Indie, boutique, anti-mainstream coaching

A cultural hankering for brands worth gatekeeping the shit out of

I’m a lip biter…

But not in that sexy, girl next door kind of way. Moreso in the “I make the inside of my mouth bleed when I’m anxious” kind of way. Over the years, it’s become a visceral, creative tell that I’m off-base (apparently I’m so fucking stubborn that my intuition has to chew her way out in order for me to listen).

Anywho, I’ve bled over this stack for a week. My initial plan was to write this paradigm shattering exposé about some new cultural shifts and patterns I’m seeing in the coaching industry. Something about the notion of writing an exposé made me feel like I needed to button-up my best Lady Whistledown.

[Writer’s Note: I did, in fact, write a LW draft…and it was hot, dumpster fire garbage.]

Everything I typed felt manicured and one-dimensional. Years were taken off my life trying to figure out how to explain things that were feeling intuitive. So in a frustrated, bloodied-mouth moment, I plopped my forehead on my desk and gripped:

“$%MF%&#*$, I wish I could just post all my notes.”

[her intuition screamed, “BITCH FINALLY!”]

So below, I’m going to drop all my notes, observations, potential creative plays, and half-formed thoughts. But before I do, it’s worth noting the origin story of this piece:

Creative originality is trending—and the irony is not lost on me.

While originality is not-so-rebelliously being picketed (primarily around content: what to create, how to create, what really works with new age marketing), what’s behind the marketing protest is a bunch of brands that fundamentally all look the same.

Same funnel structure, offer types, launch strategies, content positioning, hook frameworks, optimization, language, aesthetic, urgency, themes, promises, and investment experiences.

There’s no shade, we just need to understand that content isn’t really the problem—it’s just the external reflection of a much deeper creative epidemic. Now I know that sameness establishes itself because it works, but just because something works doesn’t mean it’s enough. And if the collective is pushing back against what works because it is no longer enough, then the creative terrain is ripe for something delicious to be planted in its place.

With that said, I’ve picked up on a few cultural innuendos and what I can see is that there’s a collective hankering for something off the beaten path.

e.g. Coaching businesses that don’t feel like coaching businesses.

Boutique, anti-mainstream coaching brands are poised to thrive the same way indie music thrives. Their originality will break up the monotony of a conventional coaching build. And instead of garnering more attention by playing into algorithms or standard practices, they’ll actually curate organic culture through more artistic means like: diamond glove experiences that are more artistry than industry; rich brand lore + mystery (kinda like in a fantasy novel series); challenging the hyper-transparency era; and anti-launch practices.

Wild, Rule Breaking Creative Plays: