The Art Of Admitting You Suck At Everything Except…
I sat down at the table and asked the server for coffee — a routine request at any restaurant. His response blew me away.
“I’ll have a coffee,” I said.
He shook his head in a way that suggested mocking disapproval. “Have you had our coffee before?”
His behavior puzzled me. Did I commit a faux pas by ordering coffee? “No.”
“You don’t want it. It’s famously horrible.”
“Oh, okay. Thanks for your honesty.”
This is a popular restaurant. Getting a table requires a reservation, even for lunch. How could they thrive with such horrible coffee? Not only is it horrible, the poor quality earned them fame. The server seemed almost boastful about it. What’s going on here?
Admitting You Suck Can Be A Good Thing
Their strategy makes sense once you break it down to its individual components.
This restaurant is famous for its barbecue dishes. You only go there for this type of food. Yes, they have other items on the menu but you don’t order them. If you try to order a non-barbecue item they do their best to dissuade you.
Most business (and people too) do better at focusing on a small niche rather than a large generic market. Boasting about the poor quality of their other food implies they dedicate all of their focus to their core competency (barbecue food). They have no effort left to put on their other menu items.
This approach leads customers to conclude exactly what the business wants.
“If they put so much effort on their barbecue food, even at the expense of everything else, it must be amazing.”
This Approach Will Piss Off The Right People
They don’t care if they offend or anger customers who walked in looking for French food or Italian food. Those aren’t the customers they seek. Their sole focus is appealing to lovers of barbecue. Even their coffee sucks and it’s easy to make decent coffee.
I have a feeling they do that on purpose as part of their we abhor everything non-barbecue mantra. They steered me over to their iced tea. I asked for unsweetened. This elicited a brief, but noticeable dirty look. I found it amusing.
It’s tempting to say you can do everything well. It’s tempting to say you do a good job outside your core competency. Admitting you suck takes guts. It builds credibility. It creates a contrast.
“We ONLY do barbecue well… but we do it better than anyone else.”
This kind of approach attracts fanatical fans who love your specialty as much you do.
Of course, this approach hinges on your ability to perform awesome in your little niche. And yes… their food is amazing.
Before You Go…
I write about marketing, creativity and writing. I’m giving away guides on creativity, bullet writing and more. Click here to get yours. Connect with me on Twitter or linkedIn. P.S. — Click “clap” below. It helps others find this story.
