Knowledge vs. Insight

I recently had a conversation with another consultant about a challenge they were facing: despite having a lot of specific, valuable knowledge, they were unsure of how to demonstrate that knowledge in a way that was interesting or meaningful to their ideal customers.

What often ends up happening is that, when you want to share your expertise, you may feel as though you need to default to objectivity - describing exactly how to do something as though you’re writing documentation.

For example, one would imagine that there are hundreds, if not thousands, of pieces of material on using social media that are dedicated exclusively to the technical process of using it - how to post, how to upload images, how to make groups.

But, even though this sort of material can be well-researched and genuinely helpful, it’s a commodity - because, unless it tackles an extremely niche, specialized problem, it doesn’t matter that you’re the one who wrote it.

It offers knowledge, but not insight.

Objectivity feels authoritative, but that authority is often performative. As Luke Sullivan writes in Hey Whipple, Squeeze This: The Classic Guide to Creating Great Ads,

“for some reason, when handed a pen and asked to write something that will be seen by others, nine out of 10 people decide an authoritarian tone is somehow more persuasive than clear English.”

Material written in the abstract tends not to be interesting or meaningful because it’s not relatable.

It doesn’t explain why your ideal customers should want to solve a problem, why there’s a specific way you think it should be addressed, or why certain parts of that process might require more time and effort than others.

Instead of creating objective material, specifically articulate your unique process. Explain why you do things the way you do them, and how that approach leads to better outcomes.

Not only will you be sharing insight, you’ll be helping your ideal customer understand how you are differentiated from others in your market, as well as what it’s actually like to work with you.

Because ultimately, the material you create is for them.

And it’s material they shouldn’t be able to get from anyone else.