Do it different?

[SRE23]

Hey all! Just had a thought. In 'The Millionaire Fastlane ' MJ says not to worry if an idea has been done before and that if you do it better you can still make money at it. However, I've also been told by others, even people on this forum, that some markets are just too overaaturated to get started in. So I'm wondering when it goes from, "Do it different and better" to "It's been done too many times". Thanks!

 

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[Andy Black]

Hey all! Just had a thought. In 'The Millionaire Fastlane ' MJ says not to worry if an idea has been done before and that if you do it better you can still make money at it. However, I've also been told by others, even people on this forum, that some markets are just too overaaturated to get started in. So I'm wondering when it goes from, "Do it different and better" to "It's been done too many times". Thanks!

It's not oversaturated at the top.

There's a thread somewhere in the forum linking to something saying that about a century ago.

More importantly though, take what everyone says with a pinch of salt and figure it out as you go along?

 

[daj]

It's not oversaturated at the top.

There's a thread somewhere in the forum linking to something saying that about a century ago.

More importantly though, take what everyone says with a pinch of salt and figure it out as you go along?

That's where I'm at as well.

Spent so much time overanalyzing, I think the 3A's (Act, Assess, Adjust) would address @SRE23's concern, as well as mine. Just start.

 

[WJK]

Hey all! Just had a thought. In 'The Millionaire Fastlane ' MJ says not to worry if an idea has been done before and that if you do it better you can still make money at it. However, I've also been told by others, even people on this forum, that some markets are just too overaaturated to get started in. So I'm wondering when it goes from, "Do it different and better" to "It's been done too many times". Thanks!

I have learned that 1/3 of every market is unserved. We've had some real winners that have served those segments of the different markets. Ever heard of PayPal? How about 'Airbnb? Etsy? Heard of eBay? And then there are guys like Uber? And the list goes on...

Personally, I provide the only group of affordable housing and the only self-service Laundromat in my community. When Covid hit, I knew I'd be fine. People must have housing here in Alaska to stay alive. And someday they must wash their clothes. If the bottom falls out of our RE market, I can always adjust my rents and carry on. Necessary services are just that --necessary.

 

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[Josh Dueck]

Hey all! Just had a thought. In 'The Millionaire Fastlane ' MJ says not to worry if an idea has been done before and that if you do it better you can still make money at it. However, I've also been told by others, even people on this forum, that some markets are just too overaaturated to get started in. So I'm wondering when it goes from, "Do it different and better" to "It's been done too many times". Thanks!

In my personal opinion, oversaturation is a pretty overhyped term, if you are able to something better than everyone else, you will get paid handsomely for it, it's as simple as that. Of course, you can't go about sending the same boring email scripts as everyone else and expect to get any clients, because the point is even though you might have the best service, no one knows, cause you look like everyone else, you have to stand out, you have to prove yourself, and you have to be the best. If you have the best system, proof to back it up, and a reliable way to get prospects into your pipeline and then have the skills to close them, you are unstoppable.

 

[svekk1]

If a marker is oversaturated, it means that the margins (profit divided by revenue * 100) are slim. Does that mean that you cannot make it? No, it simply means that even if you do, your profit (compared to revenue) will not be huge.

Extreme example, but in the airline industry most of the airlines are making losses. The successful ones have a margin of 1-4%. Which of course, can still be a lot of money.

 

[Johnny boy]

In general, the businesses that are on everyone’s mind, that everyone talks about, are going to be so difficult that you would have better success in an industry nobody is talking about.

My friend makes headstones. He has a showroom, office workers, all the equipment where his manufacturing employees make them.

He’s killing it. He’s got a 100k M4 and still in his 20’s, he will be getting a lambo pretty soon. He’s renovating his house and just opened his second showroom. He has to pick between wearing his Rolex or his Breitling when we go out to dinner.

And it will still be a growing and thriving business in 10 years, can you say the same for all of your Shopify stores, FBA, dropshipping, SMMA businesses?

There is so much wealth it’s obscene. It’s all of these random little businesses. I’m typing this and in front of me is a wine glass. Somewhere there’s a guy who owns the factory making thousands and thousands of these simple glasses, making hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars. There’s a company that makes the machines to make those glasses, those machines probably cost a boatload and the company that makes those is worth millions. Etc.

Young entrepreneurs are so naive and solipsistic and think that there’s really only a couple businesses out there that exist. No, there’s so many it’s impossible to list.

 

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[WJK]

If a marker is oversaturated, it means that the margins (profit divided by revenue * 100) are slim. Does that mean that you cannot make it? No, it simply means that even if you do, your profit (compared to revenue) will not be huge.

Extreme example, but in the airline industry most of the airlines are making losses. The successful ones have a margin of 1-4%. Which of course, can still be a lot of money.

So do grocery stores.

 

[SRE23]

It's not oversaturated at the top.

There's a thread somewhere in the forum linking to something saying that about a century ago.

More importantly though, take what everyone says with a pinch of salt and figure it out as you go along?

Thanks Andy. I will look for that forum

 

[SRE23]

That's where I'm at as well.

