------------------------------------------------------------------- Is A Market Ever Oversaturated? © 2003 by Richard Adams radams@merchantaccountforum.com -------------------------------------------------------------------

I got asked an interesting question last week.

A guy new to Internet emailed me wanting to know if there was such a thing as too much competition within a market.

It took me a little while to think about such an excellent question before I replied.

Here's what I told him...

The dot-com bubble (and subsequent burst) fuelled stories of "first mover advantage". The myth went that companies like Yahoo that got in early, established themselves within marketplace and built strong brand awareness were untouchable. The "800-pound gorillas" in nerd-speak.

But didn't Google launch well after Yahoo, in an already crowded market?

Infact, according to some search engine industry experts, Google now serves up around a third of all searches online. Not only have Google outcompeted Yahoo, they even let Yahoo use their search results.

How did they manage this?

They took a model that was already working, then improved on it.

I don't think there can ever be too much competition in a market for a new face. My experience is that no matter how busy field or how hot competition - there's always space for someone else in niche.

But there's one proviso.

Whatever anyone else is doing - you need to do it better. Do it faster, cheaper, more honestly, with a wider range. Or, of course, more relevant search results.

If you do it *really* well, your competition may even end up like failed search engines Excite or Infoseek - extinct.

Remember that being small can be distinct advantage for you. It enables you to move "under radar" of larger competitors, using better marketing and customer service.

There's always an angle someone hasn't thought about. Using search engine optimization for less popular keywords has allowed me to take my merchant account site from strength to strength.

1. I could care less. You can write it for $500 if you want to.

This from convenience-store clerk when I was checking to see if limit for writing a personal check was still $50.

2. That's okay, most of people who shop here are really stupid.

This when I was shopping in a plant nursery and said I couldn’t figure out how to stake a tomato on contraption I'd bought from them.

3. I wouldn’t get that if I were you. It’s way over-priced. Get it online at www.buy_it_from_anyone_but_us.com.

With help like that, you don't need competition.

4. Don't buy it. They've fixed it so it can't be pirated.