So the WebExpo is over and there are several things that came to my mind, that are worth writing about. I prefer to keep posts short and focused, so I’ll write more of them.
It’s a big world out there, isn’t it? I’m just a small boy from the middle of the nowhere and the most successful entrepreneur I know is the baker on the corner. Wait a minute, there are lot of Ferraris sold here every year, so it must be possible to make good money also here. And I am not talking only about politicians.
Startup competition made me thinking about these things. More precisely first two finalists: NejRemeslnici.cz (czech version of TechCrunch50 winner RedBeacon) and PixMac.com (stock photos and images). From their names down to the target markets, these startups are complete opposites.
Open the PixMac and it’s clear - it is global. Their potential market is huge and as presenter pointed out, you’ll reach just few percents of it and you are fine. There always will be people buying photos and images, just get some good Google search position and don’t screw something badly and you’ll be fine (I know it’s not that easy, but it sounds cool).
On the other hand NejRemeslnici need to get basically monopoly on their market. It is a small market, but the problem is, that unlike PixMac, NejRemeslnici need to get to the high percentage. They need to become authority on this market. There is hardly place for two. And the biggest challenge for them is to get people on board. To get viral. To persuade. But once they will pass some point, they should be safe, it will be hard for anybody to enter their territory. And they help to make world better, right?
There I come to our startup idea. We think globally. We think big. But damn, we also have to become authority in the target market. But we hopefully don’t need to get monopoly. So we sort of have the same ‘advantage’ as PixMac - many potential customers to get money from. But we share ‘disadvantage’ of the NejRemeslnici. It’s going to be hard to get people on. Correction - it’s going to be difficult to get paying people on. But that’s for another post.
First I thought I was going to vote for PixMac, but then I changed my mind and voted for NejRemeslnici (and they won, congrats!) It’s not that I think PixMac guys don’t deserve that. I just feel that they are going to succeed anyway. NejRemeslnici could take bigger advantage from winning WebExpo, as this is local conference and they are local company. Also, the first price, ads at local news site is going to be more useful to them. Both of you guys, good luck!
