First or Best

October 18, 2005 | 18 Comments

It seems like every day there’s a new social networking site, a new to-do list application, a new aggregator or a new way of “owning an idea” on the Web. Frankly it’s getting to be too much.

When it comes to building a product or brand you want to be:

The first.
The best.
Different.

The isn’t much room for anything else. Sure, you can be second, or maybe third, and still do alright, but if you’re entering a market that is flooded with competition, you better damn well be the best or no one is going to pay you much attention.

You might as well not even do average.

The problem with many of these Web services is that they have to face a service that is not only first into the market, they’ve managed to keep improving so that they are the best as well. Amazon is a good example of this.

Sometimes simply being first can be all you need. Look at MySpace. They’re so big now that it may be impossible to beat them, even if you are much better. Either way, to get any notice you’ve got to differentiate somehow.

Can’t be first? Can’t be best? Be different!

I see far too many entrants into flooded markets that have no differentiators at all and I have to wonder why bother. You need to find an niche, or an angle, that hasn’t been thought of and be the first to do that. Bring something new to the table—and own that— that will get you noticed.

There is simply too much coming too fast to be bothered with every little thing that comes by. The Web is a big place and there is room for many successes, but it’s not that big and it’s important you slice it up to your benefit.

Make the long tail work for you by being the only one to do things a certain way. Provide a better experience, or an interesting philosophy when it comes to a service. Do something unique, impress with service or personality. Improve upon a core aspect of what your offering.

Change the idea.

Sometimes something small can make all the difference. Focusing on one particular aspect of a problem can help. That’s what Flickr did. They nailed a piece of the pie and did it so well it made them really stand out. They were different in that they had a unique take on sharing photos and they did it very well. The idea wasn’t new and they weren’t the first, so they changed the idea.

There is a ton of room for innovation and creative solutions on the Web. If you’re feeling like you’re doing something that’s already been done, or you too similar to your competition, it might be time to step back and readdress what you’re trying to do. It might be a good to change the idea.

Filed under: Web General
Keyword Tags: branding web business

Comments

1. Bear Gautschq said:

Number one pet peeve of ‘entrepreneurs’. The idea that if they aren’t first they shouldn’t even bother doing it.

Through the history of business the first person to market isn’t the one that makes the money (always). It is the person with the innovative ideas to turn the product into a more profitable venture.

Google, Dell, Windows, Henry Bleepin’ Ford. None were first all were successful because of innovations that made them better/ more profitable.

Sorry for the rant.

PS: This goes for people with ‘million dollar ideas’ that are afraid to share even with friends or possible business partners. If it can’t stand up to telling Bob over a beer it isn’t that good to begin with.

Posted on October 18, 2005 02:13 PM | #

2. Keith said:

Bear – I would totally agree. First is important, but not as important as best. You mention innovation and I think that is key. If the first idea is already done well, turn up a new idea.

Posted on October 18, 2005 02:27 PM | #

3. Ryan Oswald said:

Sounds like this has touched a nerve. I’m curious if there are any specific apps you may be referring to, examples? Some that come to mind for me would be 37signals apps which personally I think are pretty cool and progressive. I understand what your talking about though, there are a lot of products in ALL markets that tend to tread the same path. Although, a lot of small projects start out similar and as they mature begin to ‘seperate the men from the boys’ establishing their ground in a particular market or inventing a new market. I tend to think its healthy.

If this ning thing (rhyme not intended) takes off, the worms will be flodding out the can.

Posted on October 18, 2005 03:43 PM | #

4. Nathan Smith said:

I agree totally. Nothing irks me more than seeing companies fall over themselves to re-create some spin-off of an already successful idea. For example - Everytime there’s a Disney movie released, scanned the shelves of Wal-Mart, and you will find off-brand kids videos bearing either a similar name or box branding. My personal soap-box are web-design agencies that prey on churches, but hash out table and font-tag laden designs.

Posted on October 18, 2005 04:10 PM | #

5. Christian Watson said:

A perfect example of this is all the “to-do list” web applications that are now available - enough already! Same with RSS aggregators.

I guess the follow-on question is, “when does a market become saturated?” For example, how many online to-do list apps is really too much? 10, 20, 100? I’m not sure what the answer is, but perhaps more can be supported than we might at first assume.

