The Key to Thriving in a Saturated Marketplace
We're taught a piece of conventional wisdom from a rather young age that I've come to see as quite flawed, at least when it comes to entrepreneurship:
Don't do what everybody else is doing.
There are just too many blogs around. Why would the market support another one?
Everybody's trying to speak into this space. Why would my voice matter?
The big guys are all doing this so well. Could I really compete?
But here's what I've discovered...
Market saturation means there is demand.
Why are there so many home decor blogs? Blogs for stay-at-home moms? Blogs about health and fitness?
Because people are looking for more content than what currently exists.
That doesn't guarantee that entering a crowded space will automatically lead to success. In fact, it can lead to miserable failure. (Just being honest...)
So if you're going to survive - or better yet, thrive - in a crowded marketspace, you have one option...
Do it better than it's being done.
You can either be first, or you can be better.
That doesn't mean you have to view everyone else in the marketplace with cutthroat competitiveness. You should still look for ways to collaborate with peers in your market.
But you should be competing against the collective standard of excellence people have come to expect in your space.
In other words, decide to go beyond average. Way beyond it.
Raise the bar for others in your niche. Set the pace. Be a market leader even before you feel capable of it.
Differentiation is the big bonus!
Not only can you do it better than what people are finding in the current market - you can also do it differently!
It doesn't take a big difference. Just a noticeable one.
Reject fear and take the plunge. Join the crowd.
Then rise above it.
Recent Comments
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Very eloquently stated, Brandon. Also, very true. You have the wheels turning in my head right now. :) Thanks for that!
Linda
That's exactly how I feel.
I've been learning how to do things and already doing it in a different way. One that makes me and my audience comfortable.
My goal is to have them thinking: "Wow, this is exactly what I've been looking for!" and thus get them engaged.
All the best!
If there's saturation that means all you have to do is find that group within that niche that isn't being served and make them your target market.
For example, Atlanta is saturated with chiropractors---my friend decided to close her office and go to the homes of clients who need her service instead of them coming to her. She has the same income that she had in her office only she doesn't have the overhead of office maintenance and she gets tax brakes working from home
Even lemmings jumping over a cliff to their death is a myth and is really a migratory movement of a strong swimmer! http://mentalfloss.com/article/50957/do-lemmings-really-run-cliffs-their-death
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I work in a very competitive market . . . as do you as a pastor! The one thing that I have found is that I'm not looking for everyone. I'm just caring for the ones that God sends to me. I never pray for money. I pray for people to help live a better life and God blesses my family for it. Thanks again for another informative post.