Take #58: Make a Unique Statement, Not a Copy
Jeremiah Wassom of The Many on why copying competitors says you're just as good as everyone else, and why your brand needs its own point of view.
The Many
Nov 6, 2026 · 2 min read
Stop Watching the Competition
Jeremiah Wassom has a simple view on marketing: marketers should focus less on what other marketers are doing. In Take #58 of The Many Takes, he draws on his past experience to explain why.
What Copying Looks Like
Wassom has worked on projects that literally tried to copy what competitors were doing. Those projects weren't built around what people are looking for, what the work needs to be, or what the messaging needs to say.
His example is simple. A competitor says they are 1% faster, so the instinct is to say you are 1% faster than that.
The Problem With "Just As Good"
When you copy what the rest of the industry is saying or doing, all you are saying is that you are just as good as those guys. In Wassom's words, you are not making any unique statement yourself.
A Better Creative Brief
The stack's description puts it bluntly: your competitors are a terrible creative brief. If a strategy starts with "they did this, so we should too," you have given away the most interesting part, which is your own point of view. The aim is to make something only your brand could make.
A Question for You
What brand always feels unmistakably like itself to you?
About The Many Takes
The Many Takes is original content produced by The Many, a creative agency specializing in food and beverage marketing. It is a series of short-form leadership clips featuring people from across the company.
