Duplicating What Works for Others

Often the safest way to start a new business is to find someone already running a profitable business and duplicate what they are doing.

Some might call this approach unethical or even “stealing” from another business.  I don’t agree.

Here’s what you need to know and understand.

There is a difference between “modeling success” and outright stealing.

Make no mistake … there is no way to justify copying everything about a business including products, sales copy, web site, marketing, communications, etc.  Such a blatant “cloning” is termed plagiarism and infringement of someone’s copyrighted content.  It is never legal or ethical to use others’ creative and unique work and claim it as your own.

Although this very practice happens all the time on the Internet with duplicated or stolen and copied products and services, you should never consider stooping to such a blatant attempt to shortcut your way to success.  Serious legal trouble might find you!

What I am suggesting is that you put on your thinking cap, get creative, and look at the solutions that successful businesses in other niches come up with to solve the problems they find in that niche.  By modeling their success, you are simply following a roadmap, or bread crumb trail, if you will, to your own success without harming the original business you’re modeling.

Then think of ways to adapt or duplicate successful business solutions to satisfy the customer needs and wants in your own niche. You may have a slightly different view of “stealing” than I do, but I don’t consider adapting an idea for use in a non-competing niche as “stealing.”

I wouldn’t copy another company’s products or services outright. I would just attempt to come up with ways to look at their approaches to solutions in light of the unique issues and problems that are critical to your own niche and customers.  Can you use these proven-to-work ideas and strategies in your own business in some unique way?  Can you follow the path to success in your own business by modeling what has worked in other sectors?

Often, all you need is a little eye opening to the possibilities of what might be in order to adapt someone else’s solution to your own unique circumstances and situation.

Here’s another thought that may help you come up with some ideas for products in your own niche: look at the products that are currently available to your customers from other competing vendors and ask yourself, “How can I improve or make this product better, easier to use, how can I make it last longer, provide more benefits, or become cheaper for the consumer, etc, etc.”  You are looking for ways to “build a better mousetrap,” as the saying goes.  Often, it will be just one particular angle or strategy that distinguishes your brand from others and makes all the difference to your success.

In summary, my feeling is that you are not stealing another entrepreneur’s business idea or product. You are simply taking his original success another step further and making it a better solution for your customers. It is done in business everyday – and in fact, this type of building upon other people’s products is what leads to innovation, increased product quality and utility, and greater choice for the consumer. Don’t copy what your competitor has done, but develop your own unique idea or concept that gives greater benefit to the buyer.

Put yourself in the shoes of your customer. Would you pay for the product of, or change allegiance to a company, that gave you more value and benefit for the money?  Most certainly.

If you look at your business from the customer’s viewpoint, you will be in a position to be critical about other companies providing products that are better than yours.

To your online business success,

Steve Browne

www.SteveBrowneDirect.com