Why aren’t we building something that has never existed before?

When you create something that never existed before, you allow customers to do something they couldn’t do before.

This maxim might sound simplistic, obvious and naive. But it’s a powerful product strategy that, when executed properly, can earn billions of dollars, birth entire industries and change culture forever.

Let’s use three examples that have become household names in the past few decades.

Netflix built the world’s first digital video streaming service, which allowed users to watch what they wanted, when they wanted, on any device, without commercials or leaving home.

Amazon built the world’s first portable reader, which allowed customers to wirelessly download books in less than a minute on a high resolution electronic display that looks and reads like real paper.

Apple introduced the world’s first music player that could pack up to one thousand high quality songs, which allowed customers to carry their entire song collection in their pocket and listen to it wherever they go.

What are you building that has never existed before? And how does your new product allow customers to do something they couldn’t do before?

To answer those questions, you have to march forward into a better future, not look in the rear view mirror. Unlike my old consulting colleague, who spent at least fifty percent of his waking hours obsessing over what each of his competitors were doing in the marketplace.

He would do exhaustive analyses on their marketing materials, product lunches and public relations efforts, pretending it counted as real work.

But didn’t. It wasn’t research, it was hiding. The guy barely shipped anything. Or if he did, it was a copycat product at best.

It brought my blood to a high boil. Made me want to grab him by his lapel and scream, dude, screw the competition, go make something. Go launch a product that has never existed before.

Reddit’s founder wrote about this in his book about how entrepreneurs don’t need permission:

It doesn’t behoove us to be looking back at competitors because we find ourselves lulled into replicating and reacting instead of innovating and moving forward.

Imagine what kinds of value you could create in the world if you executed with that mindset. Sure, it’s much riskier. And it has a higher probability of customers looking at your new product and saying, um, what the hell is this thing?

But remember, at the turn of the last century, none of us knew what video streaming, portable readers and digital music players were either.

And yet, today we wonder how we ever lived without them.

Lesson learned, we don’t grow as creators by looking in the rear view mirror. Innovation requires forward motion.

Creating things that are different, not better. That’s the only way to ratchet up humanity to the next level.

How does your new product allow customers to do something they couldn’t do before?