More Cowbell: Be Remembered

In one of Saturday Night Live’s most quoted sketches, Christopher Walken demands, “I’ve got a fever. The only prescription is more cowbell.” It’s funny because it’s absurd and memorable because it’s bold. That’s the lesson.

In today’s crowded marketplace, most offerings are fine. Competent. Comparable. And completely forgettable. Founders often chase more features, lower price, faster delivery. But customers don’t remember “slightly better.” They remember different.

Call it your cowbell.

Your cowbell is the one thing people talk about when you’re not in the room. It’s the feature, behavior, or experience that stands out so clearly that it becomes your calling card. It might be radical customer responsiveness. A design aesthetic no one else dares to use. A founder’s authentic story. A guarantee so strong it feels risky. Or a niche so specific that competitors ignore it.

The trap is trying to win on everything. You won’t. The winners are often defined by one distinctive strength executed consistently. Think about the brands you remember. They’re not perfect across the board. They’re known for something.

Now here’s the hard part. Your cowbell can feel uncomfortable. It may even feel like you’re overdoing it. That’s usually a good sign. Safe choices blend in and fade away. Memorable choices create conversation.

So ask yourself what is the one thing we do so well, so differently, that customers would miss it if it disappeared? If you can’t answer that, you don’t have a cowbell yet. You have a commodity. Boring. Forgettable.

Don’t just be better. Be remembered. Turn up the volume on the one thing that makes you unmistakably you.

Because in a noisy market, the edge often isn’t more features.

It’s more cowbell.

John Bradley Jackson
© Copyright 2026 All rights reserved.

P.S. "More cowbell" is a famous catchphrase from a Saturday Night Live sketch meaning to add an extra, enthusiastic element to make something better, more memorable, or to simply have more fun, often by stepping outside comfort zones, derived from Will Ferrell's cowbell player in the sketch. It signifies adding a distinctive, vital component that brings energy or a unique flair, like adding more passion or personality to a task or performance.  (Source: NPR)