Update 1/15/12: Need more proof this works?
Continuing with the meta-idea series, here’s another meta-idea for a business: building a me-too product! That’s a tongue-in-cheek way of saying it, but rest-assured, I’m not exactly joking.
Look around, find a business that is profitable, the larger the company the better (because they slower they will be in reacting to startups). Clearly they’ve figured out a business model that works.
When starting a business 100% from scratch, you have to figure out what’s the right product to build. You have to figure out who your customers are. You have to figure out how to reach them, how to monetize, how to grow, fine-tune the few words that will fit on a Google text ad to make sure people will actually click on it and convert (fine-tuning costs money!)
Well, the existing business has already figured all of that out. You could just watch them from the outset and learn. And iterate your way to being even better. You know Mint.com invested a lot in their UI/UX/design. You could check them out and learn a thing or two that you could use for yourself, without having to invest the same amount of money.
Google wasn’t the first search engine, iPod wasn’t the first MP3 player, and Facebook was not the first social-networking site. Is that enough proof?
Why do fast followers win more often? It’s pretty simple. First Movers tend to launch without really fully understanding customer problems or the product features that solve those problems. They guess at their business model and then do premature, loud and aggressive Public Relations hype and early company launches and quickly burn through their cash.. This is a great strategy if there’s a bubble occuring in your market or you are going to bet it all on flipping your company for a sale. Otherwise the jury is in. There’s no advantage.
- Why Pioneers Have Arrows In Their Backs, Steve Blank
An even better explanation by the guru Steve Blank: http://steveblank.com/2010/10/04/why-pioneers-are-the-ones-with-the-arrows-in-their-backs/ and over at A Smart Bear by Jason Cohen: http://blog.asmartbear.com/first-competitive-advantage.html
Tags: meta-idea