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3 Comments

Worth creating a me-too product?

I've been thinking about creating a me-too product in an emerging space with just two competitors. But I'm not sure if it will be worth my time because there's not much I can do in terms of feature differentiation or marketing. Would you have any kind of advice for me?

  1. 3

    The advice: it depends.

    If you think you have some strong advantage over competition.

    That advantage can be:

    • you're much better product designer and programmer so you can build a much better product
    • your cost is much lower (e.g. you live in much cheaper country) in which case you can compete on price
    • you have a much better marketing channels in which case you can have a similar product at similar prices but outcompete them on marketing

    But since you said you don't have such advantages, then you probably shouldn't be doing it.

  2. 2

    Some competition can be a good thing, since it validates the demand. However, some type of differentiation is highly recommended. You mentioned you can't do any features differentiation, but think of it this way:

    • Can you focus on certain geographical location? (See Uber vs Ola)
    • Can you specialize for some specific demographic / subculture / community? (See Reddit vs IndieHackers)
    • Can you provide a similar solution through a different channel? (See Match.com vs Tinder)
    • Can you provide a premium (or budget) solution? (See Upwork vs Toptal)
    • Can you provide a different pricing model? (See Eventbrite vs Ticket Tailor)
    1. 1

      wow this is good. thanks so much!