I have a confession to make. Despite all the fuss about RockMelt and Blekko recently, I haven’t spent much time on either service. Both seem interesting: RockMelt is a “social browser” that integrates your social media activity, while Blekko is a new search engine that takes a different approach than Google, including the ability to “tag” results.
The problem is a combination of not having enough time to check out RockMelt and Blekko and, as important, the challenge in changing hard-coded behaviour. When doing a search, the default is Google; when using a Web browser, it’s Chrome or Firefox. These are tools that are an engrained part of my Web toolbox, which makes it difficult to add new or different tools – even tools that could be more interesting or different.
This is likely something most Web users face. Once you start using particular services or software, it can be difficult to switch to something new. We are creatures of habit, and that extends to our use of the Web.
This makes it an significant challenge for new players to establish a foothold, even a modest one. Not only does a new service have to be significantly better and/or different, its benefits and features need to be clearly articulated, and it has to get the story distributed and told to as many people as possible to gain any kind of traction. Even then, people who learn about a new service may decide to ignore it or check it out later.
The question is what can a new service do to break into a market with a dominant player? Here are some thoughts:
1. It needs to be superior, different or provide a better user experience. I would argue a service that is easier and more intuitive to use has more of a chance to succeed than a new service that tries to compete by having more bells and whistles.
2. It needs to fill a need that has been solved properly or in an elegant way. Perhaps the best example is DropBox. While there have been lots of online storage options, DropBox has captured many users by offering a service that provides needed the functionality in a user-friendly way. The free offer of 2GB of storage provides an attractive option for many people, along with DropBox’s innovative and easy-to-use file-sharing technology.
3. The messaging has to be crystal clear. A new service must quickly articulate what it does and the benefits it offers, otherwise time-strapped consumers will move on. The message needs to be dead simple so people immediately say “Yes, I get it”. A good example is Freshbooks, whose Web site proclaims it is “The painless way to track time and invoice clients”. I’m also a big fan of a well-produced 60-to-90-second corporate video that tell people what a service does and why someone should care. These videos can be expensive to make but they are well worth the investment because they can be used for a variety of purposes.
4. The service needs to reach a wide audience based on the idea only a small percentage will pick up on it. This means a company has to craft stories that will resonate with the needs of particular target audiences. As well, opinion leaders have to be brought into the mix to take advantage of their influence and large audiences.
5. There has to be as little “grit” as possible. If the home page makes it difficult to understand what a company does, it will turn off a potential user. The same goes for a registration process that is too complex or time-consuming, an “About Us” page that isn’t short, sweet and clear about the benefits for the user, or a bad FAQ. Anything that could cause a potential user to walk away has to be eliminated.
The bottom line is it can be an enormous challenge being the new kid on the block. It’s not enough to be better or different. That said, it is not an impossible task to establish a foothold by taking the right approach. With some luck and enough people spreading the word, new services have a shot of making it even in the shadow of a large and dominant player.
