The marketing equivalent of greige walls and a porcelain farmhouse sink

For years we've toed the line around making our house our own (though early on we leapt into the unknown and painted the kitchen the color of vodka cream sauce), but we've wasted a lot of time debating how to choose the "right" updates so we can make a killing when we sell it. (Coming out ahead = making a killing, for us).

I always wondered, Will a huge area of the backyard landscaped as a Monarch butterfly sanctuary be an asset or a turn-off for future buyers?

Is a shower lined with subway tile too 7-years-ago? (I'm thinking that was a trend for awhile there...?)

Will someone wish there was still a handy pantry cabinet in the corner of the dining room, just waiting to store their Honey Nut Cheerios?

All that wondering about what these imagined future buyers would want kept us from making any decisions for a long time.

So the house pretty much stayed just the way it was when we moved in, even though it didn't fit our needs and totally wasn't our taste (white walls and a couple hydrangea bushes — ugh).

Finally, with some help from my favorite minimalism blog, I convinced my husband to say screw the hypothetical listing price of our house in a completely unknown number of years in the future.

We were going to make this baby our own.

We ripped out all the built-ins that other people would love, but not us, because we don't keep anything that needs dusting.

We gave away the pantry cabinet that is genuinely useful but we can live without.

We built massive vegetable gardens even though they'll be a pain in the ass to manage for anyone who's not me.

And we're going bold and painting a whole bunch of the exterior Dreamsicle Orange.

Maybe you're cringing at the Dreamsicle, but it's totally our style. It's ours, and we love it, regardless of trends.

Bringing it back to marketing...

Just like your house, make your marketing yours. When you look around, lots of people will be sharing inspirational quotes on Instagram, doing online training courses to enroll clients, and starting a YouTube channel...

Just like lots of people choose plain old hostas in their landscaping, paint their walls greige, and have navy blue lower cabinets supporting a porcelain farmhouse sink.

They're easy, well-known, on-trend, and even great design — but before you jump on the wagon, think: Do they work for you?

Are they what you want to spend your time on?

Are they the best way for you to market your business?

Choose consciously. And whatever you choose to do, make it your own.

YOUR TURN: Have you bucked trends in marketing your business (or, heck, in your home design) to make it your own?

Talk to you soon,

Andrea