complete picture of the topic OR show them a different way to think about the topic altogether?
Looking for a practical way to demonstrate what makes your offer different from everyone else’s? I wrote an Instagram post showing the 3 x ways you can set your offer apart on your sales page. Check it out here!
Still feeling paralysed when you think about how competitive your industry is?
I watched this brilliant TikTok from Alyssa who said something along the lines of this:
Imagine if Jenny Ortega had said no to playing Wednesday because Christina Ricci had already played her in the 1991 version of The Addams Family.
We wouldn’t have been gifted with the bingeable gloriousness that is Wednesday or that brilliant dance number Jenny nailed.
Heck, both Hulu AND HBO Max made a tv series about the exact same tragedy (Candy and Love & Death) and released it less than a year apart. They just told the story using different vibes and chose to emphasise different characters.
Fact is, there’s enough space for both pop culture icons. And there’s enough space for you and your brilliance too.