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You don't need a unique product or service to be profitable



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You don't need a unique product or service to be profitable

When you start working online you might think you need to be unique or have something that innovates your entire industry.  Well, that's not the case at all because there have been plenty of companies that built their wealth off of products and services that have been around for many years.  Take SEO for example, how many backlinking, link building, on page optimization, and off page optimization services do you think you can find here on SEOclerks?  Now, do you think only one of them is making money and the rest are not?  This is one of the best examples, mainly because it's such a saturated industry, but if you are able to stick out you can get your piece of the pie You don

If you have something unique, that's great, but what you should really be focusing on is making your company run as smoothly as possible so people want to keep coming back and purchasing from you.  There will always be competition, so if you were to have the best reputation among them, you'll likely stand out as the industry leader and get more sales than your competition.

There are plenty of copycats making thousands a day
No matter the industry, there will always be copycats who will try and make a quick buck off of someone else's success.  It's not actually a bad thing, it's sort of flattering because the original company was so successful that people wanted to be like them, so they copied what they did to make some money as well.

Copycats can actually make thousands a day selling something similar to what the original company had success with.  If you're able to brand your business to a point where you're seen as an authority within your industry and customers will begin to gravitate towards you. 

There will always be competition
No matter what you're doing, what niche you're in, or how much you're making there will always be competition.  The one thing you need to do is be better than the rest of them in order to bring in the sales they are trying to acquire.  If you want to be the best, you need to beat the best, so you'll need to do everything you can to boost your business in a positive way and bring in traffic.

To overcome your competition you will need to focus on your on-page optimization as well as your off page optimization in order to climb the rankings in the SERPs to get seen on page 1 or 2.  As you're doing all of your optimization, you'll need to also focus on branding in order to be seen as the place to go for a product or service, even if you're the copycat trying to make a quick buck off of someone else's system.

Worried?  Apply for a patent
If you have something great and you don't want anyone to copy it, you should start to apply for a patent from day 1 since it could take a few months to go through successfully.  A patent essentially protects your product from being copied, and if it is copied you can sue the person selling it, then you'll make money from your own sales as well as what they copycat will have to pay in fees for not doing their research prior to selling something just like yours that has a patent You don

When you get the patent, you will be protected from copycats who aren't working with you on a licensing deal, which is something that allows that company come to you and produce something for them with their logos on it.  You can also work with the royalty system and get a commission on every sale the copycat makes, which isn't a bad deal at all.

Talk with your copycats
If you want to be nice about it, even if you have a patent, you can get in contact with the copycats and see if they'll stop selling your product for their own profits.  You can tell them you have a patent and they're breaking a patent law, which should be enough to stop them in their tracks.  If they decide to keep selling your products, you can send in your lawyer to gut their company and take whatever profits they made from selling your services.


In conclusion
Copycats will be out there, you can't do much about them, or you could actually be the copycat yourself and make money from other peoples products lol.  If you do want to be a copycat, be sure to not break any patent laws and do your research first.  If you are the one who is getting copied, be nice at first and send a lawyer in after nothing gets resolved.


Remember to follow me!
https://www.seoclerks.com/user/TommyCarey


Thanks!

Tommy Carey

Comments

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Zelmontero
Definitely! there will always be a competition in the market. You really do not need to make a very unique and extraordinary product or service to be successful. Doing a little innovation to a product or service will make a good advantage to you but the price should still be the same. I also think that quality and consistency of the product and service is more important. It will make the customer to choose or liked your product more.



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anchoreztin
Even if your product is a "cliche", if you have that extra edge, that extra flair, your business will definitely click. Business should also have that right timing so even if your product is not unique if you are able to be the first to establish it or the first to make it stable, then there is a high chance for you thrive.



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Kakashi2020
I agree, why not check out your competitors, copy their good points, integrate it with yours and innovate on it. Again you don't have to think of something unique, it's best to look for those who are successful and just copy them.



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superlicca
You are right. By checking what your competitors sell, you can get an idea of what to sell that will give you high profits. Make sure that you won't copy it 100%. Just make your competitors as an inspiration and apply your own brand.



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fishbate
There's always a thing called innovation where you tweak a particular product making it a bit different from the original. It's been that way for many years and i think it's a good way to stand out against competitors.



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jeffreyjose48
This is very true. Thanks for this article. This gives me hope. I thought all the while that you really need to have unique products or services in order to be profitable. This makes life easier.

