Ask HN: What to do when you realize your startup is a clone?
4 comments
Well if you didn't know this at the start then 1, you didn't do your homework and 2, you came up with it independently. Which means other will too.
I wouldn't let it stop you, just because someone had an idea first doesn't mean you can't do it better.
I wouldn't let it stop you, just because someone had an idea first doesn't mean you can't do it better.
Keep working. Almost every startup is a clone. Almost every mega-successful large company (Coca-Cola, for example) was a clone -- we just haven't heard of the original product that they cloned.
Figure out what makes users of the other product unhappy and fix it for them.
Figure out what makes users of the other product unhappy and fix it for them.
Definitely not.
Find your niche and solve the problem the other company isn't solving or solving well.
Over time your product will differentiate where your customers tell you to go.
Find your niche and solve the problem the other company isn't solving or solving well.
Over time your product will differentiate where your customers tell you to go.
Be unique. Be different in your approach. Learn about your competition -- become a customer and see what they are doing wrong. Is it the product? Is it customer service? Is it the UI/UX? There is ALWAYS room for improvement. Where they fail.. is where you can win. Everyone loves alternatives. I do it all the time: I take a look at something and think: Can I create a similar clone of this? How can this be improved? How can I create this very same product, offer it for cheaper, yet still be able to profit off of it?
Is that mean of me? Because that is how capitalism (and globalism) works. DuckDuckGo and Bing exist because Google is not perfect. Microsoft and Apple. Yahoo and Google. YouTube has Vimeo. Microsoft Word and OpenOffice. Twilio and Plivo. Internet Explorer and Maxthon and Chrome and Firefox. Xfinity and DirecTV and Dish. T-Mobile and Verizon and AT&T and Sprint.
The list is endless for "clones" and "alternatives".
Most developers make this common mistake when they think about creating something: "I want to make the next Facebook."
Horrible statement. Worst idea ever. You have already diminished your potential by even thinking that. This is not to say that you shouldn't aim for something like Facebook, but don't try to become the next Facebook when it already has a history of being strong and persevering, especially when one of the very top companies, Google, went against them and lost. That is a huge lesson for all developers to learn and practice caution. Facebook has its place in history and it will continue for many years. You will end up wasting years of your life trying to be like Facebook. Google should have approached Google Plus differently and instead of trying to be the clone, have provided a more unique experience for using Google Plus. Facebook is good at a lot of things, but they aren't good at everything. Focus on those things that Facebook really can't be good at... or any company for that matter.
I am currently working on several web applications where there are dozens of those same web platforms that already exist, and I have to remind myself of why I continue: Because I am doing it differently. Because I am targeting a different audience. Because I am different. For example, my competition mainly focuses on small and large businesses. I prefer to focus on individuals, startups, and small businesses. They might offer a sass while I might offer a paygo system. There are so many things you can do that make you stand out and be different from your competition.
If I were to acquire some big businesses or anyone looking for alternatives and leaving my competition, than I'm glad I was there as that alternative company they could turn to because they were upset with their normal service. If they leave me, than I know I must improve my services.
Never let anyone stop you from doing you. Have confidence in yourself and your work. Your personality is what helps make you unique and different and it is what makes people want to try your product or use you as an alternative. The one rule that most companies forget once they become big: Everyone wants to be treated as a human being, not a number. The Zappos company can attest to that.
Is that mean of me? Because that is how capitalism (and globalism) works. DuckDuckGo and Bing exist because Google is not perfect. Microsoft and Apple. Yahoo and Google. YouTube has Vimeo. Microsoft Word and OpenOffice. Twilio and Plivo. Internet Explorer and Maxthon and Chrome and Firefox. Xfinity and DirecTV and Dish. T-Mobile and Verizon and AT&T and Sprint.
The list is endless for "clones" and "alternatives".
Most developers make this common mistake when they think about creating something: "I want to make the next Facebook."
Horrible statement. Worst idea ever. You have already diminished your potential by even thinking that. This is not to say that you shouldn't aim for something like Facebook, but don't try to become the next Facebook when it already has a history of being strong and persevering, especially when one of the very top companies, Google, went against them and lost. That is a huge lesson for all developers to learn and practice caution. Facebook has its place in history and it will continue for many years. You will end up wasting years of your life trying to be like Facebook. Google should have approached Google Plus differently and instead of trying to be the clone, have provided a more unique experience for using Google Plus. Facebook is good at a lot of things, but they aren't good at everything. Focus on those things that Facebook really can't be good at... or any company for that matter.
I am currently working on several web applications where there are dozens of those same web platforms that already exist, and I have to remind myself of why I continue: Because I am doing it differently. Because I am targeting a different audience. Because I am different. For example, my competition mainly focuses on small and large businesses. I prefer to focus on individuals, startups, and small businesses. They might offer a sass while I might offer a paygo system. There are so many things you can do that make you stand out and be different from your competition.
If I were to acquire some big businesses or anyone looking for alternatives and leaving my competition, than I'm glad I was there as that alternative company they could turn to because they were upset with their normal service. If they leave me, than I know I must improve my services.
Never let anyone stop you from doing you. Have confidence in yourself and your work. Your personality is what helps make you unique and different and it is what makes people want to try your product or use you as an alternative. The one rule that most companies forget once they become big: Everyone wants to be treated as a human being, not a number. The Zappos company can attest to that.
Would you let that stop you? Would you do anything differently knowing that?