I Have An Idea… Pick A Lane

“If you chase two rabbits, you will not catch either one.” – Russian Proverb

To every brand marketer out there, I ask…nay, I PLEAD…please, pick a lane. One of the more frustrating scenarios I come across is the partner who wants to be all things to all people…typically, with no budget. Reality check. Even if you had an abundance of money, successful brands are not built that way, especially at the front end of a foray into a new space.

That happens to be the situation for a majority of NCAA programs who are just now looking at themselves as a brand. If your program is going to make a dent in the marketplace, you’re going to need to establish a differentiated positioning strategy, your goal being to own a singular idea in the hearts and minds of your consumer.

Pick one thing. One thing that’s genuine and authentic to who you are. One thing that your target consumer deems important and can relate to.

A couple of recent discoveries inspired this post. The first was an interview with Evander Holyfield, who credits his mother and her words for his success in the ring. As a child, Holyfield’s mother told him “You can’t be great at everything, pick one thing and be the best at it.” Holyfield took those words to heart, finishing his career as one of the greatest fighters of our generation.

I’ve also recently discovered inspiration from the book The One Thing (where I found the Russian proverb referenced above), which demonstrates the power of focus on one’s everyday life. The idea is simple. By trying to do too many things, our productivity and performance suffers. By trying to manage too many projects, we can expect, at best, average results. However, by focusing on one thing, productivity goes up and stress goes down. How nice does that sound right now?   
If you let it, your brand can imitate life in this exact same way. Focus on one idea. Own one space. Be consistent in telling one story. Do that and you’ll not only own a unique position amongst your competition, you’ll do it with less effort, less stress and less money.

“I Have An Idea…” is a series written for College AD by the author of Brands Win Championships, Jeremy Darlow.