In a world full of competitions, you always think you really have to be best. Everyone wants to be in the first place. I think its our culture. Just like in education, parents really say to their children to study hard so that you can earn an honor. But in real life those who graduated without honors are the ones who get successful in life.



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Corzhens
As long as there are consumers of the product I don’t think you will run out of buyers. The key is the proper promotion of your product so that the potential buyers can be reached. But for new products that are not common in the market I guess you have to write good description particularly with the purpose so that readers of your advertisement will get a complete idea of what your product is all about at a glance.



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overcast
I think having the competitors service copied or the product copied works too. The only issue is can we do something better than our competitors? i think that would answer most of the questions. If we can do that then surely we can stay in profit. And we can handle most of the work in that case. I have learned from the experience that service needs to be unique and needs to have proper delivery as well.



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aeon
I agree with that service needs to be unique. If you have the same product as your competitor, you have to find ways how to serve it to your customer in very unique ways. Like one of the streets in our country which is popular because of so many restaurants, although they serve the same foods, the other resto become popular because of their singing cook and dancing water/waitress. They apply the uniqueness literally.



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fishbate
Well, the only problem when copying a product is if it is patented. If one copy a product that is patented the copier is liable for criminal offense. This will be the start of the end of the business.



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Youngshark
I have heard of many people talkimg about the best marketing strategies being the true winners. I have come to believe that such is true through the observance of several companies profitability and their excellent methods of wooing customers even better than other entities who supposedly have better products.



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Zelmontero
Yes, if you are offering the same product as your competitor your only edge will be your marketing strategy. Good promotion will be the most effective way for your product to be successful. Discounts or sale may attract more customer. People this day like to buy discounted and buy one take one products.



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Youngshark
People will readily take in what they are used to presented in a better and promotional manner than they would something which is totally unique. The complications I have realized may be too complex and as such many may opt to just keep up with their old stuff.



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cmoneyspinner
I agree with you about that copycat thing. I remembered trying a website one time. I found really easy. I type in a generic phrase "How to do ____ free tool". The website popped right up in the search results. Because I used it for so long I sort of observed as the site's online reputation grew because it was a great product! Eventually, another company bought the site. Like I said, it was really good.

But then I noticed when I did another generic search that a similar name for a different site popped up in the results and the site pretty much offered the same product. The name of the site was different from the original site (or rather the site that I had always used) by "one letter".

I'm not pointing a finger of accusation. But since the site with the missing letter showed up a few years later, it sort of looks like they used a name that was extremely close to the name of the other successful site so that they could show up in the search results too. Maybe that's not what it was, but that's what it looked like! Not pointing fingers, just saying that to the naked eye it looks like a copycat move. You don



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fishbate
The good thing about website's is tractability and has sufficient amount of protection like licences, agreements and rights. Now, if there's someone trying to copy a site it's very easy to investigate and file a complaint. The only problem in the digital world is apprehension and serving the law.



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Chinet23
Most people including myself are inclined to believe that you have to be unique in order to stand out and be successful. This may be the reason why they are stalling or can't even get started because they're waiting for a brilliant idea to start their business with. When the truth is you just have to start off with a business product or service which are already proven to be successful and start your own and already out in the market. There's a slim chance that you can really monopolize. There will always be competition and hence the rise of copycats. The article gave us great points on how to deal with them depending on your options and to safeguard the business as well.



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Youngshark
I like that you stated the point about competitors who arise in every corner. Even when one thinks that their idea is brilliant and so unique months or years into the market people will emerge copying your ideas. This means that all businesses must keep evolving to keep being appealing to customers and avoid being copied completely.



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anchoreztin
I love the positivity in this article and comment section. I am in the business sector also and my products are not unique but my business is thriving. I prefer offering the basic commodities than luxury items or products and services that falls under the "want" catergory. My products are not unique but I am doing well because I really dont have to persuade people my product because they need it in their daily lives. But aside from that, I thrive because my edge to the other is quality service.



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aeon
Unique products might get unique customers only, and means a few customers compared to the general products which most of the consumer are looking for. I agree with that, the needs products probably more consumers than to wants products.



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Chinet23
I absolutely agree that unique products can only lure unique customers hence you will only have a limited market. There's also greater risk to introduce unique products as compared to those general products which are tested to and proven to be profitable.



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aeon
Yeah and all you have to do is to have a great marketing plan to advertise your product. Selling general products means a lot of competence, and I think the unique idea is also applicable here, unique idea in selling general products.



