In our last post we talked about how startups today are actually building companies that are similar to existing businesses. Some claim to be different and better while others are targeted towards a niche. But what happens when a giant, like Google, plays the “Me-Too” game itself? Well, if you haven’t heard about the latest product from Google, it’s a direct competitor to the likes of Box and DropBox called Google Drive. Guess even the big guys like to play the game.
While this is interesting to see, especially as many established companies are now beginning to either launch products or buy patents from others, we must question whether it’s the right choice or not. How big and diverse can a company get before it’s almost indistinguishable? Google and Microsoft are just a few examples of how diverse companies can get beyond their initial product (search and operating system respectively).
While this may seem like a coincidence, Microsoft itself upgraded its cloud based storage application, called SkyDrive, earlier this week. Who is next? Yahoo? AOL? While these companies are large and can, for the most part, afford to build products and market test them with large amounts of financing, startups today must still solve a “real problem”. VCs and angel investors have said it again and again that if you don’t solve a problem that someone is willing to pay you to solve, what is the purpose of your business then?
Personal hint of the INISMO founders: The old-fashioned game ‘David vs. Goliath’ is still alive. As well as David have found a weak point at Goliath, entrepreneurs need to find at least one weakness of their rival’s product or service. To become successful, you need to focus on the product’s or service’s core features and just improve the weakness. Point out the improved weakness as a strength, as a part of your core features and the indispensability of that strength to acquire satisfied customer.
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