| I don't think Blue Ocean strategy is foremost about convincing people that only you have the right solution, but rather that you are an 'alternative' solution. You might not be the "best" solution for everyone, but you can certainly focus on being the best solution for a smaller subset of unmet needs. As I understand it, Blue Ocean is primarily about differentiating yourself in the marketplace in such a way that you get to own your own space. Lock-in may be a consequence of it, but I think that's still missing the point. Take Apple or Nintendo, for instance. Dell or HP competing with Apple is like XBox or Playstation competing with Nintendo. Nintendo has defined its own space, which it basically owns almost completely. Neither Sony or MS are likely to be very successful at cracking the Nintendo market because of the unique mindshare and approach to gaming that Nintendo has. Most of the time, Sony and MS will be busier competing for the same customers in that space over there. Apple has done something similar. Competition with Apple tends to be indirect, more often than not. How does Apple continue to grow despite the lousy economic outlook for other computer manufacturers? How was it able to insulate itself? "Apple" is essentially its own marketplace with its own ecosystem. Another corollary might be the idea of "opinionated software". If you have an opinion on how something could be done better, well then you may have just identified your target market - your own "Blue Ocean" - and these are going to be the people who have the same unmet needs as you and wish for the same things you do. "Man, I sure like [insert product or service here], but what would really make it sweet is..." That's when you know you're onto something. In any market, you can find gaps and cracks where products and services don't overlap, and possibly never will for a variety of reasons. Those gaps represent opportunities. Most of these may not turn out to be billion-dollar opportunities, but they are probably profitable enough to satisfy most of our ambitions. No? |