Different Beats Best: Be the Purple Cow

In this episode of The Handcrafted Podcast, Paul revisits Seth Godin’s Purple Cow and lays out how makers break through by being deliberately different rather than chasing “best.” Sparked by a marketing convo earlier in the day, he reframes how to position a craft business so it stands out in a sea of look-alike messaging.He distills the approach into a set of practical moves:Difference over “best.” Compete by being meaningfully distinct, not by claiming superiority.Name your edge. Replace generic terms (“handcrafted,” “custom”) with specific positioning—e.g., PTC’s Single-Maker Approach.Show the build. Use shop-floor storytelling to “stop the scroll”: works-in-progress, tools, scale, process.Price with purpose. Set premium pricing to signal you’re not a big-box alternative.Niche and be bold. Choose edges (smaller/bigger, louder/quieter) and make decisions that feel a little scary—in the best way.Lead with a point of view. Let values (like eco-responsibility) attract the right clients.Paul shares how Philadelphia Table Company applies this: running ads that feature 15-foot tables mid-build in the shop, leaning into fully bespoke projects (drawings, revisions, unusual sizes/colors), and using language that differentiates instead of blending in. The goal is a defensible moat—story, process, and positioning that mass manufacturers can’t copy.Join the Network