The Food Network crowned it’s newest star last night. And as I was watching them announce Justin Warner (Rebel with a Culinary Cause), I couldn’t help but think about story and world view and how, when you take away raw talent and skill, it is really all that most of us have to compete with.
If you have never watched FNS before, the premise of the show is they take 15 accomplished chefs with ideas for a pilot on their network and then whittle it down until they have a winner, which is determined by the network audience.
The things to note here are that these people are talented and although some were technically better than the others, it was marginal. In fact, one of the better contestants actually got bumped not because of his cooking skills but because of the general nature of what defined him (as he put it, he didn’t want to be pigeon-holed).
I think this is really important to understand when you are building a world view around your personal story….
When the playing field is based purely on knowledge and skill, marketing your brand is next to impossible because your competitors share the same knowledge and skill, & you are competing solely on available resources.
Therefore…
Your chance to actually shine and separate yourself from the competition is not about knowledge and skill (although you need both)….it is what defines your brand uniquely to the audience in which you are trying to serve.
They Say it isn’t about You BUT….
…your audience has to see enough of themselves in your message or your brand to be able to relate to you. And the more in line your world view is with their world view and the more they can relate to your story and style, the more likely you will win.
Because knowledge and skill can only take you so far. You need that extra “oomph” to separate yourself from everyone else who is similar to you.
Your Turn- How are you defining your brand? What makes your brand different from others within your market?
Image Attribution-http://www.flickr.com/photos/mvjantzen/5038151302/
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