Specificity and Product Branding

Sorry to speak about you as if you are a product again... but, since casting is effectively a job quest and a hiring process in an ultra-competitive market, standard business and marketing principles apply.

If you think otherwise, you're likely taking your advice from the legions of hucksters and racketeers who run "pay for play" talent services in Los Angeles, illegal under the Krekorian Talent Scam Prevention Act, but still prevalent in 2025. Nothing says failed actor like "I have a business proposition that you can't refuse: INSTANT FAME for only $1000.00" Substitute "agent" or "casting" for the word FAME when appropriate.

Have you heard of YETI? They are best known for coolers that are also backpacks that allow campers to take 6- or 12-packs of cold beer into the back-country. YETI is not struggling because they are targeting a very specific or "niche" market segment.

Furthermore, go to your local Target and look at the cooler aisle: in 2025 it's basically filled with YETI knock-offs. If you're struggling in your career it's because you are trying to be TARGET (Brie Larson) when you should be trying to be YETI (character actor with a look, accidental actor Wallace Shawn comes to mind.).

Even though you've never heard of YETI, don't yet own any YETI products, you probably still think you're more famous than YETI. Except YETI has a factory store next to The Apple Store in Encinitas, California and legions of die hard fans. And a very profitable business selling weird cooler backpacks to outdoorsy people.

Google it, or if you're lazy, ChatGPT it.

YETI rocks while you languish.

YETI knows the secret.

The secret is specificity and narrow-casting.

In other words: have a look and specialize in a single archetypical character type chosen specifically for a market "category" that is not saturated.

Let me show you product specificity (or branding) in a series of images of commercially successful backpack-type products, starting with a YETI.

One of YETI's legendary coolers. Don't be surprised if you buy one for the beach. Nobody wants warm beer.

Note the price: $380-ish (YMMV). Because the product has a market and an intended customer, the vendor can sell the product at a premium price.

Surfboard and Snowboard carrying backpack. The waterproof feature pushes it over the top. Even spring snow conditions demand waterproof gear.

If you're a snowboarder or a surfer and need to trek to get to the rad breaks or deep powder, probably you're in the market for this backpack (above). This is specific.

Something closer to home since as an actor/side-hustle, you may personally have already driven for Uber or Uber Eats or Doordash. This particular backpack concept is very popular in my urban area.

Uber Eats type backpack. You wouldn't be caught dead wearing this to your acting class. Unless you're bringing five extra large Hawaiian Pizzas to class.  Also, you wouldn't pack even one hot melted cheese pie into that new Gucci bag (or knockoff) that you just acquired.

This is what we mean by marketing and branding SPECIFICITY.

In contrast, this is how the vast majority of struggling actors are promoting themselves: as representing some generic neighborhood or demographic in suburban America. Actors falsely believe that roles for such archetypes are actively casting. The truth is that these categories are completely saturated with aspirants while contemporaneously being dominated by what is called "Star talent" (child actors or survivorship bias stories that have been widely circulated for their click-bait value).

Ad nauseum: I'm America's "girl next door" and YOU CAN cast me in any role that EMMA STONE and/or CHLOË GRACE MORETZ can do because I'm like the combination of those two famous people!  This might work if you are an oddly compelling hybrid love-child of Wallace Shawn (bad combover) and Steve Buscemi.

AKA BRANDING ERROR.

Sameness is not fairness and the casting principles that are used for NAME talent differ completely from the rules that are applied to noobs. Unless the noobs are 9 years old.