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32 Comments

Copying someone idea is it good..?

What you think about it...
I got an idea and I can implement it in better way is it good for me to go with the idea or people will laugh on me for stealing someone other idea...

  1. 14

    There were a million website builders before I launched https://versoly.com/

    I wouldn't worry about copying an idea.

    Can you market to that audience? I see a ton of "great" IH products but they don't have a clue how to get it in front of people (myself included)

    1. 3

      For a product that has reached 5000 customers, I would say you're doing a very good job at reaching audiences.

  2. 8

    You can also say that Google stole the idea of AltaVista and Yahoo, but made it better. Did anybody laugh on them?

    However, to make the existing users switch to your project, it should be not just better, but, like, 10x better. Nobody would dare to start another search engine in 2020 because they think they can do better than Google.

    Idea is nothing in 99% cases. Execution is everything.

    1. 1

      I don't know man, DuckDuckGo is doing pretty well.

      1. 6

        Who uses duckduckgo is doing it because of politics against google, not because it is a better product, because it is not.

        1. 3

          I think that's a misunderstanding of what a product is. The product isn't just the colour scheme and the UX. It's more than that – it's where the data is sent, it's how they use your data.

          For you, privacy doesn't matter – so for you Google is a better product.
          For many, privacy is massively important, so for them DuckDuckGo is the better product.

          1. 2

            Google encroaching on privacy is overrated. It amazes me when people say they want privacy and then go on to post their resume on Lindkein actively promote their thoughts, ideas on blogs, twitter etc for the whole world to see. I have zero issues with google tracking my data. I use their email, maps, youtube search hundreds of times a week in exchange for that. Excellent value IMO! As for privacy, I have no social media nor does my names appear on google search. I am pretty happy with my privacy.

          2. 2

            I know many people who use duckduckgo (myself included) Problem is that often I cannot find the result I want from duckduckgo and have to go back to google. Imagine if it was a paying product, no way I would use duckduckgo. The choice for me is just political (I put privacy in the political area)

            1. 2

              Right, so it sounds like they're both good products? Google returns better results. DuckDuckGo offers the privacy.

              A challenger product doesn't have to beat the incumbent in every single aspect of the product. It just has to be better in sufficient categories (whether that's UI/privacy/pricing) to gain market share.

      2. 2

        Fair point, although they started in 2008, not in 2020 😏. And DuckDackGo is, in fact, more than 10x better when it comes to privacy. But they're not better at all if you look at the quality of results.

        Of course, the trick is to find your niche for which your "better way" matters the most.

    2. 1

      Got your point ⚡

  3. 6

    As long as you not implementing 1 to 1 it's not copying. Most of the business ideas already exists. If you can do something better and you think people will love this go for it.

  4. 5

    Copy the insights, not the product.
    This is the point I get from Amy Hoy during her Indie Hacker Interview.

    Basically, it means that you want to find what the user's need, and meet the need.

  5. 3

    Big one: Google launched when Yahoo was already there.

    Mid one: Tawk.to launched when Zendesk was already there.

    A good one: Our lead gen SaaS launched in a saturated market too.

    1. 1

      Nice one. I would increase the size of the logo on web and add the hamburger menu on mobile ;)

      1. 1

        Thanks Max. We intentionally left out the hamburger to make it more of a "1-click" navigation, we're trying to beautify that part though.

  6. 3

    If you compete with them, good for you. If you copy them, shame on you. Pretty simple really.

  7. 3

    As long as it not a clone and you are adding better features or better user experience, I think you’re alright.
    I’m currently building a social media solution based off what frustrates me in my day job, however there are hundreds of thousands of tools out there, they all post to social channels.... mines just better ;-)

  8. 2

    Copying a competitor is, in a way, entering a market that has already been validated but that may have customers that deliver more value to the customer than your product.

    A nice idea that is worth evaluating, is to build the product as a Micro-SaaS and choose a specific niche or feature that your competitor has and build your product based on that.

    In this case you have two options:

    • Be 5x cheaper.
    • Be 5x better.

    I don't believe this is wrong, there will always be competitors. You don't always use the product that hits the market, right? You choose the product that has the best cost-benefit.

  9. 2

    It's a good philosophy of life to not worry about other people, especially those who don't have the courage to enter the arena of entrepreneurship.

    Since most products are rarely how they started out, don't assume that what you'll start is what you'll end up with. You might pivot later on something more relevant.

    Just start already! :)

  10. 2

    I wouldn't go down the path of stealing (copying) from others--the world doesn't need the same, it needs better. But of course, you can always be Inspired by others--take what you see, and come up with your own value proposition.

  11. 2

    It will be like a TED talk but neither AirBnB nor Google were the first. They are leaders because of how they implemented it :)

    Hence, i also don't understand the people who are posting about their project got copied. That doesn't matter.

    The thing matter is completely copying something from top to bottom. Legally still there is no problem but i find it morally disturbing. But even then original idea won't be effected because people will see.

    TLDR: If you believe you have a better solution for some problem, go for it. If you want to copy another project and hope that you will steal some of their market share, don't bother. They will crush you with their enthusiasm.

  12. 2

    Everything is copying something else, more or less. As they say, "There's nothing new under the sun." The question is, what is something unique or better you'll bring to the table?

    If your copy is a poor imitation of the original, yeah, you won't get anywhere because the success of the original isn't in the idea but the execution of the idea. You run the risk of copying the "wrong parts" and missing the success factors that the original actually leveraged.

    Otherwise - yeah plenty of "latecomers" do great. Google is the example most people point to: they weren't the first in search but at the time, they were by and far the best.

    1. 1

      As you wisely said "my execution is stronger, more original, better informed".

      I also believe you don't need to be the first, but the best, or bring something different. It's very difficult, being the first in the market, to find customers, make them understand what your product does, etc.

      Congrats for your milestone by the way (Found my first copycat)

  13. 1

    I think it's completely alright to copy if you know how to make a product better.
    This is actually my way of doing things for now, searching for existing but poorly implemented products to create a better version for it.

    Pros of this approach:

    • you can be sure that there is already demand for it
    • you spend less time to come up with an idea
    • you can start executing faster and validate your approach

    Actually I collected more than 5,000 apps from the play store to do just that, search through the potential ideas. I selected a few from this list to make it in the near future.

    I hope it's alright if I put my product here (which I created for myself, then put it on sale for others): https://www.producthunt.com/posts/validated-ideas

    (All of the 5,000 apps are downloaded more than 100k times with fairly bad reviews, so there is room to grow)

  14. 1

    When building your first product, I'd say it is fine to copy. Chances are your first product isn't going to be a hit anyway.

    Even if you copy page for page. It will teach you about making products, thinking about positioning and differentiation strategies. Its better than sitting in your room too paralyzed to do anything because you don't want to copy.

    when you make your second product it will be easier for you to differentiate as now you'll have more experience and practice.

  15. 1

    The idea is not the most important part, so don't worry about who is stealing whose.
    After awhile, you'll know that understanding the problem and the users are more important. If you can steal an idea and still get full understanding of problem+user, you can win.

  16. 1

    This is one of the best ways to generate a startup idea. You know for sure that there is a market out there which is already consuming the idea. So there is no of market validation. That being said, you invest a lot of time in understanding the existing product, interview existing users to understand all the problems they are facing. Then you should build something which is much more superior that you can outreach to the existing market.

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