My home city of Seattle is hosting six of the World Cup games next summer.

It’s a massive opportunity for visibility for the city, but it also comes with some interesting fine print.

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​One quirky detail released today: our stadium, Lumen Field, along with some fancy seat upgrades, will have to strip every sign with its own name on it.

For the month-long tournament, it’ll be known as “Seattle Stadium” instead.

Why the non-descript name?

Because FIFA bans corporate stadium names unless you’re an official FIFA sponsor. 😂

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According to the GM of the stadium, covering up the Lumen Field signage (including on its roof!) will be “a very large task.”

You don’t say.

But it goes to show that when the world biggest stage comes calling, you adjust.

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As solo consultants, we can often get hung up on own titles.

I think it’s a holdover behavior from time in corporate where titles did, in fact, carry some weight. At least internally.

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On our own, yes, we want labels that help the market bucket us.

So we choose things like:

• Fractional CMO
• Strategic advisor
• Executive coach

I’ve personally oscillated from “business coach” to “positioning consultant” with several stops in between.

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But in reality, clients don’t actually care what you call yourself.

They care about whether you can fix the thing keeping them up at night.

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Yes, you need clear services.

And of course, no, you shouldn’t reinvent your business for every client.

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But your “title”? Your preferred descriptor?

It’s just packaging.

It can take a backseat.

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More important is showing up with the relief they need.

And over time, you might find that simply having your name on your ‘stadium roof’ is all the branding you need.

💡

-Wes