Here is a million dollar idea for anyone willing to take the
heat. All I want is a cut J.
Oddly, it came to me in a very complicated dream that had a
ton of very bizarre pieces to it. But
that is a story for another time.
At one point in the dream, I was at the fridge getting some
beverages to put out for a party that was about to start. I noticed an item that grabbed by
attention. It was a six-pack of baby
blue colored juice boxes, shaped like beer cans, called “Baby Beer.” Looking closer, I saw that it was a non-alcoholic
rice milk shake.
What a fantastic idea I thought. It would help kids feel like they are part of
the party. We know they are always
trying to copy the adults. This way they
could do it in a way that was spill-resistant (the juice box), age-appropriate
(non-alcoholic), uniquely branded (baby blue color), and could have a variety
of tastes (the idea doesn’t really hinge on what is inside – could be juice too).
But here is why it would work for an entrepreneur with no
skills, no distribution, no branding expertise, and no capital to invest. What is the first thing that would happen if
rumors got out of this product? First,
MADD would have a conniption. They would
protest in every newspaper, TV, talk radio, blog, Twitter, Facebook . . . And then the “Oh get over yourselves” crowd
would counter with a “Drink Baby Beer” day.
They would create their own campaign on talk radio, TV, etc. And all of the “Fair and Balanced” media
would have one on one debates and hype the controversy to boost their
ratings.
So all of sudden you would have free publicity, incredible
brand awareness, skyrocketing demand, and a product that is simple enough you
could outsource production and distribution so you could meet this demand
without initial investment.
Then you have to be ready for the fall. Since this is really a silly idea, you know
as soon as the controversy subsides the demand would as well. But you would be ready for it. So as soon as it starts, you immediately halt
production, sell your leftover inventory at 30% off to the Dollar Store, take
your profits and run. By getting out
quick, you could avoid losing all the profits that you made on the
upswing. I figure $2 million net in
6-months.
Then here it gets better.
Wait a year and do it again with something slightly different but just
as controversial. The advocacy groups
would be watching you like a hawk, so it would immediately hit the media
again. “Here he goes again!!! What a jerk!!” “Here he goes again!! What an American Hero.” Jerk/Hero/Jerk/Hero. Six months later another $2 million and 18
month vacation. I figure you probably
have 4 or 5 cycles before society gets bored of you.
