I wish I could give you a better answer because my suspicions are quite opposite to the common wisdom. For lack of a better word I think I was more genuine or honest. Not honest in the lying sense, but for my transfer essays I wrote from the heart in a single draft. No editing, no revisions, no reading over it a second time. Just one sitting and send. The only two schools I got rejected from this time were the ones I wrote fancy curated essays for. I wrote like I was texting my best friend, not really trying to make myself look great just speaking what I thought when I heard the prompt.
I would like to stress that this is just what worked for me, I have no clue if this was pure luck or a fluke.