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Youngshark
I love the concept and approach that you have taken in that business. Since people already want and need your products then they would rarely have to check whether they are unique so much that such a factor is enough to market your business.



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Chinet23
Selling basic necessities would be like selling hotcakes. On the other hand, selling luxury items would require much effort in marketing because you have to convince the person that he or she needs it. And I also agree that even this is the case you should also couple it with quality service. There's still competition in this type of products.



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fishbate
That's great, i think what helps your product is the quality of service you have. It is always a plus when you have an extra attention on service quality specially when your products is common to competitors. In business it doesn't end on the products alone. This also includes shipping, costumer support and services.



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Corzhens
Life on earth is all about competition. If you will ignore your competitors then you are in for a surprise that your business will be in trouble sooner or later. I don't have an experience with patent but I guess it is very important in this modern times if you have something that you need to protect. One doctor had patented her formula of herbal treatment that is now being used by copycats. At least the doctor is protected from suits.



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Martinsx1
It's just the nature of man to always be in competition even when there are so many options that are yet to be exhausted but because they have seen that a particular product is in trend at the moment, they would all queue up dragging it until its done and out before they seek for another option to liquidate. Anyways in such case of stiff competition, the only way to stay ahead is to make sure that your own product are so unique that it will prove very difficult for anyone to copy it successfully.



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aeon
Yeah, and this competition makes our life more exciting even in our business. At night our minds keep running what the best thing to do, how to improve the business, how to become competitive, how to become on top, but we can't do anything about the copycat, just pray for the karma to come. LOL.



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Alymae
True. You really need to apply patent law to your product or risk your product being copied. It is best to secure it since almost everything today are being copied. Contents, products especially medicines. Example of such products being copied are herbal medicines. Here in my place there is a well-known product that is said to be a copy of another well-known product. Until now, the case are still in court.



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Martinsx1
The truth is that there will always be the useless and lazy people who can't really seat down to think and be creative enough to develop their own fresh business ideas and turn it into a product of their own but will have all the time in the world to copy another's products and sell behind them, thereby making profits off of them. Well, just like you suggested, getting a patent law is the only way to stopping them.



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aeon
This is the best thing to do, to legalize your product and have rights to sue your competitor. Sometimes this is the source of stress in a business, we pushing our mind to think about the unique product or business, while the other is just waiting for something to copy.



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ballyhara
Nowadays, everybody can literally copy everything. You can find items that really look and feel like originals, and those didn't even make it to some qualifying filter. One of the most dangerous results of that, are copycat medicines. Here, we have so much corruption, so you can find a copy for everything, and medicines are the main goal. So sorry to see, how many people get sick, just by consuming cheaper copies that never got approved or checked.



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Martinsx1
Actually from my experience and observations with how the market works, everything or every product sells to its customers or those that needs it. Even if they are of low quality, there are still customers that cannot afford the high quality expensive ones which makes them to purchase the low quality cheaper ones. So, in generalization of what I'm trying to say is that every product sells no matter its nature.



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aeon
I notice this one on my self before, I keep buying the low-quality light in my apartment and I replace that light twice a month. I used to do this because it's cheaper and the seller is in everywhere along the street. But when I bought the high quality and yeah, a little more expensive, but I'm still using it for almost 4 months now. So, people buy things because it's cheaper and it's everywhere and easy to buy, this is the other factor maybe, there's no need to go to the mall, just walk along the street.



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jaymish2
I agree. The bible says that there is nothing new under the sun.There is actually nothing new in almost anything you sell. Nearly anything you sell or market is a copy cat of something. It may not be an exact copy it maybe be slightly modified. That's why it has never been easier to start a business as it is at the present moment. You can start a business anywhere in just minutes, however with this ease also comes competition which is healthy.



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aeon
Yeah, Just thinking about the marketing strategy to sell the same product will give a lot of stress. Being a good competitor and climb on the top needs a lot of time and patience. This is the reason why some people think about the unique product to sell.



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rlpzbeermoney
It's kind of sad but in the Philippines, there is a business where they add their own branding to the cheap unbranded China products they buy and resell it as theirs. Believe it or not, people still buy from this vendor even if it's more commonly known as the brand that sells one time use products (Yes their products break after a couple of uses) Why do people entertain their products? The cheap price. For the price of a quality product, you could buy multiple single use cheap products that you can throw away once you use it. The moral of the story? Everything has a place in the market.



