Introducing The Department Of Differentiation

New business. New partners. Finally Declassified.

My entire career has been defined by consciously trying to do things differently. 

Since I was a kid, I have taken great joy and pride in getting results by being creative and… slightly weird. I generally get an allergic reaction to the status quo. I’m not some bad-ass rebel or troublemaker. I just enjoy finding new ways to do things, finding alternate solutions to problems, and standing out from the crowd by being… different.

When I worked in the media, I got a lot of great jobs by honing in on being unusual and unexpected. I would inevitably get asked in job interviews, “Why should we choose you for this role?” My answer was this: “If you assign everyone applying for this job to produce the same story, mine will be the only one you remember in a month. Mine will be different than everyone else’s.” That answer got me a lot of jobs and also a lot of creative freedom to tell fun, memorable stories.

When we launched Pacific Content, several friends and colleagues thought I was making a big mistake leaving traditional media and starting a podcasting company, especially because it was designed to work exclusively with brands. There were literally no other companies specifically focused on doing this work when we started. As it turned out, everything we did was… different. Compared to everyone else in podcasting, we had a different business model, different clients, different strategies and processes, and a different culture. 

Pacific Content is a unique company because of its strong focus on strategy - it’s not just podcast production. Engagements often include helping determine what makes a client special in their industry. Much of the work in branded content is about brand positioning, which involves differentiating yourself from your competitors and expressing it in interesting and valuable ways to others.

At both Pacific Content itself, and all the work we did with amazing clients, I learned not just how to stand out, but, more importantly, to be strategic. Over and over again, we were able to deliver business results through differentiation and creativity.

Since I left Pacific Content in the spring of 2022, I have been consulting with companies on content and business strategies. The insight I keep confronting is that you can’t tell your story until you know who you are. And who you are is what makes you unique and differentiated from everyone else in your field. Sometimes you need help to clearly see what makes you truly special and valuable.

Whether a company is looking to position itself to eliminate much of its competition, reach a new pricing tier, or serve new customers, or whether marketers are looking to find success and earn attention with original content that drives business results, there has been one solution consistently delivering great results.

Differentiation Strategy.

This summer, I discovered that two very smart friends were doing similar work and had similar insights about the magic of Differentiation Strategy. 

And so my former Pacific Content co-founder, Jennifer Ouano, my friend and brilliant executive strategist, Debrah Coll, and I decided to all join forces and form a weird new company focused exclusively on… Differentiation Strategy.

It’s called The Department of Differentiation.

I could not be more excited about the company and my amazing co-founders!

We offer Competitive Differentiation Strategy™ - or CDS™ for short.

WTF is CDS™, you might be asking?

CDS™ is a term we made up. (Yes, we know it is ridiculous.) The substance, though, is very real. CDS™ captures all the best practices of the work the three of us have done throughout our careers, including:

• Brand positioning

• Marketing strategy

• Content strategy

• Creativity and storytelling theory

• Attention strategy

• Audience development strategy

• Social psychology

• Leadership theory

• Sales and business development strategy

• Culture-building strategy

• Coaching techniques

• Innovation and disruption theory

• Finance and pricing strategy

As you might be able to tell from the name and the logo, we’ve also made up a bizarre mythology around the business, including:

• Our work is shrouded in secrecy because it has been developed in “an advanced business intelligence laboratory in an undisclosed location.”

• Our roles are DifferentiAgents

• Many of our documents have sections that have been redacted

• All our documentation looks like it has been photocopied and pulled out of musty manilla envelopes in filing cabinets, locked in vaults

• We have stamps all over our work, like Declassified, Brief, For Your Eyes Only, and Dossier

In short, we are having a lot of fun differentiating our differentiation brand.

Much like the silly term, CDS™, our brand is fun, but the framework is serious. We’ve implemented it with major brands, startups, executives, individuals, and everything in between, and it WORKS. 

CDS™ is a four-stage framework that helps companies and individuals get unstuck. It provides a clear path for eliminating competition. It hones in on exactly the customer you are best suited to serve.  It allows for clean, confident decision-making at all levels of the organization. And it’s a detailed roadmap for compelling marketing and content.

Here’s what it looks like:

• PHASE ONE: Reconnaissance Mission - we ingest a LOT of information about your company, your customers, your products and services, your competitors, and your industry.

• PHASE TWO: Internal Investigation - we come to your offices for at least two days and conduct an Internal Investigation, going deep into all aspects of your business.

• PHASE THREE: Differentiation - we collaboratively identify a customized Differentiation Strategy for your company, thoroughly documented with an implementation plan.

• PHASE FOUR: Implementation - as needed, we work with your team to implement the plan and bring it to life.

The CDS Journey - from mired in competition to thriving in your own lane.

As per this Public Notice, the Department of Differentiation is officially open for business, and we are ready to dig into solving interesting problems with interesting people.

There’s only one catch… we have limited capacity, and further details about the process are unfortunately still highly classified. As such, interested parties must complete a Clearance Request to be considered for a Competitive Differentiation Strategy™ with The Department of Differentiation.

You can submit a Clearance Request here. (Please note the mandatory Code Phrase and secret keyword!)

Vive la différenciation!

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