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.
David Cummings on Startups 
That’s what I’m doing now. It’s actually a good feeling that there is someone in the space already. If NOBODY is doing your idea at all then it’s probably not a good one. 🙂
Even companies in my space that are only 3 years old were created during a different era. Kinda crazy, actually.
Thanks Andrew for the comment. I agree that competition is a good thing and three years makes a huge difference in technology.