In my last email, I introduced you to the Bland to Bold Framework™, a diagnostic that helps you assess how bold or bland your content is by measuring the presence of four elements:
- Originality
- Novelty
- Proof
- Depth
Today's email is about the first element: originality.
I define originality as the distinctiveness of your perspective and personality.
“Perspective and personality? Erm, wait — you’re the research report lady. Where does original research fit in?”
Publishing proprietary research allows you to share original content that doesn’t yet exist in the world. Yet, I choose to view research as a competency within the proof element. Why? Because my framework mimics the way I work: First, we create or refine your original strategic narrative, and then we prove our claims with first-party research.
K, moving on.
Originality is the most powerful element because it helps you stop the scroll AND influence thinking.
I believe that marketers have two core missions:
- Winning attention (breaking through the noise)
- Winning mindshare (becoming the default choice)
(Winning market share is a byproduct of doing those two things well.)
- Novelty helps brands win attention.
- Proof and depth help brands win mindshare.
- Originality is the only element that contributes to both core missions — it's what makes a brand impossible to ingore and impossible to forget.
Originality exists on a spectrum.
If your content has low originality, your perspective and personality don't help you win attention and mindshare. (Too bad, so sad, you bland.)
If your content has high levels of originality, I could hide your logo and brand name and people in your space would know it was you. Your perspetive and personality help you break through the noise and become THE default choice. (The dream, amirite?)
Within originality, there are seven competencies marketers can master.
- Perspective
- Strategic narrative
- Brand voice
- Brand personality
- Topic selection
- Content angles
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Contrarian takes
Perspective is about having a distinctive point of view on your industry.
Do you have a belief about your industry that challenges conventional wisdom and sets you apart from your competitors?
If you answered yes, congrats — you have a distinctive point of view!
Klue's Competitive Enablement webpage is a great example of what a distinctive point of view might look like in practice.
Over the next few weeks on LinkedIn, I'll be sharing 27 content examples to illustrate each competency within each of the four elements of bold content. If you'd like to follow along, be sure to ring my bell on LinkedIn (the algorithm is a finicky bugger these days, innit?).
Be one of the first to take the Bland to Bold Content Assessment — and get a customized Bland to Bold Blueprint.
You already know your content could be bolder. But where do you begin?
The Bland to Bold Content Assessment gives you clarity. Take it, and you'll get two things:
- Your Content Profile: I've defined 10 content profiles (e.g., The Professor, The Suit, The Enchanter). Discover which one you are.
- Your Bland to Bold Blueprint: Get a custom roadmap with steps you can take to move up the spectrum — away from bland and toward bold. You also get a 60-minute Zoom call with me to go over your results.
I’m offering this at no cost to my newsletter subscribers because I want real feedback before rolling it out more widely. Want to be one of the first to try it? Reply and let me know! I have three complementary spots up for grabs.
xo,
Erin
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