Posted on October 18, 2005 04:32 PM | #

6. Praetorian said:

It happens because people will buy it.

Posted on October 18, 2005 07:02 PM | #

7. MikeDeH said:

Keith, have you read any of Al Ries books? If anyone has read anything by Al Ries (Positioning, Focus, Etc.) being first is important. That said if one is new to the market, that company has to find their niche within the broader field. Think cars, Volvo is safety, Benz is prestige and so on. Like you said bringing something new to the table and owning it is key.

Posted on October 18, 2005 09:31 PM | #

8. Keith said:

MikeDeH – Yeah I’ve read 22 Laws (it was ok) and Postitioning. Not bad, but I’ve got to say I had quite a few questions about both after I read them.

Posted on October 18, 2005 09:35 PM | #

9. MikeDeH said:

I’m reading Focus right now and he talks alot about this subject. Anyway great article. Thanks

Posted on October 18, 2005 09:37 PM | #

10. Robert Nyman said:

Isn’t Microsoft’s approach to be best, and that being first doesn’t matter as much? However, if they succeed or not is a totally different question…

Then I wonder about the definition for best. Is it the product that makes the most money, the best technically etc? Or all of it in one?

Posted on October 19, 2005 12:15 AM | #

11. Faruk Ates said:

Useful read, I think a lot of people that plan on starting up a new project (/business/whatever) should read this so that they can prepare well. There’s key points that you make, here. Also, Flickr’s example was the one I constantly had on my mind from the start, hehe :-)

Apple is also a very good example. They think different. It works for them. Very well.

Btw, you seem to either have missed a word or have a word too many in your last sentence. ;)

Posted on October 19, 2005 02:17 AM | #

12. Jens Meiert said:

Huh, this reminds me on a very interesting article on Positioning (derived from Al Ries and Jack Trout). Better to reference this now than to swamp your blog ;)

Posted on October 19, 2005 02:20 AM | #

13. John Richardson said:

Great post Keith. I think one of the questions you need to ask is “what is your definition of success?”
For many people being first, biggest, or best may not be the goal at all. Maybe success is a “sustainable” small business based on a popular idea. They just differentiate it enough that people want to be a part of it. Your keyword was “different” and that makes it all worthwhile.

I have three things that inspire me to look at things creatively. They are…

1. Inspiration Thru Information: The power of knowledge
2. Inspiration Thru Innovation: The creative power of modification
3. Inspiration Thru Imagination: The influence of great ideas

With these three things you can take almost any existing product or idea and differentiate it.

Thanks for the inspiration on this site. This truly is a “brand” of it’s own. I think I’ll put an asterisk by it!

Posted on October 19, 2005 06:24 AM | #

14. Bear Gautsch said:

“Inspiration Thru Innovation: The creative power of modification”

John, that’s a great phrase. Be warned, I’m stealing it.

Posted on October 19, 2005 06:53 AM | #

15. Keith said:

John – Thanks for the kind words. And, yes, I agree that success must be defined first. I guess I was assuming a pretty general definition of success: money, popularity, acclaim, etc.

I’ll also agree with Bear; Great phrases!

Posted on October 19, 2005 09:25 AM | #

16. Drew Decker said:

Keith,

Excellent write-up!! I totally agree with you. When you were explaining that you have to be first, BETTER, or different.. “better” stood out.

True example being the RSS applications. Bloglines is an awesome application, but when Google released their Reader application, I tried it, and it’s more user friendly and AJAXy (great for fast loading). Theres more features I like about it, but that’s not my point.

My point is, better is really true. I switched.

Another example is IE and FireFox. But then again, that’s just common sense :)

Posted on October 19, 2005 05:44 PM | #

17. Shirazi said:

But there is always is a room for a few more bests, firsts. No?

Posted on October 20, 2005 10:51 PM | #

18. trovster said:

Better only works when there isn’t a community built up. As soon as a site becomes established, people aren’t going to change for a few more features. They’ve already got their friends and history with that site, and that’s where it’ll stay. Migrating information like that can be done, but it’s not easy, quick nor practical. And everyone in the community would have to do it to make it work!

Posted on October 21, 2005 06:10 AM | #