Spent so much time overanalyzing, I think the 3A's (Act, Assess, Adjust) would address @SRE23's concern, as well as mine. Just start.

I'd never heard of the three A's but that's a really good point. Thanks, daj!

 

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[daj]

I'd never heard of the three A's but that's a really good point. Thanks, daj!

It's from MJ's books, best of luck!

 

[Kevin88660]

Hey all! Just had a thought. In 'The Millionaire Fastlane ' MJ says not to worry if an idea has been done before and that if you do it better you can still make money at it. However, I've also been told by others, even people on this forum, that some markets are just too overaaturated to get started in. So I'm wondering when it goes from, "Do it different and better" to "It's been done too many times". Thanks!

Most industries are saturated with mediocre services and products.

For instance as business people often we are pitched with lead generation services.

This is also an industry known to be “saturated”.

As the consumers side of the service we know “positive roi leads” are yet to be seen but negative roi leads are “saturated”.

In other words if you go in with the mindset to copy what others are doing then expect a hard life.

Patients expect a cure for cancer and it is your job to at least have the balls to aim to tackle it when you comes into the business.

Solve hard problems, because if if you fail you at least had a chance to succeed.

 

[GuestUser4aMPs1]

In general, the businesses that are on everyone’s mind, that everyone talks about, are going to be so difficult that you would have better success in an industry nobody is talking about.

My friend makes headstones. He has a showroom, office workers, all the equipment where his manufacturing employees make them.

He’s killing it. He’s got a 100k M4 and still in his 20’s, he will be getting a lambo pretty soon. He’s renovating his house and just opened his second showroom. He has to pick between wearing his Rolex or his Breitling when we go out to dinner.

And it will still be a growing and thriving business in 10 years, can you say the same for all of your Shopify stores, FBA, dropshipping, SMMA businesses?

There is so much wealth it’s obscene. It’s all of these random little businesses. I’m typing this and in front of me is a wine glass. Somewhere there’s a guy who owns the factory making thousands and thousands of these simple glasses, making hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars. There’s a company that makes the machines to make those glasses, those machines probably cost a boatload and the company that makes those is worth millions. Etc.

Young entrepreneurs are so naive and solipsistic and think that there’s really only a couple businesses out there that exist. No, there’s so many it’s impossible to list.

Now we're talking.

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) U.S. Census Bureau

Codes #11-33 are full of the old school aging out. Insane money and lazy competition.
11 Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting
21 Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction
22 Utilities
23 Construction
31-33 Manufacturing

Take a look at this:



No, I don't know what the F*ck it does either.

But it looks expensive. Someone made money building it or using it.

When you realize THIS is out there, nobody wants to work on a stupid little dropship site.

 

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[svekk1]

Codes #11-33 are full of the old school aging out. Insane money and lazy competition.
11 Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting
21 Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction
22 Utilities
23 Construction
31-33 Manufacturing

If I remember correctly, these can be looked into further (for niches)

 

[WJK]

If I remember correctly, these can be looked into further (for niches)

I think that manufacturing sectors are going to get really interesting. China's labor costs have risen and they have gotten a PR black eye. (I think about Japan around 1990 as a past example) I think there is going to be a lot of "re-shoring" here in the US -- coupled with a lot of use of robotics to help close the cost factor.

This time industrialization with come with a new twist. It not only will be just-in-time production and delivery, but industries will also be able to customize individual orders. It used to take an artisan to do that. Production lines had to be standardized because of the cost of machinery and retooling. Now computers with their robot counterparts can quickly be programmed to make exactly the product requested on an individual basis. We are in the right place at the right time for a renaissance in manufacturing.

​

 

[Robdavis]

I think that manufacturing sectors are going to get really interesting. China's labor costs have risen and they have gotten a PR black eye. (I think about Japan around 1990 as a past example) I think there is going to be a lot of "re-shoring" here in the US -- coupled with a lot of use of robotics to help close the cost factor.

This time industrialization with come with a new twist. It not only will be just-in-time production and delivery, but industries will also be able to customize individual orders. It used to take an artisan to do that. Production lines had to be standardized because of the cost of machinery and retooling. Now computers with their robot counterparts can quickly be programmed to make exactly the product requested on an individual basis. We are in the right place at the right time for a renaissance in manufacturing.

​

It will be interesting to see if AI can help with the retooling process.

So instead of having to reprogramme every machine to make a new product and change its tools, you will just be able to say to the AI "make this" and it will then make it's version of that thing.

You will just then have to adjust your instructions to the AI until the factory produces what you want. It could take minutes instead of weeks.

 

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[WJK]

It will be interesting to see if AI can help with the retooling process.

So instead of having to reprogramme every machine to make a new product and change its tools, you will just be able to say to the AI "make this" and it will then make it's version of that thing.

You will just then have to adjust your instructions to the AI until the factory produces what you want. It could take minutes instead of weeks.

That's what I'm thinking. I don't even think that you would need AI. My smartphone has more computing power than NASA had when they made the moon shot. I bet that the IT is already out there waiting to be tapped.

