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Hidden in Plain Sight: A Briefing on Clever Business Models

This briefing analyzes two podcast excerpts that explore the surprising origins and clever business models behind seemingly mundane products and traditions.

Main Theme: Uncovering the often overlooked entrepreneurial opportunities that exist by selling free information or leveraging cultural shifts.

Part 1: Products You Never Knew Were Businesses

This section highlights three products and the ingenious businesses built around them:

1. Water Quality Testing App (Oasis):

• The Opportunity: A young entrepreneur named Cormac recognized the difficulty in accessing readily available water quality data. He created an app, Oasis, that aggregates this information and presents it in a user-friendly way.
• Business Model: While some basic information is free, users pay a $45 annual subscription for full reports, independent testing results, and healthy product recommendations.
• Key Takeaway: Capitalizing on the growing concern about water quality, Oasis leverages free data and a viral TikTok marketing strategy to build a thriving business.
• Quote: "We live in a world where we think we live in abundance... but the problem is most of it’s filled with toxins. None of it is actually healthy." - Cormac, founder of Oasis

2. Labor Law Posters:

• The Opportunity: Legally mandated labor law posters must be displayed in all businesses, creating a recurring need.
• Business Model: Companies leverage fear tactics, highlighting potential legal violations, to sell posters, despite the information being freely available online.
• Key Takeaway: Identifying a mandatory requirement and providing a convenient, albeit marked-up, solution can be a lucrative business.
• Quote: "The letter looks a little... scary, and it says, 'Hey, if you don’t have this poster up you are in violation of California labor laws right now...'" - Sam Parr

3. Barcodes:

• The Opportunity: The ubiquity of barcodes, standardized across retailers and essential for supply chain management, creates a captive market.
• Business Model: GS1, a non-profit organization, controls barcode allocation and charges fees for their use.
• Key Takeaway: Controlling an essential element of a widely adopted system can generate significant revenue, even if the product itself is essentially information.
• Quote: "Barcode sales makes up 93% of [GS1's revenue]... and again, a barcode is nothing, it’s literally like a just a set of lines that they’re selling for $90 million a year." - Sam Parr

Part 2: Tradition Hijacking: Marketing That Shapes Culture

This section explores the fascinating phenomenon of how marketers have created or amplified traditions to drive sales:

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