The Fast Follower Approach

One of the concepts I don’t hear entrepreneurs talk about enough is the fast follower approach. The general idea behind the fast follower approach is to build a product in a semi-established, fast growing market. All too often entrepreneurs feel their idea must be completely unique for it to be a good one. Some characteristics of the fast follower approach include:

• Companies doing well in the market but no clear leaders
• Market large enough to support multiple winners
• Incumbents that are tied to a legacy platform and can no longer keep up with the modern web app expectations
• Method to improve an aspect of the market resulting in an x-factor (7-10x improvement)

I’m a fan of the fast follower approach and believe entrepreneurs should look for markets and opportunities that meet the characteristics listed above.