How to Spot a Purple Cow

Cows, once you’ve seen one or two or ten, are boring.  A Purple Cow, though…now that would be something.  Seth Godin, the acclaimed Wall Street Journal and Business Week best seller, defines a Purple Cow as someone or something phenomenal, counterintuitive, exciting…flat out remarkable.

Every day, consumers come face to face with a lot of brown cows, but you can bet they won’t forget a Purple Cow.

Before I share five ways to spot a Purple Cow, let’s address the problem with a brown cow.  The brown cow is simply ordinary, invisible, commodity-driven, and difficult to spot.  The Purple Cow, on the other hand, is indispensable and remarkable.  The Purple Cow stands out in a crowded marketplace.

So, let’s take a look at five ways to spot the Purple Cow:

Value Proposition – the Purple Cow promises a compelling value proposition which summarizes the reasons why a potential customer should buy his or her particular product or service, how it exceeds that of the competition and why it is worthy of the price they pay.  A value proposition must be concise and appeal to the customer’s strongest decision making drivers.  It is an irresistible offer, an invitation that is so compelling and attractive that a customer would be out of his or her mind to refuse the offer.  A value proposition serves as the reason for the Purple Cow’s existence.

Confidence – A Purple Cow’s self-confident attitude is characterized by a positive belief that he or she can control their life and plans. Self-confident Purple Cows take advantage of opportunities that come their way.  They acquire confidence through three key attributes – knowledge, skill and attitude.

Unique Process – The Purple Cow delivers a differentiated strategy in the marketplace.  The Purple Cow experience is diagnostic and consultative, not transactional.  It is focused on deeply engaging the customer.  They discover the customer’s goals, passions and struggles to open the door for an intense and lasting relationship – an emotional connection which transcends price and product.

Raving Fan Network – Purple Cows know how to connect.   They know that networking is not about themselves.  Rather, finding ways to make other people more successful.  Purple Cows understand that real networking is about generosity not greed.  It is about giving before they receive.  Learning how to help others succeed is a key ingredient in the World of Purple.

Purpose and Passion – The biggest difference between the brown and Purple Cow lies in purpose and passion.  The brown cow has little purpose or passion in his or her life while the Purple Cow has tremendous purpose and passion. Simply put, they love loving what they do. They have a passion to serve others.  This substantiates that consumer’s make buying decisions based, in large part, on emotion.  The Purple Cow has the ability to stimulate emotion in which they touch the buyer’s heart.

In the marketplace, fitting in is failing.  Go Purple!

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The author, Scott Addis is the President and CEO of The Addis Group and Addis Intellectual Capital, LLC (AIC). AIC is a coaching and consulting company whose purpose is to transform the process that insurance agents, brokers and carriers use when working with clients. Scott is recognized as an industry leader having been awarded the Inc. Magazine’s “Entrepreneur of the Year” Award as well as “25 Most Innovative Agents in America”. Scott can be reached at saddis@beyondinsurance.com or 610-945-1019.