Spilling One of My Secrets on Differentiation

(Wildebeest picture Imagen 3/Google Gemini)

I recently interviewed for a full-time position with an identity/biometrics company.

The hiring manager and I agreed that differentiation is sorely lacking in the industry.

However, the company did NOT agree that I was the person to lead their firm’s product differentiation efforts.

But this, combined with the upcoming completion of a Bredemarket project later this week, provides an opportunity.

Their loss is your gain

Bredemarket can now help others in the identity/biometric industry, including the hiring firm’s direct competitors, with THEIR differentiation—in the same way Bredemarket has differentiated other companies.

So I am going to help SOME company differentiate itself from the me-too “trust us” crowd. 

But how?

I won’t tell everything, but I will give away ONE of my secrets. 

Which isn’t a secret.

My baby’s got a not-so-secret secret

As you probably know, I like to ask questions before starting a content, proposal, or analysis project. And the first of my questions is critical for differentiation.

Why?

No…that’s the question. Why?

The life experiences of founders are very different. After all, the reason Bill Gates got into the computer business is different than the reason Steve Jobs entered the business. 

  • What if Jobs had never studied calligraphy at Reed? 
  • What if Gates had studied calligraphy at Harvard? 

The world would be very different.

Book ‘em, Danno 

I’ve written about the why question. Here’s an excerpt:

“Before I can write a case study about how your Magnificent Gizmo cures bad breath, I need to understand WHY you’re in the good breath business in the first place. Did you have an unpleasant childhood experience? Were you abandoned at the altar? WHY did you care enough to create the Magnificent Gizmo in the first place?

“Once I (and you) agree on the why, everything else will flow from that, and your own end users will benefit in the process.”

Give me that origin story and I can differentiate you and your product. Whether it’s your breath gizmo or your identity verification solution, we now have a story that your foolish inferior competitors do not have. 

THEY are just mere moneymakers. 

YOU are the enlightened giving individual solving a problem that has bugged you for years, making the world a better place.

So tell your story…and differentiate yourself!

Feeding My Niche

(AI image Imagen 3/Google Gemini)

My interests are admittedly niche (I created a YouTube video about it that most people won’t watch), but I’m still devoted to feeding the few who are also interested in this niche.

So if you’re interested in identity and technology content, ensure you’re following the Bredemarket blog and current social channels. They’ve changed since my original list and the May 2024 contraction, but…

in addition to the Bredemarket website, you can currently search for Bredemarket on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Threads, the aforementioned YouTube, a well-known site that may or may not disappear in the next three weeks, and other places.

Subject to change.

Why No BOI?

(Business terrorist image Imagen 3/Google Gemini)

I asked my good buddy Google Gemini to describe the court arguments against FinCEN beneficial ownership reporting (which as of this hour is on a court-mandated hold pending a possible Supreme Court stay). Two of the items identified by Gemini are Bill of Rights related.

“Some argue the reporting requirements force businesses to disclose information about their owners, which they consider a form of compelled speech. The First Amendment protects freedom of expression, and this argument suggests the government is overstepping its bounds.”

“Critics argue that the collection of beneficial ownership information constitutes a search under the Fourth Amendment. They contend that this collection is overly broad and lacks sufficient justification to meet the constitutional standard of reasonableness.”

Human sources, including Engage Wealth Advisors, mention these same concerns.

So the big boys are still subject to KYC, KYB, and AML regulations, while the little boys (sole proprietors) aren’t. The ones in the middle who would have been subject to the Corporate Transparency Act remain in a state of limbo.

Of course, if an anonymous entity claimed that BOI opponents are Putin lovers who want to hide terrorist activities, those same opponents would want to know who is saying that about them. What’s good for me isn’t good for thee…

Oh BOI Again, Subject to Change

On December 23, 2024, we learned that Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting WOULD be required, albeit later than originally planned.

The next day, December 24, I wrote a Bredemarket blog post about this.

Two days later, December 26, my December 24 blog post was already outdated. 

“On December 26, 2024, a different panel from the Fifth Circuit issued an order that vacated the court’s prior December 23 order granting a stay of the preliminary injunction. As a result, the injunction issued in Texas Top Cop Shop remains in effect nationwide and reporting companies are currently not required to file beneficial ownership information with FinCEN.”