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aeon
You're right, these products are cheap and most of them are disposables. after you use it, just throw it. Aside from the price, these products are everywhere, you can buy it along the streets and no need time to go to the mall. They're easy to find and very convenient to buy.



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rlpzbeermoney
This can also be used as a business model online. There are services online where you can pay someone to do a specific job that you require. All you need is to find a client and find out their needs. You buy a service online for example for $5. You then sell it for $25. It's called flipping and it's very prevalent right now.



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aeon
I think this profitable job and at the same time you don't need to release your money for nothing, your capital will definitely comeback in more than 100% interest, and the funny thing you just doing this as the middle man. Very interesting.



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Chinet23
You do have a point. Some cheap and low-quality products still sell even though people are well aware of it. We have been stressing about providing quality products and services but it's true that everything has a place in the market which serves particular target customers including this type of products. But what I know, without quality these businesses will not thrive that long.



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rlpzbeermoney
No. The brand I'm was talking about in my first post? They're one of the biggest brand chains in the Philippines now and still going strong. They have branches everywhere. I guess quality doesn't really matter when you're earning big bucks off ripping the rip offs *China products* It's sad but it's true.



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edencaga
Population is becoming bigger so there's no possibilities that your product or a product is unique or different from others because a lot of folks here in our world are building a business. Sometimes, we can say that it's unique because there are just few of them who have a product with the same idea. It is just normal to have competition, the only difference is that how will deal with them and what strategies should you do for you to excel from that competition?



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aeon
Yeah, the sellers should expect that kind of scenario, they should have great marketing plan and strategies how to climb on top by selling the same product. You're right, it's really hard to sell the unique product right now.



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edencaga
Yeah you are right. It's really hard to pursue business especially if its not really your passion and you don't have knowledge on how to run with some competitors. SO better if you have some people who are smart enough to handle your business and what you can only do is to support the finance needed in a company. So for me you don't have to be unique for you to excel in a business, it may be a good advantage but you can't really say that you would be as great as others even if your unique because it is depends on how and what strategies you will put on your business.



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aeon
That's is the reason why some business become not successful, owners only have money to start but don't know how to run it. You're right, hire people to run and take care of your business is the best way, and aside from that, there're online consultant right now that they can ask if they needed.



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edencaga
Yeah you are right. You can still handle your own business but make sure you have a consultant or expert in marketing strategies. Sometimes business man or woman just buy a franchise from famous brand names since it has already a name in business industry. That's the Technic of other business owners, to invest their money in franchising. They don't need new and original, what they need is to earn more practically.



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aeon
That's right, because more people now afraid to gamble their capital with unknown name or products even it has potential. They will choose the name which already popular and best seller.



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edencaga
Yes, Just like in McDonalds. You can see Mc Donalds around the world but have different owners. They only used the name since Mc Donalds is already a popular fastfood and the menu prices are cheaper compared to other fastfoods. It's more advantage but the thing here is its not coming from you originally but its more practical and easiest way than the other.



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aeon
Yeah, better to ride in the popularity while still in demand to the market. This is great business strategy.



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Kakashi2020
I do agree that even becoming a copycat can earn you a lot of money. An example was a Facebook page I made based on a certain group site which has a lot of members, it attracted a lot of the groups members and eventually I sold the page to the owner/admin of the group and coached him on how to monetize it.



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aeon
I agree with that. In business, it doesn't matter if unique or not. If you know some unique business well, I think that's better, but if not, it's alright to have similar to others. It's about the competition, you should just know how to climb on the top and how to become competitive.



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superlicca
I thought that having a unique product or service will make you stand out among your competitors. But after reading your article, I realized that focusing on trending products is more useful. Getting copied can be flattering but it is not good in terms of business. It is amazing to know that Patent exists. This is a great element in protecting not just your own creation but the success of your business.



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stbrians
Copycats are everywhere and they make it big than the genuine ones. We must thrive in business and do all we can to succeed. I think that is the point. We do not need unique items to make it. Point taken.



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Barida
Yeah, pushing better to succeed is a better option than trying to get them arrested when we have not gotten an kind of backup for those that copied from them on a daily stuff as regards the business.



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Barida
Ensuring that you work better to make unique products is one of the ways that you can get to keep things working better with the product or service that you are offering at that particular time as well.



