A buzzword, or buzzphrase, if you will, that I hear all over the place right now is “saturated market”. I hear it all over internet in basically every industry. One of those places is in Facebook groups for wedding photographers and filmmakers. Wedding photography is a saturated market. Wedding videography is a saturated market. Blah blah blah. 

There are so many professions that once existed that are no longer around today. And that’s because of the advancement of technology. A quick google search tells me that included in that blanket statement is telemarketers, proofreaders, and receptionists. Do you want to know what job will never be able to be replaced by technology? Wedding videography. And do you want to know what thing will never go out of style? It’s not mom jeans…I do hope those leave….and soon. No. It’s weddings. There will always be weddings, because the world will always be filled with people falling in love. Period. This profession isn’t going anywhere.

And as the population of the world grows, as scary as that is to think about, that just means that this is an ever-expanding market. And the beauty of it is, is that what we create is artwork. As sappy as that sounds, it’s true. We create a work of art for our clients. And no two pieces of art are the same. If you had 5 different teams of wedding filmmakers shoot and edit the same wedding, they would all look drastically different. 

Some of my wedding filmmakers are White in Revery and The Film Poets. I believe they are in roughly the same price bracket and experience level, but you know what? Their films look drastically different. And different types of clients are drawn to their films. White in Revery is moody. They are super hip and cool, and the weddings that they film are super unique. Whether it’s an elopement in Iceland or a boho wedding in the woods, they definitely serve a specific type of client. I can always tell when I’m watching one of their films. 

The film poets are equally as wonderful, but they are what I would call “classic”. They often shoot weddings at huge estates with live artists, and you can tell that their clients are very different from those that White in Revery usually books.And if we want to think about this even a bit further, not only are different types of clients drawn to their films, but different types of clients are drawn to THEM. As people. As a brand. 

You see, they are unique. The same way you and I are unique. We deliver completely different products, we offer completely different experiences, and we attract completely different people as clients. The idea that wedding videography is a saturated market is B.S. You want to know why? Because there is room for all of us. We all have a unique way of looking at the world, we all have a unique voice. We all have a unique style of shooting, and way of editing. We are going to attract different people. While Stephanie may like my style of films, Sarah may strongly prefer yours. It doesn’t mean that one is better than the other. They are just plain different.

Stop telling yourself that there isn’t room for you in this business. There is. There are people out there who love what you create, you just need to know how to find them. Or help them find you. If you ever listen to business podcasts, I’m sure you’ve come across the phrase of “imposter syndrome.” Imposter syndrome is the experience of feeling like a phony—you feel as though at any moment you are going to be found out as a fraud—like you don’t belong where you are, and you only got there through dumb luck — that’s a direct quote from a website called verywellmind.com . You feel like you aren’t legitimate. Like maybe you’re a scam artist, because you’ve been just getting by on luck alone. Put that idea out of your head. If you’re listening to this podcast, I’m sure that you’re the kind of person looking for growth. You want to take your wedding film business seriously, and so you’re looking everywhere for more and more content to consume in order to keep growing.

I may be listening to too much Jenna Kutcher and Rachel Hollis, because I feel so fired up about this. You are unique, you create something unique, and you didn’t get here by accident. You got here through hard work. Wherever you are in your business, you earned it. Plain and simple.

When I was in college, I took an astronomy class. My professor used this analogy when talking about the universe in relation to stars, planets, and asteroids, but I think it applies here as well. He talked about the potato chip rule. Sounds weird right? Well, it actually makes sense. When you open up a bag of potato chips, what do you get? Well, there might be 15 whole and unscathed chips in there. Then there might be, I don’t know, 40 potato chips that are broken in semi-large pieces. Then there are 100 pretty small pieces, and a million crumbs. And you know what? This metaphor can be applied to pretty much any industry, but let’s talk about it in terms of the wedding film industry. There are always new people starting their businesses. They are starting small, because they still have a lot to learn and a name to build for themselves. They are the crumbs. Yep, there are too many of those to count. The competition seems fierce at that level. As time passes, some of those people continue progressing to get to the next level up- they become the small piece of chip, while the rest will either quit or stay small. As you move up in size, there are fewer and fewer businesses like yours and at your level, which means there is less and less competition. You can stand out more, the more you progress, like a bigger potato chip. 

I really hope that made sense. The point it that there are fewer businesses performing at the higher levels, meaning there’s less competition. Which means there’s room for you. While the crumbs are all competing through price and trying to be slightly cheaper than their competition in order to book clients, the rest of the larger chips are at the top of the bag, knowing that they don’t need to compete in the same way.

All of that to say, is that there is room for you. This market isn’t saturated.  You have a unique style and a unique brand. Some people will be instantly attracted to that. And as you continue to level up, there will be even less competition, allowing you to stand out even more. There’s always room for you. Through your very unique style and brand you are going to be able to book plenty of weddings to fill your calendar, and your wallet. But this might not come easily. You may have to put in some work to stand out from the crowd, and to level up to that next size of potato chip. It’s impossible to get to the next level by sheer willpower and hope. No, no. You are going to have to put in some work to get there. There are tons of resources out there to help you become a better filmmaker and improve your skills. But what is equally important, that I see far fewer resources for, are the other areas.

If you want to advance, you are going to need to put in the work in every area of your business. In later episodes, we are going to talk a ton about branding, marketing, and building relationships within the industry. These three things are going to be the keys you need to unlock that next level in your business, to reach your true potential. My goal with todays’ post was to fire you up. I want you to know that you are doing a great job. You have earned your place where you stand today in your business. No matter what, there will always be room for you in the industry, but if you keep climbing that ladder, there will be less and less competition, and more resources for you.

So let’s keep growing, Let’s keep improving and climbing that ladder, and let’s level up together.