The notice above was published on January 4.

Check back on January 6.

Infrastructure!

Ontario’s Measure Q sales tax increase is funding infrastructure.

““This is a big measure for us,” he continues. “It’s going to bring in anywhere between 65 and 95 million a year in extra funding for our community.” The majority of that is going to be used for capital improvement projects like infrastructure, and so we’re really trying to make sure that our strategy for Measure Q means being transparent in where residents can see the money in their community.””

City of Ontario, CA

Meta Verified is Worthless

I thought X’s blue checks were bad enough, but Meta has topped (or bottomed) Elon in the realm of meaningless identity verification.

The janeaustenpen Instagram account is Meta verified.

From janeaustenpen on Instagram: Meta Verified!

Even though Jane Austen is dead.

Come to think of it, Austen never had a driver’s license. How did she get verified?

But Meta’s AI creation isn’t dead.

And you can’t block “her.”

And probably can’t report “her” for impersonation.

I really dread what LinkedIn is planning. Will Henry Ford dispense advice? Steve Jobs?

Lack of Differentiation Limits Your Available Talent

I’ve talked about differentiation ad nauseam, and even created a video about it last spring.

And I’ve provided some examples of lack of differentiation from my own industry:

  • (Company I) “Reimagine trust.”
  • (Company J) “To protect against fraud and financial crime, businesses online need to know and trust that their customers are who they claim to be — and that these customers continue to be trustworthy.”
  • (Company M) “Trust is the core of any successful business relationship. As the digital revolution continues to push businesses and financial industries towards digital-first services, gaining digital trust with consumers will be of utmost importance for survival.”
  • (Company O) “Create trust at onboarding and beyond with a complete, AI-powered digital identity solution built to help you know your customers online.”
  • (Company P) “Trust that users are who they say they are, and gain their trust by humanizing the identity experience.”
  • (Company V) “Stop fraud. Build trust. Identity verification made simple.”

This isn’t effective. Trust me.

But prospective customers aren’t the only ones who are turned off by “me-too” messaging.

Further ramifications of lack of differentiation

What about prospective employees who don’t want to apply to your company because they see no compelling reason to do so?

I’ll grant that the tech job market is so out of balance right now that people are applying to ANYTHING.

But the more choosy ones are…more choosy in their applications. Just like choosy mothers choose…you know.

From funkystay, https://imgur.com/gallery/choosy-mothers-choose-gif-ykZIPRe.

I recently received this message from a product marketer after I shared a particular identity/biometric job description with them.

Not so sure that company is well positioned for evolving identity landscape.

From a selfish perspective, this benefits me, because I DID apply for this position while they DIDN’T. Reducing the competition increases my chances of getting the job.

But the company (which I’m not naming) doesn’t benefit, because at least one experienced identity verification product marketer doesn’t want to work for them.

So be sure to differentiate…as long as the differentiation resonates with your hungry people (target audience). If your audience is repelled by your differentiation, then that’s a problem with your customer focus.

From the Gary Fly / Brooks Group article “7 Tips for Implementing a Customer-Centric Strategy,” at https://brooksgroup.com/sales-training-blog/7-tips-implementing-customer-centric-strategy/.

Now Bredemarket can’t help you with your job search, because I’m certainly not an expert in that. But I can ask you questions that help you create content that conveys that your product is great and your competitors’ products…are not so good.

Visit Bredemarket’s “CPA” page to learn how I can help your firm’s content (and analysis, and proposals), and to schedule a meeting.

Bredemarket’s “CPA.”

Update on the Apple Vision Pro

(Image from Apple)

For Bredemarket’s first blog post in 2025, I’m updating a blog post from 2023 with updated information from Duncan Riley of SiliconANGLE.

“Apple Inc. may have ceased production of its first-generation Vision Pro headset after the product, which came to market in 2024, turned out to be a massive flop for the company.”

Riley cites a MacRumors post as his source. Why stop?

“Apple now has a sufficient number of Vision Pro units in its inventory to meet demand for the device’s remaining lifespan through to 2025.”

You may recall that I characterized the Apple Vision Pro as a technological biometric advance. But the difficulty and the expense of capturing irises has apparently prevented Vision Pro from achieving world domination.

From Cleveland Clinic. (Link)

Back to face, finger, and voice—with some exceptions.