Web Theologian

There are so many options available, that considering how your service or product stands out from the crowd is worth thinking about. There is the negative side of standing out. Not catching the error in during the review of the proposal could make a seemingly competitive bid a very easy choice against you because your best foot forward does not measure up for the potential client. Or simply being loud does not mean that anyone will listen even if some of the message is good because they have already hit the mute button on you either figuratively or literally.

What about when you do your best and this is the standard in the culture or the competitive landscape? After an experience of “losing” my bag in Tokyo I heard a story of a former CEO of my company from when he was setting up the Japanese office in the same city. He purchased a bike while he was living in Tokyo that he used to get around. When his time was complete he parked it in front of the office and forgot about it. Three years later he returned to Tokyo and went to the office to find his bike still there, without having been locked up.

Was the bike unremarkable and therefore no one paid it any attention? Perhaps. But even the most junky bike in Seattle I have seen stripped to it’s frame as it was the only part of the bike locked to the bike rack. Rather the cultural environment in Tokyo is one in which people don’t steal bikes, therefore in order to stand out in this environment is very difficult. When competition is tough and you have a rival that has brought their best team, has a strong moral center, and has already delivered to clients at the level being proposed at the moment…this is when things get interesting. You don’t even have to be in a commoditized market to struggle with this, as the standard is just higher.

So in the U.S. you might be doing a great job if you never steal a bike, but if you live in Japan that is just expected. How do you up your game? If you are looking for some thoughts you should check out the book, Purple Cow   by Seth Godin about transforming your business to be remarkable.

“In a crowded marketplace, fitting in is failing. In a busy marketplace, not standing out is the same as being invisible.”
― Seth Godin, Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable