How to show your brand is different *and* better (because you need both)

Remember green ketchup?

You'd squeeze a big blob of 'Blastin' Green' on your chips and feel like a total baller. It was novel, it was bright, it was… actually pretty gross when you think about it.

Naturally, it had kids in a chokehold.

Heinz sold 25 million bottles and hit a record 60% of the US ketchup market. But just a few years later, it was pulled from shelves for good — and no one really noticed.

The problem wasn't that kids lose interest fast (true) or that parents got sus about the artificial dyes (also true).

It didn't last the distance because different was the whole strategy.

Green ketchup wasn't better ketchup. It didn't taste better, work better, or do anything over and above regular sauce. Heinz nailed the novelty — a different colour was a great way to grab attention and earn a first purchase.

But being different doesn't guarantee repeat sales.

To keep selling, you need to be different and better.

The brands that get this right

Think about AirPods. Apple released them as a different and better alternative to wired headphones — knowing full well it would cannibalise their own wired sales. They did it anyway, because they had a product that would go the distance.

Different: wireless, no tangling, seamless Apple ecosystem integration.

Better: genuinely easier to use, better sound quality, longer battery life than competitors.

One earns the click. The other earns the loyalty.

Let’s be real for a second.

Yes - you want people to fall madly in love with your brand, dive for their wallets, and throw their hand-earned dollar dollar bills at you. But you don’t want to do it in a deceiving, sleazy way, right?

No business owner wants to go to bed at night feeling gross about how they closed a sale, and you don’t have to. There are loads of ways to build trust and boost sales without selling your soul to the (marketing) devil!

Consumers buy from brands they know,like and trust. They buy based on emotion. They buy from brands that make them feel heard and respected.

Once you’ve got an understanding of why people buy and what they’re looking for in a relationship with your brand, it’s easier to say the right things in a natural & authentic way.

How to figure out your different and better

If you want people to hit BUY NOW — and come back — you need to answer two questions clearly in your copy.

How are you different?

Everyone offers "high quality service," so you need to get more specific than that.

• What do you do that others don't?

• What would someone notice if they put you side by side with a competitor?

• Is there something unique about your background, process, approach, or results?

How are you better?

Think faster results, less stress, easier process, unexpected wins.

• How do you go above and beyond?

• What does working with you actually look and feel like?

• What do clients walk away with that they didn't expect?

• Why do people recommend you to others?

Now bring it into your copy — specifically

Got a sense of your different-and-better-ness? Good. The next step is bringing it into your messaging — and being as specific as possible when you do.

Vague claims ("I really care about my clients!") don't convert. Specific ones do. The more concrete and visual your copy, the more believable — and memorable — it becomes.

Different earns attention. Better earns the sale. And all the ones after that.

You need both.

Need help putting your different-and-better into words? That's kind of what I do