Brand Umbrella Diversification
Turn a core brand into an umbrella, then reach the audience through many diversified channels.
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 3
- Confidence
- 80%
Fulmer describes the Try Guys' business model as building a core brand and then reaching the audience in many diversified ways — YouTube videos, a bestselling book, a 27-city international live tour, and podcasts. The pivotal move was leaving BuzzFeed to gain autonomy and ownership, buying the IP outright so they fully control it, because there's a ceiling on what you can get as an employee. From there the core four-person cast becomes an umbrella brand that launches new sub-brands, like the wives' 'You Can Sit With Us' podcast and Fulmer's own 'Baby Steps.' Growth runs on two tracks: deepening reach with existing fans and creating shows (like their chess-and-poker '4 vs 1' series) designed to expand into entirely new audiences.
Origin
The model crystallized when the Try Guys left BuzzFeed in 2018 and purchased the brand outright, driven by a desire for the autonomy and ownership they couldn't get as employees.
Core principles
- 01Develop a core brand, then reach the audience through diversified channels rather than one.
- 02Owning your IP gives you autonomy and ownership that employment can't.
- 03A core cast brand can become an umbrella that spawns new sub-brands.
- 04Growth comes from both deepening current audience monetization and expanding into new audiences.
How to run it
- 1
Own the core brand and IP
Secure autonomy and ownership over your work, buying out the IP if needed, since there's a ceiling on what you can build as an employee.
- 2
Diversify how you reach the audience
Connect with the same audience through many channels — videos, a book, live tours, podcasts — so the brand isn't dependent on one platform.
Pro tip Fulmer knows roughly 25 million unique people tap in every 90 days, a target far larger than the 7 million subscriber count.
- 3
Extend the umbrella and expand audiences
Use the core brand as an umbrella to launch new sub-brands, and design some shows specifically to reach new audiences beyond your known niche.
Pro tip The '4 vs 1' chess-and-poker series deliberately targets audiences who wouldn't expect the Try Guys' usual 'guys trying lady things' content.
In the wild
The Try Guys left BuzzFeed in 2018 and negotiated to purchase their brand and back catalog outright, gaining full control and brand continuity for fans.
→ They now own and control the brand completely, preserving cast and show continuity while operating as an independent company.
Under the Try Guys umbrella, the wives launched the 'You Can Sit With Us' podcast and Fulmer launched the 'Baby Steps' parenting podcast with his wife.
→ New sub-brands developed and distributed around the core brand, extending reach into new formats and audiences.
Common mistakes
Staying an employee of your own brand
Building something valuable without owning the IP caps your upside and leaves autonomy in someone else's hands.
Is it for you?
Best for
Established creators ready to convert an audience into a multi-channel, owned media business.
Not ideal for
Early creators who haven't yet built a core brand or audience to diversify from.
From the transcript
“our business model generally is to develop brands and then to reach the audience in a bunch of diversified ways”
“it really came down to autonomy and ownership”
“we want to use the try guys as not just a brand of a core cast of four people but as an umbrella of a…”
From the episode
Ned Fulmer: How to Go Viral on YouTube
Ned Fulmer