If you've ever pitched your idea to someone, you'd have experienced this. The eyes veer off to the side, there might be a small pursing of the lips closing round a 'hmmm' or two. You can almost see little gear-thingies or neurons or whatever coming to life as they ponder the question "what does this remind me of? what is this like?".
This desire to seek similarities, it's a very human trait. It seems to help in our understanding, and we use it a lot when describing things to others. "Like" is probably one of most commonly used prepositions - and not just by pre-teen girls. 'Lost' is like 'X-Files' and 'Survivor' mashed-up (or not). A 'dosa' is like an Indian crepe. Shutterfly is like Snapfish. Google is like Yahoo - wait, no it isn't, it's like MicroSoft, no it isn't, or is it like (this could go on for a while).
This is not a bad thing, after all it helps promote understanding. But there is a side effect. When you try to judge a business idea by what it is 'like', your view of it is informed by the connection. This may actually have the unlooked for effect of causing you to misunderstand the idea, which in turn could cause you to dismiss the idea as one that's been done already.
As an entrepreneur, you have to hold on to some simple truths. One, if you have an idea that has a chance of working, most likely someone has already done something that is 'like' it. And that could be a good thing - it won't be your blood on the proverbial edge. Two, even if there's an established player, you may very well be on to something better with your approach. Case in point, the afore-mentioned Google, a late entrant to the search engine space which already had its share of 800-lb primates. Three, seek the differentiation in the niches served. There are very few truly universal solutions. With 6 billion plus people on earth, that's not hard to believe. Four, if you find competition in your niche, if in fact "it's been done already", you still have one more option - get to know your customers, really really well.
I'm going through this almost on a daily basis, and I'm not only learning to tell a better story, I'm getting to be a better listener when a fellow entrepreneur tells his. It helps to remember that 'similar' doesn't mean 'same' and there is a market full of Goldilocks out there looking for just the right fit.
2 comments:
Well said! This is one of the biggest demons that the "wannabe" entrepreneurs have to grapple with - "my idea is not original". Good points on 'differentiation' being the key! Another thing that I like about you is your understanding of the human nature and the marvel at how observant you are - kudos and keep it up.
On a side note - what prompted you to come out of the blogger closet?
Dear anonymous commenter,
Thanks for feedback, appreciate it!
As to your question, until recently I wasn't sure I'd be able to keep this up and didn't care to put my name on a 'me too' blog that only lasted a few weeks (it may be nuts, but I feel that blogging involves taking on some responsibility). Now that I'm a lot more confident this isn't a just a passing fancy, I decided it was time to 'out' myself (and also make it easier for my friends to find it).
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