The transformation of an entrepreneur into a Market Creator helps to create innovative businesses that solve huge problems and provide constant value to the customers.

Market Creator is also an entrepreneur, but he goes a step forward in turning innovative business ideas into practical, sustainable, and profitable realities.

He either divides the market to create a new segment or creates a new segment for his offering. When e-commerce entered India, it divided the market into two segments–online and offline retail.

Market Creator addresses a gap in the market and has a vision for it.

Elon Musk is the best example for Market Creator. Elon, considered one of the most powerful men in the world, has worked on breakthrough ideas through his ventures, Tesla Motors, SpaceX, to redefine transportation on earth and space.

His investments are innovative, ahead of time, not only surprising customers but also competition. His vision is to change the world and humanity.

The question now arises; how can you become a Market Creator?

It’s so easy to settle for less. When you want more, you need to tread a tough terrain.

The following diagram shows the transition of an entrepreneur to a Market Creator. The five key elements—traits, trends & timing, team, execution, and creation through innovation, should work seamlessly like a well-oiled engine to transform the entrepreneur into a Market Creator.

All these elements are essential, and their degree of influence may vary from one situation to another. It is, however, the convergence and functioning of these elements as a coherent unit that gives momentum to the transition.

The amount of success would depend on the strength, cohesion, and direction of the elements in the same direction.

Traits—Entrepreneurship is tough, but becoming a Market Creator is tougher. Market Creators are diverse in their thinking, approach, and actions.

They constantly challenge the status quo and redefine the market. They want to make the future exciting and explore the role they can play in making that happen.

They enter a market not to make an impact, but to position themselves as the creators of the market. Their approach is to create new markets or break up existing ones to suit themselves.

They introduce a major differentiator in the market and make that differentiator as the key to their supremacy.

On January 9, 2007, Steve Jobs launched the iPhone as a “revolutionary mobile phone” with iPod, phone, and internet communicator. Apple has redefined how the smartphone industry operates not only in the United States but all across the world.

Trends & Timing—Trends shape our future. Market Creators read them to plan their success. It doesn’t matter whether they read these trends first or last, but they read them differently. Trends go with Timing. Walmart and Amazon are considered rivals but operate under similar circumstances.

They both sell a lot of consumer goods, have strong supply chains and warehouses.

However, the difference is that one of them dominates retail and the other online. Amazon, founded 32 years later to Walmart, is well ahead in online business. Walmart’s online business is a fraction of Amazon’s e-commerce business as well as its total sales.

The story would have been different if Walmart’s timing to go online had been correct.

Team— “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence wins championships.”—Michael Jordan. You can’t win on your own; you need a capable team to do the feat. A competent, energetic, and motivated team helps to achieve the goal.

Startups often receive funding based on the idea, the execution (prototype), and the quality of the team. The founding team and the Market Creator are both critical to the startup process.

They depend on each other for their very existence. Once the startup grows big, it is the responsibility of the Market Creator to recognize the team.

The founding team members face the most difficult challenges. It could be the space or wage constraints, an ill-defined role, or multitasking.

Market Creators credit their success to the founding team members who have been through thick and thin. They may thank their genes, skillset, stars, spouses, teachers, bosses, neighbors, and circumstances, but they also recognize the team that has taken them through.

Execute—How an idea will become a big reality depends on the level of execution. Impeccable execution can even make sense of a bad idea, but a lousy execution won’t take a great idea anywhere.

Whether it is designing the process, allocating resources, or carrying an audit, Market Creators get involved in every minute detail of any relevance.

They believe in execution to the core and do not shy away from carrying out the work themselves. It helps them to learn the tricks of the game that no corner office can emulate.

Market Creation—It is the art of breaking the existing market or creating a new vacuum in the market for your product or service. Market Creators believe in leading the market place; therefore, they create markets that fit their value proposition.