Nerd Report #27

Don’t be
boring.

(Even in a boring industry.)

Feel like you’re stuck in a boring category? Good! Boring categories are often some of the best opportunities to build awareness, drive action, and make big moves versus competitors who are stuck in a cycle of same-sounding blah blah.

Because being the first brand to un-blah your category gives you a number of good, strategic options. Here are three of our favorites.

1.

Embrace your boring category.
(Heck, celebrate it even.)

Remember the old saying, “comparison is the thief of joy”? Okay, so maybe your brand isn’t in an “exciting” category like alcoholic drinks, fashion, or (the poster child of formerly boring categories) insurance. You can still win over your audience by glorifying the truth of what makes your category (and the people in it) great.

Parker was a rust-belt dinosaur that made parts for engineers. On the surface: boring. But you know what isn’t boring? The delightfully uncommon ways engineers experience the world and how that can lead to big breakthroughs. By truthfully celebrating their offbeat intelligence through the “Engineers See Things Differently” campaign, Parker turned its target into fans and advocates, saw their stock price rise 20%, and transformed their reputation into the global leader in motion control technology.

2.

Poke fun at your boring category. 
No matter what it is (almost).

Here in Cleveland, we permit Cleveland jokes from only one group of people: Clevelanders. Because those jokes come from a place of shared understanding and mutual affection of our often unfairly maligned metropolis. As a member of a boring category, the same holds true. And being willing to make light of your boringness will make you more relatable, honest, and likable (from being so dang self-aware).

The Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA) is firmly at the least-sexy end of the transportation category spectrum (along with Segways, of course). Which is what made their tongue-in-cheek, “Ride of Your Life” campaign so compelling. By giving buses and trains the luxury car treatment, RTA gave its audience a fun way to appreciate them for what they are: boringly reliable.

3.

Create a persona that will disrupt your boring category.

Sometimes, the most direct way to stand out in a “boring” category (especially where there seems to be a lot of parity) is to build a unique brand personality. Maybe your brand is particularly good at solving a universal problem. Or has a certain ownable expertise.

Or maybe, as in the case of Strong Hold, you make nearly indestructible industrial storage solutions from which you can adopt a distinctly no-BS brand personality.

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Truth be told, we love brands in “boring” industries because they have a legitimate opportunity to rise way above their humdrum competition. So, when you’re ready to realize some un-boring ROI, drop us a line.

p.s. If you need help making building banners less boring… check this out.

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