I am also thinking of a situation where we could set up mini-production plants that could be run 24/7/365. I bet that a person could set up a very profitable one that makes custom products. And from a RE point of view, set up an "incubation complex" with compatible and cooperating businesses. That would give a start-up the chance to test the market segments and a small-scale manufacturing process. It can always be duplicated or expanded as the business grows.

A long time ago, my ex was in the food business. We thought about setting up a complex for small-sized food manufacturers with FDA commercial kitchen spaces. The complex would have had community freezers and fridges. Also, community loading bays and warehousing. The community spaces were planned to be owned and operated as a separate business that we were going to retain. He divorced me, so we didn't do it. But it would have worked. I can see using a similar type of complex for other types of businesses.

 

[Consolation]

It's not oversaturated at the top.

There's a thread somewhere in the forum linking to something saying that about a century ago.

No, Your Market Is Not Saturated (Wisdom From A 19th Century Book)​

 

[WJK]

It will be interesting to see if AI can help with the retooling process.

So instead of having to reprogramme every machine to make a new product and change its tools, you will just be able to say to the AI "make this" and it will then make it's version of that thing.

You will just then have to adjust your instructions to the AI until the factory produces what you want. It could take minutes instead of weeks.

After I posted yesterday, I thought of the perfect example of this concept. One of my suppliers makes custom roofing metal. I know that's not sexy, but... He gets rolls of the metal. I call him and tell him how many sheets I need and the exact length. I tell him what finishing pieces I need -- roof cap, drip edge, valleys, et.c It's one phone call that ends with me giving him my credit card. He put that roll of metal through his machines and custom makes my metal pieces in a couple of days. He loads it on his specially built trailer with rollers for easy handling. He delivers it to my job site and the metal rolls off his trailer exactly where I want it. The delivery fee is standard and a line item on my invoice. I'm happy to pay for it. There's no waste to cut off the ends of that roof line. All of the parts are there and made for that job. He has a woman who answers his phone and a couple of guys to help him in the shop. And then there's his delivery guy. He's closed on the weekends and keeps normal business hours.

 

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[The-J]

In general, the businesses that are on everyone’s mind, that everyone talks about, are going to be so difficult that you would have better success in an industry nobody is talking about.

My friend makes headstones. He has a showroom, office workers, all the equipment where his manufacturing employees make them.

He’s killing it. He’s got a 100k M4 and still in his 20’s, he will be getting a lambo pretty soon. He’s renovating his house and just opened his second showroom. He has to pick between wearing his Rolex or his Breitling when we go out to dinner.

And it will still be a growing and thriving business in 10 years, can you say the same for all of your Shopify stores, FBA, dropshipping, SMMA businesses?

There is so much wealth it’s obscene. It’s all of these random little businesses. I’m typing this and in front of me is a wine glass. Somewhere there’s a guy who owns the factory making thousands and thousands of these simple glasses, making hundreds and hundreds of thousands of dollars. There’s a company that makes the machines to make those glasses, those machines probably cost a boatload and the company that makes those is worth millions. Etc.

Young entrepreneurs are so naive and solipsistic and think that there’s really only a couple businesses out there that exist. No, there’s so many it’s impossible to list.

One of my first gigs was for a Jewish funeral home. A lot of people don't know this but Jewish people have specific rules regarding funeral services & burials. No matter what, the coffin needs to meet certain specifications, the body has to be washed a certain way, a certain prayer has to be said, and the burial must happen within a day of death.

The proprietor of the funeral home is a woman from the former Soviet Union. She came with no money, no English skills, no nothing. But she knew the Russian-speaking Jewish community needed a funeral home who would do everything according to Jewish law. She worked in the industry, completed the necessary exams, and opened a Russian-speaking Jewish funeral home.

Their cheapest coffin is literally a wooden box with a Star of David on it for $1k. No polish, no veneer, no cushion on the inside, no nothing. You nail it shut and chuck it into the ground. $1k. Imagine the margins on that. How many people die every day? That wooden F*cking box is literally the cheapest option you have. Everything else is $5k+.

The family does well, they live in a nice home in NYC.

 

[Johnny boy]

One of my first gigs was for a Jewish funeral home. A lot of people don't know this but Jewish people have specific rules regarding funeral services & burials. No matter what, the coffin needs to meet certain specifications, the body has to be washed a certain way, a certain prayer has to be said, and the burial must happen within a day of death.

The proprietor of the funeral home is a woman from the former Soviet Union. She came with no money, no English skills, no nothing. But she knew the Russian-speaking Jewish community needed a funeral home who would do everything according to Jewish law. She worked in the industry, completed the necessary exams, and opened a Russian-speaking Jewish funeral home.

Their cheapest coffin is literally a wooden box with a Star of David on it for $1k. No polish, no veneer, no cushion on the inside, no nothing. You nail it shut and chuck it into the ground. $1k. Imagine the margins on that. How many people die every day? That wooden F*cking box is literally the cheapest option you have. Everything else is $5k+.

The family does well, they live in a nice home in NYC.

1k minimum for a cheap box and people are STILL dying to do business with them!

My buddy says "You stab 'em, we slab 'em!"