Everyone loves powerful stories of underdogs and overcomers who succeeded against the odds.
The dawn of the digital age was full of them, but how do small startups take on today’s monopolies, especially in tech?
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Flex, Move Fast & Outmaneuver
Flexibility is a built-in advantage for smaller, more nimble companies because it is far more difficult to pivot in a swollen ship. Large corporations are a collection of many moving parts, which makes it extremely difficult for them to implement multiple changes quickly. On top of that, many are so invested in operating in set ways that they dismiss or become blind to better methods and strategies.
“In order to establish ourselves in this monopolistic industry, we had to take some risks and founded our own manufacturing lab in the U.S.,” Michael Campbell, founder and CEO of Hip Optical, an up-and-coming prescription glasses brand, told Entrepreneur.
He went on to say that "this textbook make-or-buy decision reduced our costs by roughly 50 percent, allowing us to offer high-quality prescription eyewear at much lower prices than many of our competitors.“
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Solve Problems That Monopolies Don’t - Or Can’t
When an industry is dominated by a small handful of companies, most of the competition follows their lead and provides similar products, services and solutions. By taking a step back to ask and observe what customers really want, smaller firms can cut through the noise and establish themselves as the people’s choice, even in a bloated field.
For example, the early days of web browsing featured a group of competitors before Google rose to utter dominance. Yet no one company does everything well. Even now, new options like DuckDuckGo are gaining popularity with consumers because they offer more privacy and encrypted, trackless solutions.
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Go Vanguard: Operate On the Cutting Edge
If you are looking to stand out, dipping your toes where others won’t might be the way to go. Today’s business world is constantly being presented with new technologies and opportunities to do new things in new ways. By incorporating or even just aligning with some of them, you can position your company in new spaces early and establish your name on the cutting edge — long before the “big boys” can catch up to you.
Virtual reality and blockchain technology are two such innovation vehicles, says Entrepreneur, but more are emerging every day.
