It seems that everyone can build an AI product in a weekend. But how do you build a company that lasts? Well, you first need to give yourself a fighting chance by shaping a story that stands out and gives people a reason to believe. As Ben Parr (co-founder of Octane AI and Theory Forge Ventures) puts it, it all comes down to your brand. 

As Ben explained on our Best Story Wins podcast, technology itself is ceasing to be the primary differentiator. Product matters, of course, but in today’s landscape, your story (and the ability to tell that story well) matters more than ever and is the critical thing that will set you apart. Ben knows this from firsthand experience. 

As a former editor at Mashable who founded his AI company back in 2016, he’s seen how the relationship between technology and brand has evolved. For him, it’s clear that not enough leaders are investing in brand building, and they’re going to pay the price if they don’t course correct. 

So what makes a standout brand? Ben shared the key traits that have swayed him to support (and even invest) in specific companies. 

1. Every touchpoint helps tell the story.

According to Ben, one of the most overlooked aspects of brand building is recognizing that every touchpoint contributes to your story. And that doesn’t just mean your marketing content or site copy. It’s everything from your product UX to your onboarding flow for new customers. 

Take Wordware, one of Ben’s portfolio companies that’s now powering AI workflows for giants like Uber and Instacart. He said he invested in them before they got into Y Combinator simply because they had built such an incredible onboarding experience and product. That attention to the user journey, along with storytelling through product design, has helped them secure $30 million in funding and attract major enterprise clients.

Tip: Audit all your customer touchpoints and analyze the stories they do or don’t tell. Do they reflect your voice, visual identity, values, etc.? Are you taking advantage of things like CTAs or emails? Look for ways to create consistency across the journey. 

2. Embrace flexible storytelling.  

You want to stay relevant? “You have to tell a story really quickly because there’s an increasing amount of things going after your attention and your audience’s attention,” Ben says.

This need for speed doesn’t mean sacrificing quality or consistency. Instead, it requires brands to be more strategic about how they communicate and more nimble in responding to changing market conditions.

Ben also notes that you have to consider your audience’s perception of your company, industry, climate, etc. because “their preconceptions of the world really do frame the story.”

Tip: Take a more modular approach to campaign messaging so that content can be quickly adapted to different contexts and channels. This allows you to respond quickly and reconfigure campaigns without having to rebuild from scratch if the market changes. 

3. Create a community around your story. 

One of the most effective ways Ben’s company Octane AI has differentiated itself is through the Octane AI collective, a group of over 150 members, including influencers, company owners, executives, agency owners, etc. They all have a small piece of ownership in the company in exchange for their feedback and counsel about the product. This insight is invaluable to the company’s evolution, and the community they’ve cultivated is a key differentiator that can’t be easily copied or replicated by competitors.

Tip: Look for ways to build community with customers, strategic industry partners, or publications that can strengthen your position in the market.

Remember: Brand Is a Long-Term Advantage

AI isn’t going anywhere, and it will continue to drive market success. But the technology you use today may be widely available tomorrow. If you want to win, “double down on AI, double down on brand,” Ben says. “Those are doubly important in this AI world, where the thing that’ll separate a company from another is the strength of their brand recognition.” Most importantly, make sure all of leadership is aligned around that priority (and that you have the infrastructure, team, and tools to support it). 

To start, listen to Ben’s full episode on the Best Story wins podcast for more insights on building a competitive company, storytelling for VCs vs. customers, and more.