Oversubscribed. Priestley Daniel

Yourself from the Market

How to Create Your Own Market

      Let's take a look at actors in the USA as an example of an industry in oversupply. There are over 450,000 people who have a Screen Actors Guild (Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) membership and there are barely 4,500 actors who make better than minimum wage from their acting income. About 99 % of actors can't afford to live on the money they earn from acting. Of the 1 % that does earn some money, fewer than 1,000 actors in the USA make over US$150,000 a year.

      From an economic standpoint there is a massive oversupply of screen actors. So, there's absolutely no reason why a producer would pay a large sum for an actor. Yet, as we know, they do it all the time. For some actors, a fee of millions per film isn't only a possibility; people line up to pay it. These actors are separate from the market. They have made their own market.

      George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Sandra Bullock, Cameron Diaz and Julia Roberts have millions of people who will go and see a film if they are in it. They have created their own market and they are oversubscribed. Their income isn't linked to “the” market; it's linked to their market.

      Champagne brand, Moët & Chandon, has its own market. The price of other sparkling wine from the region doesn't affect them. Their bottles are always oversubscribed because people want to buy their brand.

      Tory Burch handbags and shoes aren't affected by the market price of handbags. Burch made a billion dollars during the great recession while most other brand was on sale. Her brand is oversubscribed because she's built a special relationship with a new type of buyer.

      Berkshire Hathaway shares aren't driven by the normal price of other stocks. They have a dedicated following of people who buy into Warren Buffet's philosophy.

      You have likely assumed up to this point that your business must operate at the whims of the market as though your income is impacted by the economy and that your lifestyle is inextricably linked to what happens “out there” in your industry. If you're linking your business to the industry, to the market and to the trends that everyone else is following, then you'll continue competing on price with everyone else.

      If you separate from the market and build your own market, you can generate as much money as your market will allow for.

      You start this by building your own group of loyal fans. Cultivate a tribe of people who are loyal to your business, your products, your personality and your philosophy. Rally your own troops. Break those people away from the industry, separate them one by one from the market and make them part of something special.