Competition & Class | Hacker News Reader

Competition & Class

restrictionisexpression.com

27 pointsaaronwhite6 comments

He comes across as very whiny. The tactics he mentions seem pretty valid to me (and if he's mad, they must be working to some degree).

He should be happy Twitter haven't decided to roll those features into the platform (yet) and put him out of business altogether.

(I think I'm the he?) Happy to debate the merit of the tactics (though metrics & past experience suggest to me they are ineffective). I took issue with "small guy vs small guy". I have no large pie worth stealing, and neither will a competitor if they focus their efforts on my piece.

Also re: Twitter. I'd be thrilled if/when they roll it into the platform. I built Proxlet to solve a very real problem, not to build an empire.

I definitely disagree here. There is always competition, no doubt about that. Doing the exact same thing like someone else is not an issue either. But the way I perceive the web to be is that actively engaging in the behaviour described is not something which creates an environment one want to do business in. There are certain unwritten rules I feel.

The first 4 points mentioned seem extremely valid:

* The product was eerily similar

* The developer had been using Proxlet for months

* Proxlet users were actively being poached on Twitter

* AdWords had been taken out against Proxlet

Only "Coordinated down-vote activity against Proxlet on Quora" could be considered unethical and even that isn't THAT bad. It also seems like Proxlet may not have proof that this is being executed by the competitor. Honestly, if I saw a self promotional Proxlet answer on Quora I would down vote it.

I generally agree. Ads targeting competition are fine, depending on the copy.

The only thing that has calmed me in similar situations is knowing that competition that does things without class doesn't do well. If your marketing is around a very small competitor instead of the usual alternative (nothing), then you're incompetent. If your product design is based on copying the competition, then you're incompetent.

All's fair in love and war, and there's no point getting bent out of shape about it.

That said, spending time & money on these sorts of tactics is almost always less efficient than spending time & money improving your product. Every hour you spend improving Proxlet while your competitor's fussing with AdWords and downvoting on Quora is an hour you're winning.

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