Being different for a reason isn't easy. So what's your twist?
I'm a big believer that businesses become more interesting when you add a new twist to an existing idea.
To be successful, businesses need to solve a true problem, but to be interesting, you need to do that in a unique way compared to any other existing solution. Not just doing something slightly better, slightly cheaper, or slightly quicker (because competitors can then very easily catch up to you), but actually different, and for a good reason. This is what I call their twist.
The power of a twist can apply to ourselves and to our own interests, thoughts, and lives, as well as being an approach to business strategy and marketing concepts. And it's more important now than ever before.
Overconsumption has become a massive problem in every industry and area of our lives. Every day there are likely millions of posts on social media, thousands of marketing campaigns, and hundreds of new businesses created. To stand out, you have to be unique.
Of course there's a catch to this. For long-term success, your way of being different needs to be better than what already exists, and not just for the sake of it.
In a business sense, all businesses are there to solve problems, and so if your way of problem-solving isn't better, you have no business.
From a personal perspective, you risk being performative and missing out on the joy by doing something different just to stand out, rather than because it's something you actually like.
So what is an example of a twist in business?
Importantly, it doesn't matter what the size of your twist is. It doesn't have to be groundbreaking, as long as adding a small change still creates something brand new. The impact of the addition is far more significant than the size of the piece you're adding to the existing thing. In a business sense, think about...
Good twists:
Kindles. I fully agree that reading a physical book is best, but a Kindle solves a real problem for me when I can't easily transport multiple books on holiday or in a small handbag. The invention of e-readers put a digital twist on reading.
Klik: A camera with no screen. I recently came across this business and think it's a great idea. People become too obsessed with getting the perfect shot, so it doesn't show it to you. They're there to make memories only.
They added the twist of removing a screen on a standard digital camera.
Calma Compania: High-end mosquito bite spray. I think this business is a great example of taking an existing product (Mosquito bite spray), but with a twist: the target market (big spenders). Making the spray smell more acceptable, be less sticky, and be packaged beautifully. A completely different experience to the neon cans we are used to, and subsequently able to market themselves as the world's first premium mosquito spray.
With markets becoming more and more saturated, we are seeing increasing trends for trends' sake. But that's not the long-term route to success. Your twist needs to be needed, or if it's not necessarily needed, it needs to move people closer towards the problem you are solving or away from the enemy you're against. Your difference needs a purpose.
There are many examples of a twist fighting an enemy, with my favourites being:
How do you find your own twist?
Often people start with the big question of what makes us different, which is near-impossible to answer unless you're completely clear on your business. Too often I've had clients answer how they give a more personal service, offer a higher quality, or something along those lines that everyone else in their field does. So I stopped asking the big question, and have instead broken it down to the six forms a twist can take:
It could be a combination of two of these, or just one twist executed really well. Most importantly, it needs to be a twist only you can own. Your competitor should not be able to name the same twist.
But how can twists apply outside of business?
In a similar vein, you can look at twists in your personal life too.
On a personal level, twists need to move you closer to the person you want to become. And it needs to be genuinely true to you. Your twists combine to make your individual personality, your unique views, and your distinctive tastes.
In the current seemingly global mission to find taste, I find it ironic that so many are looking to others for tips on how to do that, when having taste simply comes down to being unconditionally you. The twists that come naturally.
I find the best way to discover these is to start by putting a twist on your own existing routines. Approach your habits differently to help you truly understand why you like them, and what parts of those habits are the real bits you enjoy.
So how am I putting twists on my personal life?
My summer twists:
I'm fully handwriting this article! Using a different mechanism (handwriting) to write my weekly article (my existing habit). I often write either straight into a Google doc, or, at the very least, start an article in my notes app. But I know handwriting uses a different part of my brain and ultimately helps me become a better writer, which is my goal. So handwriting my articles is my temporary twist. I'm currently having to type it up again, which is a downside, but so far I also think it's helping me edit better.
Creating actual thinking space. A big part of my role is brand and business strategy. Usually I think through a client's strategy by taking all my digital sticky notes and rearranging them on my screen for a significant time into patterns, new ideas, and timelines (my existing process). But this summer I've taken myself for a picnic instead (my different variation). Giving myself time to look at the real world, away from all my notes, to let my brain work the way it should. And I've had some of my best ideas yet.
Working from a park! Maybe not my best twist, as it wasn't actually that productive (think sun glaring on my screen, the cute dogs nearby being far too big a distraction). But it was fun to mix up my routine and working environment, again trying out a different variation to my environment, and it taught me that I personally work best at a form of table.
So what's your twist?
How are you approaching your business strategy, marketing, or even life differently? And is there a genuine point to that difference, that moves you closer to a goal?
For me, it means trialling different ways of writing these articles and mixing up my approach to work.
For my clients, we're looking at carving out new spaces in their existing markets, combining their expertise to add a twist to their strategy or a whole new direction.
And for you, it should be entirely unique to your interests and taste, which is what makes it so intriguing.
Adding a twist to an existing idea is how both you and your business can become interesting, and I, for one, am tired of everything sounding and looking the same. So let's get to work bringing these twists to life.
