Help !
I’m a social media consultant /slash/ internet marketer !
Oh boy ! How many do we already got – thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions ?
Shit !
Should you now kill yourself because you are entering a niche that’s fuller than Amy Winehouse at a public concert ?
Of course not !
There’s something to be said about so-called overcrowded and overused things.
Let me give you a few examples:
- Self help. Buddha, the bald guy with the big smile, pretty much summed up the whole principle of internal happiness. If you read a decent book about his teachings, you will know everything about achieving inner happiness there is to know. Read it, apply it, and you are set for life ! Then how come our planet is flooded with hundreds of thousands new books on self-help and happiness every new year ?
- Do you know the dream factory ? That huge industry with the overpaid narcissists (aka actors) and the cocaine sniffing producers. Some people also call it Hollywood.
Guess what:
90% of Hollywood’s movies are based on the three act structure, which is over 2000 years old. Which means that modern filmmakers still use the formula that was invented by those half-naked sword-wielding guys known as the Greeks ?
Now what the heck does this all mean ?
Simply this:
Humans can never get enough. They want more and more…and then a little tiny bit more. And then ? MORE !
It’s a stomach without a bottom – it never gets filled. A black hole that sucks up the Death Star and still craves more.
Avatar, James Cameron’s masterpiece, is considered a mile stone in movie history, yet it’s still based on that thousand year old story structure.
Instead of trying to create something new, take qualities that work and mix them with something creative.
If you aim is to dominate your area of a (super) over-crowded niche, this tips will help you achieve that:
-
Remarkable doesn’t mean groundbreaking
Although it helps coming up with something entirely new (chances for that= –1), it isn’t necessary. Remarkable simply means something is worth making a remark about. It doesn’t say anything about quality – you can be the meanest, most obnoxious internet celebrity in the world. Everything you do and say is useless, but you are so edgy that people choose to talk about you. That’s remark-able.
If you are single (online) business, remarkable can simply mean you leverage your personality:
Naomi Dunford and Gary Vaynerchuk area personality driven businesses. Naomi’s niche is marketing, and she flavors it with her edgy-take-no-prisoner-style. Seriously, in terms of keyword density, she’d gain better ranking for “fuck” and “shit” then “marketing” !
Gary on the other side is all about wine talking and business branding, and dominates that niche by being outrageous and over-the-top.
Now Maki from Dosh Dosh is the opposite example: He’s all about internet marketing, SEO and Social Media, but he’s got such a shy presence it makes my dead grandmother appear like a party animal. He doesn’t even use a real picture of himself – all his images come from Japanese cartoons. His brand is all about being valuable in a mysterious, comic type of way. Worth making a remark about.
If you are one (wo)man show, think about how you can stretch your personality and flavor your whole online presence with it. If you are funny, make it more funny. If you are shy, make your online presence mysterious. If you are outrageous…you know the drill ! It’s all about taking your qualities and stretching them – make ‘em more extreme !
2. Re-invent your digital career
Internet marketers and social media consultants are like zits. Just when you think you got enough, more sprout out of nowhere. Please, don’t become a zit !
Give yourself a title which only YOU can use.
In Berlin, Germany, there’s a former law student who now calls him Doc Alex – the party scientist. He’s earning a killing from organizing up to 150 big parties a year.
- There’s supposed to be an archive worker at CNN who calls herself “Information Goddess of popular culture”
- I know some people that are web designers but call themselves digital storytellers
- Dave Navarro tagged himself as the “Launch coach” and now enjoys top dollars in the 6 figure range.
What do they all have in common ? They are all people who vaporized their standard job description (consultant, archivists, web designer) and created their own instead.
An unknown blogger or marketer has to face a huge problem when entering the competitive online arena. But when the blogger chooses to become a status quo non-conformist, or a Digital Empire builder, he will dominate his part of the niche and leave the competition in the digital dust.
3. If you still set out to be remarkable, you will get there !
I know a friend who used to be a pretty solid designer. Solid income, solid designs, but he wanted more. One day he came up to me “Mars, I want more. I want to create something remarkable!”. Well, I didn’t what to tell him, so I just said “you will get there !”
In my unknowingness I was actually right. Solely his desire to be remarkable made him become remarkable. It took him longer than he thought, but he got there eventually. The changes weren’t dramatic – some small applied ideas here and there every day made his designs become more remarkable over time. He’s now considered a small celebrity in his niche and earns top dollars…eh Euros ;)
wrap up !
Standing out and becoming an authority in your field isn’t as impossible as most people think. Instead of reinventing the digital wheel, worry about “remarkable-izing” your biz.
What’s your title ? What’s your personal and/or unique flavor that you can use in your products and services ?
Merge that with a desire to become remarkable, and you will write your own digital legacy within an ocean of copycats.
Please retweet and Facebook share this message !
Join a community of Create & Conquerors
In addition to my best content, you can also get my free comic branding guide and weekly, inspirational cartoons straight into your inbox:
