Ask HN: After 6 months working on a project, I found a company doing the same

#1

Post by diegoloop » Sun, Feb 07, 2016, 8:13 AM UTC

I've been working on a new product for the last 6 months. During some of my latest research I found out that there is a company doing the exact same thing I wanted to do... This is disappointing but it's also silly to think that I am the only one with this idea. The question is if i should throw everything away, have a beer and move on...or continue. This is a hard decision, how would you handle it?

Re: Ask HN: After 6 months working on a project, I found a company doing the same

#2

Post by philiphodgen » Sun, Feb 07, 2016, 8:26 AM UTC

Impossible to tell because I don't know anything about you, your product, or the other company.

But . . .

There are only two people on the planet doing this. You and that other company.

How cool is that? Do you think there is room in the world for two people doing an identical thing? (Probably!)

Do you think there is room in the world for two people doing slightly different things? (Which in fact is the reality -- your product is not the same as the other company's product. Guaranteed. And if it is, you can change it so they are dissimilar).

Have a coffee and carry on.

Re: Ask HN: After 6 months working on a project, I found a company doing the same

#3

Post by diegoloop » Sun, Feb 07, 2016, 8:38 AM UTC

philiphodgen wrote: post #2

Impossible to tell because I don't know anything about you, your product, or the other company. But . . . There are only two people on the planet doing this. You and that other company. How cool is that? Do you think there is room in the world for two people doing an identical thing? (Probably!) Do you think there is room in the world for two people doing slightly different things? (Which in fact is the reality -- yo…

Thanks for your words Philiphodgen! It really helped me a lot! I guess you are right, most of the biggest products we have, they existed some how already before

Re: Ask HN: After 6 months working on a project, I found a company doing the same

#4

Post by brudgers » Sun, Feb 07, 2016, 5:32 PM UTC

Talk to your customers.

Are they switching?

If so, why?

Talking to your customers matters more than competition.

Good luck.

Re: Ask HN: After 6 months working on a project, I found a company doing the same

#5

Post by diegoloop » Sun, Feb 07, 2016, 9:21 PM UTC

brudgers wrote: post #4

Talk to your customers. Are they switching? If so, why? Talking to your customers matters more than competition. Good luck.

The problem is that the product is not already launched. So there are no customers

Re: Ask HN: After 6 months working on a project, I found a company doing the same

#6

Post by brudgers » Sun, Feb 07, 2016, 9:37 PM UTC

diegoloop wrote: post #5

brudgers wrote: post #4

Talk to your customers. Are they switching? If so, why? Talking to your customers matters more than competition. Good luck.

The problem is that the product is not already launched. So there are no customers

That's a much bigger hurdle than competition.