{"id":2063,"slug":"rule-table-stakes-vs-differentiation","title":"Rule — Separate \"necessary\" (parity) from \"differentiating\" — be honest in output","kind":"rule","scope":"business","status":"current","audiences":["kevin","candid-team"],"topics":["digital-presence-work-tiers"],"reference_body":"**Rule:** Tell the owner plainly that Tiers 1-2 mostly bring them to PARITY (table stakes), and only Tier 3 — or being meaningfully better than rivals on reviews and content — creates SEPARATION.\n\n**Why:** Owners frequently believe a redesign or \"an SEO\" will catapult them ahead. The evidence says no — Tiers 1-2 are necessary but not sufficient. Setting the right expectation is part of an honest output. Connects to the efficacy-pairing principle in sister brief [[research-brief-smb-widget-presenting-tiers-june-2026]] — a hard message must come with a feasible path, but the path must be honest about what it produces.\n\n**How to apply:** Output language — \"This work will bring you to par with most competitors\" (Tier 1-2) vs \"This work could create separation\" (Tier 3 or aggressive Tier 2 reviews).","rationale_body":null,"metadata":null,"links":{"outgoing":[],"incoming":[{"slug":"research-brief-smb-widget-difficulty-to-work-june-2026","title":"Research brief: SMB widget difficulty-to-work mapping — three tiers of work for three sizes of gap (June 2026)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"depends-on"}]},"created_at":"2026-06-23T19:16:02.753Z","updated_at":"2026-06-23T19:16:02.753Z"}