3 Other unknown people are building your product idea…

Your idea is not unique, you just don’t know it yet.

So you just had this great idea of this big problem that you want to solve and it has a great market opportunity. So you sketch it out. You write the product requirements docs. You wire frame it. You start building it. You launch it… the next day/week/month you find 2-3 other very similar product ideas online. Uh Oh!

The good news here is while the ideas on the surface might seem similar, the reality is that your new found competitors are most likely looking at the space differently than you. They might be focusing on a different pain point. Their product might be better or worse. This is normally only the tip of the iceberg and your product roadmaps might be totally different. This is the great unknown.

Now it is up to you to execute upon your vision and differentiate and add value for your users. Look for the gaps and holes to run through.

Another piece of good news here is being the first to try to solve a problem is not always the best place to be. You can learn from your competition. But don’t try to follow them… do YOUR thing. Be inspired by things that are outside of your space that can translate experiences into your product.

This post was inspired by Google launching a somewhat competitive product to my current start-up. This initially knocks the wind out of your sails (for about 15 minutes). My co founder and I discussed it and tried to understand what they are trying to do. I went for a walk to clear my head and get thinking about what it all means.

The net result is that having Google go into your space does a few things. It validates your idea & it validates the market opportunity. It makes you look closely at what they are doing and helps you crystallize how you move forward.

So don’t be reactionary; but always be looking, listening, learning and leaning forward. It is a mindset. And remember that other people are watching what you are doing.