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vinaya
How true. You do not need a unique product and services in order to become a successful entrepreneur. What actually you need is market and promote your products and services in a unique way. Unless you are a great mind and invented a great thing, you will have to work on existing things but in a creative way. Here lies the importance of branding your business. You have to create your own brand even though the product inside the brand is not unique.



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NesMarcos
No ifs and buts that competition among businesses is always there. Competition makes business quality better. I strongly agree with 'There are plenty of copycats making thousands a day.' I believe that it does not need you to become a copycat. Having a unique product that is useful, with the right branding, promotion, service and response to customers, your products will definitely go into places.



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aeon
You're right. Creating your own unique product and service is still the best to start the business and to become on top, And this what the copycat is waiting for, after you push your mind to think about the unique business, they are just waiting for something to copy.



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blackmist
Uniqueness are one good characteristics of a product to be profitable. Having products same with others are sometimes difficult to sell because you have many competition unless you are a will known seller. Good quality and in demand products have advantage because customers want something that can last a long time.



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Barida
This is something that I always look at as well as we can get to see that for things to work pretty fine, you are going to make your products to be different and unique. This is not something that you can achieve in a one night as there is an opportunity to work things out at the end as well.



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ajahcuizon
I think the best way for you to sell products that are copy cats is by developing them into a better product. You can just use them as your basis for your product. On that way, they could not be considered as copy cat products. I have already seen so many copy cat products and we call them as "imitation" since it is not the original one. But some products that I saw is just the same look and apperance but different quality and brand but it gave a new name on the product so it could be called as copy cat product but with their own brand right? Then that could be a great way to start up your line by using other products as your inspiration eventhough there are a lot of competitors. As they say, if you can't beat them, join them!



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amelia88
Often, copying other products strives people to make improvements or go one better than the original, so I think it can be a helpful thing for innovation and creativity, too! Copying isn't always a bad thing as long as you're not infringing on any legal rights - so be sure to double check that side of things!



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esteban123
Yes I agree on it, it is just like innovating an existing products to make it more attractive and reliable compare to the previous one. It is not really bad to copy since that particular method was been already used for a long time already as long you will out something twist on it to make it far from the original.



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Tronia
Yep, you are correct! Often times copycats can make more money than the person that originally started it because they never got a patent or protected their product.

You really just need to know how to work the market and how to appeal to the consumers. You don't need to invent something brand new to make money.



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esteban123
For me creating a unique product and services is always an advantage and a key to success because it is what customer are looking for. It is not only good if you have the expertise and the strategies since it must be balance between them. Many successful people are known for their unique product and services which many people find it satisfying.



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jayjaydimson
I agree with that, Becuase you don't need to be unique to have a profit, You just need to make a good advertisement, By that, you will make a lot of profit because the customer can easily attract on the ads that you made for your product or services that you are offering.



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mitan143
Well, most people today follow what is the most trending now a days. In that way, they will easily get customers and they can promote it online using social media sites. I believe unique services or products existed rarely and what most business do to the products is they make some innovations on it so it won't be totally the same as the others. It is still good to do business that is already existed as long as you do it in a right way though it would also be great if you come up with new ideas or new products.



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beerthooyah
Marketing is part of the business system that is important part in doing a business. Even if our business or product has a copycat, great execution of marketing concepts could create a huge advantage over the copycats. There are just many benefits of marketing that could be used to counter the effects of competition.



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jayjaydimson
You need to, because if you have a unique product and services, your business will boom.



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NerdIndeed
This one is a must-read, thank you Sir Tommy, I learned a lot again. I might go the direction of being the copycat first to at least be familiar with the market. Once it gets going, I might launch original product ideas and see it for myself. I used the word 'might' because honestly, I am still researching regarding how to be a good entrepreneur, and I don't want to jump in the field without having ample knowledge about it. Thanks!



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theresajane
It is all in the attitude. If you set your mind to what you're doing and if you display an attitude that can be trusted by buyers or clients, you'll be able to earn more. To be profitable means you have worked hard in your field.



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jpk0007
I think that if you have anything unique to offer to the clients or something that has never been done before then you must patent it immediately. If you don't patent your innovation and introduce it in the market then it is very likely that it will be cloned and copycats will appear immediately in the market. People will pounce on your unique idea or innovation and make big profits out of it and you will regret not patenting it before introducing it.



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mhingnhormz
You don't need a unique product or service to be profitable: It is what every businessman needed. Their unique and signature product which attract costumers. Having unique product make one person remember your business and always buying it. Businessman should always make sure that it has good quality and next the quantity of it.



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