How-To Tuesday: Creating a Need From Thin Air

Written on September 22, 2009 by Susan Payton

I was inspired by a website today, and wanted to craft my post around it. The site is I Wear Your Shirt. The concept is that this guy (soon to be joined by another guy) wears a different promotional t-shirt every day. Companies pay for the privilege of him wearing their shirts. He also blogs about it, takes videos, and does other promotions.

His charge is pretty nominal, at least in the early months of the year: he charges his fee based on what day of the year it is (Jan 1 is $1 while December 31 is $365).

He is sold out for the rest of this year.

Now I think this guy is damn smart. He took an idea and ran with it. He didn’t need talent to wear shirts, though he did need smarts to figure out people would pay for this.  He created a niche where there was nothing before. Those businesses that now advertise with him didn’t think to themselves last year, boy, we really need to find a guy to wear our shirts around town. But now that he’s here, the need has arisen.

So how can YOU create a need where there’s not one right now?

• Think smart. Don’t think like everyone else. Look for solutions in what you do every day. This guy puts on a shirt every day. And he probably didn’t like paying for them. And he wanted money. Throw that in a pot, stir it for a while, and voila. An idea.
• Look at the solutions that are already out there and find better solutions. Ebooks are a better solution for books for people who are on the go. A cell phone is a better solution for communicating than a walkie talkie.
• Get out. I get my best ideas away from my desk. Walking. Doing yoga. Driving. Eating. Find inspiration where you wouldn’t normally look for it.
• Make a list of any and all your ideas. None are dumb. Simmer them a while, show them to your friends, and see where it gets you.

Posted in Entrepreneurship

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