Member-only story
Branding Makeover Challenge: Be The Middle Bear
Small business brands need to avoid being too comfortable or too “out there.”
When I first started marketing on the Internet, nearly all the coaching websites looked alike. We had fewer coach training programs. You could tell that most coaches just applied the cookie-cutter templates they were given by their coaching programs.
I remember the infamous “riding a bicycle” analogy: A coach doesn’t teach you to ride, but runs alongside guiding you and cheering you on. Then there was the quiz: “Are you ready for coaching?”
Certain programs appeared everywhere, especially those encouraging participants to review their lives for excess baggage. Fortunately, most coaches have grown beyond these standard offerings.
Yet when I meet with clients for a consultation, they often begin by wanting a website that looks just like everybody else’s.
If you think about it, most lawyers have websites with just the basics. Real estate agents often are not allowed to be too creative: their sites fall under the umbrella of the parent company. But me-too marketing remains alive and well on the Internet.
Psychological research…
