Niche Innovations - Guitar Hero

For every starving entrepreneur staying on the pulse of other successful small companies, here is some food for thought:

RedOctane, a small online game rental company in 1999, agreed to publish a new kind of game from developer Harmonix, who had no huge successes prior. Superior execution of an older idea -- a marriage of music, air guitar and video game visuals led to a three game franchise and acquisition by Activision.

One good idea, clever execution and some hard work and deal making behind the scenes has led to 6+ million games sold, even though they retail for double the price of competing titles (guitar included)

Happy Holidays!

Keys To Success: Competence

One of things I hope to accomplish on this blog are to capture the elusive concept of "success" in various KPIs.

What exactly is competence? That mystical quality that makes some people get things done, and others just not. That lets some people hit the ground running and face unseen issues with poise, and some just to get flustered.

I frequently hear my clients tell me that my productivity is unbelievable and that my analytics are incomprehensible -- and this is not a bragging point to me but a case study: I don't think of myself as any more capable or intelligent than any other human being, but I deliver what I promise.

I propose that competence is tied to two things: the ability to take calculated risks, and the fortitude to do what is needed to complete a task in the face of unseen obstacles.

Can you invest capital that you don't yet know you have, or build skills that you don't know how to build and then execute with them? I think that's all it takes.

What do you think?

Part 1: The Concept

What comes first, the concept or the market? Maybe I'm old school, or just naive, but I firmly believe that a solid concept will lead to a more successful business in the long run than a small target market to whom you try to backfit a product or idea.

The other side of that is that if you can conceive a product or service that you yourself would buy, there is a very good chance that you belong to a market that needs it too.

I want my business to be both easily targetable to a variety of niches, so that it is straightforward to get off the ground, but broad enough to appeal to a mass market when it has matured.

Since I believe strongly in living well, eating healthy, being active, and dressing stylishly, I would like my brand to embody those ideals as well.

Since I value premium goods with strong design, comprehensive support and broad warranties, i would like to offer the same in any product I provide.

My question to you is: What do you like most about the companies you buy from?